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The Wedding Planning Institute

Celebrity Weddings by Chad Wandel

Celebrity weddings are all about personalization and absolute attention to detail. Nothing can be overlooked and every opportunity to make the wedding personal to your celebrity client is what is expected from the wedding extravagant clientele.

The celebrity clients that I have dealt with are always looking for the “Wow Factor” when it comes to entertainment and décor for their weddings. Thinking in new media and layering décor concepts are how to please the tastes of this client.

Using light is an important aspect of obtaining the ambience and visual touches that will make the décor really pop. With large budgets spent on floral arrangements, I never miss the opportunity to have them pin spotted. Use of plasma screens to display portraits rather than traditional prints and incorporated music videos and multimedia presentations by the specialized entertainment are all additional ways to cater to the luxurious tastes of celebrity weddings.

And lastly, a professional Master of Ceremonies is always on my list of must-haves for my clients. True professional entertainment is the best way to ensure a harmonious incorporation of planning and entertainment. They are the director to our craftily composed wedding reception.

Chad Wandel is a classical violinist, an award-winning videographer, the founder of Artistic Image Weddings in Arlington, Texas, President of the Dallas-Fort Worth Chapter of the American Disc Jockey Association, and a Certified Wedding Planner and Instructor for The Wedding Planning Institute’s How to Become a Wedding Planner certification course at the University of Texas Arlington.

Bridging the Gap between Nigerian and American Wedding Traditions by Narketta Sparkman

I had the pleasure of assisting my clients plan the wedding of their dreams, which took place September 2, 2006 in Michigan. The bride is Nigerian American because she was born in raised in this country. Her parents are both native Nigerians immigrants. Planning this wedding was a task. My clients were very much in love and very laid-back people. They wanted to incorporate Nigerian traditions but did not want it to consume their wedding.

Nigerians believe the wedding is for the bride’s mother. She is ultimately the one to be praised for raising the daughter being married, which clashed with American tradition. My clients were paying for the wedding and felt it should be what they wanted. There was some compromise on my client’s behalf but ultimately it was the wedding they wanted.

The first compromise was having a Catholic wedding. The bride was raised Catholic but not a practicing Catholic and the groom was not Catholic at all. The parents of the bride wanted the wedding to take place in their church and wanted a traditional Catholic ceremony. However, the bride and groom were not comfortable with agreeing to raise their children as Catholics. They agreed to do this to please the bride’s parents but decided not to have a Mass as a part of their ceremony.

From the beginning, there was a conflict as to how many guest would be invited. My clients wanted to have no more than 250 guests, with the bride’s parents inviting 150 and the couple splitting the other 100 guests between themselves and the groom’s family. In the Nigerian culture, when someone has an event you go to that event regardless of invitation. The whole community supports your event. Two hundred and fifty invitations were sent with 200 of them going to Nigerian friends of the bride’s parents. There were 300 who confirmed their attendance and 350 guests actually attended the wedding. Many of the guests that attended were invited by word of mouth. Approximately 300 of the guests were Nigerian. The bride and groom wanted to ensure that all their guests, both Nigerian and American, felt comfortable during their celebration.

Since it is tradition that the wedding is for the bride’s mother, there were rituals that needed to take place. The Nigerian women dressed in Ashibi attire were to march down the aisle together as a part of this tradition. However, my clients wanted to stick to American tradition and felt the wedding party should be the only ones walking down the aisle. Ultimately the bride had her way.

After the ceremony, the women in Ashibi attire and the mother of the groom staged several photos outside of the church. They were congratulating the mother and the photographers were bombarded by the Nigerian woman wanting a picture with her. We had to ask the photographers to stop taking these photos to capture the bride.

In order to insure that all the guests were comfortable at the reception, we had two separate disc jockeys; one Nigerian and one American. We sat down with the disc jockeys twice to plan every musical detail of the wedding. The bride wanted there to be a good mix of music throughout the reception. The bride and groom danced to American music for their first dance and then for the father/daughter dance they danced to a more upbeat tempo Nigerian song. As the father and the bride danced, Nigerians threw money at their feet to wish them well.

Before dinner, the father of the bride began the Kolanuts Communion. This is a Nigerian tradition that bridged the families and guests together. Kolanuts is a way of getting acquainted with your guests. The father of the bride, standing with other male elders, gave a sermon on the dance floor. After each one of his statements, the elders stated “Onye wetere oji wetere ndu” (He who brings Kolanut brings life). He asked that the groom’s father join the presentation. They split the Kolanut on the dance floor and enjoyed it together. All of the guests were then given Kolanuts. Kolanuts is a bitter fruit from Nigeria. It smells like nicotine and tastes like cigars.

The presentation was done in the traditional language of Nigeria except for when speaking to the father of the groom. This really invited the groom’s family into the bride’s family and signified them merging into one family. There were four parts to the communion:

Iche` Oji (Presentation of Kolanut)
Igo` Oji (Blessing of Kolanut)
Iwa` Oji (Breaking of Kolanut)
Ike` Oji (Distribution of Kolanut)

The bride and groom decided against the traditional bouquet or garter toss. They just thought the tradition was dated. The bride was a member of a sorority and they decided to do the traditional sweetheart song and dance in which they are singing to the groom.

The bride and groom changed out of the traditional tuxedo and wedding dress and into Nigerian wedding attire. The women in Ashibi attire escorted them into the room. These women did a chant and danced with the bride and groom at the end of the line. There were approximately 75 women in costume. Once in the room, the groom had a seat while the bride and her mother danced in the middle of the dance floor as the women chanted and gathered around them. The bride’s mother draped the bride and groom with a sash made of money. The guests began to throw money at them all over the dance floor. This is for financial stability and to congratulate the couple.

Ultimately the couple succeeded in having a wedding that incorporated many Nigerian traditions. The décor was all Americanized with the colors the bride and groom wanted. Each guest received a favor of a coaster made in Nigeria with the bride and grooms name on it. They also received a more Americanized favor of personalized chocolates from the bride and groom. The parents of the bride were very satisfied with the wedding as well as the couple. Everyone seemed to have their way and not much was compromised as far as tradition and the desires of the couple.

Narketta Sparkman is President of the Metro Detroit Chapter of the International Special Events Society, a Certified Instructor for The Wedding Planning Institute’s How to Become a Wedding Planner certification course, author of Dream Big, Plan Smart: A Guide to Planning Your Dream Wedding, owner of the event planning company Special Occasions by Narketta, and is currently working on her doctorate.

The Highest Happiness on Earth is Marriage

Tomorrow, our country will vote for our next President, hundreds of members of Congress, thousands of state and local officials, and numerous ballot initiatives. For the wedding industry and the Certified Wedding Planner, propositions in Arizona, California, and Florida are drawing attention almost on par with the national election. In each of these three states, voters will decide whether or not to ban same-sex marriage.

As same-sex couples rush to the altar in the hotly contested California ballot race, commercials for and against Proposition 8 are airing multiple times each hour. Since the California Supreme Court decision in June 2008 that legalized gay-marriage, thousands of couples, including celebrities, have tied the knot. In the meantime, arguments for the societal benefits of traditional marriage versus equality for all have continued to be waged. In many cases the contest has become vitriolic.

William Lyon Phelps, early 20th century American author, scholar, and ordained minister, wrote that “the highest happiness on Earth is marriage”. In the view of opponents of same-sex marriage, their efforts are nothing short of heroic protection of marriage in the face of a threat to that happiness. For proponents of gay marriage, the fight is against discrimination and the right of everyone to pursue their personal happiness.

While recent polls have tightened to the point of a statistical tie, the battle is being fought on the Internet, at city halls, in churches, internationally, in homes, in labor unions, in schools, in political parties, and in movie productions. In an election where economic, foreign policy, health care, and energy concerns compete for our collective attention, the war over our subjective marital happiness will inevitably continue after tomorrow’s votes are tallied. Both sides of the issue are counting on your support to either protect marriage or protect equality.

For the Certified Wedding Planner, depending on your viewpoint, a defeat for Proposition 8 will either increase your business opportunities or someone else’s. To some, victory for the measure will protect their happiness by denying it to others. When deciding your position, perhaps another quote by Phelps, highlighted in the 1001 Smartest Things Ever Said, in need of slight paraphrasing for the 21st century, can be of some guidance:

"This is the first test of a gentleman: his respect for those who can be of no possible value to him."

Please remember to vote.

This Week in Wedding Planning News

For today’s busy Certified Wedding Planner, keeping up with wedding industry current events can be challenging. With that in mind, here is a recap of what you may have missed this past week.

The former world’s heaviest man, Manuel Uribe, married his fiancée, Claudia Solis, in a ceremony in Monterrey, Mexico that was filmed by the Discovery Channel for an upcoming documentary predictably dubbed “My Big, Fat Mexican Wedding”. In other big wedding news, the pictures are in for the mass wedding of 700 couples in the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic, an independent state nestled in Azerbaijani near the border with Armenia.

In an effort to avoid bigamy, Tatsuhiko Kawata set fire to the hotel in which he was scheduled to be wed. Police reported his current marriage as the reason for canceling the wedding and arson as his way of notifying his fiancée. In a multiple weddings publicity stunt, the so-called “World’s Most Romantic Couple” and Danish celebrity wedding planner couple, Anette and Kenneth Lund, have tied the knot a total of six times, including a record breaking four Las Vegas weddings in one day.

Choosing the right venue can make or break a wedding. Signs are good if you win a contest that celebrates your wedding during the naming inauguration of Princess Cruises latest Love Boat. It is a somewhat bad omen if you book the Corazon Club in Dublin, which recently closed, leaving several couples without their venue or their deposits.

Forbes Magazine detailed the eight financial threats to (affluent) marriage. Apparently, eight out of ten very wealthy couples would divorce should their net worth nosedive. Unfortunately, USA Today reports that couples booking weddings at luxurious hotels such as The Pierre in New York are settling for disk jockeys over live bands, miniature cupcakes instead of elaborate multitier cakes, and truncated guest lists.

To help boost the economic plight of the pastoral class, wedding officiating is touted as the perfect way to pay off debt, put the kids in braces or college, purchase a new car, or party at Disneyland. Alabama’s Weddings 911 columnist, Alene Gamel, is asked whether the Internet will displace traditional wedding announcements and replies with a brief history of invitations and decides that electronic invites should RSVP in a few years.

Celebrity nuptials remained in vogue with rumors that Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt, two of the world’s most famous unmarried parents, are reported to be considering a simple wedding ceremony. Best selling event planning author and host of the WE network’s “My Fair Wedding”, David Tutera, has partnered with Knork Flatware, a cutting edge cutlery company, to provide customers entertaining ideas and designs that represent their own personal style.

From the silly to the surreal, anime wedding news included Hello Kitty wedding gowns for the childish bride and a disturbingly serious effort in Japan to legalize marriage between humans and cartoon characters. If added to the top eight complaints that irk wedding guests, we assume the bride being a cartoon would rank higher than her wearing a cartoon.

Off the beaten path, the driveway paving father of Missy Quinn, a 16-year-old girl who lives in a gypsy caravan, threw his beloved daughter a wedding costing over $160,000. The celebration featured a Rolls-Royce Phantom, Swarovski crystals, bridal hot pants and bra top, gallons of fake tan, and a promise from the newlywed Mrs. Moghon that she would pursue a career in glamour modeling and that the 17-year-old Mr. Moghon best not expect her to cook or clean, but had better spend his days catering to her every need. In ironically unrelated news, mustached wedding parties have apparently become all the rage.

Something Recycled, Something Clean, Something Sustainable, Something Green

Everything we do impacts the world around us. With increased awareness of the effect our actions have on our environment and our energy costs, a challenge falls to the Certified Wedding Planner to be prepared to utilize methods and resources that reduce the carbon footprint of wedding planning.

Green wedding themes are not new, but with the verdict now officially in on humankind’s effect on climate change, Earth-friendly wedding themes are increasingly found in books, contests, the Internet, celebrity weddings, and bridal shows. Today’s eco-friendly brides and grooms are demanding solutions that offset the negative environmental impact associated with their celebrations.

As with any theme or location, begin by researching vendors and venues in your area that offer renewable, sustainable, and clean products and services. Co-op America offers a directory of screened and approved green businesses. Many of these companies hold eco-credentials awarded by organizations such as Quality Assurance International for certified organic food systems, the USDA National Organic Program for production, handling, and labeling standards for organic agricultural products, Carbon Neutral Clothing for garment producers offsetting their carbon footprint, and TransFair USA for businesses that deal in fair trade.

Anticipation – Recycled, tree-free, handcrafted, natural, plantable, and organic wedding stationery solutions are available from businesses such as Twisted Limb Paperworks, Festivale, The Green Kangaroo, The Earth Handmade Paper, and the Green Field Paper Company. Many millennial generation couples are taking their wedding announcements and invitations digital on Facebook and other social networking sites, as well as via email, PowerPoint presentations, DVDs, and YouTube videos.

Gift registries such as Changing the Present and Register Locally provide options for wedding guests to make donations or send gifts to benefit environmental causes and gift purchases that are Earth-friendly.

Wedding attire can be rented, vintage and recycled, organic, and/or fairly traded. For post-wedding, pro-planet options, Brides Against Breast Cancer and the I Do Foundation turn wedding day clothing into charitable donations.

Engagement and wedding ring choices impact people as well as the environment. “Dirty Gold” mining displaces communities, contaminates drinking water, hurts workers, and destroys pristine environments. “Conflict Diamonds” are used by illegal governments and factions to fund military actions against people and legitimate governments. Jewelers like Green Karat, Brilliant Earth, Sumiche Jewelry, and Leber Jeweler offer recycled or reused precious metals and conflict-free gemstones.

The Council for Responsible Jewellery Practices and its members promote responsible, transparent, and accountable business practices in the mining, manufacturing, and selling of gold and diamond jewelry. Touch Wood Rings provides an alternative to traditional jewelry with handcrafted wooden eco-rings.

Arrival – Green transportation is sustainable, using human or animal power and renewable energy. Transport options for the bride and groom include horse-drawn carriages, Segways or other light electric vehicles, public transportation, or hybrid cars or limousines. Encourage carpooling for your guests.

As an alternative to disposable or film cameras, have your guests bring or rent digital cameras and share the photos on sites like Flickr, Shutterfly, SnapFish, or Photobucket. The guestbook should be made of recycled or organic material. Pictures can be displayed beautifully and eco-friendly using reclaimed wood picture frames from Green House Framing.

Atmosphere – The Sierra Club recommends outdoor venues, such as a National Park, for their natural beauty and earth-friendly atmosphere. Other outdoor choices include beaches, mountain settings, botanical gardens, and woodland glades. For indoor venues, choose a site that allows for ample natural lighting and temperature. Where possible, identify locations that are certified by Green Seal, are members of the Green Hotels Association, or are rated well by the U.S. Green Building Council.

Regardless of the location, choosing a venue close to home and holding the reception and ceremony in the same place greatly reduces the energy consumption of the day. In some cases, such as the Four Seasons Resort Hualalai, Hawaii, complete socially responsible wedding packages are available.

Floral decorations should be organic and local to avoid the pesticide and transportation energy concerns associated with purchasing and shipping flowers from abroad. VeriFlora certifies farmers, distributors, wholesalers, and florists that are committed to rigorous environmental accountability. The Biodynamic Farming and Gardening Association is a global, non-chemical agricultural movement that certifies farmers, gardeners, and foresters through Demeter, an independent, non-profit organization.

Appetite – Choose a menu consisting of fresh, locally produced, organic, and sustainably harvested food to reduce costs and travel distances. Local Harvest, an organic and local food website, maintains a nationwide directory of small farms, farmers’ markets, and other local food sources. Some caterers, such as Back to Earth Organic Caterers, operate with a philosophy of “conscious food that is good for our bodies, our communities, and our planet”.

For clients compassionate to the plight of animals, Vegetarian Wedding offers vegan menu ideas and suggestions as well as links to vegetarian associations. Organic wedding cakes, made with unrefined sweeteners and organically grown ingredients, and vegetarian cakes are alternatives to the traditional choices.

If washable utensils and dishware is not an option, and to avoid using disposable plastic cutlery, dishware, or glasses, Earthware Biodegradables, World Centric, Excellent Packaging & Supply, and Simply Biodegradable manufacture bio-based, durable, compostable cutlery and dishware. The Green Glass Company produces reclaimed and recycled glass products to fit any wedding needs.

Although careful planning should avoid over catering, leftovers can be donated to organizations such as Feeding America (formerly America’s Second Harvest).

Amusement – For green wedding entertainment, MyDeeJay.com boasts the country’s first 100% carbon-neutral wedding disk jockey with its purchase of Renewable Energy Certificates and Carbon Offsets matching their annual carbon footprint. If using an mp3 player, consider using a solar charger. For live music, locate musicians who adhere to eco-friendly practices for their energy and transportation needs.

Appreciation – In addition to charitable favor cards, Earth-friendly favors and bridal tosses can be purchased from Once Upon a Favor, EcoParti, and numerous other favor vendors. For thank you cards and gifts, recycled paper products are readily available.

Honeymoon plans can be made with agencies and organizations that specialize in eco-travel and eco-tourism such as Green Concierge Travel, Send Us Off, the International Ecotourism Society, Responsible Travel, Planeta, and National Geographic. Eco Travel is an online magazine that maintains a searchable directory of travel organizations which includes information about their eco-philosophy and practices. Organic Places to Stay is an online directory of worldwide organic holidays.

After the wedding, the newlyweds can learn more about how to lead an enlightened, Earth-friendly life together from sources like Earth Easy, Gaiam, and Branch, which provide ideas and products for environmentally sustainable living.

For the CWP seeking to become a green wedding planner, The Green Office provides the equipment and Ceres, a coalition of investors and environmentalists, provides the knowledge you need to turn your business green.

What Advantages Will a Certified Wedding Planner Provide You? By Janet Lash

With the downturn of the economy, I’ve noticed that some couples think that they can’t afford the service of a Certified Wedding Planner. Many couples are electing to plan their wedding themselves, failing to understand the many advantages of enlisting the services of a certified wedding professional. It is well known that a wedding planner reduces worry, time, and most of all saves money.

A wedding consultant listens to the couple’s ideas, makes suggestions, and develops a plan that will reflect the couple’s vision while respecting the couple’s budget. They have access to a wide range of industry professionals with whom they work, that allow them to secure services and products that will make a limited budget look like a million dollars. Also, with today’s busy two-income couples and everyday life issues, many couples do not realize the amount of hours and innumerable details that it takes to plan this most important day - the beginning of their lives together.

An experienced professional will create budgets, interview vendors, develop time-lines, and monitor the vendors and set-up. They also quietly handle emergencies, calm the nervous bride and groom, entertain the little guests, take care of final payments, assist the bride with her gown, and coordinate and direct the rehearsal, ceremony, and reception activities. Their purpose is not to take over the planning, but to allow the happy couple to spend more time with each other during the planning stage, so that they can focus on the precious moments of their wedding and guests and not worry about the additional details that come with the planning process.

Besides assisting with the planning, a seasoned consultant comes well-versed in wedding etiquette and knows how to resolve sticky family issues that sometime arise along the way. They are great negotiators when it comes to contracts and are able to obtain discounts that can be a significant savings to their client’s budget

Even if the couple’s budget can’t afford the full services of a wedding planner, I strongly advise couples to enlist the services of a “Day Of” coordinator. It is a “must have” in the budget. Whether the “Day Of” coordinator or director is provided by the on-site venue, or is an independent professional planner, they will direct all of the pre-wedding and wedding day activities. Their services are invaluable and will give the couple a much needed peace of mind.

Janet Lash is the President and CEO of AVSO Events: A Very Special Occasion (www.avsoevents.com) and a Certified Instructor for the Wedding Planning Institute’s How to Become a Wedding Planner college classroom course.

The State of the Wedding Industry

The wedding industry has historically done well even in times of economic uncertainty. Tough financial times simply do not override love and marriage. With that in mind, here is a look at wedding statistics for 2008 as researched and reported by The Wedding Report. Dollar amounts are the average spent for each category across the country. In some cases, such as Bridal Attire, the amount represents the sum of the averages of all items in that category.

Estimated U.S. Weddings: 2,212,923
Total Estimated Wedding Market Value: $62,053,359,662
Average Number of Guests: 166
Total Average Spending: $28,704

· Bridal Attire: $1,903
· Groom Attire: $449
· Hair and Makeup: $166
· Wedding Ceremony: $1,552
· Wedding Officiant: $226
· Rehearsal Dinner: $1,300
· Entertainment: $493 to $1,786
· Flowers: $2,033
· Gifts and Favors: $1,427
· Honeymoon: $3,805
· Stationery: $911
· Jewelry and Rings: $5,803
· Photography and Videography: $3,502
· Wedding Planner: $1,483
· Reception: $15,516
· Transportation: $257 to 690

For the Certified Wedding Planner, here are the estimates for the range of services you provide to your clients.
· “Day Of” Coordination: $500 to $3,000
· Month-of-Direction: $1,200 to $2,150
· Full Service Wedding Coordination: $2,500 to $6,500
· A La Carte Services: $55 to $150 per hour

Additionally, Shane McMurray, CEO and founder of The Wedding Report, writes that “despite the credit crunch, the wedding industry remains steady. Most business reporting sales are good with consumer spending remaining steady. Businesses are also reporting that the number of couples getting married remains steady, three month sales expectations are good, but business cost continues to increase.”

Help Plan for a Wedding and Prepare for a Marriage

In 1996, the U.S. Congress found that marriage is the foundation of a successful society. The financial impact of divorce on families and society in general is so profound, the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 included provisions for funding $150 million each year to promote healthy marriages and fatherhood. With the societal costs of divorce estimated to be over $112 billion annually, governmental efforts amount to an ounce of prevention that will not lead to a cure without considerable help.

According to the Administration for Children & Families at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, a healthy marriage is a mutually satisfying relationship that is beneficial to the husband, wife, and children (if present). There must be deep respect for each other and a commitment to ongoing growth, the use of effective communication skills, and the use of successful conflict management skills.

Wedding planning can be costly and stressful, but the Certified Wedding Planner can turn the planning process into an opportunity for a couple to gain the knowledge and skills they will need to have a healthy marriage. Not all clients will look to you for this advice. You will, however, serve them well by having relationship education resources available for brides and grooms looking for help with more than vendors and venues.

Nearly half of all marriages end in divorce, and more than one-third of those occur when one or both spouses are between the ages of twenty and twenty four years old. According to the Journal of Family Psychology, premarital relationship education is associated with higher levels of marital satisfaction, lower levels of destructive conflicts, and higher levels of interpersonal commitment to spouses. A study in the March 2006 issue suggests that couples who receive premarital education have a 31% lower chance of divorce.

The Certified Wedding Planner is uniquely positioned to lead newlyweds into a better understanding of what it takes to maintain a healthy relationship. If you focus your clients on planning their wedding as well as preparing for their marriage, you will do your part to help continue to lower the divorce rate and strengthen the institution of marriage as well as our society in general.

This Week in Wedding Planning News

As a busy Certified Wedding Planner, there is precious little time available for keeping up with the latest news and trends in the wedding industry. To help keep you up-to-date on wedding current events, we offer a quick rundown on some of this week’s top industry stories.

As the wedding industry continues to battle the current economic downturn, wedding businesses are evolving to meet the challenge in different ways. Some businesses are merging to combine their products and services in an attempt to increase their market share. A wedding supply website has responded to its local market need for a hands-on source by opening its first brick-and-mortar location.

Other wedding industry marketing news includes a review of a wedding resources portal that bills itself as “The Future of Weddings”, an international corporate event planning group that is launching itself headfirst into the wedding planning business, and a New Jersey shore community rolling out its plans to promote their destination wedding appeal.

With many prospective clients either cutting back on their wedding budgets or forgoing wedding planning altogether, a wedding planning business owner has taken umbrage with TheKnot.com’s article on the recent survey revealing how much time brides-to-be spend at work researching caterers.

This week, weddings were challenged by unexpected military deployments, uproarious opponents of same-sex marriages, and Hurricane Ike induced venue closings. Offbeat weddings featured unusual cake designs, a swinging 40’s theme, and a mass ceremony of seven hundred couples seeking to spark a baby boom. Wedding contests offered an unclaimed $10,000 for the couple who waits and an $80,000 award to engaged cast mates of the CBS Survivor: China show.

In the world of celebrity weddings, Fergie is looking for the best wedding planner, Mena Suvari is learning about wedding planning in Italy, Gisele and Tom Brady are rumored to be game planning a run to the altar, Paris Hilton tries on glass slippers, Madonna and Adam Shankman are producing The Wedding Planner 2, and Captain Kirk and Mr. Sulu aren’t communicating well.

Oh, and pink is the new white.

The Certified Wedding Philanthropist

What do you get for the bride and groom who already have everything? Many Certified Wedding Planners are helping clients celebrate their nuptials with the art of giving while receiving. Keeping charity in mind, there are numerous ways to design a wedding plan that appeals to the better angels of our nature.

Cards for Causes allows a couple to create customized wedding stationery that promotes their favorite charity and donates 20% of the purchase toward that cause. Recipients are alerted to the donation and encouraged to make a contribution of their own.

When setting up a gift registry, organizations such as Just Give, the I Do Foundation, Global Giving, and Changing the Present provide options that either encourage guests to donate directly to a choice of more than a million charities, donate a portion of a gift’s purchase price toward the couple’s chosen beneficiary, or provide gifts that are sent directly to a cause in the couple’s name.

One unique gift registry, Ten Thousand Villages, features Fair Trade products handcrafted by fairly paid artisans in thirty-two countries around the world. Some couples choose to request donations to benefit a local charity. A couple in Washington, D.C. created a perpetual scholarship fund for the groom’s alma mater and requested their guests make donations that benefit disadvantaged children.

For goods and services for the ceremony and reception, consider attending a show such as the Get Hitched, Give Hope event taking place in Seattle this evening. Coordinated by six wedding industry professionals, including wedding and event planners as well as wedding vendors, the event requires participating vendors to donate an item or service to be auctioned or raffled during the show to benefit Brides Against Breast Cancer.

After the “Day Of” events are complete, there are many options for continuing the spirit of giving. Brides Against Breast Cancer is holding a charity wedding gown sale in Los Angeles at the end of the month, with similar events taking place throughout the year around the country. Other options include contributing leftover reception food to a local soup kitchen or homeless shelter, delivering the wedding flowers to a local hospital to brighten patient’s spirits, and donating the wedding gown and other attire to a local thrift store, the Salvation Army, or an organization like the Princess Project.

Many charitable organizations provide wedding favor signs to be used as table place cards to inform guests of donations made in their name and describe the significance of the charity to the couple. If the favored charity is local or does not provide a favor sign service, many stationery companies allow you to create your own donation cards and envelopes.

After the main events, the new husband and wife can continue their philanthropic journey by turning their honeymoon into a life changing event. The travel service i-to-i.com arranges trips overseas to meet new people, get immersed in a new culture, and make a difference abroad. Destinations include Africa, Asia, South America, and Australia where celebrating wedded bliss can be coupled with working with local children or wildlife and helping a local community or environment.

Wedding related charity allows the joy of the “Day Of” to reverberate into the future. The simple act of helping others while enjoying their good fortune can multiply the blessings of your client’s union and help set their marriage on the path of goodness and hope.

Turn Your Wedding Industry Expertise into Additional Revenue

The wedding industry has historically been resistant to economic downturns domestically and internationally. During the current global financial crisis, there are signs that even love and marriage is feeling the pain. As the wedding industry seeks solutions to fewer clients and decreased wedding budgets, it is imperative for your business survival to adapt to the needs of a slumping economy.

Interest in the wedding industry is reaching an all-time high around the world. For the Certified Wedding Planner and wedding industry expert looking for ways to increase income while doing what you love, The Wedding Planning Institute is offering the right vehicle for these troubled times. As a veteran wedding planner or wedding vendor, you can turn your years of experience in the field into a lucrative business helping others to learn more about your specialty.

Like many of our current instructors, also successful wedding industry professionals, you are asked frequently for advice, tips, and guidance from others getting started in your field. This program is your opportunity to earn money while you help others learn from your real world experiences.

WPI is currently accepting proposals from industry professionals who can communicate their expertise in the form of an online course. WPI will work with industry experts to develop their course utilizing the latest trends, industry best practices, and time-honored traditions to provide instruction and valuable information on to our worldwide network of students.

The Wedding Planning Institute is partnered with over 1,800 accredited colleges and universities. Courses will be offered through our partner colleges as online training programs and the Industry Expert will provide training, advice, and feedback to students through our online curriculum system.

As a WPI Industry Expert, you will earn tuition revenue, enhance awareness of your core business, and enjoy networking opportunities throughout the WPI system. The Wedding Planning Institute will also help make your course successful with various marketing efforts, such as press releases, advertisements, direct mail, and college course catalogs to give your course national and international exposure.

For more information, including frequently asked questions and course topics, and to submit a proposal, visit:

http://www.weddingplanninginstitute.com/instructor_partners2.html

The Value of the Certified Wedding Planner

Adam Shankman, director of the 2001 hit film, The Wedding Planner, has announced plans to make a sequel, which will reportedly be produced by Madonna. As a Certified Wedding Planner, you can expect another influx of people wanting to enter the field and increased interest in brides and grooms considering hiring you.

Amidst all the impending hoopla, how does the experienced CWP stand out and show the value of your knowledge and know-how? How do you differentiate your services and results so that your prospective clients find you and not the hobbyist with little training, but tons of inspired confidence?

Brides and grooms today are interested in competence and efficiency. They are using the Internet to research financing, venues, and everything in between. They are also learning about the good and the bad of hiring a wedding planner.

You have the expertise. You know how to find the perfect, unique venue and even how to get the groom involved in planning. The question you have to answer is: Why should a bride and groom hire you?

The wedding blogosphere is filled with attempts to answer this question. At Wedding Planning News, Ideas and Answers, brides and grooms are given a quiz to find out if they should hire a wedding planner. On Wedding by Color, a recent blog entry addresses brides that feel like they were behind in their planning and do not know where to start. The 3 O’ Clock Wedding site features an article titled “How Wedding Planners Help Couples Deal with a Challenging Event.”

Most CWP veterans are using websites and blogs to help establish their value to their clients. Whether you find your prospects through the Internet, word-of-mouth, or more traditional advertising, your job and your business success depends on your ability to communicate your value to the potential client in your first meeting.

Wedding Insurance and the Limited Wedding Budget

When you are working with a bride and groom determined to reduce their wedding budget, where do you draw the line on wedding insurance? Is it optional? Is it a necessary evil? Or is it a budget item that, much like auto insurance, you dislike paying for but thank the heavens you did when something goes awry?

We have all heard wedding horror stories. Many Certified Wedding Planners have experienced them. Someone gets cold feet, a vendor or venue doesn’t deliver as promised, a natural disaster or untimely deployment intervenes, or the owl delivering the priceless family heirlooms decides to call it a day mid-delivery. Not that wedding insurance will always cover runaway grooms or fowl, but there are definite scenarios to consider covering when advising your clients on budget cuts.

In a nutshell, wedding insurance can protect your client’s investment when something out of their control interferes with their well-laid and well-paid plans. For instance, severe weather or other natural disaster can ruin venue plans, a serious illness or death in the family can cast a pall on the proceedings, or the limousine company holding the deposit and travel arrangements may go out of business the previous week. These types of wedding disasters can be mitigated by purchasing wedding insurance.

Other instances where coverage can, if not save the day, lessen the pain caused by someone else’s negligence, bad timing, or horrible luck include if the bride’s gown is damaged beyond repair during alterations, the officiant triple books the wedding day and fails to show up for the ceremony, or the bride or groom is suddenly called for an emergency military deployment.

While there is never a complete remedy for a wedding day dream turned into a nightmare by unforeseen circumstances, wedding policies, ranging from $75 to $1000, can provide some compensation for money lost to deposits, repurchases, and other expenses. In most cases, the person paying for the wedding must be the person taking out the policy.

Many insurance companies offer wedding insurance, but it is up to the CWP to help the couple figure out which company and policy works for their situation. If you research your local carriers just as you would any other vendor, you will be able to identify and recommend the companies and agents best suited for your clients.

As for a bride or groom getting cold feet, wedding insurance cannot keep them from bolting, but it can help reduce the financial pain that accompanies the shock. For more information on wedding mishaps and the potential remedies, visit Wed Safe, a company that specializes in private event insurance. Other sources to learn more about wedding insurance are The Knot, USA Today, and About.com.

Happy Hallowedding!

When planning a Halloween wedding, one of the first decisions to make is the style. To different couples, the tradition of the Hallowedding can be either gothic, ghoulish, elegant, fully costumed, or somewhere in between. Halloween weddings are popular enough a photographer in Southern California is advertising his services free just for the opportunity to attend and capture the imagery. With that in mind, here are some ideas the Certified Wedding Planner can use, in our A-6 Event Planning Format, to plan a Halloween wedding.

Anticipation – Halloween wedding invitation themes can include scenes from The Bride of Frankenstein or other iconic horror movies; orange and black colors with images of pumpkins, bats, or ghosts; black or orange chiffon bows around somber dark grays, blacks, reds, oranges, browns, and golds; or smoky, haunted chandelier imagery. RSVP and Save the Date cards can utilize a personalized photo or video inviting guests to “Come Dressed to Kill”; or feature pumpkins and fall leaves. Depending on your style choice, virtually any traditional Halloween icons and images can adorn your pre-wedding communications.

Arrival – The bride and groom can arrive at the venue in a hearse, the back of a dark horse-drawn wagon, or a black stretch limousine. Guests should be greeted at a theme decorated entrance with refreshments by costumed ushers.

Atmosphere – Depending on whether you decide on a gothic, festive, or elegant Halloween interpretation, the ceremony and reception can be held at a haunted house, spooky castle, rundown motel, or gothic cathedral. Be sure the venue matches your chosen style of wedding theme. For a costume theme wedding, the bride and groom can dress in gothic formal, as a zombie couple, as Dracula and his Bride, or any number of historical or fictional character costumes. Wedding party attire is also limitless, beholden only to the wedding style and the whims of the betrothed. For a more elegant event, consider a dark, slim-fitting gown and a black tuxedo with tails. Wedding guests can be directed to attend in their costumed best.

To decorate the venue, supplement a lack of intrinsic scariness in an ordinary hall with plenty of dark colors, such as black, orange, brown, red, and gray, combined with props to match the wedding style. These can include commercialized or natural representations of pumpkins, dried flowers, fall leaves, gourds, and spider webs. For more dramatic decorations, use coffins, dead trees, tombstones, jack-o-lanterns, or cauldrons. Centerpiece options include hollowed out gourds or pumpkins with flowers or candles, horror-themed candle and flower holders, miniature tombstones, all manner of skulls, and orange and black pillar candles adorned with matching ribbon on circular mirrors.

Appetite – Halloween wedding cake creations can be influenced by Tim Burton’s Corpse Bride, feature macabre and festive pumpkins, evoke a haunted castle or mansion, surrender to creepy cobwebs and scorpions, support a multi-tiered cemetery, and dabble in the occult. Cake topper bride and groom designs consist of various skeleton couples, Frankenstein and his Bride, cavorting bats, loving dragons, and custom made depictions of Dracula and his Bride.

Halloween candy dishes filled with roasted pumpkin seeds or candy corn can serve as tabletop snacks. Place dry ice in a punch bowl or cauldron filled with a favorite bewitching beverage mix to further combine refreshment with atmosphere. For a ghoulish touch, create the infamous Jell-o brain.

The side dish and dessert menu can generously feature any of dozens of pumpkin recipes in addition to a more traditional autumn wedding menu main course of roasted turkey, pork, fish, quail, or ribs. Other side dishes can consist of squash, corn, mashed or sweet potatoes, and whole grain rolls. For beverages, serve hot toddies, Irish coffees, brown liquors, red wines, merlots, and cabernets. Dessert choices can be pecan pie, banana nut bread, baked apple pie, pumpkin pie, or chocolate cake with marzipan fruit.

Amusement – If you hire a live band or DJ, be sure to have them dress to match your theme. Song selections should cover the bride and groom’s favorites, but traditional Halloween themes such as Devil Went Down to Georgia, Monster Mash, the Ghostbusters theme song, Thriller, Purple People Eater, I Put a Spell on You, Hells Bells, Super Freak, Bat Out of Hell, Psycho Killer, the Rocky Horror Picture Show soundtrack, and many Rob Zombie songs can be included. Other entertainment options are to hire a gypsy-clad fortune teller, a magician, a hypnotist, or a tarot card or palm reader.

Appreciation – For favors, consider Halloween trick or treat bags, engraved theme candles, pumpkin butter jars, packets of pumpkin seeds, scary key chains, homemade chocolates or cookies shaped as ghosts, tombstones, bats, witches, pumpkins, or skeletons, miniature pumpkin pies, or masquerade masks. Thank you notes can match the style of the pre-wedding stationery in color and content.