Congratulations on your e n g a g e m e n t ! The coming months will be filled
with exiting moments, beautiful memories and big decisions. Sometimes these decisions will be very overwhelming...but don’t panic! We have created Beautiful Beginnings to help make the planning of your wedding both easy and delightful! There are three components to planning a wedding: the business, the artistic and the organization. The business is the not-soglamorous details of all of the “planning” of your wedding. The artistic is putting your signature style on every detail of your wedding, which makes it a completely custom and special day for you and your family. Finally you have the organization, which brings the business and artistic together and keeps your wedding planning running on the appropriate timeline. You must start with Pre-Planning, Shopping and then Organizing. PrePlanning will deal with the items that you will need to address even before you spend a penny. Which includes: - Choosing a date - Completing your wedding guest list - Creating a budget - Determining whether or not to hire a wedding planner - Deciding your type of wedding
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- Determining your color scheme - Choosing and asking your wedding party - Creating your planning timeline Once you have these tasks completed, you will move on to Shopping... the fun part! This includes: - Determining your ceremony and reception site - Selecting your photographer and videographer - Selecting your ceremony and reception entertainment - Purchasing your wedding gown and bridesmaids’ dresses - Hiring your florist/decorator - Fining the special touches - Negotiating contracts
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over the Texas and Oklahoma Panhandles. Copies will also be available at all participating vendors. We will also have a booth at the Bridal Show in which Brides can obtain a copy of Beautiful Beginnings to help with tips, helpful articles and participating vendors to review. Join us at the Bridal Show and register to win the Skyscraper Hotel Package at the Ambassador Hotel worth $229! - Deluxe Guest Room - Cattle Baron’s Concierge Level. - Chilled bottle of champagne delivered the evening of your arrival. - Gift basket full of gourmet chocolates, gourmet cheese & crackers, bottled water, and keepsake hotel logo champagne flutes. - Enjoy a fresh hot breakfast or a continental breakfast served in the Cattle Baron’s Lounge from 6-9am. You can also dine at the Heritage Park located in the atrium. - Leisure check out of 3pm - All the amenities of the concierge level: private keyed access floors, concierge on duty, turn down service, complimentary hors d’oeuvres and cocktails from 5-7pm nightly, continental breakfast or hot breakfast from 6-9am daily, bathrobes for use during your stay, mini refrigerator & shoe buffers.
Finally, you will need to Organize all the decisions you made. You will need to create the following: - Final payment schedule - Wedding week agenda - Important photo list - Inventory list - Seating list - Announcement list - “Where things go” list - Wedding profile
Go to www.ambassadoramarillo.com for more details on this particular package.
Beautiful Beginnings will publish two issues a year, in January and August, to coincide with the High Plains Wedding Bridal Show. Beautiful Beginnings will be inserted in American Classifieds and distributed all
Beautiful Beginnings
Beautiful Beginning is produced by American Classifieds, 1612 S. Washington, Amarillo, Texas 79102. 806-376-5006. Become a Fan on our FaceBook page to get tips from vendors, ideas and register to win various drawings.
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Five wedding tips for brides 1. I will not end up on YouTube for the wrong reason. Adorable processional dance? Totally acceptable path to stardom. Bridezilla freak-out on the florist who delivers hyacinths instead of hydrangeas? Not so much. On your wedding day, all eyes (and camera phones) will be on you, meaning your every move is subject to instant Internet infamy. Mind your manners and keep your panic attacks quiet to avoid the wrong kind of publicity. But that video of your dad doing the worm during your father-daughter dance? Internet gold. 2. I will not use my Facebook status as a personal wedding journal. Okay, we know you’re excited about planning your wedding, but that girl from your college history class couldn’t care less that you finally booked a reception band (not to mention understand that passive-aggressive comment about the best man). We’re not saying the everyday details aren’t interesting -- we’d just recommend a different platform. Instead of overloading your Twitter feed with wedding details, create a wedding-planning blog for those who want to keep tabs on the ups and downs. 3. I will trust my vendors. Before you start micromanaging every decision your wedding planner makes, remember one thing: You’re paying them for a reason. Consider their experience and expertise an opportunity for you to relax. They want you to love the result (after all, your recommendation hinges on it!), so they’re going to strive to please. And wouldn’t you rather help someone who trusts your abilities rather than second-guesses everything you do? There’s no harm in giving a good amount of direction at the outset, but asking for daily progress reports is overkill. 4. I will not feel guilty about having an adults-only wedding. Whether you’re worried about babies crying during the ceremony or just can’t afford to seat entire families for dinner, it’s your decision whether
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or not you want to invite the little ones. As long as you’re consistent about this rule (no exceptions for your closest friends!) and upfront in your invitations and on your wedding website, you shouldn’t feel bad if you have to tactfully put the kibosh on your second cousin who tries to RSVP for her toddler triplets. 5. I will look on the bright side -- no matter what. Did your outdoor ceremony get rained out? Instead of panicking, throw on some cute rain boots, grab a big umbrella, and start posing for some adorable rainy-day photographs. The DJ played the wrong song for your bridal party’s entrance? Chances are no one else noticed. After months of obsessing over the details, it’s easy to get lost in them. Loosen up, keep in mind what’s important (you’re getting married!), and we promise that, even if the caterer serves twice-baked potatoes instead of mashed, it’ll all be great in the end. -- Justine Lorelle Blanchard with La Tapatia
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groom and mom dance. 3. Let go of all details and concerns the night before your wedding day. Focus on your feelings and having fun. 2. The more preparation you put into your day, the better the results. Take the time to plan. 1. This is the biggest day of your life and it only happens once in a lifetime. Hire the best to make it the best. - Wayne Williams with All About Music DJ Service
Top ten things to know to ensure a great wedding and reception 10. People can’t dance on carpet. Rent a dance floor. 9. The most songs that can be played in a 4 hour reception is 60 songs. No need to pick anymore. 8. Do not let a relative or friend DJ at your wedding. 7. In order to create more dancing, have the DJ set up directly in 6. 5. 4.
front of the dance floor. Get references on everyone you hire to help with your wedding and reception. Don’t try to time your events during your wedding day. Have an order, but “let it flow”. Take time to practice your first dance, bride and father dance and
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Wedding cost... who pays for what? Traditionally, the bride and her family carry the financial
burden of paying for most of the wedding. Nothing is quite the same anymore and many couples who marry later on often pay for the wedding and reception themselves. Other times, costs can be divided amongst the bride’s and groom’s families so that one family isn’t responsible for the majority of expenses. Sometimes, instead of splitting the bills, they divide the tasks and costs. For example, the bride’s family pays for the photographer, food, etc. and the groom’s family pays for the flowers, invitations, etc. Here’s a list of how the costs are traditionally divided:
Bride’s Family Responsibilities Bridal consultant/wedding planner Wedding dress, headpiece, accessories Wedding announcements and invitations Ceremony music, decorations, flowers
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Groom’s ring Groom’s gift Most flowers Photographer and Videographer Transportation Reception site rental, decorations, party favors, food, drinks, entertainment
Groom’s Family Responsibilities
Bride’s engagement and wedding rings Marriage license Groom’s attire Officiant or clergy fees Bridal bouquet Boutonnières for ushers, mother’s corsages Rehearsal dinner Bride’s Gift Honeymoon
Choosing your wedding flowers
Flowers play an important role in weddings, adding beauty and fragrance. Traditionally, they are used for the altar, bridal bouquet, bridesmaids bouquets, centerpieces, the guest book table and boutonniere for the groom, best man, groomsmen and ushers.
Additionally, corsages are given for other important roles, such as hosts, personal attendants, soloists, close family members and anyone you see fit. They are a great way to make others part of your wedding day and say “thank-you” to special people in your life. Start with the basics... Bridal Bouquet Classic or contemporary, your bridal bouquet will set the style for the rest of the flowers. Do a little research and pick a floral arrangement in accordance with the season. Traditionally, bright, bold colors compliment Fall, and pastel shades are gorgeous in the Spring. The bridesmaids will carry bouquets with similar flowers, but the arrangements are more modest than the bride’s. The hot trend this year are European, hand-tied bouquets that add a fresh touch to the ceremony. Groom’s Boutonniere The boutonniere is pinned on the groom’s left lapel and should include a flower from the bride’s bouquet. Traditionally this is a single-blossom rose, or a small cluster of flowers. Flowers for the Altar The focal point of the wedding, the alter arrangements should compliment the other flowers. Keep is simple and elegant, and you can move the flowers to the reception. The Guest Table Generally, guest tables are small in size, so you’ll have limited space. You need room for your guest book and pan, so choose a small arrange-
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ment or adorned frame with a picture of the future bride and groom. The Wedding Cake If you want flowers on your cake, let your florist know well in advance. He or she can assist you in choosing flowers consistent with your theme that are non-toxic. Flowers for the Reception You can arrange for some fresh or silk flowers in your table centerpieces, but make sure they are not too tall or bulky -- this way they won’t interfere with the view or pictures. You’re not limited to just flowers! Depending on your theme, you can add some pizzazz with silk potted plants and trees and decorate them accordingly. Ideas For ideas on centerpieces for the ceremony and reception, ask your clergy and reception hall administration for pictures of past weddings. Look online for similar silk flowers at discount or wholesale prices. For Transportation, Assign a trusted friend or family member to transport your floral arrangements from the altar to the reception.
“A great marriage is not when the ‘perfect couple’ comes together. It is when an imperfect couple learns to enjoy their differences.” ~ Dave Meurer “All married couples should learn the art of battle as they should learn the art of making love. Good battle is objective and honest--never vicious or cruel. Good battle is healthy and constructive, and brings to a marriage the principle of equal partnership.” ~ Ann Landers “A successful marriage requires falling in love many times, always with the same person.” ~ Mignon McLaughlin “Marriage is not just spiritual communion, it is also remembering to take out the trash.” ~ Joyce Brothers “There is only one happiness in life, to love and be loved.” ~ George Sands
Wedding and marriage quotes to inspire “Perhaps the greatest blessing in marriage is that it
lasts so long. The years, like the varying interests of each year, combine to buttress and enrich each other. Out of many shared years, one life. In a series of temporary relationships, one misses the ripening, gathering, harvesting joys, the deep, hard-won truths of marriage.” ~ Richard C. Cabot “Love is a symbol of eternity. It wipes out all sense of time, destroying all memory of a beginning and all fear of an end.” ~ Author Unknown
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