Today professional videographers have become as natural a part of the wedding as the photographer. Because your wedding day goes by so quickly, recording all of the activities on video will preserve the precious moments for you and your family to enjoy for years to come.

Unlike photographs, a video camera records sounds, action and more of the overall atmosphere of the event. Rather than focusing on just a few people like photographs, video can easily record a little bit of all of your guests.

The typical wedding video package costs anywhere between $500 and $1500, depending on the quality of the equipment, the number of hours of coverage, the number of cameras, the amount of editing, and other factors. As always, remember what’s most important to you, determine what you can afford, and go from there.

Recording Your Wedding on a Tight Budget
If you don’t have money in the budget for a professional videographer, you have other options. You could ask a close friend or family member with a video camera to record your wedding. Of course don’t expect the same quality and coverage that you would get from a professional videographer. Remember, is an awful lot to ask friend or family member to tape the bulk of the wedding day. So, the best way to ensure that your most precious moments get recorded is to make a list. Pick out only a handful of moments that you definitely want on tape, such as the bride walking down the aisle, exchanging vows and rings during the ceremony, the best man’s toast, the bride and groom’s first dance, etc. Then anything extra that gets on film is a bonus, but you have the important stuff covered.

Special Touches for the Video
A nice touch for your wedding video is to have your videographer or a friend wielding a video camera pull your guests aside throughout the night to record a personal message to the bride and groom. This is something that a friend did for us at our wedding, and it was absolutely wonderful to watch. This is a lovely way to record all of your friends and family who attended your wedding and adds a personal touch to the video.

Another nice idea for the wedding video is to record a short message from the bride and groom to each other. Arrange for the videographer to meet with the bride and groom separately right before the wedding ceremony. Each can talk to the camera as if they were talking to their soon-to-be other half. These messages truly capture all of the love and emotion of the couple on their wedding day. And they are so much fun to watch after the wedding and many years down the road!

Finding the right wedding jewelry is an extremely important aspect of the ceremony because the wedding bands in particular will be worn by the bride and groom forever. Wedding bands have gotten to be a great deal more ornate than they used to be. Diamond wedding bands have reached a peak in recent thanks to the celebrities who proudly display theirs.

Wedding bands have even surpassed the usual gold and are now moving into platinum and titanium bands. It used to be that 10k gold rings were the “in” thing to buy and these days they are looked down upon by most couples who would prefer to buy their gold in 14k or higher.

Simple diamonds are still a popular buy, but colored diamonds are gaining momentum thanks to J-Lo’s pink princess cut diamond ring with Ben Affleck. Other popular diamond colors are yellow, blue and aquamarine.

With the ever growing popularity of platinum rings, many couples are looking to shining silver and white gold as a cheaper substitute. White gold has a similar look of platinum, but is a fraction of the price. It is a great alternative.

In the past, the men’s ring was often of little concern to either as long as the woman’s ring was attractive, but these days, men want a nice ring or diamond studded ring almost as much as the women do.

Beautiful ring sets can be found from nearly any source. If you can afford it, you can locate good deals on sets at jewelry stores.

For the most part, the entire wedding ceremony is completely symbolic and that symbolism reaches its peak the moment the rings are exchanged.

Knowing this, can it really be a wonder that the chosen rings are just as important as the chosen couple?

You can virtually choose to go with any type of ring from any source. These days even department stores are offering great knock offs to the popular celebrity rings at extreme discounts.

The popular ring worn by J-Lo; which was a platinum pink diamond ring with a princess cut and accented with two white diamonds on either side can now be purchased at Wal-Mart in a white gold setting with zirconia’s and pink topaz stones.

Wedding bands still look better in a plain band style, but some people might prefer to accent the bands with diamonds. Whatever your taste is, you can pretty much find the right bands for you and your spouse to be anywhere.

All you really need to do is decide what look you want; what style that you want; and how much money you can afford to pay and then go on your search.

In order to get the best overall deals, you should comparison shop online. If you do it soon enough, you can have the bands ready way before the ceremony.

Great deals can be found when you know how much money you are working with. It really doesn’t matter how small your budget is for the reception because all budgets can be accommodated.

Your reception budget should consist of approximately 30% of your wedding budget or more. Most wedding receptions are so expensive due to the fact of providing meals, decorations, hall rentals etc.

For the purposes of this guide, I will give two different examples of common receptions and an idea for cutting costs on the food and drinks as well as give you the best tips for throwing your reception on a budget.

Renting a Hall

If you prefer to rent a hall or space for your reception, you must consider many things before making this decision. You will have to think of the prices for the hall rental, the cost of using their servers (most halls include servers in price and they are not negotiable), decorations, flowers, meals, drinks etc.

When you wish to rent a hall for your reception there are some things that the hall will include in your rental that you can’t avoid paying for such as: servers, decorations, and wine. However, some halls will give you the option to pick and choose the extras that you want.

Depending on the type of hall that you choose to rent, the costs can vary greatly. For example, if you rent a large hall, you could pay more than if you rented a legion hall.

You might also want to consider that if you are starting with a small budget, that renting a hall might not be worth the effort and money, or it may leave you with less options.

There are a few tips when renting a hall that could keep a great deal of your costs down. Let’s take a look at them.

1. You should only consider renting a hall if you have invited 50 or more people to your reception.

2. When renting a hall, you have to decide if you are opting for a cash bar or an open bar. A good compromise is to purchase a few cases of beer on your own and host a cash bar for those who want mixed drinks if you are trying to keep costs down.

3. Rent a hall that you can decorate yourself

4. If you must have servers, rent a hall that includes servers in the price of the rental or go with a hall that lets you bring your own.

5. Choose a hall that will cater to whatever your needs or budget is.

6. When it comes to the food, you should go with a hall that will allow you to bring your own food if you would prefer to not pay extra for catering.

7. Serving vegetable and fruit trays, as well as finger foods like finger sandwiches will be of great value in accommodating vegetarians

8. Opting for a casual reception will allow you to serve your food buffet style which will be predominantly cheaper.

9. Opting to tell people to forego giving you a wedding gift and serve a completely cash bar is a great way to accommodate guests and recover some of the money for the hall.

10. Opt for non-weekend dates because these are not peak hours for the hall and the prices may be cheaper

11. You should choose to host your event during the winter for the best rates

12. Negotiate a special discount by paying cash instead of credit card. Most reception halls will do this

13. Choose to go with a non-dinner reception offering instead snack foods and munchables

Hosting a wedding reception at a hall does not have to cost through the nose if you know how to get around the basics which I have just mentioned.

Most people would like to host their reception at a reception hall because they feel that it is more elegant than hosting it outdoors, however, this is not always the case. Sometimes, hosting your event outdoors is more fun and it is also much cheaper.

A bridal shower invitations should lay out all of the necessary information, yet still be attractive.  One way to do this is to have a picture engraved on the invitation. Ask your engraver to add a small design on the inside of your invitation or wherever you have information about the reception. If, for example, an ice cream social is your theme see if there is an ice cream cone or Sundae dish they can emboss onto the paper without taking away from the main body of the invitation. Remember that subtlety is stylish; you don’t want to come across as overpowering with your theme.  It may be difficult sometimes to know who to invite to the bridal shower.  As a general rule, the bridal shower hostess or hostesses should invite female family members of both the bride and the groom.  She should also invite close female friends of the bride and the bride’s family. She may also want to invite some of the bride-to-be’s co-workers. She should be sure to consult with the bride when compiling the guest list.  Try to organize the people invited so some will set up the bridal shower game, someone else will set up the bridal shower favor, and so on. Not everyone invited to the wedding needs to be invited to the shower. However, those invited to the bridal shower are normally invited to the wedding.

Information needed on a Bridal Shower Invitation
The bridal shower invitation should include the name of the bride to be, the date and time of the shower, and the address and phone number of the hostess/hostesses.  If you are concerned about the attendance at your bridal shower, consider including on the invitation a deadline date for the RSVP; usually about two weeks prior to the shower date.

 It is the maid of honor’s duty to organize the bridal shower and to ensure that the party is everything the bride expected. The best way to ensure that everyone will have fun is to create a theme around the bridal shower in which everyone can participate in. The following is a list of fun and exciting themes for bridal showers. Choose the one that suits the bride the best:

1. Lingerie Bridal Shower – The lingerie theme has become more and more popular in recent years. This type of shower is typically for a younger bride who will be comfortable with the risqué nature of a lingerie bridal shower. Each guest, in lieu of bringing a traditional wedding shower gift, will bring a piece of lingerie for the bride. The groom will reap the benefits of a lingerie shower as well. Chances are the gifts will be put to great use on the honeymoon.

2. Gourmet Bridal Shower – A gourmet bridal shower is perfect for brides who love to cook and sample different kinds of food. Instead of serving traditional snacks like cheese and crackers, ask each guest to bring a gourmet-related dish. Sending out invitations in the shape of foods or hand deliver invitations in an apron to add a little extra pizzazz to your shower.

3. Around-the-Clock Bridal Shower – This is a relatively new bridal shower theme. It requires each guest to bring a gift that the bride and groom can use at a specific point throughout the day. For example, on one person’s invitation it might read 3pm; while on another’s it may read 1am. The gifts are distributed clockwise according to the hours each guest is assigned.

4. Room-of-the-House Bridal Shower – Similar to the “around-the-clock” theme listed above; this theme requires each guest to bring a gift in relation to a specific room in the house. One guest might be assigned the kitchen; while another might receive the bedroom. Each guest would have to choose their gift pertaining to the room on the invitation.

5. Stock the Bar - This theme requires each guest to bring wine, beer, spirits or liquor; which the couple can use to stock their bar at home. You may want to assign each guest a different kind of liquor to ensure that the couple doesn’t end up with 10 bottles of tequila!

The bridal shower theme you choose will have a great impact on the success of your bridal shower. Make sure the theme is suitable for the personality of the bride; otherwise she may be disappointed with the outcome. Also take into consideration the types of gifts the couple could most use. If they already have a stocked bar, a “stock-the-bar” shower won’t be a helpful theme. The outcome of this shower may determine whether or not you’re ever asked to throw another one. But remember, above all, have fun!

For many couples, wedding centerpieces created by a florist are way out of their price range. Even
a simple arrangement could cost you your first-born child if you have many tables that need a centerpiece. Luckily, a bit of creativity could save you a small fortune. Check out these twenty creative ideas for wedding centerpieces.

1. Artificial Flowers. Before you start cringing at the idea of fake flowers, go to a store and check out the artificial flowers that are available. The quality has greatly improved in recent years. Using artificial flowers will significantly reduce the cost.

2. Floating Candles. These look elegant when lit up, providing a romantic atmosphere. Floating candles come in many different shapes and you should be able to find something that matches the theme of your wedding.

3. Small Fruit or Ice Sculptures. Check with local culinary schools. There may be a budding young chef who would be happy to create beautiful sculptures for a modest price.

4. Small Cakes. Instead of having one large wedding cake, buy several small ones in different flavors. You can even encourage guests to travel to other tables to sample the flavors. By doing this, you’ll save on both centerpiece and wedding cake costs.

5. Children’s crafts. If your family has a lot of children, and children will be welcome at your wedding, have them do some craft to use as your centerpiece. They will be delighted to help out.

6. Mailbox with Paper and Pens. Ask your guests to write a short piece of advice for the newly married couple. They can put their letters in the mailbox.

7. Games. If your family is not the type to dance wildly into the night, a few travel- sized games may be enough to keep people entertained.

8. Photos of the Couple. Have a lot of photos from your many adventures? Now’s the time to show them off. Put pictures of the two of you together on each of the tables.

9. Many Candles. Using candles of varying heights can create a dramatic effect. Scented candles may be overbearing and interfere with the taste of the meal, so be sure to use unscented ones.

10. Fruit. A bowl of fresh fruit can be inexpensive and give a ‘homey’ feel to your tables. Plus, guests can eat them later!

11. Lucky Bamboo Plants. These work best with an Asian themed wedding, but they can look elegant in other settings as well.

12. Baskets. Fill your baskets with whatever you like. Artificial flowers, ornaments or candy, all make great choices.

13. Glass Beads. A bowl filled with colorful glass beads is simple but stylish. These can be purchased in many craft stores and you can choose colors that match the theme of your wedding.

14. Cupcakes. These are another wedding cake alternative. There are many cupcake trees available that can spruce up your table.

15. Something Related to Your Hobbies. If the two of you are avid bookworms, use a stack of your favorite books as a centerpiece. Wine lovers? How about a bottle of wine with a custom label? Choose something that matches your personality.

16. Photos of Other Weddings. If you have a lot of older married couples that will be attending your wedding, why not celebrate their love and commitment as well by showing pictures of their weddings?

17. Seasonal Items. In spring and summer, you may be able to collect wildflowers. In autumn colorful leaves are plentiful. And in winter, you can dress the table with evergreen.

18. Polaroid Cameras and Scrap-Booking Supplies. If your guests are crafty, let them create a special message for you by taking their pictures and creating a scrapbook page.

19. Fortune Cookies. A bowl of fortune cookies is fun for everyone. You can even have fortunes custom made for you wedding.

20. Fishbowls with Fish. You can go a step further and put the kissing gourami in the fishbowls. These are fish whose lips are extra puckered for kissing. Just make sure the fish all have a home when the wedding is over.

Your wedding centerpieces should reflect who you are as a couple. It doesn’t have to be an expensive floral arrangement! These ideas should help you get started in finding the right centerpiece for your wedding. It’s your special day, so enjoy it!

Many people get so caught up by planning the wedding festivities that they almost forget about the wedding rings!
When they finally do start to look at wedding ring prices, they’re shocked at how much they can cost.
These 10 tips will help you to save money on your wedding rings.

1. Don’t Buy Platinum. These days platinum is the most popular metal for wedding bands. But it’s expensive and you don’t need it. Most people won’t be able to tell the difference, and if they can, they probably don’t care.
Opt for a less expensive metal such as gold, white gold (hot trend in Europe), silver, or even titanium.

2. Diamonds Aren’t a Necessity. The diamond industry has done a good job of making you think that you need to have diamonds in your engagement or wedding rings. Other stones can look just as lovely without costing as much.

3. Check Auction Sites. You may be able to get a good deal on rings through an auction site. Not all things on auction sites are second-hand. These days, many stores realize the wide audience they can reach by using auction sites and they use them to auction off brand new products.

4. Get a Set. You may get a discount if you get your rings as part of a set or trio (two wedding rings and an engagement band). Check around for the best deal.

5. Use a Family Heirloom. If you’re lucky enough to have had jewelry handed down to you, there’s no reason you can’t use that. Using a family heirloom can be special and give the ring even more meaning.

6. Use a New Jewelry Designer. Somet imes your local college or art school can have a budding young jewelry designer who’s willing to sell his pieces at a deep discount in order to expand his portfolio.

7. Check for Local Sales. Many jewelry shops have big sales during Christmas and Valentine’s Day. Visit the stores during these times and you could get a great discount.

8. Choose a Thin Band. Wedding bands are often priced according to their weight. A thicker band will weigh more and thus be more expensive.

9. Check Online Sites. Make sure that you check online and see where you can find the best deal.

10. Upgrade Later. So you can’t afford your dream wedding bands now. No big deal. Get what you can afford now and plan to upgrade them for your 10th anniversary, once you are more settled and have more money.

The important thing to note is that buying your wedding rings requires just as much planning and effort as planning every other part of your wedding. If you wait until the last minute, you’ll find yourself paying a lot more than you would have liked.

Like many other brides- to-be, you’re probably wondering how to reduce wedding costs. While every bride has her list of “must -haves”, there are bound to be a few areas where you can cut back.
Below is a list of the biggest wedding money traps. These are the things that are going to eat the most of your budget.

1. Wedding Date. The date you choose for your wedding has a big impact on how much it will cost. Spring and summer months are more popular and come with higher price tags. Many venues even have a minimum charge for weddings during these months. By planning your wedding during the off-season, you can receive the same quality of services at greatly reduced rates.

2. Time of Day. Day time weddings can be significantly less expensive than evening or night time weddings. People are more likely to drink more in the evening. Additionally, a dinner meal is more expensive than a lunch meal.

3. Catering. The foods that you choose to serve your guests will probably be your biggest expense. If a twelve course sit-down meal is going to break the bank, try something like a buffet or a dessert-only reception.

4. Alcohol. While most people do serve alcohol at their weddings, the choice to do so is up to you. You do not need to offer a full open bar. You are free to limit the amount of alcohol that your guests are served or only serve less expensive types. Additionally, you can offer a cash bar, where guests pay for their own drinks.

5. Wedding Venue. The actual venue of your wedding can vary greatly in cost as well. Holding your ceremony in a local park is going to cost you less than holding it in a luxury hotel. Keep in mind, though, when choosing an inexpensive location, you may need to pay additional costs to decorate it the way you would like.

6. Flowers. Flowers are also a large expense for a lot of weddings. Save money by using flowers that are in-season and limiting the amount of flowers that you use. There’s no reason to blanket the location with flowers.

7. Photographer. Choosing a well-known wedding photographer could cost you your first-born. To save money, hire a photographer who’s just starting out.

8. Cake. Wedding cakes can also be a ridiculously huge expense. Save money by ordering a large sheet cake that gets cut up in the kitchen before serving. That way you only have to spend money on a small display cake.
Alternatively, cupcakes or several small cakes make good options.

9. The “W” Word. Simply say the word ‘wedding’ to a vendor and prices suddenly double! Vendors know that brides are desperate buyers who are willing to spend anything to get the ‘right’ thing for their wedding. When shopping around, try to avoid using the word ‘wedding’ when asking for price quotes.

By knowing ahead of time where your money is likely to be spent, you can plan more easily. You don’t need the most expensive of everything. A few small sacrifices can help significantly reduce the cost of your wedding.

With wedding costs soaring and everyone so focused on how they can save money on their weddings, is there any areas where you should NOT try to save money?
There sure are. In fact, I know of five of them.

1. Your One Must – Have Item. This item varies by couple, but there’s undoubtedly one thing that you really want and if you don’t have that one thing you’re going to regret it for the rest of your life. For some people, this means being able to invite all 200 of their closest friends. For others, it may be a particular wedding dress. Go ahead and spend the money. You can find ways to save from other places.

2. Food and Drink. There are many ways that you can save money on catering costs for your wedding guests. But the one thing that remains constant is that if you’re going to have a wedding reception, you must at least serve something. Your guests have taken the time to come and they’ve very likely brought you a present. Feeding them is really the least that you can do.

3. Gifts for Your Wedding Party. The people in your wedding party have worked very hard to make sure that your wedding goes smoothly and is as perfect as you hoped it could be. They deserve to be recognized for this. You
don’t have to buy expensive gifts for them, but you do have to get them something.

4. Information for Out of Town Guests. Your out of town guests are spending a lot of money to be with you on your special day. They may have to buy air tickets, hotel rooms, and rental cars; all on top of your wedding gift . You don’t have to be responsible for paying these costs, but make sure that you make things as easy for them as possible. Take the time to put together a local information package. Let them know the best hotels, how to get around town, and where all the good restaurants are. Your guests will really be flattered that you took the time to do this.

5. Thank You Notes. Thank you notes simply need to be written. You cannot just say thank you at the reception. You cannot send an email. You cannot call them on the phone. It’s tacky. Thank you notes need to be hand written and sent in a timely manner. You don’t need to use expensive stationery, but you still need to send them.
Your guests were kind enough to give you a present. You should be kind enough to give a proper thank you.

These are all small but important details that you cannot dismiss. You may be able to save money on some of them, but you cannot forgo them completely. They will make your guests happy.

With all the things you’ll have to worry about paying for when it comes to your wedding, you won’t want to have to spend a lot of cash for slightly smaller things, like accents, decorations, and flower arrangements. Since most brides do want to have flowers at their weddings, and would prefer to purchase them at a reasonable price, here are some ways to save on wedding flowers that you may want to try:

Plan your bouquet size

Many brides end up spending more than they wanted to on a bouquet because they didn’t count the amount of flowers that would be in the arrangement, or select flowers that will look good with not-so-expensive accents. Make sure you know just how big you want your bouquet to be, as well as what type of flowers you want to include. And, carrying a single flower down the aisle is wonderful look for a bride as well. You can use a lily, daisy, or even a rose with lace or pearl accents as your bouquet, and add a unique touch to the ceremony. Small bunches of flowers can also be beautiful, proving that, as with most other things, less can definitely be more. If you want to get fresh flowers for your bouquet, selecting flowers that are in season will also help you to save money, since a florist may have to specially order out-of-season flowers, which can increase the bouquet price significantly.

Plan ahead

Even though flowers for the wedding may seem like a small thing, don’t wait until the last minute to make sure that you have the flowers you want for your wedding. You may have to spend more money to find flowers you want the closer you get to the ceremony, so make sure that you have decided whether or not you’ll purchase flowers from a local florist or order synthetic flowers.

Order Wholesale From The Internet

To find more ideas for how to save on wedding flowers, as well as wedding floral shops that may have what you’re looking for, visit sites like freshroses.com and fiftyflowers.com

Buy synthetic flowers

Synthetic flowers may cost a little more when you buy them in bulk because of the material, but they could save you money because they last as long as you need them to. Many people have fresh flower bouquets for the bride, bridesmaids, and flower girls, and these tend to whither rather quickly, especially if the ceremony is indoors. So, you may end up buying more flowers than you actually need in order to keep the flowers looking good for pictures after the ceremony. You can also find colors or types of flowers that may not be in bloom at the time you are having the wedding if you buy synthetic flowers. This way, you’ll have more freedom to create the look you want for your ceremony. If you want to decorate the reception with flowers as well, synthetic flowers may be a good idea, so that you can maintain the look of the room for as long as you need to. And, since most brides want to keep their bouquets, buying synthetic flowers is definitely a good idea.