I’ll never forget the phone call I had during the early stages of wedding planning with a local DC wedding planner. Like all vendors usually ask: “what’s your budget?” When I told her all the money I saved up for this wedding plus generous help from our families, her response was abrupt.
“With that budget, you can’t afford to have a wedding in DC.”
From there, she proceeded to tell me how I could have a late evening ceremony and dessert reception, how I could provide guests with a list of restaurant options they can go before the wedding. She ended it by telling me she was going to pass me along to her assistant who “caters to budgets like yours.”
From that point forward, I became my own wedding planner. It easily became a top priority (and unfortunately, blogging dipped lower on my to-do list). From venue décor to menu choices, I covered every little detail. My go-to resources included my trusty WeddingWire checklist, budgeting calculator, and of course, a small army of married friends that I could rely on for guidance and advice.
With the big day about a week away, I thought it would be fun to spotlight a few of our fabulous vendors. I feel incredibly lucky to have booked such wonderful wedding vendors—true professionals who have been a pleasure to work with and are helping me bring my vision to life.
Floral design for my wedding was important to me, but I also couldn’t afford to break the bank. Usually the first question a wedding vendor asks a bride is “what’s your budget?” It’s so important to be honest and upfront with vendors, but at times I felt embarrassed. A good vendor won’t make you feel embarrassed but a great vendor will be willing to work with your budget.
I first discovered B Floral Event Design, a full service floral and event design firm, through a word of mouth referral (when the former editor in chief of Washingtonian Bride & Groom recommends them, you know they have to be good). Shelly Bagdasian, creator of B Floral, immediately put my budget concerns at ease when I asked if she had a price sheet. She responded with, “I don’t have a standard price sheet but I am a firm believer I can work within any realistic budget.” I knew I wanted to book B Floral as my official floral wedding vendor when Shelly said that. Shelly has been working in the wedding industry for 12 years and her creative aesthetic is what set her apart from all the other floral vendors I researched. Not only is she a talented artist but she’s been wonderful to work with and quick to respond to all my questions!
I thought it would only be fair to turn the tables and ask her the questions this time. Read on to learn more about B Floral and a peak in to our floral vision for my wedding!
What inspires you when it comes to your floral design process?
Inspiration is everywhere. Sometimes it is an element that my client has on their Pinterest board or an object that is meaningful to them. Sometimes it is the bride and groom’s story. Sometimes it is the venue or the season or a particular flower that speaks to me. Floral design has trends, much like the fashion, and sometimes it is a new trend or technique that inspires me.
As a blogger bride for Style Me Pretty, I’ve been able to dive in all the fun beauty aspects of wedding planning (like rounding up the best nail polishes to say ‘I do’ in). My latest post on the popular wedding website is a fun Q&A with bridal makeup artist Carl Ray. He’s a top makeup artist in the District and THE makeup artist to First Lady Michelle Obama. He’s a true power player in the beauty industry and I couldn’t be more excited to have him do my makeup on my big day. I was lucky enough to have him do my engagement session makeup as well and I’ve been counting down the days to share it with you!
My wedding beauty entourage gathered at my tiny apartment to primp me for our intimate engagement session at Patapsco Valley State Park. Hairstylist Anna Fazio gave me tousled waves and a small braid for a laid-back look. My wedding photographer, Elizabeth Fogarty, came a little early to take some snaps of me getting ready. Everyone was so excited to see Carl work his magic on me (and boy, did I need a lot of magic that day). I asked him to enhance my best features in the most natural way and that’s exactly what he did. He used a gorgeous light purple shadow to enhance my eyes, a liquid liner and a few individual lashes for the outer corners, blush, and a natural lipstick/gloss combo to finish.
I’ve realized that the most difficult part about wedding planning is budgeting. WeddingWire has a helpful calculator but when I share my budget with different vendors, they tell me that price point is unrealistic. Let’s just get to it. Why are weddings so damn expensive? Last night I ended up in tears after I calculated how much everything is going to cost for our wedding. Notice I didn’t say wedding of our dreams. Let’s be real people—the wedding of our dreams would cost at least three times as much. I’m remembering what that rude wedding planner told me earlier this year is coming back to haunt me. She told me with my budget, I could not afford a wedding in DC. I’m worried she might be right. It’s the market. It’s the bridal industry. It’s the fact that society makes this huge deal about throwing larger than life weddings because it’s “once in a lifetime.” But it’s just one day! Vendors hike up their prices because it’s for a wedding. While we have been able to cut corners on certain aspects, it hasn’t made much of an impact. I feel like I spent last month crowdfunding my wedding. Do I take my chances at the casino or on a scratch-off? I made a vow to myself that I would not go in to debt for my wedding. I’d rather place my bets on a debt-free and happy marriage than go broke just for one day.
What are your thoughts on budgeting for a wedding? Any financial advice for me?
It’s been a while since I updated you on my upcoming nuptials. I’m saving all my best October beauty posts for later this month so I thought I’d take today for some wedding talk and discuss another aspect of my life.
The wedding dress: You may remember back in July I started to have second thoughts about my wedding dress. I was overwhelmed with the amount of responses I got from that post (thank you to everyone that took the time to leave their feedback and make me feel better about my situation). In August, I followed through with one more bridal gown appointment I had at this ultra romantic boutique in Georgetown. My experience there fell nothing short of amazing—my stylist was so helpful and the dresses I tried on were beautiful. But guess what? I couldn’t envision myself in any of them. That’s right, I decided to keep the dress! It’s funny how instances like these come full circle. While the dress that’s been hanging in my closet didn’t necessarily meet the expectations I dreamed up in my mind, I can’t imagine myself wearing anything else. I can’t wait to shop for accessories and style it for the big day!
The venue: When I first got engaged, I envisioned myself getting married at my Greek church and having the reception at a nearby hotel. When I started doing research, the price per person for food and beverage alone was absolutely ridiculous. Having a small reception is nearly impossible with my big fat Greek family but I kept looking. For a while I was 90 percent sure I was going to rent my church’s ballroom out for the evening (it was a reasonable price, especially for being in DC), but once I started realizing all the moving pieces involved (catering, lighting, décor, tables, chairs…), I got a little overwhelmed and wasn’t sure I’d be able to manage all of that. It was by the recommendation of my aunt to visit the Hyatt Regency in Bethesda and here I am, having my wedding reception at a hotel! My biggest challenge so far has been budgeting for everything and the Hyatt has been more than accommodating. Now all I have to worry about is the invitations, the favors, the DJ and the flowers.
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