The Wedding Edition: Need Help?

Ok, so you've already started planning your big day.You've got your church, reception and photographer. So far, so good.

But then you realize there's so much more to do, and - let's face it - you have a full time job. How the heck are you going to split yourself to take care of all of those things?

This is where the wedding planners and coordinators come in.

Choosing your planners or coordinators

Let's be honest here -- one of the biggest markets today is a wedding. You need a lot of suppliers to pull of one wedding. One way of finding a suitable wedding planner or coordinator for you is to attend a wedding fair or expo, which are usually held once every quarter by different organizations (more or less at least 3 fairs a quarter). There are many choices to choose from, and you attend those to help you choose the best planner for your need.

Also try asking friends, colleagues and acquaintances for referrals, which may be more helpful because they can give you the real story -- if they were happy with the service or what not.

When you've chosen your planner, there are three kinds of services that they might offer you, depending again on your need.

Full Coordination / Planning

They would basically take the nitty-gritty out of your hands. Sure, it may cost more but it'll save you a big headache. The full coordination / planning package assumes that you've done around 15% of the work, and there are still a lot of areas that you need to cover. They'll be the ones to contact your suppliers, ensure that you're on schedule and all that.

Partial Coordination

This package assumes that you've done around 50-65% of the planning. They just supplement your suppliers, make sure that you've done all, and remind you of stuff that you still need to do.

On-the-day Coordination

This is the cheapest package, since they would assume that you've practically done all the planning yourself (around 75-80%). All they would do is remind you of the things you still need to do, get in touch with your suppliers and ensure that your wedding day goes smoothly as planned.

I opted for the on-the-day coordination from Events Manila. Why? For a number of reasons:

1. I had practically contacted all my suppliers. And they told me that (for partial coordination) even if they would be the one to contact my potential suppliers, I would still be the one to deal with them. They would work just like liaison between me and the suppliers. I was better off contacting them on my own (to which they agreed).
2. It was cheaper. 'Nuff said.
3. Events Manila because it was recommended by my photo place. At least they've worked with them in the past so we know that they would be able to work out an understanding on the day itself.
   

To be honest, even though you think that you may pull off planning your wedding on your own, I personally think that a coordinator will be very, very helpful in ensuring the program or everything you've worked hard for goes according to plan. You can't be the one to cue who's going to march down the aisle come D-day; you need someone else who will do the job for you. All you need to do on you wedding day is to look really really radiant and pretty. :)

The countdown: 51 days to go!