San Diego Weddings of Distinction

Written by Cynthia Zatkin Events

With the economic downturn, 2009 was the year of the small wedding and I have to say that I have come to really like them. The majority of my brides, this past year, have planned weddings in the 50-100 person range. I have definitely coordinated some that were larger and even had one that was smaller, but the norm hovered around that number.

You get a bigger bang for your buck with a smaller wedding for sure. I have seen my clients invest more money into food, florals, linens, and fun extras like photo booths, cigar stations, espresso bars, and even an on-site mini-donut vendor because they felt like they could spend a little extra when they didn’t need as much of any one item (50 people = 5 table linens v. 20 for a 200 person wedding).
I think 50 people is really the critical mass needed to have dancing at a wedding. With that number, you can fill the dance floor and feel the energy of a crowd.

Small weddings can definitely go “big.”

Steal this idea:
Over Thanksgiving weekend, I coordinated a wedding for only 40 people and it was a wonderful, very intimate affair. The bridal couple, Kathryn & Michel, wanted to spend time with each of their guests and therefore decided to sit with a different table for each course. They had their reception staff set (5) tables with (10) chairs each but only assaigned (8) guests per table. Kathryn & Michel opted for a drawn out 5-course meal and shifted to the empty seats at each table each time a new course was served. I thought the idea was brilliant! Only with a group of their size, could such a idea be possible. And their guests felt incredibly honored by it!

San Diego Weddings of Distinction member Cynthia Zatkin Blase of Cynthia Zatkin Events helps brides and grooms coordinate their intimate and personal day. She shares her tips on how you can create the ultimate small wedding.

Find your critical mass: Figure out how many people you need to have in attendance to feel as if your wedding is an “event.” For some brides, 20 people are enough, but others need 50 or 60 to feel like they have created a party. Find that number you need and then, to account for negative responses, invite 20 percent more than that number.

Invite your essentials: Come up with a list of the people who mean the most to you. This, in itself, will create intimacy.

Find a distinctive venue: With a smaller group, you can select an untraditional space. Consider using your favorite restaurant or the quaint inn you and your spouse-to-be love.

Find a venue that fits the size of your group perfectly: Try not to have the room be too small or too large. If the room is a bit large, use more tables and seat fewer guests at each table.

Do more than just the standard toasts: Have childhood friends or your college roommate tell stories. Just make sure these are all prepared speeches and not inebriated ramblings!

Personalize your wedding: Because only your closest friends and family will be in attendance, include photos or mementos that truly showcase your personalities.

Specialize your menu: Consider polling your guests for their favorite kind of food or upgrading the alcohol to reflect their preferences.

Be grand! Small weddings don’t need to be small events. Feel free to create large, dramatic centerpieces, display a magnificent cake and have a full band.

Upgrade the item that is most important to you: Because smaller weddings are generally less expensive, spend the money you are saving on that item you really want. Whether it’s the perfect dress, a specific photographer or gorgeous linens, upgrade on whatever it is that you’ll remember most.

written by the union tribune http://sports.uniontrib.com/uniontrib/20080120/news_1c20wedtipm.html

When preparing to meet with your florist, it’s easy to think they are going to have all the answers! But, if you are aware of your own preferences and needs in advance of your first appointment, the experience will be much smoother.

It’s important to remember that it’s your wedding. It’s your florist’s job to enhance your personal style by translating it into the floral designs that will become your bouquets, ceremony decorations, and reception centerpieces, among other details.

The more you know about yourself and what you are hoping to see, the better your florist will be able to guide you and make recommendations that are perfectly suited to your tastes! It’s true that couples often come in the door with partial ideas and leave with a much clearer vision for their wedding day, simply because the flowers tie everything together. From the dresses to the favors – your wedding design develops through your planning with your florist.

With this in mind, these are the key things to do before appearing at your florist’s door:

1) Know your colors.
Even if the shades change from dark to light or earthy to spring fresh, the general color scheme is a major force of guidance.

2) Know your budget.
Your florist can help you maximize the amount you prefer to spend if he/she knows from the start how much there is to work with.

3) Explore your options!
Look online at all the many, many blogs/magazines/websites with pictures of real weddings to help inspire you and show you the creative options available to personalize your day.

written by Paula Anderson of Rae Florae

Planning a wedding is one of the most exciting and rewarding things a person will ever do, but it is also one of the most stressful.
The following is a list of tips for brides planning weddings in San Diego or anywhere else…

1. Start planning as early as possible. Places and service providers are booked earlier and earlier each year. So to ensure that you get exactly what you want, start early. It also gives you plenty of time to find and investigate other options if your first choice does not work out.

2. Know your service providers. The reputation of the service providers you choose is of the utmost importance. Avoid unpleasant surprises on the day of your wedding by selecting service providers with impeccable records.

3. Put everything in writing. When you book your service providers, anything that you discuss, including special arrangements or deals that you want included in your package for the quoted price, make certain is written in the contract. People can’t remember promises they made to you a year ago verbally, so make sure all the details are written in the signed contract.

4. Be organized. In order to avoid feeling overwhelmed by the number of tasks ahead of you, stay organized. Make an action plan (by week) of what you are going to do, and keep track of progress. This will help you to keep your thoughts and plans in order.

5. Pursue proper etiquette. Following proper etiquette has two advantages. Firstly, you will avoid embarrassing social blunders that can ruin your special day. Secondly, weddings are an emotional event for everyone involved, not just the bride and groom. It is important to keep all relevant parties happy and excited. By following the proper rules of etiquette, you can never go wrong.

6. Invite people to participate in your wedding party because they care about you, not out of obligation. I can’t tell you how often a bride asks someone to be in her wedding out of obligation, and is only frustrated by that individual’s lack of interest and participation. This is one of the most important days of your life. Only involve people who genuinely share in your happiness and love. If they don’t, there is no way they can behave the way you might expect them to. It is impossible.

7. Watch your budget. It is very easy to get drawn into spending more on your wedding than you planned or may be able to. There are so many wonderful choices available to brides that you should not have to put yourself in debt to have the wedding you want. If you start out with a budget, stick to it and find alternatives that allow you to do that. You do not want to start your new life with your partner paying off wedding bills for years to come!

8. Compromise. Knowing how to compromise will save a lot of stress through the planning process. You, your groom, and families all should enjoy the wedding and be proud of it. The bride and groom should do what makes them happy, but also be open to suggestions and sensitive to the feelings of those around you.

9. Confirm and follow-up. Make sure as the date gets closer, about 2 months before, that you follow-up with your service providers such as the band or DJ, limos, photographer, florist, and videographer to confirm your arrangements and provide any last minute instructions. It will make you feel secure and will ensure that they understand your expectations. This is also a task a good wedding coordinator can assist with.

10. Relax and enjoy! It is a fun, happy, beautiful time, especially in San Diego! Do not let the planning process mask that for you. Take moments to step back and enjoy what is happening, especially the day of your wedding. Just enjoy it. You have done all you can and it is in the hands of the trustworthy people you have hired.

When Michael Kiesling proposed to Heather Hendren at the Hotel del Coronado last fall, they agreed they would like to get married there, too. Then they found out using the historic venue would set them back a minimum of $20,000.

That was their first wake-up call.

“I was never going to touch that. It was obscene,” said Hendren, 32, a finance manager for Johnson & Johnson Pharmaceutical Research & Developmental in La Jolla. “With the economy the way it is, you can’t afford to take on that kind of debt. You just can’t.”

An average wedding in America cost nearly $30,000 last year, according to a survey conducted by The Knot Wedding Network. The survey of 18,000 couples married in 2008 also indicated 40 percent of couples marrying this year will curb their wedding budgets by about 16 percent because of the recession.

Through the process of planning their April 25 wedding, Hendren and Kiesling, like many engaged couples, had to find ways to scale back their dreams without sacrificing on the celebration. Every step they made was with an eye fixed squarely on the down economy and shaky job market.

After researching dozens of venues, they chose St. Paul’s Episcopal Cathedral for the ceremony and the Museum of San Diego History in Balboa Park for their reception. The couple was able to rent the museum for $3,000 for the entire day, a $4,000 savings from the least expensive hotel they found.

The Rivini gown Hendren kept gravitating toward in bridal magazines cost $5,800. She ultimately chose an off-the-rack number on sale for $1,600.

The couple’s dream of having a vintage Rolls Royce ferry them about on their special day was quickly nixed when they learned of the Rolls’ $700-an-hour price tag. Their pie-in-the-sky wish of a 16-piece band and gobo lighting at the reception was abandoned altogether.

Hardest of all was having to ruthlessly hone their desired guest list from 200 to 70.

Wedding coordinator Cynthia Zatkin of Cynthia Zatkin Events, who provided Hendren with “day of” services, said having a smaller wedding is the single most effective way a couple can reduce expenses. Guest lists of 50 to 100 are the norm this year, she said, compared to the 300-guest weddings of the past.

“You save so much money in every way,” Zatkin said. “Less food, less tables, fewer centerpieces, fewer linens. I see a lot of clients who still want a lovely event that is gorgeous, but on a smaller budget.”

Zatkin said she is also seeing some couples bypass 2009 in favor of 2010 and beyond.

“People are hoping the stock market will go back up and their portfolios will get bigger,” she said. “By the time they are paying for their wedding, they will have the money to do it.”

Zatkin tells the vendors she works with that business may be down this year and next, but to set their sights on 2011.

“We know it’s coming back,” Zatkin said. “The economy is not in the tank forever.”

Betsy Winsett, co-owner of the Encinitas-based Bridal Bazaar, which produces bridal shows in Southern California, is seeing brides trim their sails in a number of ways. While some brides are delaying their nuptials, she says most want to get started on their new life now and are willing to economize in ways they might not have considered when they first got engaged.

For example, flowers adorning the ceremony now often do double duty at the reception site, Winsett said. To cut expenses, some couples go the D.I.Y. route, making their own favors, place cards and programs, and many opt to marry on a Friday or Sunday rather than the ever-popular Saturday.

Couples are also being more selective in what they pay for, such as hiring a photographer for fewer hours or choosing a smaller tiered cake for reception photos and serving guests less expensive sheet cakes, Winsett said. And brides are getting savvy about asking vendors those seven important words, “Is that the best you can do?”

“The smart vendors recognize during a down economy that they do have to make accommodations,” Winsett said. “Happy brides today tell their friends who are getting married tomorrow and that is part of a vendor’s customer base. The smart vendors are looking at that as an opportunity.”

“Vendors are bending over backwards,” agreed Sharon Cole, a member of the Association of Bridal Consultants and owner of A Dream Wedding By Sharon. “In reality, I think brides are getting the best value for their money this year.”

Nearly every vendor Hendren chose – from her wedding coordinator, an essential expenditure considering her 60-hour work weeks – to the photographer, caterer and Internet chocolatier willing to sell her truffles at 55 cents a piece as opposed to the typical $3 a piece, slashed their prices 15 percent to 40 percent. Even Hendren’s church defrayed the cost of the flowers for the ceremony for a $100 donation and the couple’s promise to leave behind the arrangements for the regular congregation.

“It’s an all-around hurt issue, not just for brides and grooms, but for the vendors and everyone else,” Hendren said just weeks before her wedding. “I’ve been honest with people, saying ‘This is what I’ve got to spend. What is the best package I can get?’

“We had to work so much harder for what we wanted,” Hendren added. “As a financial professional, looking at my spreadsheets, I had no idea in my wildest dreams that it would be this expensive. We easily could have spent double.”

Written by Caroline Dipping for the San Diego UNION-TRIBUNE

You will be photographed more on your wedding day than any other day in your life. Your photographs will be viewed and treasured for many years and generations of your family. You’ll be the center of attention–Guaranteed! You probably know the most popular saying heard at a wedding is, Congratulations!. But, running a close second is “You Look So Beautiful!”.

Having the right dress and the right hairstyle are just part of the equation. Having the right makeup application is also critical on your wedding day.
San Diego weddings require no unique preparation for bridal make up than anywhere else. Of course, you should be aware of weather conditions if you have a beach wedding, boat wedding, or use any outdoor wedding location.
A face primer is ideal to neutralize skin imperfections, diminish the appearance of fine lines and increase makeup wearability. Apply over moisturizer or use alone.
Using an eye primer neutralizes discolorations from the brow bone down to the eye lid, thus giving the eye area a perfect canvas for true color as well as hours of long-lasting eye shadow wearability without fading or creasing. Be sure to apply a foundation or concealer and powder to the eyelids.
Foundation should look and feel like a second skin. The more natural looking, the better. Oil-free mineral foundations with long wearing properties are great to use.
When using an illuminating powder on the face, only apply to the areas that you want to highlight and enhance. If applied all over the face, you will look unnatural and your face will look shiny and oily in pictures.
To enhance the eyes, use a soft shimmering eyeshadow on the lid and use a sheer matte finish eyeshadow in crease of eye and under brow. If the eyeshadows are too pearlized under the brow, the area will reflect the light creating a bright spot above the eyes in photographs. To make the eyes look larger and stand out, curl the lashes with an eyelash curler before mascara application. Try a natural style of false lash. Pick a soft pair and cut in half. Apply to the outer half of lash line for a full, yet natural look. Be sure to choose a mascara that’s waterproof; it’ll last longer and withstand tears.
For longer lasting color, line lips as well as entire mouth. Apply lipstick in the same color family. Blot the lips, apply a light dusting of powder, and apply lipstick again. Or try a long-lasting lipstick that’s formulated to stay on ’till the wee hours of the morning.

Lastly – be sure to create a great skin regimen that you’ll stick to, get lots of sleep, drink plenty of water, and exercise to prepare for your big day!

The question’s been popped. The date’s been set.

In fact, your wedding is just weeks away and most every detail – from the veil to the venue – has been arranged and paid for. Now, you’re wondering if there are ways to defray some of the mounting costs.

The pro: Cynthia Zatkin, owner of Cynthia Zatkin Events, Signature Weddings & Celebrations

How far into planning can you change things?

It depends on the flexibility of the contract you signed. When it comes to food and beverage at a hotel, that is pretty inflexible. Couples need to consider this when signing that contract, because it is something that is truly set in stone.

But many vendors, if you go to them with financial concerns, will be pretty flexible. A linen specialist, rental company or florist won’t need a finalized contract or final counts until about two weeks before the wedding.

Linen specialist?

One thing a couple can do is increase their table size. By choosing a 72-inch round instead of a 60-inch round, more guests can be seated at fewer tables. A larger table means fewer linens.

Table linens are somewhere around $40 apiece. If you take out a couple of tables, that’s an easy way to whittle some costs.

And flowers?

Centerpieces can cost in the realm of $75 to $300 each, depending on what you are doing. That definitely adds up.

Downsize your flowers. If you thought maybe you wanted a $300 centerpiece, ask your florist what can be done for $100 a centerpiece. Most florists are pretty willing to negotiate.

The way to do that is to say, “This is how much I have to spend. What can you create?”

Are there other ways to economize?

Cut off an hour from the event. This can save you in alcohol, DJ or band, and photography costs.

Wedding receptions don’t need to go more than five hours, and you can shorten it a bit if you want. If you host an open bar, shaving an hour off the event can save significantly. Consider your alcohol cost is essentially $5 per person per hour. If you have 300 guests, you could save nearly $2,000 by losing that last hour.

With the photographer, you don’t need more than six hours. Have the photographer start two hours before the wedding to get the portraits and beautiful shots of the bride and friends while their makeup is still perfect. These are the shots people frame and keep forever, the memory photos.

As a wedding coordinator, I just stack all the events that need to be photographed toward the beginning of the reception. I make sure the cake cutting, bouquet and garter toss, money dance, etc. are all done before the photographer leaves.

A good photographer is $500 an hour. You can save $1,000 by shaving a couple of hours from your photography time.

Any other cost-cutters to consider?

I’m a big fan of using nice chairs, but they can be $8 to $20 a chair. A couple on a budget could use chair covers instead. There are some good companies out there with chair covers renting from $2 to $3.50 a chair.

Downsize the musicians. Instead of having a quartet at $500 an hour, choose a duo for $200 an hour.

Downsize the tiered wedding cake. Wedding cakes range up to $15 a slice depending on the pastry chef. If you do a tiny cake for the ceremony with sheet cakes for serving, it can be $2 to $4 a slice.

Eliminate any kind of “night of” transportation, like a limo or trolley. I’ve seen couples have just as much fun driving their own transportation decorated by the groomsmen. Or, if they are going to be drinking, enlist a friend with a nice car.

I’ve also seen family and friends network to borrow great cars like a red convertible for the getaway car or a big Chevy Suburban to transfer family and friends between church and reception site. There are ways to get creative with transportation without having to pay for it.

Written by Caroline Dipping for the San Diego Union Tribune

If you’re planning a wedding, you’re probably wondering what will be trendy and hip. There’s no denying that 2009 Wedding Trends are heavily influenced by the economy. It seems dreary to be constantly talking about how the economy will impact your life, but fortunately, there are already ways in which a smaller budget has inspired couples to have more creative, intimate, and personal weddings.

These weddings are benefiting from a heavy dose of style, influenced by the many images and ideas circulating around the blogosphere. This chic style will be the second biggest influence this year. Rather than huge weddings, where cost cutting means a lack of details or fun, the 2009 wedding trends are full of fabulous details meant for smaller, affordable weddings. This holds true for San Diego weddings and any other part of the country.
• Small luxurious weddings Budgets might be tight, but that doesn’t mean that luxury and glamour are going away. Instead, couples are opting for intimate glamorous affairs. By having fewer guests, they can have more opulent details, like elaborate favors, beautiful wines and gourmet tasting menus.
• Macaroons The delightful French cookies not only have a delicious almond flavor and light texture, but they’re also stunning as favors or as an accompaniment to wedding cake. 
The newest trend is creating a tower of macaroons instead of a wedding cake,
• Gray For the past few years, chocolate brown has been the “It Color” popping up in weddings as a hip neutral, and combined with bright pink or cheery yellow. While chocolate brown isn’t going anywhere, the hippest new color for 2009 is gray. You may think of gray as too dreary a color for weddings, but on the contrary, it can serve as a sophisticated foil to brighter colors. It’s great paired with pink or yellow, but perhaps the hottest combination this year will be silver and royal purple.
• Affordable and Rewearable Bridesmaid Dresses 2009 brides are considerate and mindful of the economy, so they’re looking for bridesmaid dresses that are truly rewearable and don’t come with a sky-high price tag. For a beach wedding, consider telling your bridesmaids that they can wear a knee-length, spaghetti-strap dress in any shade of blue. They’ll not only be able to shop the department store sales, but your wedding will reflect the beautiful colors of the ocean.
• Photography Registries – A wedding photography registry can help you increase your budget for photography services while offering a convenient gift-giving solution for your guests. Your gift will not only be well-received, but will provide a life-long artistic memory. The Bridal Registry options of today are very different than in the past. Current wedding couples may have been housekeeping for a number of years and no longer require the usual household items and “stuff”. The wedding photography registry allows family, friends and guests to purchase certificates which the bride and groom will use toward their wedding photography.