Just a simple introduction......

Hello there ladies (and gents)....just wanted to introduce myself, as I've been snooping the last couple days! I got engaged a couple days ago, and though I would LOVE to enjoy the moment.....I just can't help starting getting all the information I will need to plan a great wedding for a small budget!

A little about us......My FH and I have been together for 5 years and have a 3 year old son. I'm 29 and am hell bent on having an AMAZING wedding at an even more AMAZING price....already have appointment with Villa Lombari's on Monday....lol...yeah, I know...so much for savoring the moment!!

Any advise or cost saving ideas are more than welcome and even more appreciated!!

Thank you and I look forward to getting to know you all over the course of the next year or so......

I'm getting married....I'm getting married.....hehehehe Bout darn time!

aww welcome and congrats!

you really cant go wrong w any of the lombardis. food is amazing there.

how many guests are you thinking of having?

That's what I keep hearing from everyone, so that'll be my first stop! I was originally thinking about 75-90, buuuuut after going over FH list (I had him write it yesterday, evilll, i know) and mine...not including our parents invites, we're already at about 135 people!! Trying to figure out how in the world that happened. I really don't want to go over 125, but not sure how doable that is at this time.....right now, kids are our first debate, to have or not to have...that is the question

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Posted by PazzaRagazza

my number one piece of advice is talk down the price!!! Everything can be talked down-- EVERYTHING!!!!!!!!

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That's where FH comes in...I absolutely SUCK at haggling! Any good 'tips' on doing this?


Thank you all for the welcomes!!!!!!

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Posted by Soon2BMrsErichsen

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Posted by PazzaRagazza

my number one piece of advice is talk down the price!!! Everything can be talked down-- EVERYTHING!!!!!!!!

---

That's where FH comes in...I absolutely SUCK at haggling! Any good 'tips' on doing this?


Thank you all for the welcomes!!!!!!

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i have no tips LOL i hated it and was horrible at it..... thats what FH's are for!!!!!! LOL

good luck!

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Posted by PazzaRagazza

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Posted by Soon2BMrsErichsen

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Posted by PazzaRagazza

my number one piece of advice is talk down the price!!! Everything can be talked down-- EVERYTHING!!!!!!!!

---

That's where FH comes in...I absolutely SUCK at haggling! Any good 'tips' on doing this?


Thank you all for the welcomes!!!!!!

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i have no tips LOL i hated it and was horrible at it..... thats what FH's are for!!!!!! LOL

good luck!

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not mine. he's like ok we need that! and that! yeah that too! ugh...stop!

welcome! Definitely haggle! And I'd say at MOST places (but not all) Thursday/Sunday are cheaper than Saturday. Saturday day is cheaper than Sat night. Off season months (Jan-March) are the least expensive. Thats all I can think of off the top of my head!

Have fun finding a RH!

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Posted by Soon2BMrsErichsen

That's what I keep hearing from everyone, so that'll be my first stop! I was originally thinking about 75-90, buuuuut after going over FH list (I had him write it yesterday, evilll, i know) and mine...not including our parents invites, we're already at about 135 people!! Trying to figure out how in the world that happened. I really don't want to go over 125, but not sure how doable that is at this time.....right now, kids are our first debate, to have or not to have...that is the question

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If you're really on a budget, a lot of reception halls have 100 people for $10,000 with a bunch of things thrown in (flowers, dj, etc.) but usually you have to have the wedding in january or february.

you should definitely look into that - i know a lot of girls do that here.

welcome and congrats!!!!

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Posted by Soon2BMrsErichsen

That's what I keep hearing from everyone, so that'll be my first stop! I was originally thinking about 75-90, buuuuut after going over FH list (I had him write it yesterday, evilll, i know) and mine...not including our parents invites, we're already at about 135 people!! Trying to figure out how in the world that happened. I really don't want to go over 125, but not sure how doable that is at this time.....right now, kids are our first debate, to have or not to have...that is the question

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Hello and welcome.

Congrats! I too, waiting for years for my engagement and have a 2 year old boy :)

As far as kids are concerned, we all love them (especially our own), but we decided to have adults only at the wedding (just the flower girl adn ring boy are going) so that everyone can enjoy themselves and have fun

Congrats and Welcome to the FUN!!!!!

Villa Lombardis=

We have a few Villa Brides on here!

Welcome and congratulations!

We, too, are on a self imposed budget (I would like to own my residence at some point in my life, and have an AWESOME Honeymoon!).

I found that once we wrote it down and really started looking, we kind of knew how much we could spend within reason on all major items. We were able to negotiate our RH very well, which allowed me to spend a tad more on my dress (which I got a great price on anyway!).

Also, don't forget to check the minimums for these places- just because you invite 135, doesn't mean 135 will attend. More like 100 guests or so, probably.

We had checked Lombardi's on the Sound, but weren't comfy with the min.

Congrats on the Engagement!!!! I just started looking at Venues and have seen that Friday and Sunday are defiantly cheaper. I am not good at negotiating but I am going to try my best. Just say things like is there antigen else you can throw in or ask for a lower minimum just in case.


I saw a place yesterday that i loved but the price was a little higher then i wanted, i plan to go on Sunday and try to haggle and say if she would come down a little ill book immediately, I am hoping this works!!

GOOD LUCK AND ENJOY!

welcome and congrats date twin!!
Happy planning!

CONGRATS! welcome! okay, a few tips on talking down a price :

ALWAYS mention something ur getting at another RH even if you didnt go to another one...tell them theyre like throwing in chair covers or something but you much rather do it at the RH ur looking at and ask them what they would offer...

Don't seem to eager to take it. Don't make eager comments like 'this is the one' unless u KNOW this is the one. lol you have to be 130% sure and even then, you will still have a lil bit of angst! lol

If something seems too expensive you can say how awesome that would be but you can't really do it right now...they might have a kind heart and offer it for a better price or throw it in...

DONT BOOK THE FIRST DAY!!! (unless ur really in a hurry and ur date is going to be one of those hard dates to book like a triple digit date like 11/11/11 which i think is booked in most places anyway...but yeah, make them think ur looking around...

Do all of this with some praise too. they really love that kinda stuff...like 'wow that's really gorgeous, ______didn't have that'

And go in there like you know what ur talking about. do some research on prices, etc


oh and advice about the wedding planning in general:

GET EVERYTHING ON PAPER!! organize your contracts, put everythign in folders or whatever is your best way of organizing, write down ALL expenses because trust me, they start adding up quick! and get a reasonable budget that fits what you can realistically put aside.

Be realistic at what YOU AND FH can do! I have learned not to worry about potential monetary gifts from mom, dad, aunt flo, etc...set your budget as if you're the only ones putting money towards it. (in our case we are the only ones. so we are being super realistic)

And get super supportive people for your BP who can help along the way.

Don't be afraid to do some DIY's to save $. Trust me, its not so bad! hehe

oh and BREATHE...breathing is so very important. in the end, remember you're marrying the love of your life!!

you CAN have an AMAZING wedding at an AMAZING price!

and HAVE FUN!

congrats and welcome!!!!