Just around this time of year—in anticipation of the upcoming spring/summer wedding season—the book blitz begins at Bridal Guide and we receive lots of tomes on all things wedding-related—from flowers to cakes to planning. One such publication came across my desk recently and it’s a great read. Stylish Weddings for Less: How to Plan Your Dream Wedding on a Budget by Catherine Sabino (Filipacchi Publishing) is guaranteed to calm your nerves as you discover how to plan a fun, chic wedding and still save some coin.

Just as we do in Bridal Guide, Ms. Sabino (full disclosure: Catherine is a former magazine colleague of mine and a terrific editor) features real couples’ weddings, breaks down their budgets, offers invaluable advice and takes you through the entire wedding planning process with ease. You’ll love the look of the book and be inspired by the beautiful visuals such as this completely adorable pink floral and bow-wrapped cake by Dan Pasky, dandanbakingco.com:

The Budget Guru tries to be thrifty, but she's also very much into her creature comforts. So when a pair of Sanuk Yoga Mat Sandals landed in my office (you never know what's going to end up here!), I not only appreciated the price but I immediately slipped them on. Loving the squishy but firm texture—yes, they're made out of yoga mats—I envisioned a bride giving them to her bridal party for an inexpensive post-wedding thank-you that says, "Gee, pals, take a load off those tootsies that you've been so tirelessly running around on over the last six months, all in the service of ME and MY WEDDING..." Nice gesture!

Go to sanuk.com. The sandals are a mere $26/pair. Fancier pairs go for $32.

Posted by Susan at 2:47 p.m.

After criss-crossing the city all day, dropping off the dry cleaning, cooking (a hopefully healthy) dinner and hitting the playground with my daughter, I don’t often take enough time to think of what other’s may be dealing with everyday. I’m sure with planning a wedding, you can barely come up for air. Which is why I really fell in love with the concept behind Wish Upon a Wedding.

Launched in January 2010 by event planner Liz Guthrie, Wish Upon a Wedding seeks to grant the wish of couples with a terminal or serious illness to have a magical wedding or civil union that they can share with their loved ones. There are three types of wedding wishes based on the severity of the illness: Urgent Wish, Boutique Wish and Romantic Wish. While all the wedding planning components and travel arrangements are made by the dedicated staff at Wish Upon a Wedding, the organization is completely dependent on volunteers in all aspects of the wedding industry to offer services, in addition to financial and air mile donors.

I have to share the most adorable wedding-related note cards. Ever! Copper Willow Paper Studio, an eco-luxe company based in Southern California (my hood), hand-creates gorgeous stationery that any bride would be proud to use, while utilizing sustainable production practices. Both their paper and envelopes are made from recycled clothing and brown paper bags. Even their ribbons are created from recycled materials. Here are some of my faves:

Aren’t the kid ones so funny?? For more info, check out copperwillow.com. Cheers!

Posted by Aimée at 3:28 p.m.

Posted by Maureen at 11:01 a.m.

Event planner Donnie Brown adds more food-for-thought for the budget-conscious bride.

1. Overtime Fees. Remember there may be overtime charges for any of the vendors who plan on ending the event at a certain time. The photographer and videographer also may require a certain time window and charge for overtime at your event.
2. Don’t forget to count up what you’ll spend on postage for invitations as well as for response cards, which must be pre-fixed before they are mailed to the recipient guest.
3. Consider the consumption vs. the package bar. The former means that you’re charged for every drink served. The latter indicates an estimated charge and no additional costs if you go over. Be sure to check that wine service at the table is included in the package if you go that way.
4. Wedding day accessory items. Easy to forget to work into your overall budget: the guestbook, pen, champagne flutes, cake knife and server, ring bearer pillow, flower girl basket, etc.

Posted by Susan at 12:27 p.m.

If you haven’t already grabbed the May/June issue of Bridal Guide off the newsstands, don’t wait. The magazine is filled with so many gorgeous gowns, fantastic accessories, terrific planning advice and honeymoon news that I promise; your life will become a whole lot easier.

If you’re still searching for that perfect dress, look no further. We have a bevy of gowns that are sure to thrill from styles best suited for all you femme fatales:

…to enchanting dresses that effortlessly evoke the romance of the day.

The BG has been busy closing an issue, but here she takes a few minutes to pass along event planner Donnie Brown’s important tips on hidden costs. These are the things that jump out and bite you just when you think it’s safe to go back into the water.

The Most Commonly Overlooked Hidden Costs
Donnie Brown, Style Network star and author of Donnie Brown Weddings: From the Couture to the Cake.

1. Service Charge and Gratuity for Catering Food and Beverage. This usually runs around 20–22% over the actual food and beverage cost. Must add tax for the pre-service charge amount on top of this as well.
2. Valet Parking Fees. You don’t want your guests’ last memory of your wedding to be of reaching into their pocket to find cash to get their car.
3. Gown and other Formalwear Alteration Fees. Just because you have purchased your gown doesn’t mean it is complete. There will be multiple fittings and each one comes with a cost. Ask the gown boutique in advance what the estimated alterations fees will be and factor this into your budget when making a decision on your gown. This goes for the mother’s attire, the attendants’ dresses and in some cases, the tuxedos.
4. Cake-cutting Fees. Many venues require that you use their in-house pastry chef to create your wedding cake. If you choose to use an outside vendor, you may be looking at a cutting fee of anywhere from $2.50–$7.50 per person. This charge is designed to cover plates, flatware use and labor costs. Some venues that don’t have an in-house pastry chef still charge for this service.

MORE TO COME!! The BG has to get back to work!

Posted by Susan at 3:55 p.m.

It’s been especially busy in the BG office this week as all of us editors work on “closing” the July/August issue that you’ll find on the newsstands May 18th. Yes, we work pretty far in advance! So in the midst of reading copy, approving layouts, and reading even more copy (fyi: after a story is designed and copy flowed onto the layout, it gets read, edited and re-edited several times) I took a little time to speak with 17 students from LIM (Laboratory Institute of Merchandising) College, located in mid-town Manhattan. Their professor and my good friend and all-around super lady, Ionia Dunn Lee, asked me to address her Field Trip class on what I do as Editor, as well as what’s new in the bridal and publishing industries. Fun! The class came up to the BG offices and settled into our conference room for my hour-long talk. (That’s Ionia in the chic dotted scarf with her students):

And some other bright, lovely faces:

On the heels of Continental’s recent announcement that they are 86-ing those burgers and pork sandwiches in the main cabin comes some good news from the airline industry. (Insert the word finally underlined and capped here.) According to a recent report released by the Bureau of Transportation Statistics lost luggage incidents have decreased significantly from last month. Yips! Pips! And to make matters even better, less than one percent of all lost bags are actually permanently lost. Finally something to make those friendly skies a little brighter.

Happy Trails.

Posted by Jenna at 5:18 p.m.