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Desperate times call for creativity. You gotta give this bride some credit for figuring out a way to get what she wants. She’s bartering her family’s carpet store products in exchange for wedding vendor services. Someone help her out! :O)
Photo Source: Craig's List
Have you done a bride swap before, meaning swapping products or services (not brides. haha)?
Hi everyone – it’s been a while!
So I have some sad news – my favorite paper shop, BlueDotPaperShop, is closing down 
. BUT, to every downside, there is always a plus – for any brides going the DIY route, this is the PERFECT time to stock up on paper for your wedding. They are offering 30% off everything (except pockets) when you use the coupon code “THANK YOU”. If you fan them on Facebook, they’ll keep you updated with other sale coupons etc.
So happy stocking up everyone!
Yes, I agree that photography tends to be on the pricey side, but in my opinion, I would pay good money for an awesome photographer. Those photos will stay with you forever so it’s important to pick someone you really trust.
Negotiate with the photographer. If he/she wont’ come down in price, try adding something to the package that would make it worthwhile to you. For instance, if paying $4,000 sounds like too much to you, then ask for engagement photos, or an extra hour on the wedding day to make it $4,000 value of services to you. The important thing is to find a middle ground that both you and the photographer can be happy about. It wouldn’t be a fun experience if either party goes through it grudgingly.
Some things to keep in mind, wedding couples are spending less for weddings so you have negotiating power. But at the same time, a good photographer will not stand being taken advantage of. Good luck! I hope you find a photography package you’ll be happy with.
My fiance are I are major photo lovers! So photography was the one big budget item other than the venue that we were willing to splurge a little– maximum of $3,000 (~28% of the budget!). Our requirements? We wanted about 9-10 hours of shooting, unlimited photo coverage in sepia, black & white, color, 2 photographers (because of the large number of guests), engagement session, rehearsal dinner coverage, and the rights to the digital negatives.
We went on friend’s recommendations, google, facebook, etc. to find the best photographers in our area:
for everything I wanted So on January 31st (last day for the specials) we rushed to meet with photographers Theresa Choi and Michael Clark. Both were really great and showed us sample albums. Ultimately though, we went with Michael Clark cause I felt like our personalities just really clicked!
For $2,240 we’ll be getting *drumroll*: 10 hours of coverage with a primary and secondary shooter, coverage in b/w sepia and color, 600 images in a image catalog, online gallery for friends to view and order, and a dvd of the full resolution negatives with consent to reproduce. In addition, he threw in a complimentary 2 hour engagement session! SO excited!!!!!
On top of that, we have a close friend who is an excellent photographer and has offered to provide rehearsal dinner coverage and wedding day coverage (as a third shooter!!!). It’s so great because he’s worked with Michael Clark before and they have a good working relationship. We gave the heads up to our photographer/ paparazzi and we are ready to roll!!!
As for PHOTO ALBUMS… those leather bound albums are so ridiculously expensive. We wanted 2 albums (one for each of our parents) and then 1 elaborate album for ourselves. Solution? For our parents, we’re going to order them through snapfish.com, picaboo.com, mac.com, or mypublisher.com. We have a few friends that have made photobooks through them and the product has been great! Besides, the price is like $30 per for an 8×8 leather album with 20 pages! For our album, we’re thinking the pictobooks from http://www.memoryescape.com/ The 12×12 books are about $70 and would be great as our coffee table wedding album. We’ll keep looking for other alternatives, but for now… that might have to suffice.
In sum, we have saved about $700-800 on photography. Amazing…
some of Michael Clark’s Photos:
Source: Michael Clark Photographers
Source: Michael Clark Photographers
Hi! New blogger here… and the topic is reception venues!
When we had started talking about receptions, we dreamed of an outdoor reception with white Christmas lights strung everywhere and lots of candles. Then reality hit. We realized that the table rental, plateware rental, flatware rental, linen rental, and other equipment rental costs for 650-700 people would be way out of our budget, too time-consuming, and too labor intensive. Just the thought of asking our friends to haul tables, put out linens, place centerpieces, plate tables and set out/ clean flatware made us very sad– it really wouldn’t be a celebration for our friends… it would be one more day to labor away.
So we decided to do 2 receptions– one for the 1st generation Korean guests (aka our parents’ guests) and another for 250 of our guests. Since 1st generation guests usually leave after eating (and take about 2 boxes of leftovers each!), we decided it would be financially unwise to have their reception at a hotel. But for our guests who would hopefully dance their socks off, we would want a hotel with a dance floor. That was our first criteria for a hotel venue, and was soon followed by our second criteria… permission for outside catering. You see, my parents had agreed to fund ALL of the food for both receptions! (same Korean food to 2 locations).
That narrowed the list drastically, but here’s what we ended up with:
So what did we decide?
Source: gobluebride.blogspot.com
Source: gobluebride.blogspot.com
And they offered us a discounted rate of $26/ person if we booked before December 31st!!! They also gave us a discount on our dance floor rental and 2 free overnight rooms plus a free room for our wedding day. Lastly, they sent us the information card for our guests (in our wedding colors!) They have always been attentive, quick to respond, and easy to work with! We <3 the Crowne Plaza Dulles Airport!
I’ve been so remiss in posting, so my apologies!
We are three days away from the BIG DAY. The great thing about being so close is that most costs are finalized, and there are no more big surprises. I know, I’m cheap, but even the most loose-spenders can appreciate that.
That said, I have a question for you ladies. My woman is having a make-up person come on-site. I’ve read in various places that if someone comes on-site, then you don’t have to tip them. The rationale is that these vendors charge an on-site fee, so that pretty much covers that.
What say you? Are we supposed to tip, even if the on-site fee the make-up artist is charging makes up nearly 25% of the day-of cost?
Nicole from Nik’s Naks would like to offer a 10% discount to our Big Fat Cake readers! We asked her about monogrammed gifts that are good to give and she gave us many great ideas. Thanks, Nicole!
presents
Late Night Snacks With a Twist
by Amanda
More and more couples are hosting unconventional late night snacks for their guests. With the food truck popularity on the rise, more weddings now incorporate them.
Source: Border Grill
Source: Cool Haus
Source: Fishlips
Source: Sprinkles Cupcakes
In the LA area, try out these vendors:
About Our Guest Blogger
Amanda, co-owner of Fresh Events Company, is a talented wedding planner from the Los Angeles area. She delights in wow-ing her clients with her design talents and creating memorable weddings.
presents
Monogrammed Gifts You Can Do
by
Nicole
Big Fat Cake asked Nicole, “What are the best monogrammed ideas?” Here is Nicole’s response:
The wrap robes are a great price point at $36 and are beautiful not only for the bride to wear while she gets ready on her big day, but the bride can enjoy at home or even bring with on a trip – overnight, weekend or extended trip! Monogram this 
item with her new initials or write Mrs. X and any bride will flip for this!
The cosmetic cases are also a gorgeous item for any new bride to receive at her shower! Brides can’t get enough of displaying their new initials! Choose from 7 colors and adding either her new last name, or new initials and she will get a gift she can enjoy on her wedding day, honeymoon and for years to come. Afterall, she will never grow old of showing her new name!
For a gift that any Bride is sure to love, you can’t go wrong with the bathing suit personalized with crystals. Brides can’t get enough of this! They can enjoy this on their honeymoon and for many years after! You will be the hit of the shower with this adorable gift! You can choose to write the last name of the bride, MRS. X or you can customize with any of the following expressions: Bride, Just Married, The Mrs. or I do. You can even add a crystal heart to the front of the bathing suit for an additional cost. This item is $129 and comes in either halter or string, black or white! Give this gift.. and your bride will be so excited to sport her new name on her honeymoon and for many years after!
Another great option is a make up case with the monogram ‘BRIDE’ across the front. Choose from a few adorable color combinations and give this to a special bride for her to enjoy on her big day! She can bring all she needs for the day in this adorable case. Choose one that matches her color scheme. This make up case will also be a great piece for her to use after the wedding! This size is perfect – it fits everything and fits in any size bag! She will adore it!
We can’t get enough of these gorgeous 3 letter monogrammed necklaces! Brides are loving these for themselves!!! Brides can wear these every day with any outfit – from jeans and a tank to a dress.
These are the 3 most popular styles on Nik’s Naks: Either the 3 letter monogram charm with the addition of a stone of your choice, the most popular being the diamond, the 3 letter monogrammed oval shape necklace or the 3 letter monogrammed disk with a double chain attachment.
These pieces are stunning, head-turners and make a really special gift for a Bride!
Give your bridal party something they can enjoy after your wedding. Keeping this in mind, if you choose to monogram, we recommend monogramming with their name, nickname, or initials! They are doing all they can to make your special day all you want it to be, so lets treat them with something they can enjoy well past your wedding day too!
We are loving the line from Molly Rodgers formal wear. You can choose coordinating ties for your groomsmen – choose from a wide variety of swatches, and add a nickname, initial, initials or monogram to the back for his eyes only (sewn into the back) and he can enjoy this special gift both at your wedding and for years after.
If you plan on having the groomsmen also wear a pocket square, buy one for them that matches their tie. Men always need ties and pocket squares. These are of the highest quality and look fabulous!
About our guest blogger:
Nicole created Nik’s Naks because she loves giving the best gifts, and is always in search of fantastic and unique products. She have worked hard to ensure that her site has fashionable, high quality products.
Big Fat Cake is proud to announce our newest feature, our Big Fat Cake Vendors! It’s still in it’s infancy since we have our first three vendors. I would like to introduce to you:
Do you have a vendor that you’d like to recommend to Big Fat Cake? Please send them this link. Vendors can come from any city within the United States and will get additional advertising deals from Big Fat Cake if they offer our readers a special offer. When they advertise on our site, they will be announced, much like this post. Only cool vendors allowed! 
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