Thought I'd post this since so many of us are not sure what is the customary way of tipping the day of... I thought this might help!
GRATUITIES As always, gratuities are not mandatory nor expected, but well appreciated. These are some guidelines for tipping. Keep in mind that these are very general guidelines; One can tip higher or lower according to his or her own discretion regarding budget, price of service, size of service, and quality of service.
BANDS Please use your own discretion and remember that the gratuity will be split equally among all members of the band. A general guideline is 10% or $25 - $50 per man.
DISC JOCKEY It is customary to tip $50 - $100 per man- (DJ, MC, etc.)
LIMOUSINES Usually, a minimum gratuity is included in the price. If you feel your service has gone above and beyond, a further tip is much appreciated.
PHOTOGRAPHERS/VIDEOGRAPHERS It is usually customary to tip $50 -$100 per photographer and per videographer, and $25 - $50 per assistant or helper.
FLOWERS While many consider this gratuity to be strictly up to the client, a good rule of thumb lies somewhere between 5% and 10%.
HAIR & MAKE-UP Generally, 15% and higher is customary.
shelzyp
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My thing is aren't you supposed to do a great job!! If I only did people's tax returns half a$$ed, they won't come back the next year. I do a good job becaseut hat is what I get paid for and what is expected of me. When I am paying thousands of dollars for something, I shouldn't have to add $100 for a tip for doing a good job.
OctBride03
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Do you tip before their services are complete??? I don't think I will be doing that.... do your work, then you get your extra cash...
mmm
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Thanks Niecey! Tipping the photographer at the end of the day never made sense to me - what is the proofs are horrid. But I guess there is nothing to do about that.
Niecey
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Oct-we gave all tips at the end of the night or after the service was performed. My brother had a huge issue with his band and took money from the tip. So keep those tip envelopes unsealed!!! you never know. (you also may want to add..we felt bad afterwards and thought we should have added more to our the staff at our reception hall and our maitre d)
Betty
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Nicey, how did you tip the waitstaff at the hall? Individually? I used to work for a caterer and they DO NOT see the 18%
mv1003
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The tipping doesn't bother me- the fact that they expect a certain amount does! JAYSUS ! I mean, We're already paying out of our own pockets for the wedding, what if we could only afford to tip $20 to the dj- should he be insulted? NO, he should be f*ck*ng happy that I even thought to give him anything on top of the outrageous price I'm already paying for Long Island! The photographer.... hello, I can't even see my results- Lord don't let the film get damaged in anyway, and I'm shelling out a certain amount. I just think they should be happy w/ no matter what you give $10-$50.. the Matre'D... that's his JOB... Sorry girls, I get fired up when I see that you should 'tip' certain amounts- and it's expected. I disagree totally. When you get your hair cut, it's not a certain amount, it's what you feel like tipping.....
MarcellaBella
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I am only tipping if I feel that they went above and beyond on my day..
it's ridiculous to feel that OBLIGATED to tip a vender, who I may add, already charges more than they should..
Fletch
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I heard the tip for the maitre d is $1 to $2 per guest? Is this true?
OctBride03
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WHOA!!! $1 -$2 per guest?! That's a lot when you have over 250 guests!
I thought the matre'd is included in the 18% on my contract....
sparkette
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NO NO NO NO NO My blood is boiling again!! This is an absolutely sore subject with me. I ran a meeting last week and polled other meeting planners about this subject. I cannot tell you how irate they were about all this. There is no way I will be following these tipping guidelines. I am all for rewarding great service with a gratuity. This is the bulk of some people's salaries. But I will not follow the over inflated guidelines that the wedding industry has bullied brides into following!!!!!
I have learned so much from all of you in so many ways, and cannot thank you all enough. But here is one area where I do have a great deal of experience. Gratuities. As I mentioned last time on one of these posts, I run multiple day meetings from 50-1000 people, three meals per day, and have never tipped the way you are all being told to do so. And NEVER have tipped in advance. Would you tip your waiter before your meal comes?
The Maitre d gratuity of $2-$5 per person is Bulls*%#! I want to earn $100 an hour too, but I don't.
Flower deliver, band, photographer (non-owner), hair, makeup, yes. Your attendant if you are not already paying her a flat fee and goes above and beyond, yes. Remember, the key is 'above and beyond'..
Always keep in mind: Only you know your own budget. Only you know the quality of the service provided. The vendors know that this is a very emotional time for us and are capitalizing on it. These are professionals and depend on word of mouth. They should be doing their job perfectly for your regarless if you only give them $1.
Sorry to rant. But I hate to see people being taken advantage of.
MarcellaBella
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very well said Sparkette!!
janatlantica
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Go sparkette!! I usually do NOT tip the owners of a company as a general rule, unless there is a really special situation that they have gone way out of their way to accommodate me. (speciall arrangements, amenities, etc.)
Fletch
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I think we all agree that tips should not be given until after the service is provided and I think that we should give based on how much they went above and beyond but I think this post is supposed to help provide a guideline for that.
For thsoe already married - what did you give your maitre 'd
Rob-luvs-me
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Well said - my friend who used to work as a photographers assistant (or a second photographer) used to LOVE to have weddings - they used to laugh at all the stupid brides who were giving them 150-200$ tips to each photographer after they were already being well paid by the studio they worked for. Not ethical but if they were asked by a bride if that amount was reasonable they would say sure if that is what you want to give.
Listen I am ALL FOR TIPPING WELL. I worked in restaurants and my FH did as well to put himself thru college so I know how important a tip really is. BUT I think there are a lot of naive people out there (and I can say I am one of them) who honestly don't know the proper amounts. But I think many girls feel bullied into paying more than they should by another ignorant bride who tells them that they are paying too little. (this is in no way directed at the brides here)
We really need someone who does this for a living to write a book about the ediquette of tipping for weddings. I know we all want to give our vendors great tips that reflect how much we appreciate their service - but I think in some ways we are paying what would be equal to 40% tip at a restaurant.
If we went by percentages alone then you could say those who paid about 5,000 for photography but only tipped 200 under tipped their photographer by about 800$ (20% tip).
OctBride03
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Ladies,
I am so sorry I hit such a sore spot... I really didn't mean too... it's just that there are so many threads on tipping, I came across this and thought I'd share.... like I said, I didn't mean for it to be the ABSOLUTE GUIDELINE to follow to the tee... Again, I'm very sorry if some of you are upset...
prncssrachel
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FH and I agreed that our butts better be kissed by all the vendors and staff the day of our wedding. For the amount of money that we are spending, no butt kissing=no tip. Call me a b!tch, but that's the way it is.
janatlantica
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Lauren, Don't worry, I think everyone knows that you were just sharing info! That is what the board is about! As I well know, some opinions spark debate, but that is not to say that an initial 'FYI' is not appreciated.
sparkette
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First off, I would like to apologize if I hurt anyone's feelings with my post. It was never my intent. We all tip according our own feelings.
OctBride03, you are right, you posted information that was meant only to help other brides, and it was appreciated.
Coming from Corporate planning to wedding planning has been a hard lesson to me. Paying $150 for a centerpiece that should cost $75, etc. Some of these over charges I will accept becaue I chose my vendors.
The tipping, on the other hand, is bullying. I know how long and how hard I have to work to come up with the money to pay for my weddiing. I will pay for a job well done, just not because the Catering Manager tells me what I should be tipping.
By the way, feeding the band and photographer, I have rarely done this for a corporate event!
Prncssrachel - I am expecting some major butt kissing that day too!!!!
Rob-luvs-me
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actually Oct I found your post to be very helpful!
shelzyp
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I found your post also to be helpful, at least I saw that not everyone is going to tip what the supposed 'norm' is. Thanks!
