Ways to save on your wedding

We are still in the heart of engagement season (that's right, Valentine's Day is coming up). Which means many new couples will begin their wedding planning early this year. With wedding costs on the rise (the average wedding is now between $20-30k depending on the area) it is good to know some ways to cut costs in general. Here are a few tips we think are noteworthy: 1. Cut down. Have 100 guests instead of 150. Have a buffet instead of a 5 course meal. Have 3 bridesmaids instead of 7.

2. Loosen up. The less formal the affair, the more affordable. Instead of a sit down hotel dinner, go for a casual brunch or appetizer only event.

3. Pick and choose. Go for a designer dress but skip the expensive shoes and accessories, serve cake but skip the candy/dessert bar. Have an amazing photographer but settle on having cousin Doug in film school videotaping the event.

4. Hire a wedding planner! Wedding planners are professionals and know even more ways to save and cut costs, they even get discounts with many of the wedding vendors who would normally charge you full price. (Hey, I think I know a planner...)

Stay tuned for more tips on getting started with planning your wedding!

New Service: Event Set Up & Take Down

Happy Fall! Here at It's Your Day, we are always trying to think of new ideas of how we can help our customers, past and future. A recent concept we came up with, is event set up & take down services! Stay tuned for our rental catalogue! Event Set-up and Tear-down

IYD Wedding: Gillian & Mitchell July 21st, 2012

July 21st, 2012! It was a gorgeous day for a wedding on the Kirkland waterfront, at the always lovely Woodmark! We arrived to Woodmark to find the Marina Room filled with Gillian's flowers- they smelled amazing. Her flowers were very romantic and lush; garden roses, lilies, and in her color pallet of coral, white, green with navy blue vases;  crisp and nautical. She was getting ready in her suite, surrounded by all her bridesmaids and moms as the men were getting ready down the way! Gillian looked so beautiful in her lace dress, with an elegant pale grey silk ribbon around her waist. She was a vision! Mitch and his boys looked equally handsome! Courtney Bowlden of Courtney Bowlden Photography was busy snapping up shots of this great couple! Here is a peek into their day!

I loves this last one! It looks as though they are celebrities, making a get away!

Vendors

Venue/Catering -Woodmark, Kirkland WA

Planner/Day of Coordinator- It's Your Day Events & Expressions

Cake- Sweet Cakes

Photography- Courtney Bowlden

Flowers- Fena Flowers, Kirkland, WA

Stationary- Custom Design, Minted.

DJ/Band- The Action Slacks

Thanks Gillian & Mitch, for letting us help out on such a big day!

NW Wedding Show!

We had such a great time at the NW Wedding show this past weekend!Despite the snow that held us up on Sunday! There were so many great vendors there like Mojo Photobooth, Bugsie Productions , and Simply Seasoned! Plus many many more! We absolutely loved mingling and networking with all those great vendors! Flowers by Tiffany had a beautiful booth! We also were able to have some photo booth fun at Mojo Photobooth! Our booth consisted of a very fun theme, burlap favors with chocolate, we had wood slabs;  decorated by wild flowers that were held in burlap and lace mason jars! We wanted to thank all those who stopped by our booth and put their information down, we are in the midst of getting all that data in our system and we will be contacting you shortly. We wanted to welcome Tara and Josh to the It's Your Day family who had booked us at the show! We do look forward to speaking and meeting with you all! Also, we wanted to let any other brides, grooms and or parents looking for planning or wedding day coordination know that we are running our special from the show until February 29th! 15% off any package!

Invitations and Save the Dates by It's Your Day Studio

Wine Tasting...Local, Easy & Fun!

For many brides, one of the tasks that comes with planning is picking out the wines for your big day. But what kind do you choose? Syrah? Merlot? A mixture? A nice sweet Riesling? If you are a wine connoisseur or have done your fair share of working in an Italian restaurant like my best friend, you might have no problem at all doing this. You may give your fiancé a list you already have pre-selected and send him off to Costco or your favorite wine cellar. But for the novice like me, who often finds the taste of red wine vinegary and lip puckering, you might find this task somewhat overwhelming.
How can you find wines that you’d like to be at your wedding instead of just randomly picking or having brands that your mother suggested or picked out for you? One way to do that is to go to wine tastings, and the great thing about that is where we are located, near a great Mecca of Wine Country in Woodinville.
According to the website www.woodinvillewinecountry.com, Woodinville is home to over 70 wineries! Woodinville, which is less the 30 minutes from downtown Seattle, is regarded as a unique haven for exceptional winemakers. It is home to the well known brands and historic grounds of Chateau St. Michelle and Columbia Winery to even the smallest and unique boutiques such as Convergence Zone Cellars or Pomum Cellars.
Visit one or several of the wineries in one day, you can easily plan your route with the map provided on the website or wander around the warehouse district and see what strikes you. Many of the wineries have what are called “tasting rooms,” located in a warehouse district of Woodinville off of Woodinville-Redmond road. These rooms usually offer up to 5 tastes of their featured wine for $5-10. But the great part about it is, if you like a wine you sampled, they will give you your tasting fee back-toward a bottle of wine to purchase. Some places will even offer this on multiple bottles.
This is why it works great if you are buying for a wedding. For example, I went into one winery that was offering their special that day of a clearance white wine at $7.99 a bottle, take away my $5 tasting fee and each bottle was then $2.99! Buy a few cases of those and you are set for your white selection!
So no, don’t pay those ridiculous bar fees or even grocery store prices! Grab a group of your friends, make plans and head to Woodinville. Many places will suggest reservations for groups over 6-8 however. But go ahead, make a day of it, try something new, something local, and check something off of your to-do list as well.