Here’s Your Chance To Win Prizes Totaling Up to $470!
Looking for unique, meaningful, and not to mention useful gifts to give your bridal party? Something that isn’t cliché and something they can use over and over for years to come? And, do you want to us to give them to you for FREE?
Sandisk has come out with a stylish new USB flash drive called the Cruzer Gator on which you can give members of your bridal party pictures of the great times you had with them during your wedding planning, videos, wedding photos, share some favorite songs for their iPod, and then they can use the massive storage (up to 4G) for whatever they like for years to come! The cool thing about the Gator is they come in a stylish alligator skin style, in different colors. (Black and Red are 4G, Pink is 2G)
The Prizes: The folks at Sandisk have donated 10 Cruzer Gators USB Flash Drives (see picture above), one for each member of your bridal party including both groomsmen and bridesmaids (10 max), total value up to $400! Plus, I’m also going to throw in a free one year subscription to one of our Our Wedding Plus premium wedding websites worth $72! All this will be given to one lucky winner!
How You Enter: Leave a comment on this post answering one of the following questions:
- What was the most useful piece of wedding planning advice you have received?
- What has been your biggest “lesson learned” so far during your wedding planning process?
- If you could do it over, what would you do differently?
How You Win: I’m going to ask some other wedding bloggers to rank their top-5 entries, based on the usefulness of your comment to someone planning their wedding. I will tally the results and pick the most popular comment. This is obviously subjective based on each judge’s opinion and my selection will be final. If I can’t get any help in the judging I will select the comment I feel was most useful, based solely on my own judgment.
Deadline: Your Comment Must be Posted by Midnight, Friday, May 2nd 2008.
The winner will be announced by Monday, May 5th 2008! I will also announce which wedding bloggers helped in the judging!
Good Luck!
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One of the biggest lessons I’m still learning is that while you envisioned your wedding to be something as a little girl, the reality is that you suddenly will have so many wedding planners in your family that want input and the key is not to offend or hurt anyone, and if you are super nice, somehow incorporate their ideas in to make them feel like they made a difference in your big day!!
My biggest lessons learned:
- yes, you can plan a destination wedding in 7 months.
- yes, you can fly halfway across the country with a
wedding dress in your lap.
- yes, floral arrangements will cost you roughly the
GDP of Switzerland. And you will gladly pay it.
- yes, some random cousin you haven’t seen in 15
years will decide to make an appearance, even
though your parents swore that she would never
come.
- yes, at some point, tulle, ceramic pears, and oodles of
other wedding kitsch will start to seem appealing.
Rest assured, this too shall pass (and you don’t need
it anyway).
- yes, if you can laugh at yourself and the craziness
around you, wedding planning can be a blast.
Hope this helps somebody else!
- What was the most useful piece of wedding planning advice you have received?
The best piece of advice I received was from my aunt. She told me whenever I get wrapped up or stressed out regarding details to sit back and remember that the only things truly important to the day are my fiance and me. The day is about us. Period. Nothing should become so important that it takes away from our relationship on that day or during the planning.
- What has been your biggest “lesson learned” so far during your wedding planning process?
I’ve learned that I have incredibly supportive and excited friends and family BUT they don’t need to hear about which shade of citron yellow I’m thinking about for the napkin rings on tables 3 and 9, or if the stickers should be round or oval. Some things are better decided on my own to keep us all sane!
- If you could do it over, what would you do differently?
I would have my mom there when I bought my dress. My sister, mom and I live on opposite ends of the planet and being all together wasn’t possible at that time. My sister and I went shopping; I didn’t expect to find a dress but had to get it when I saw it. She was there via email photos but it just wasn’t the same. We’ve decided we’ll make a girl’s weekend a priority to find my mom’s dress for the big day instead.
The most useful piece of advice I’ve received would be to get all the big stuff booked up front and then worry about the details. This way you have the important stuff done and if you don’t get to all the little projects you want to get to, then the wedding still goes on. Also to enjoy the time after your engagement happens because you’ll never get that time back and that’s when it is really important
My biggest lesson learned with all of this is to take a step back and ask myself do I really need this, is it really “me” or is it what everyone suggests I should do. We want to personalize our wedding, not make it like everyone else’s wedding so it’s been very important to make sure that everything I see out there and think is a good idea is something that I really need.
If I could do it all over again I’d elope! haha! Seriously though, I’d make it really small and probably put a lot more money into the food and drink (but still be paying the same thing!).
One of the best advices that I received is to enjoy the planning process and each other’s company. Also, it’s not about planning for a wedding — that’s only a day (albeit, a BIG day) but more importantly to plan for what counts the most - a joyful and solid marriage.
“What was the most useful piece of wedding planning advice you have received?”
Before I ever started planning anything, my mother and I were sitting down for coffee. We were talking about all the neat ideas I had about decorations, favors…and a lot of it was DIY! She sat quietly, listening to me as I went on and on. When I finally stopped for breath, she said, “I’m only going to give you one piece of unsolicited advice: remember that the people around you in this process love you and are excited for you! They *want* to help you. And you asking them for help will make them feel loved. Will everything be exactly how you pictured it if you have other people do it? No. But everything WILL bear the indelible mark of the love of your family and friends. So…
DELEGATE!”
“What has been your biggest “lesson learned” so far during your wedding planning process?”
That the whole myth about men not wanting anything to do with the planning process is just that - a myth. Or a stereotype, maybe.
When I started out, I tried to involve my fiance as little as possible, thinking that it’s what was best to keep us both sane. I had help from lots of the women in my family anyway. But it didn’t take very long for me to notice that he was starting to hang around when plans were being discussed. He’d pretend like he was playing a video game or watching TV, but you could tell he was trying to figure out what was going on. When I finally caught on and asked him if he had any ideas for reception music, he was SO happy. Of course he got really into it (reception music: Serious Business) and is doing a fantastic job.
I felt bad when I finally realized what was up. I thought I was doing what he’d want, but in reality I was leaving him on the sidelines. Guys might joke about being horrified by the planning process, but they’ll always jump at the chance to show you how well they can do something. And that goes double if it’s something that will make you very happy.
- If you could do it over, what would you do differently?
Long story short, our venue ended up CLOSING about six months before the ceremony date. Because of the chaos of planning, I didn’t find out until it was dangerously close to the wedding. Thank god for my sister: she thought to call all of the venues periodically and confirm our bookings. We were just barely able to find something else.
If I were to start over, I’d appoint someone from the start to do what she was doing: call every couple of months and re-confirm with the venues, the officiant, the hotels, etc. Finding out your ceremony venue is gone nine months before your wedding is WAY better than finding out two months before. Trust me on that one.
What was the most useful piece of wedding planning advice you have received?
Enjoy your engagement - and don’t rush into the planning process. Sit back and enjoy your engagement party, engagement photo session and give yourself some time (be it 1 week to a few months) to relish in your starry-eyed change of relationship status. Once you get started planning, have a No-Wedding-Wednesday or another day of the week where both you and your fiance get a break from wedding speak.
What has been your biggest “lesson learned” so far during your wedding planning process?
You don’t have to spend a million to have a million dollar wedding - and don’t rely on just any wedding planner to get you through the budgeting jungle. Google has become my researching friend in helping to create a great budget for our wedding and to figure out how to accomplish everything within my guidelines. Wedding planners are fabulous - but ultimately, you’re responsible for the bottom line.
If you could do it over, what would you do differently?
I would have started collecting mailing addresses at Christmas time when I could easily copy them down from the envelopes - rather than 6 months later when everyone is impossible to track down. I’d have to say that getting the guest list contact info has been the most difficult and stressful task so far - so I would have started that much earlier!
- What was the most useful piece of wedding planning advice you have received?
- Start early! Taking this advice to heart, I’ve started preparing favors and programs five months out.
- What has been your biggest “lesson learned” so far during your wedding planning process?
- After you’ve made your choices, stop researching and second guessing. If there’s nothing you can do about it (i.e., you’ve already bought a dress you love but see another one that could be better), you just have to let it go.
- If you could do it over, what would you do differently? - I would ask for more help. I have tons of friends who have great programs like Photoshop but made my programs through Word and Paint. They’d probably be better with something more professional but I’m too far into the process to start over.
The most useful piece of advice was to sit back and enjoy the planning, because it would go so fast–instead of rushing to have everything done and finished, enjoy looking at options and making decisions, because that is the fun part, getting to decide what is most “you.” Hand in hand with that is my biggest lesson learned, which is not to get so swept up in all the planning that you forget what you really want out of the day. It’s easy when people ask you if something is ok or if this is what you want to get excited and say “yes,” but the barn’s not on fire and a lot of times it’s much better for everyone involved to sit back and really think about what will fit you and your fiance and your families best before making a decision.
If I had to do it all over again, I would have put a limit on everyone’s guest list at the outset instead of (naively) taking everyone’s assertion that they “wouldn’t have that many people” at face value. Allowing everyone to make a list of their whole universe and then trying to convince them to cut it down to what is reasonable for your budget/venue leads to hurt feelings and awkward moments, and while I would love for each side of the family (including me and my fiance!) to get to invite an unlimited amount of people, it just isn’t feasible given the wedding that we’re having. It would have been better to give everyone a ballpark figure at the very start.
One thing I learned is to take a breather from planning once in a while because you make hasty decisions when you are stressed out!
my biggest lesson learned is don’t email your bridal party every time you get a whim or idea about stationery or bridesmaid dresses.. you will make them crazy :p
Lesson Learned: There are way more cute things, fun ideas, dress choices, ways to ask people to come, invitations etc. out there than one wedding can handle. Don’t jump on board with every idea you like - you will have more things than you can use, and waste a lot of money!
Best Advice: Take your time. Only plan/work on DIY/shop when you’re feeling up to it. Otherwise you become bitter and/or angry with the project (and sometimes the wedding) and it’s no longer fun!
When you’re calling around to look at venues, flowers and caterers, don’t say you’re inquiring about a wedding. Say you’re planning a family function and you’ll often get better prices and options!
If I could do it over I would of gotten married sooner! Don’t get me wrong, the planning has been fun but I just want to be married already:) I am glad I had time to plan everything though and wasn’ t rushed. Don’t stress about little things
If I had to do anything differently, I wouldn’t have changed a thing. All the little problems from the rain at our outdoor venue to people misplacing the half the favors, it still was the best day of our lives. Any problem that came up seems silly when you realize what the day was all about! I am just a lucky gal who married her best friend!
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This a great giveaway! Probably one of the most useful things that I have learned (am learning) is to not sweat the small stuff. What seemed like a major deal when I first started all of the planning is now being put into the proper place as small details that most people probably won’t even notice or register. I have resolved to have fun and enjoy the day I marry the man I love!
The best advice I have received so far is to remember to occasionally take a step back and bask in your engagement. Just like the wedding, you only get the engagement period once.
I try my best to do that. To stop the crazy planning for a minute and look at the man who loves me — my wonderful fiance — and be thankful for what I have.
And then resume planning.
“What was the most useful piece of wedding planning advice you have received?”
My father told me this gem right after I got engaged: “You’re not planning a wedding – you’re planning the memory of a wedding.” My fiance and I clung to this idea and surrounded ourselves with uplifting friends, family, and vendors who are helping us plan our memories.
Well, I don’t have a really long list like some others, but I have learned my lesson in that time management is the thing that has to come first in your mind. This can save money in the long run, but mainly for me, I thought I was going to take on EVERYTHING DIY, but when things started to pile up and I started realizing that I wasn’t saving money on some projects, I took a step back to re-evaluate. Whether you have 6 months or 2 years for your engagement, you need to get a start on everything early — but this doesn’t mean you should settle on the first vendor you visit or the first color scheme that pops into your head. You should look at as many options as your timetable allows so you get quality for the best cost.
I am planning a “destination” wedding– while it’s not on a beach far away, it’s in a remote area of the Montana wilderness. The best piece of advice I received about planning was from my fiance’s father. Perhaps he didn’t mean it as advice, but he certainly inspired me when he sent us a clipping from a local paper about a Montana Wedding Coordinator. I had been heart-set on planning the wedding ALL BY MYSELF because I am very much a type-A personality and of the mind that if I want something done right I ought to do it myself. But after we realized that we would be contacting vendors we knew nothing about, that we most likely could never visit, we decided to investigate a “wedding planner.”
It was the best decision we could have possibly made for our wedding.
I was really leery about hiring a “planner” because I didn’t want to lose control of my wedding, but that’s not what it’s like at all! Our planner (who I like to call our ‘coordinator’ instead) is an advocate for our needs. I tell her what we want and she makes sure that it gets done. I ask her for advice and she gives it. She makes all those lunch-break phone calls on our behalf and spends hours playing phone tag so I don’t have to. She nails down contracts and keeps them in a file. She knows exactly how many and what kind of forks and napkins we should get (because, let’s be real, who likes to think about that?). Ultimately, she lets me make all the decisions and saves me from having to fret.
She has been a life saver and has made planning this wedding 900 miles from home SO much easier and pleasant.
So, in a word, the best advice I’ve gotten is that it’s OK to hire a wedding planner… it doesn’t mean that you won’t be in control of your wedding. It doesn’t mean that you are a failure as a bride. It means that you will have the freedom to be as creative as you want while letting someone else take care of the parts of planning that you don’t want to handle. That’s empowering!
My best piece of wedding advice came from my wonderful husband-to-be. Whenever things got stressful (and they often got stressful, since I have chronic fatigue, we were on a budget, and most of our family and friends live many states away), he reminded me that “The only thing that matters is that we’re married at the end of the day.”
That simple sentence helped keep everything else in perspective. Whenever I was stressed about an unexpected wrinkle or a style choice, or whatever, I would repeat “The only thing that matters is that we’re married at the end of the day.” And suddenly the rest didn’t seem so important!
If you could do it over, what would you do differently?
I would worry more about the food and WAY less about everything else. Bad food totally ruins weddings (at least for me, since I like food) and it was way too stressful trying to find a caterer that I liked from the venue’s list. I could do it again, I’d pick a different place and get which ever caterer I wanted
If I could do my wedding all over again, I would have done “reveal photos” before the ceremony with my husband. This way we could have had a special moment together and could have enjoyed the cocktail reception…instead of rushing through all our photos during this time.
My biggest lesson learned so far is to not rush into booking/buying anything! I’m right in the middle of a 2-year engagement and so far don’t like very many of the decisions that I made a year ago (including the reception venue!). I think I’ve learned to take my time and really look around so that I feel confident with my decisions, rather than making them impulsively.
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I’ve been engaged since September 07 and am getting married at the end of this month. Whilst being engaged I have often experienced stress when it comes to making a decision between a few different companies (for example which photographer, which make-up artist). Sometimes it’s just so hard to choose! Without a doubt the biggest lesson I have learned is to always trust your gut instinct and choose the person/company which you get along with best. If it’s easy it’s meant to be. This will save you sheeding many tears and having sleepless nights. Don’t be fooled by flashy websites (they’re easy enough to design), testamonials (Jo and Bill Smith might not exist!). Base your decisions on your own experiences…and what you can see and touch. Why would you book with a photography company which won’t let you meet the photographer until one month before the wedding? Why would you book with a make-up artist that has cancelled your trial twice at the last minute?
My biggest lesson learned is not to get emotionally attached to vendors before you work out the details and have contracts. Early on, I fell in love with the work of a certain photographer. We met with her and were working out a contract and I was heartbroken when she called me up to say she had to scrap our wedding because she just found out a friend of hers was getting married the same day as us and she was going to photograph their wedding instead. After a few days of unnecessary sulking, I realized that life goes on and I eventually found a photographer who had great style, a great personality, a great price, and was more than happy to do our wedding and I was completely satisfied. There will be bumps along the way while you plan, but if you handle them rationally instead of emotionally, you’ll save yourself a lot of stress and maybe even a few tears. Remember, this is supposed to be fun!
My biggest lesson learned is that it’s hard to find a location that suits everyone, so finding one that’s special to you works best.
best advice is that it is just ONE day! and that it’s really about the rest of our lives!
I think the biggest lesson that I’ve learned is to enjoy your engagement and don’t stress over little things. My fiance wanted a long engagement for money purposes and even though I thought 2 years was too far away, I went along with it and am so happy that I did! It’s now right around the corner and we were able to really figure out what we want. Even though it’s hard not to stress, I’ve learned thru our long engagement that little things don’t matter - no one is going to remember if your invitations exactly match your bridesmaids dresses or if penne is better than tortellini or if your napkins are monogramed. None of it is worth an argument with your fiance, mom or your future mother in law. All that really matters is that you have your friends and family there with you…. and that you’ve saved enough money to forget about it all on a nice long honeymoon!!!
We struggled to find a minister that was not a stranger to us for our out of town wedding. My uncle agreed to to marry us and has by far given us the best advice.
To the Groom: Stay involved. Work on the details together because it is our day and needs to reflect us.
To the Bride: Remember this is one day. It will be “right” no matter what does or does not happen during the course of that day.
To us both: Focus on the marriage-not just the wedding.
It us such simple advice that has helped us both to focus on what is important and to prioritize the items that really matter to the two of us.
Q. What was the most useful piece of wedding planning advice you have received?
A. “It is four hours of one day.” Seriously, that was the advice that put everything into perspective for me! Why go crazy, freak out, spend crazy money, start fights, etc…over an event that lasts for less one day??
Q. What has been your biggest “lesson learned” so far during your wedding planning process?
A. My biggest lesson learned is that even though it is MY BIG DAY, I’m a selfish fool to not include or consider the opinions and wishes of the other important people involved, like, oh, THE GROOM, or the mothers, fathers, grandparents, etc. It’s their special day, too- if Grandma really wants her sister there to share the day, then I think you’ll be okay not inviting that acquaintance from the office in order to make room for Great Aunt June.
Q. If you could do it over, what would you do differently?
A. Have a shorter engagement!! The longer you give yourself, the crazier you become! When you only have, say, five months to plan, you suddenly focus on the ACTUAL important things instead of obsessing over, say, monograms and matching your cake to your linens, or whatever. You also don’t have time to change your mind 50 times!! lol.
1. What was the most useful piece of wedding planning advice you have received?
Don’t forget that it is more about the marriage than it is about the wedding. Stay focused on the relationship but throw one hell of a party!
2. What has been your biggest “lesson learned” so far during your wedding planning process?
If you let it, wedding planning can take over your life. It’s important to have wedding free days/weekends to maintain your sanity. Remind yourself why you love him and he loves you. Sometimes its hard to do that if you are always talking about ribbon color, cake flavor, linen choices, must play songs…I think you see where I’m going here!
3. If you could do it over, what would you do differently?
I’d be more adventurous and get married outside. I’ve always wanted to do that but the planner in me was too worried about the weather to go for it. I love our venue but how cool would it be to get married on the beach??
What has been your biggest “lesson learned” so far during your wedding planning process?
The biggest lessoned learned is that there are many lessons to be learned! Here are my top 4:
1. Focus and trust your gut instinct. If you are not absolutely sold on your vendor, find another one that you love! If you start planning early, you will have time to make that your vendors are the best in your budget!
2. Set the tone of the wedding and time line for planning and stick to it. Setting the tone of the event will keep you from wasting time. No need to look at “gardeny” themed wedding ideas when you are having a sit down dinner inside.
3. Find the proper balance between what you absolutely must have and what you think your guest would enjoy. Everyone says its “your day” but part of “your day” is having your friends and family with you. I think it’s best to make sure they are happy especially if they are traveling from other states or countries. I have been to a couple of weddings where the guests were an afterthought and obviously did not enjoy the evening entirely.
5. When things get tough complain but with a huge smile on your face! Its easy to get annoyed with the process but as long as you vent properly you wont waste time being worked up about something that will seem completely frivolous when you are sitting back sipping wine/pina coladas/margaritas on your well deserved honeymoon!
Attention ladies: remember that this is YOUR special day and resist the urge to accommodate others. The people who love you and care about you will be thrilled to share your special day with you regardless of how much you spent to entertain them. Last but not least give your husband to be some slack, don’t take it personally if he doesn’t seem as excited as you are because he is so happy to be marring you that the details aren’t important and most of them don’t dream in as much detail as we do!
Best wedding advice i have recieved is to not worry about proper etiquette and do what makes ME comfortable rather than what everyone else is going to think. No matter what you can’t please everyone and you have to be prepared for critisism and not take it too personally as long as you are happy with it all!!
If I could do it all over again, I’d redo my guest list and really only invite the people we truly care about and love to have at our wedding. The numbers just keep growing and it’s just daunting…
The best planning advice I have received so far is to have an amazing wedding, but have an even more amazing honeymoon.
The best advice I received when I got engaged was… take two months BEFORE starting to plan your wedding - just to enjoy being engaged before all the wedding frenzy…
[…] ← The Great Wedding Memory Giveaway! […]
- What has been your biggest “lesson learned” so far during your wedding planning process?
My husband and I decided to wait to have our “Wedding” SEVEN YEARS! Why? We simply could not afford it! We did not want to a. depend on my parents who could not afford it or b. start out our marriage (what the wedding is actually about) in debt. Ladies and gentlemen.. Marriage is hard. Don’t start out in the red! You can have a fabulous wedding without breaking the bank if you plan well, get creative and keep your head on. While the wedding is lovely and I am looking forward to finally having mine, it is all about cultivating your relationship with each other. Contrary to general opinion bigger is not always better. Stay within your means - downer I know - but it is the best most honest advice I can give a couple starting out. There is no better thing you can do for each other than to commit to doing what it takes to make it work. Believe me, sometimes that means sacrificing something that is in the long run, insignificant like that thing you have been obsessing about because it would give such “impact and drama” (I know girl!). Remember that the cake gets eaten, the flowers wilt and those fabulous shoes get stepped on but your relationship is only just starting to bloom and grow. Take as much care and time planning for the next two years as you do the first day. In my case that planning mean actually waiting but guess what? I get to have my two beautiful little children as my flower girl and ring bearer!!
What has been your biggest “lesson learned” so far during your wedding planning process?
I’ve learned so much during this process that’s it’s hard to pick one! Being a librarian, I’m always looking for ideas in books or on the web. I’ve learned that there are so many fantastic ways to make your wedding special and you really have to focus in order for it not to become a hodge-podge! In the end if the food is good, the alchohol is flowing and the dance floor’s packed, it will be a successful affair.
- What has been your biggest “lesson learned” so far during your wedding planning process?
The best lesson we learned was to spend time trying to remember as many details from past wedding we’ve attended. Whatever I couldn’t remember must therefore not be very important to me and I could either skip it or put it lower on the list of priorities. It’s helped so much!
If I were to start all over again (not married quite yet!), I’d learn to listen to everyone’s opinions about my wedding plans, but not necessarily let them sway me. The hardest part so far has been having all sorts of family members weighing in–in slight, but persistent ways–and essentially my fiance and I have let the myriad suggestions really bog down our wedding planning venture…
- What was the most useful piece of wedding planning advice you have received?
Well, don’t be bridezilla. Sure, it’s your wedding day and you want it to be done perfectly well YOUR way, but your wedding day is actually about family and friends too. So you must be open to suggestions. Everyone wants the best for you — they’re not against you.
- What has been your biggest “lesson learned” so far during your wedding planning process?
That I really did need my wedding planner — my sister!
- If you could do it over, what would you do differently?
I loved my wedding and wouldn’t want to change anything
Thanks!!
The biggest lesson I learned in planning so far is that planning can be pleasant or stressful. So when family issues or conflicts about our celebration come up, I ask myself, “Is this going to be important to me in a year from now?” If the answer is no, then I let whoever is causing the conflict (mother-in-law, etc.) get their own way. Although this is our day, it is also an important day for so many people.
- What has been your biggest “lesson learned” so far during your wedding planning process?
Plan, plan and plan a long time ahead and have contingency plans in case anything goes awry (and this often does!)
the biggest lesson i learned was to stop taking everyones advice on what would be best for my wedding and remembering that it ultimately is my day so just do what i want since the groom and myself are paying for it.
[…] those of you who didn’t win during the Great Wedding Memory Giveaway a couple of weeks ago, you have another […]
plan longer than you expect
What was the most useful piece of wedding planning advice you have received?
The most useful wedding planning advice I have received is to remember that planning a wedding is probably going to be one of the most stressful things my fiance and I will do together and that throughout the wedding day, I shouldn’t focus on what might go wrong, but I should just focus on the fact that I am marrying the man I love and how happy I am to be with him! I got this advice from my sister who has been married for 8 years.
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