brownsugarbride

Could this be any more fabulous??! (I'm starting to wish I'd eloped!) I cannot wait to see your pictures!

We all know that a destination wedding in and of itself has a 'wow' factor! I know that weddings are about celebrating love and family, but I still want to give my guests a little bit of the wow factor to have them talking for years to come. So far for me, it will be the churro cart, mariachi, and a few little surprises during the ceremony (personal ones that I don't want my guy to find out about beforehand)! What are yours?

Just a few days after mine (April 25th)! We should all talk about potentially sharing decor elements!

Lucky you! Getting married in a garden was actually my first choice, until I realized that a private villa was NOT in the financial cards!

Checking back in--how are my fellow BV brides coming along with the planning?

Hi all! It's been nuts on my end. Our wedding is at the end of April, but we're still sending out a few invites (stds were sent months ago). We have NO idea how many people are coming, which affects our budget mightily. My wedding planner is great, but I have no idea how we will pull this event off!

I have been thinking about ways to get people together to have a game night or something fun before the wedding. I've already ruled out a private rehearsal dinner, as that will be too pricey. However, I thought it might be nice to rent out a room or suite to have a American night. Has anyone done something like this? How much was the cost?

Good to get another POV. I know some brides have done it before, but it may be that some crowds are hungrier than others!

One idea might be to cut down on the cocktail hour. For example, some brides have only opted to go with the cocktail food provided in the package (e.g. 25 people). Most people never eat up the amount of food allocated per person in the cocktail hour, so you could likely get away with providing a little less. I'm not sure if the NJ still allows you to do the above, but this might be one option (just make sure you don't go too bare bones and run out of food). You could also consider only having the champagne toast for you and the groom, and subbing in something cheaper for the guests. Lots of wedding experts suggest this as a way to cut down on costs: http://www.instyle.com/instyle/package/general/photos/0,,20464370_20704660_21338400,00.html Last, I've also read that you don't need to buy a cake that covers every single guest. See the link below for some ways to save: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/12/wedding-cake-prices_n_3423921.html

Welcome! I've gotten so many great ideas from this forum and I'm sure that you will too. Do you and your fiancé have a location in mind yet?

Andrea-It's so wonderful to hear from another BV bride! I won't be able to visit until about 3 days before the wedding, so I just love getting even more confirmation that this is a wonderful location!

I reached out to my planner about the tax hike. I wish I'd seen the notice in time to pay last month! LOL Nevertheless, even though I don't know the exact number of guests that we will have, I am going to pay a ballpark figure to take advantage of the savings.

My wedding is taking place at the end of April. I sent my save the dates sometime in August. Like awhiteside, I had INTENDED to send my invites out earlier, but just sent them out today (except some addresses that I don't have yet and a few family members that we'll see in person over the holidays). The deadline for booking will be February 1st. I made it a little earlier to give myself wiggle room for resort booking/catering. Unfortunately, no one has booked, including my family. I put the information down on the website, but I suppose everyone was waiting for an invite? I'm hoping that things work out for me as they have for awhiteside! LOL

Torifire- Congratulations on your engagement! I would have LOVED to have a villa wedding, but it wasn't in the cards financially. And Tulum is gorgeous! I can tell you (because I asked) that Chinese fire lanterns are banned in the RM area, unless something has changed. Restrictions on fire are really increasing (for example, I was seriously bummed to find out that I wouldn't be able to have fire dancers at my reception). I would definitely check with your wedding planner for the latest updates on this one.

I made my wedding invitations and they came out really well! JoAnn Fabrics has some really pretty card stock, and you can also try AC Moore. I got a lot of my card stock on sale at JoAnn's, and they have lots of lovely options for paper goods in general. I hope this is helpful!

That's awful--I'm really sorry to hear this. I had wanted to use DJ Doremixx, but his prices have skyrocketed, and for some reason, he didn't bother to contact me directly (just my wedding planner). I am crossing my fingers for all the other brides that this situation was a one-time fluke!

Welcome! Jamaica is a beautiful island and the food is fabulous! Have you checked out alexisinjamaica's planning thread and reviews? You will get LOTS of great information.

There is definitely a thread for May 2014 brides! I had to switch my wedding to late April, but I still am a part of the crew. Come join us!

I'm so sorry I am just now replying! Your response is very helpful! Are you going to have a caricature artist at your wedding?

Quote: Originally Posted by astaats83 I loved Grand Coral, but it was too expensive. I think Blue Venado is less expensive and is more secluded and beautiful. Once I see those photos I will be able to decide. Then I'm going to hire Joyce from Dreamweddings and get the show started!! She is awesome and so knowledgeable. Joyce is my planner as well---she is fab!

Quote: Originally Posted by MrsHK Hey Tiffany! Have you made any progress with finding an alternate resort? I inboxed you a couple options, but I can keep researching options for you if you're still stuck! So sorry---it's been a crazy couple of days and I forgot to update. As it turns out, my driver was adding in some extra time in case of traffic. It will only take about an hour to get to the wedding site, and my friends seemed to think this was no big deal. Thanks so much again for looking out for me.

That's "hand ", not "Hannah"! My kingdom for an edit button. LOL

I have decided that rather than Hannah dressing my envelopes, I am going to use my printer, labels and possibly a custom address stamp. Does anyone have recommendations for vendors where I can buy a nice one? I was thinking that Etsy might be one possibility.

That awkward moment when you realize that you've screwed up ROYALLY. Long story short is that I booked a resort about 35 minutes away (so I thought) from my ceremony/reception site because I knew that some people would prefer all of their food and drink to be bundled into one package. However, after talking to my transportation guy, I have realized that my calculations on Google Maps didn't take into account real world traffic, getting to the Blue Venado itself from the highway, etc. In reality, it could take more than double the time (about 1.5 hours)!!!!!!! My friends are saying that it will be okay, that it will be like a party bus. However, I think that's just too much to expect from guests. Argh!!!

Your wedding is nearly 6 months after mine and I haven't sent my invitations yet! I need to step up my game! LOL