It was not until recently that I
have started having pity on wedding planners.
As a former bride, well I guess I still am in the “bridal phase” being
less than a year married, I often wondered at why anyone would ever choose to
have a wedding planner do their wedding.
I figured it must cost a lot, and they probably take a huge mark
up! I couldn’t have been more
wrong. I have been researching wedding
trends, most importantly candy buffet trends for the past year now and most of
these women (and men) that plan weddings for a living do not make much more off
the top than it would cost you to do it yourself. One wedding planner in the Cincinnati area,
who wishes to remain nameless, told me when I spoke with her 2 days ago that “Brides
cannot do it cheaper, which is why they come to us”. A couple years ago I would have scoffed at
that statement, and told her I could totally DIM (Do it myself :) ) for way
cheaper. Now I know better. Let me explain.
1.
Wedding planners get things at “wholesale price”. Well, really those of us in the wedding
industry know that we get items discounted but not as dirt cheap as you would
think. Since we buy in bulk, we are able
to save money here and there, however since all weddings are unique it
sometimes is difficult to get things at a discount.
2.
Wedding planners search for deals and typically
pass them along to their consumers.
These deals take a lot of time and effort to find, and a lot of gas
money driving around town negotiating prices for you (the bride). This expense is usually not calculated into the
price they quote you.
3.
The details take time and money! How many of you have seen fancy little
ribbons tied to baggies, or personalized stamp cards attached to each name
tag? If you did it yourself, you know how many countless hours you can
spend making those. How much is your
time worth?
4.
Wedding
planners typically do not charge excessively more than the product would cost
you.
Many brides do not realize that sometimes
doing it themselves can be more costly, in total time and money spent, than
having a wedding planner do it.
I, like so many other sweet people, am a big fan of ice cream in all its forms! I came across an amazing collection of recipes today that will serve up a delicious variety of frosty goodness. 
If you are not much of a baker, then these recipes are for you! Most of them require no baking, and the rest of the baking is pretty minimal. 
