Gift Registry Tips

Ahhh, the Gift Registry…an exciting time for you and your husband to be (yes, he should be involved!), to imagine your home with all new stuff in it! How fun! But before you get ahead of yourselves here are a few tips to starting your registry out right.

• Register Early! Right after you have announced your engagement you should begin registering. That way if you have an engagement party and/or bridal shower you will be able to give your guests a heads up on what you would like.
• Register for WHATEVER YOU WANT! But be realistic. Yes it would be awesome if someone bought you a Sterling Silver Ice Cream Scoop from Tiffany & Co., but will you ever use an Ice Cream scoop that cost $395…we think not! Also be aware of space. Try not to register for things that you don’t have storage or counter space for.
• Be courteous to your guests. Register at 2-3 different stores with at least one being online. This way travelers can have gifts shipped directly to you and locals can browse storefronts and save on shipping. Also, make sure to have a wide range in prices. Starting at $10 and up to whatever you think is reasonable for your guests. Registering for bigger gifts is okay and may encourage guests to go in on it together.
• Wedding etiquette tells us that it is rude to include your wedding registry information on or with your invitations. You’re basically saying, “Hey come to our wedding, but make sure you bring us something!” However, I feel a little differently for 2 reasons. First, you don’t want to end up with a bunch of stuff you will never use, like a kitten throw blanket from your Aunt Edna, or already have; who needs three toasters? And second, you are providing your guests with food and entertainment for a night so why not expect something in return? Here are a couple additional things to note:
  • For travelling guests it may be inappropriate to include your registry information with the invitation because they could be spending hundreds or thousands of dollars to travel and stay for your big day.
  • If you decide to forgo including registry information with your invitation then be sure to tell your Mother, Grooms Mother, and Bridesmaids where you are registered so they can pass along the information to those who ask.
  • If you have a personal wedding website don’t be afraid to list your registry information there. It will let people know that “Yes, you are registered,” but “No, you are not expecting anything.”
• Lastly, for all of us who have lived with our significant other before getting married, chances are, you may not NEED too much “stuff”. Unless perhaps you want to upgrade what you already have. In the case that you don’t really need anything you still have some options. Thanks to the World Wide Web you can now have guests deposit money into an account for you for a Honeymoon Fund, or basically anything you want. Check out www.honeyfund.com, www.travelersjoy.com, www.honeymoonpixie.com, or www.depositagift.com for ideas. Be sure to do your research as there are some fees associated with some of the sites and then pick the one that will work best for you and your guests.

Wondering what to Register for, Download or print out our fillable Gift Registry Checklist for help.

Wedding Favors: Tips & Ideas

Wedding Favors: Tips & Ideas

In other cultures and countries Wedding Favors are/were used to present status of the couple or to wish good fortune to guests. We typically use them as an extra “Thank You” for attending the wedding. Even in the US, Wedding Favors are not as common as you may think but it has been a growing trend and most couples at least consider the idea during their planning and budgeting.
Ideally, you don’t want to spend more than 2-3% of your budget on Wedding Favors. If your budget is $10,000 then $200-$300 would be a good budget for favors. Obviously this can vary depending on budget and how important it is to you, but this is a good starting point. If your budget is $10,000 and you are inviting 200 guests than you are looking at $1.00-$1.50/person. So think within your means.

Try to avoid things that will “clutter” your guests’ homes. Although it is the thought that counts, you don’t want to waste your time and money on gifts that will get thrown away or left at the reception.

If you plan on having a lot of kids at your reception, consider doing separate goodie bags for them. Include things that will keep them entertained but be quiet, like bubbles and then add some candy, bubblegum, etc.

Here are a few different favor ideas at different price points:

$ Lottery Tickets – For as little as $1.00/person if everyone is given one ticket. At the end of the day they won’t have to take something home and find room for it on a shelf or throw it in a drawer, and they may win something!

$ Bags of Candy – Cellophane bags can be as little as $1.00/dozen, buy your candy in bulk and some ribbon to tie them together and Walla! You’ve got an inexpensive favor coming in at less than $1.00/person. *

$$ Bags of Candy Variation – Add custom made candy to the bags. You can get M & M’s specially made to match your wedding colors and be imprinted with your wedding date or something cute on them. *

*You can also print little gift tags to tie on with the ribbon, that have your Wedding Date or a cute poem as well; which would add a little something extra and not stretch your pocketbook.

$ Flip Flops – This is becoming a trend for outdoor receptions especially. Let your guests kick off their heels and dance the night away! We found them for $1.00/pair when bought in bulk.

$ Frames – Double Duty!! You can get small frames and put their Seating Cards inside of them. Add something cute to the card telling them the frame is theirs to keep. We found them for $1.00/pair when bought in bulk.

$$ Cake Pops or Cookies – A sweet treat your guests can enjoy at the reception or take home for later. You can typically get a dozen (maybe ask for a baker’s dozen?) for $10-$15. Check out Mommynac’s Sweets and Snacks.

$$ Homemade Jam – This is a fun DIY idea, especially since we’ve got Palisade Peaches to work with. Buy whatever fruit is in season and in bulk. You can cover the lids with fabric and tie them on with a ribbon. Plus this can be something fun for you and your “Husband to Be” to do together, or a variation of a Bridal Shower or Bachelorette Party.

$$ Custom Koozies – Firstly, know your guests. Is this a gift that they will use? You can get them personalized with something cute, funny or just your wedding date for your guests to enjoy.

$$$ Photo Booth – Double Duty!! Have your guests take pictures in the photo booth, provide costumes, mustaches, etc. for them to pose with. Then have one strip go in a guest book for the Bride and Groom (provide scrapbook paper and different colored pens) and you keep the other strip. A fun memory you can hang on your fridge.

The possibilities are truly endless for those on a budget and those who are not. Be sure to check out our Pinterest Page and follow us for ideas and trends for Wedding Favors and everything else Wedding related.

Wedding Season

Wedding Season is fast approaching as February is coming to an end. Which means there will be a lot of stressed out Brides out their trying to make it to their Big Day without having a mental breakdown or killing their Husband to be, or his mother! By now you should have your Venue, Photographer, Caterer, DJ and all the important things worked out and booked. If not...then you are rightfully stressed! But we can help with the finer things...no we can't help you lose that 10 pounds, but perhaps a personal trainer or a couple Hot Yoga classes a week will help you. Not only will you lose the weight that has become your nemesis but you will also work out all that stress looming over your shoulders.


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If you've been wondering if a Brazilian Wax or a Spray Tan is the right thing for you on your Honeymoon than get one now to see how your body reacts to it. Our experts tell us to get one at least a month before your Big Day or Honeymoon to make sure it's right for you. You wouldn't want to spend your Wedding Day looking like a carrot and you don't want to spend your Honeymoon not showing off that hot bod and getting down with your new husband because of some terrible rash you may have gotten. Some of us are more sensitive than others and we need to know what our bodies will do under certain situations. And please remember that Stress can make your body do things it wouldn't naturally do, so try to keep it together, get a massage, go to a day spa, visit the Hot Springs, do whatever it is you need to do to feel less stressed, even if it's locking yourself in your bedroom for a weekend listening to Enya...just try to keep the Bon Bons and Ice cream at bay...that will inevitably stress you out more after your weekend retreat.

Check out our Body Care / Health Section to find the right thing for you at http://www.hitchedingj.com/vendors/body_care.html

Money Saving Tips

So you have that shiny rock on your finger and now you’re ready to start planning your special day. Maybe you've looked at wedding gowns and picked out some wedding colors. This is the fun stage of the wedding planning process. When you start looking at venues, and talking with caterers you realize you must be living below the poverty level because you just can’t afford the gorgeous center pieces and high dollar wedding decor you've seen in the magazines. Have you gotten to the point in planning where you realize you might have to serve pizza, use your cousins’ boom box for the entertainment and ask your mom to snap a few pics with her disposable? Great! You can benefit from a few money saving tips I picked up while planning my own wedding and a few I picked up on the World Wide Web.

The first thing you have to do is pick the elements of the wedding that matter most to you. If the cake is high on your list go to the best damn cake bakery in town! If you’re not big on cake (like me) go to Sam's Club and have a sheet cake made with you and Mr. Wonderful’s baby pics on them! Serving cupcakes is another trendy alternative to the elaborate and expensive wedding cake. If you really don’t care about the cake, mix all your ideas together in an affordable fashion. You will save hundreds of dollars and your guests probably won’t even notice!  If you must have a gorgeous, tasty wedding cake consider ordering it small and have another sheet cake in the back to feed the guests.  
               
If you are going to skinny down your budget a great place to start is with the wedding favors. Wedding favors are a cute way of saying “Thanks for coming to my wedding!” Do you really think the guests keep those little bags of candy almonds or the Frisbee with your wedding date on it? The answer is NO!  If you want to thank your guests send them a Thank You card.
               
The biggest way to cut down on the expenses is to shrink your guest list. When you have a big guest list, it translates to a bigger venue which means more flowers. More guests mean a bigger cake, more food and drink, more invitations, table and chair rentals. When making your guest list invite the people who you are actually close to in your daily life. DO NOT invite people because you are trying not to hurt their feelings. You have to provide food, shelter and entertainment for these people. It’s a nice gesture to invite your mom's best friend from high school but if you really can’t afford it most people will understand. 
               
One of the ways I saved money on my wedding was asking talented friends and family to help with some of the wedding duties. If you have a cousin who's a photographer or an aunt that can cook up a storm utilize their skills! Family members will be honored to take part in your special day and count their service as your wedding gift.
               
If all else fails remember K.I.S.S. Keep it simple stupid! There are a million little details involved in planning a wedding. By eliminating some of the wedding day extras you save money and headaches. Who needs a dove releasing? They just poop on the guests anyway! If some of the wedding day traditions don't appeal to you, get rid of them and add your own personal touches.
               
These are just a few ideas to get you started. Only you can decide where you want to splurge and where you want to save. Sit down with your fiancé, outline a budget and stick to it. Remember every penny you save on your wedding can be used for a down payment on a house and isn't it what happens after the wedding what really matters anyway?!

Budgeting Brides

For some people budgeting may seem like a task too hard to undertake, for others a lifestyle change they are unwilling to make, but the simple fact of the matter is when you are planning a wedding the budget is a must. Unless of course money is no object in which I think you have stumbled upon the wrong article and you were probably looking for the article about releasing jewel encrusted doves at your ceremony which is still being researched.

Who Pays?
The first thing you and your "husband to be" need to figure out is who is paying for the wedding. Traditionally the bride’s family pays for the ceremony and reception and all things included, I.E. the dress, the flowers, the cake, etc. The groom’s family would pay for the honeymoon and the rehearsal dinner. But if you haven’t noticed we aren't living in a traditional world anymore. If your family wants to do it this way, SWEET, let them take care of everything and you relax, but I’m guessing most of us will have to fork out some of our own money to cover costs, and that’s okay and totally doable if you have a proper budget set.

Have Some Tact
You are newly engaged and when you call your family to tell them all about it they don’t mention anything about helping with the wedding. You start to wonder; are they going to pitch in? You don’t want to start off being a Bridezilla already and demanding that your family pay for your wedding, so tactfully ask your parents if they think they will be able to help out or not. No pressure. Chances are, if they haven’t brought it up yet then they haven’t decided whether or not they will or they are waiting to surprise you with a cash gift, all well and good but it doesn't help with the planning. Some options for people you know can’t afford much, but want to pitch in; ask them to pay for your dress, or the cake, or something small on the cha-ching list but would take a little pressure off of you.

A Word to the Wise
A note for those of you who do have parents or family paying for your wedding: Although we all love our families and want them to be a part of your Big Day, they may have some entitlement issues, because let’s face it, the ones with money have the power. Mom may hate chocolate so you are forced to go with a vanilla or lemon cake even though mother-in-law to be is allergic to lemon. Dad wants to bring his new twenty something girlfriend and wants her to do a reading at the ceremony. Mother-in-law to be hates the colors you picked for the bouquets and decides to buy her own corsage. If they have the money they have the power.

Where to Start
Now it’s time to figure out what is most important to you. Some women only care about looking beautiful on their day, and that is totally reasonable, BUT if you spend 5,000 on your dress, hair, make-up and those Botox treatments you won’t fess up to out of your 15,000 budget, then we may have a problem. You want your guests to have a good time, most of us now have family and friends traveling to be there, don’t let them waste their money on a bad time. Your guests care about good food and good entertainment, not your puffed up lips. So consider your catering and dj and pick wisely. The Bride and Groom however want the memories, all those months or years of saving and planning every little detail down to the color of the napkins needs to pay off, get yourself a good photographer and possibly a videographer if you can afford it. Those are the memories that will last a lifetime, not the flavor of the cake or the centerpieces.

Recruiting and Networking
If you happen to have someone in the family who is a masterful cake decorator or a friend who has a wholesale license for flowers, USE THEM! That’s what friends and family are for. Call in the favors; maybe put a little extra effort into showing up to your second cousin’s eight year olds’ piano recital to be able to borrow her card box, because seriously what do you do with a card box after the wedding? Save your $50.00 and go to the recital.

Hidden Costs
Not all of these are necessarily hidden but you don’t think about them at the time. Postage stamps for instance. You just spent $500.00 on save the dates and invitations for 150 people. Now you have to mail them. Let’s see 300 times $0.45 is $135.00! There goes the engraved cake cutting set you've been eyeing at the mall! When booking anything check to see if the taxes and gratuity are included in their fee. Otherwise $1000.00 can easily turn into $1270.00 with a 7.65% tax and an 18% gratuity. YIKES! Know your overtime costs. If the limo driver has to wait an extra 30 minutes for you…CHA-CHING…that’ll be $50.00 (at least). If the photographer has to stay an extra hour because the ceremony started late and you haven’t cut the cake yet…WHAMMO….that’ll be $100.00. I know how hard it can be to stay on time but know your hidden costs before you book. And don't forget the Tips. There is a specific etiquette to wedding vendor tipping and you need to be prepared for that. Typically everything will be paid for before the Big Day, but you still need to bring tips for certain Vendors.

And Lastly…
You know how much money you make and you should know how much you can realistically save in the time between your engagement and your wedding. If you HAVE to get married in April and it’s only seven months away but there is no way on earth you can save in that amount of time then stretch it out an extra year. This is supposed to be a fun experience and the easiest way to get yourself stressed out and turn all Bridezilla on everyone who looks your way is to know that you can’t afford everything you want in the time allotted.

Click Here for our Fillable Wedding Budget Worksheet

10 Ideas for Your Non-Traditional Bachelorette Party

10 Ideas for Your Non-Traditional Bachelorette Party

1. Tour the wineries with your girlfriends
   Grand Junction has SO many amazing wineries that you may be feeling a little tipsy after the first few stops. Make sure and play it safe by arranging transportation ahead of time. Allen Unique Autos and Jr’s Carriage service both offer bachelorette wine tours!
2. Think slumber parties are for teeny boppers? 
   Think again! Bond with girlfriends over gossip magazines and pizza! If you’re on a budget this is a perfect alternative to a night on the town. 
3. Get your craft on! 
   Pull double duty by taking a night to create wedding related craft projects such as centerpieces, handmade place cards or wedding favors. Your friends will be having so much fun they won’t even realize you’re using them for slave labor.
4. Think Co-Ed
   While most women choose to have ladies only at their bachelorette party, many women are choosing to go co-ed. Some couples think it’s more fun to host a bachelor/bachelorette party where all of their friends can be present.  Have guests answer trivia questions about the bride and groom’s courtship and then provide gifts for the winners.
5. Knowledge is power! 
   Taking a class with your close friends can be really fun. Depending on your style there are many types of group classes to choose from. Cooking classes are perfect for the young bride with no kitchen experience. CMU offers one night only introductory cooking classes. If you’re feeling artsy check out a place called The Palette. The staff will guide you through making your own work of art while drinking some yummy local wines. What could be more fun?
6. Passion Parties Anyone?
   You will never laugh harder with your girlfriends than at a Naughty Toy Party! Party Gals will actually send a representative to your home for your bachelorette party. They give you all kinds of fun samples and bring along bachelorette themed games. If “toys” aren't your thing they also offer some pretty nice lotions and body oils…..I’m not blushing.
7. Glamping Much?
   For you outdoorsy chicks, an all-girl camping trip might be just the ticket. Sing songs, make s'mores and sleep under the stars… OK you’re not that outdoorsy! At least bring a tent girl!
8. Spa Party!!!
   Melt away the wedding planning stress with a girl’s spa party. Depending on your budget you can do it in your own home with avocado masks and DIY pedicures or you go all out and get a package from the day spa! Check out Bliss Day Spa & Salon. Either way you deserve it!
9. Get outta town!
   Grab your lucky penny and your besties and head to Black Hawk! It’s like a mini Las Vegas nestled in the side of a mountain.  If you get tired of the gambling you can head down the road to Idaho Springs and relax in their natural hot springs. Might I suggest a massage in one of their vapor caves? Bliss
10. Tap Into Your Inner Goddess
    …with a Kasbah party! Belly Expressions will host a private belly dancing lesson for your group in their studio. Let the pros show you how to shake your booty and have a great time doing it. You may even want to show your fiancé the fruits of your labor when you get home. 

Mix 104.3 Bridal Fair at Double Tree

Bridal Fair 2013 at the Double Tree Hotel by Hilton on January 12th. Gather your bridesmaids and head out. The first Bridal Fair of 2013. Brides you will be able to plan your wedding in one location on one day!