Sign on the Dotted Line

Now that the Salon Marions-Nous had just past this weekend, brides and grooms are starting to do vendor visits more often and to final decide on which vendor they want to work with to put together their special day.

It is important to have a legal binding contract to protect yourselves, as well as the vendors. Here are some general terms and conditions you should look for in a contract:
- Date the contract was drafted
- Address, phone number and additional contact info for the vendor
- Address, phone number and additional contact info for the client
- Exact time and date services are to be given
- Exact location where services are to be given
- Detail breakdown of the cost of items and services to be provided by the vendor
- The total cost for services
- The amount and date the deposit was made
- The amount and due date of the remaining balance
- Cancellation and refund policies of the company
- Any additional charges that may be incurred so there will be no surprises when you receive the final invoice:
Hourly rates if the client wishes to go into overtime
Charges for assistants and/or extra persons, if applicable
Mileage costs and travel fees, if any
Gratuity & Tax
Other miscellaneous charges

Wedding Zone also provides us with other important information that should be included in the contracts for different vendors:


ADDITIONAL CONTRACT TERMS FOR DJ's/BANDS/ENTERTAINERS

The total number of musicians or DJ's that will be provided
The DJ's name and/or listing of musician(s)
The hours the entertainment will start and finish
Number and length of breaks, if any

ADDITIONAL CONTRACT TERMS FOR PHOTOGRAPHERS

The total number of and size of photos included in the package
The total number of proofs included in the package
The cost of additional photos and/or proofs
The name of the photographer that will be doing your wedding
The hours the photographer will begin and end shooting
The final delivery date of proofs and photos
The cost of additional or special lighting, if required

ADDITIONAL CONTRACT TERMS FOR VIDEOGRAPHERS

The total number of videos included in the package
The cost of additional videos
The name of the videographer that will be doing your wedding
The hours the videographer will begin and end shooting
The date the video will be available for proofing, if any
The final delivery date of the finished video
Type of special packaging the video will be delivered in, if applicable
The cost of additional or special lighting, if required
Additional charges for editing or special effects, if any

ADDITIONAL CONTRACT TERMS FOR TRANSPORTATION SERVICES

The pick-up and drop-off times and locations
The total length of the rental
The total number of vehicles contracted
The exact description of the vehicle(s) you have selected

ADDITIONAL CONTRACT TERMS FOR CATERERS/RECEPTION SITES

The exact address of the reception site
The room(s) the ceremony- cocktail hour- reception will take place, if applicable
Access times for decorating and set-up
The estimated number of guests (final guest count due before the wedding)
The exact price for each guest
Will it be a sit down dinner or buffet?
The number of meals and itemized menu of food
The types of beverages (including alcohol) that will be served and exact cost
The number of servers that will be staffed
The name of the person who will be in charge of the servers
The times the meal(s) will be served and duration of the meal period
Requirements for special meals or arrangements

ADDITIONAL CONTRACT TERMS FOR SUPPLIER OF BRIDAL GOWN/DRESSES/TUXEDOS

The name of the designer
The design or style number of the gown/dress
Dates for first fittings, final fittings, delivery/pick-up
Itemized list of costs, including alterations and other charges

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Hiring Wedding Planners

Think you can never afford a wedding planner? Think again! While you are expected to pay a wedding planner 10 to 15 percent of your total wedding budget for her full-service coordination, a lot of the times your wedding planner has already built great relationships with vendors who would give a 10% discount to the bride & groom. Just think about it, it takes a bride an average of 250 hours to plan her wedding. A wedding planner can definitely save you a lot of time and stress and she will take a load off your shoulders so you can actually enjoy being engaged! So why not let the professional take care of it if in the end, the wedding planner would help you save some money too?

Of course, before you hire a wedding planner, meet her in person and ask her some questions such as...
- How long have you been in business?
- How many weddings do you plan a year?
- Do you belong to any professional organizations?
- Do you have a portfolio?
- What services are included in your contract?
- Will you have an assistant on the day of my wedding?
- Will you attend my rehearsal?
- Do you bring an emergency kit to all your weddings?

If you do not require a full-service coordinator, you might consider a day-of coordinator to ensure everything you've planned will go smoothly on your big day and to take care of any emergencies and unforeseen situations.

Perhaps an hourly consultation with a planner would be best for you? If you just need someone to bounce ideas off or to help with a specific vendor or item on your check-list, this can be money well spent.

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Advertising at Your Wedding

I have seen vendors leave their business cards on reception tables at weddings and events to promote their business to the guests. I have thought about doing this myself too but decided against it because brides and groom and cooperate event clients might not appreciate it, unless there's prior agreement. Brides and grooms, what do you think? Would you be upset if your vendors did that at your wedding? Vendors, do you do that, why or why not? Do you discuss it with your clients before you place your business cards at their weddings and events? If you were a guest attending a wedding and there are business cards at the table you're sitting at, how would you feel?

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Video Booths

A year ago I made a blog post about renting photo booths for your wedding reception. This is a wonderful idea for your guestbook. But wait, look what's IN now! VIDEO BOOTHS!



We didn't have a photo booth at our wedding, we did receive a lot of photos from our guests though, but we would have also loved to hear from them. Having a 450-guest wedding is anything but personal! As you can imagine, we weren't able to talk to a lot of our guests. A video booth would have been wonderful to have at our wedding. Guests can visit the video booth at any time during the reception to record a message for the newly weds. They can tell stories and funny moments and record their best wishes. Guests should also feel more comfortable recording their messages with this machine, and having fun with the props that some companies do provide, rather than being awkward in front of the videographer.

The only problem having this at our wedding, even if I knew about this awesome machine? Can't seem to find any vendors here in Quebec that rents out these video booths! Hello vendors, where are you?? Please do let us know if you're lucky enough to find one in Quebec.

Here are a couple of vendors from Toronto (you lucky brides and grooms!):

SOAPBOX
GUEST MOMENTS


Photo 1: courtesy of Soapbox.
Photo 2: courtesy of Guest Moments.

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Your Picture Inside a Diamond, Forever.

Please visit their new website: http://www.gemory.com/

Gemory LLC is pleased to announce the launch of the Memory Diamond, a diamond embedded with the picture of your lasting memory using nano-photographic technology. The nano-photograph is injected inside the Memory Diamond using Gemory's proprietary DiamondPure process. The nano-photograph is invisible to a naked eye and can be viewed using GemmaView, Gemory's proprietary portable viewing device.

(PRWEB) September 9, 2009 -- Gemory LLC is pleased to announce the launch of the Memory Diamond, a diamond embedded with the picture of your lasting memory using nano-photographic technology.

Following the introduction of its limited edition of "The Michael Jackson Diamond", Gemory is now offering everyone the opportunity to have their own customized diamond.

The Memory Diamond comes in three sizes (0.15, 0.25 and 1.0 carat). The stone is a natural, round, colorless diamond. It is conflict-free and comes with a certificate from Gemological Institute of America (GIA).

The nano-photograph is injected inside the Memory Diamond using Gemory's proprietary DiamondPure process. The nano-photograph is invisible to a naked eye and can be viewed using GemmaView, Gemory's proprietary portable viewing device.

The Memory Diamond is a unique, sentimental gift for all occasions such as anniversary, wedding, birth, and graduation.

The Memory Diamond can be ordered via Gemory's new website with a streamlined 3-step ordering process. A customer can easily upload a photo to see a preview, choose the diamond size and complete the order.

Gemory also offers the Memory Diamond through its network of jewelers.

For more information, visit Gemory website.

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The Write Stuff

No matter who you choose to print your invitations and stationery, always do it the right way. The first place you should look is through families and friends, ask for recommendations. This the best way to look for a good invitation printer, and of course this applies to all vendors you look for.

Always ask to see examples of the stationer's work, work that they have personally done in the past, not photos of other stationery they have downloaded off the internet and they claim that they can reproduce the design.

Even though I do invitations myself, I would suggest that you visit at least 3 stationery retailers so that you can have a better idea of the prices, styles and personalized options that are available.

Also, business is business! You should ask questions right from the start and if possible, get the terms and conditions in writing. The easiest is to communicate the important things through email so that you have everything written out in black and white. Again, this applies to all vendors you deal with, always get everything down on paper!

Questions you might want to ask your stationer:
- can you see an actual sample before placing an order?
- what are the liability for printing mistakes on their part?
- does extra prints cost extra, does it count as a new order?
- do the invitations come fully assembled?
- what is the cost difference if they do the printing and you do the assembling?
- do they print your return address on the invitation and RSVP envelopes?

Always proofread all master texts BEFORE placing the order. Have a couple of family members or friends proofread it for you, they might catch a mistake you have missed! Also check your final invitations after production when you pick them up. Check it on the spot instead of waiting until you get home and when you finally find time to address the envelopes and stuff in the invitation. If the stationer made a mistake, it would be too late to do anything about it when you find out.

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Amazing Giveaways!

I have two wonderful giveaways for all you wonderful readers! A $100 gift certificate for Wedding Paper Divas and another $100 gift certificate for Beau-coup! They are both wonderful and unique vendors with amazing products for our Big Day.

Entering is simple! Just visit each sponsor's site and select a wedding invitation (WPD) & wedding favour (BC) that fulfills your unique sense of a modern and/or unique romantic wedding.

After choosing a unique invitation, save it as a "favorite" on the WPD site. This is done by clicking on the "Save in Favorites" button on the desired wedding invitation page. And subscribing to the Beau-coup newsletter: http://www.beau-coup.com/newsletter.htm.

Then simply come back to my blog right here and describe which products best fit your ideal wedding plan. A product link is highly desirable. Remember to come back and leave your thoughts AND at least your email address, so we can contact you if you're the lucky winner!

Contest runs through February 13th 2009 and it is opened to contestants worldwide.

Have fun and good luck!

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Inform Vendors & Helpers

It's never too early to start making a list of things your vendors should know. Things should be jotted down done whenever you remember so that you will not forget anything.

Things like food allergy among your guests should be communicated to your caterer or reception hall right away and remind them when you confirm the number of guests you have as your wedding day comes closer.

If you have an open bar and your Uncle Bob tends to overdo the drinks at events like these, give the bartender a heads up.

Whoever is making the table arrangements, inform them of any sensitive relationships. If there are any other relationships that should not be brought to attention, inform those who are involved.

These are little details of the wedding that can be overlooked but are important and might have a negative impact on your big day.

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2009 Wedding Shows

I've just added a huge list of wedding shows across Canada that will take place in 2009. Most likely, there are more than one show in your area that will take place during the first three months of 2009. So you should take a look at the schedule and plan ahead!

Here are some tips for you when you attend one or all of these shows:

- Visit booths like The Bay first so you can grab the huge bags they give you to keep all your flyers and printed information you collect.

- When you arrive, take a look at the list of vendors at the show and plan your route. Go to the vendors you want to speak with first. You can also do this in advance if the show has a website that offers a list of vendors who will be exhibiting.

- If you have swatches of materials that you have chosen to use for your wedding, bring those with you so that when you ask vendors questions, you can refer to those if need be.

- Ask lots and lots of questions! Even if you're not planning to use that particular vendor, don't be afraid to ask questions, they are professionals and they're there to help you at the show.

- If you're planning on entering all the draws and contests at the show, print some labels with your name, phone number, email address and wedding date so that you can stick a label on the ballots without having to spend 5 minutes filling out the information at every booth. This will save you a lot of time so that you can spend more time at the booths you really want to check out.

- You'll be doing a lot of walking and standing, so remember to wear comfortable shoes.

- Try to leave your winter jackets in the car (if you're not parked too far away) so you've one less thing to carry.

- Bring some cheques in case you want to book a vendor who's only offering a discount at the show. But don't rush to reserve the vendor if you're not too sure you want to hire them. Chances are you will end up regretting.

- You're probably not allowed to take any pictures of the booths and ideas you find helpful, so bring a notepad and try your best to jot down notes that will help you with your planning.

That's it! Now, ENJOY the show, no rush, stay as long as you like and have FUN! Especially with all the food sampling they have !

By the way, if you know of a wedding show that I have not listed or the information is incorrect, please drop me an email and let me know so other brides and grooms can be informed.

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Personally Handwritten

I love personally handwritten letters, cards and notes. I have a big box full of handwritten letters from my friends and loved ones since elementary school! I love the fact that the person actually took the time to look for a card (or even made a card) and write something for me. Makes me feel oh so special!

Do you still get handwritten notes these days? When was the last time you received one? Handwritten notes are very rare nowadays. I don't even get actual birthday cards anymore. I get e-cards... an e-card that expires in a month! Don't get me wrong, I love e-cards too and the fact that my friends would take 10 minutes out of their busy schedule to send an e-card to me makes me feel special too. But having a handwritten note that doesn't expire and one that I am able to keep and to look back on years later really is something that's special to me.

Of course, not only do I love receiving, I also love giving. The joy I get from writing a card or a note to someone dear to me, or even someone I don't know very well, is just indescribable! As I write the note, I know that the person receiving it will appreciate it.

I know that at least one person will agree with me on this one! Shannon, from Calligraphy by Shannon, is someone who has a passion for the the art of writing and calligraphy. In her blog profile, she says "It is incredible what joy you can give to people through writing letters, notes, and words of encouragement. I have found that this joy can also be shared in so many ways - and this has led me to be passionate about calligraphy!"

Ditto Shannon!

By the way, Shannon not only has beautiful handwriting, she creates really cool maps for her customers too!



Last three images courtesy of Calligraphy by Shannon.
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Reception Hall Wedding Mark-ups

When you go reception hall hunting, try to “forget” to mention the word WEDDING when you request a sample menu package. Tell the reception hall it’s a party or an event you’re planning. We all know that the word WEDDING associated with anything will have a higher mark-up but in reality, you’re getting the same package as say a family reunion or a retirement party. Once you find out their regular priced menu, you will be in a better position to negotiate for the menu and services you want.

* Image courtesy of Buffet Roma, Montreal.

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Inflating the Alterations Bill

One of my bridesmaids got married before me (last year). When we went bridesmaids dress shopping back in April, she was telling me how much her bridal shop charged her for her gown alternation. I almost fainted in the mall when she told me she was charged $300 for alternations! I just couldn’t believe what I heard, as if her $1800 gown wasn’t expensive enough! I felt so bad, I didn’t even want to tell her that I found a seamstress who is experienced in gown alterations and only charged me $40! Today’s tip: your bridal shop isn’t the only place where you can get your gown altered. Look else where, get recommendations from family and friends or where else can you get better recommendations then from real brides from local wedding forums? Of course, not all seamstresses know how to alter gowns, so be sure to ask if she is experienced with wedding gowns.

My seamstress in Montreal is located on St. Hubert Street. Her name is Mrs. Lam and she is a super nice Chinese lady. Another bride from the weddingbells.ca forum recommended her to me and I’m so grateful for that because… I had umm… 3 … wedding gowns to alter…

Shun Hing

6385A Rue St.Hubert

Montreal, H2S 2L9

514.276.1294

Another tip: some dishonest bridal shops try to convince you to order a gown that’s way too big for you. Then, when the gown comes in, guess what? It needs expensive alterations! So what can you do? Measure yourself and ask to personally see the manufacturer’s sizing chart. Note that every bridal manufacturer uses its own size chart. If you’re a size 8 in the real-world, you might be a size 10 or 12 in the bridal world!