Just Engaged

advanced search

I need some help

Online Users: 1,053 guest(s), 2 user(s). Replies: 15


LilMissSouthern... Posts : 22 Registered: 11/10/09
I need some help
Posted: Nov 11, 2009 9:29 AM

We literally just got engaged. We had our date picked out but I have no clue where to start... We are having a destination wedding in South Carolina. Where do I start?
I love you more than Reece Pieces and ice cream together.

south_carolina , november_2010
email friend | report thread
Reply


CheetahAngel Posts : 2,017 Registered: 11/29/08
Re: I need some help
Posted: Nov 11, 2009 11:20 AM Go to message in response to: LilMissSouthern...

Congrats!! I am not really sure about destination weddings but I would start researching first. Go online and check out wedding venues in SC. Figure out how many people you will invite. Remember that the less the better/cheaper. Then figure out your budget and how much money you both can put down and if your parents are going to help pay. Once you figure out the budget you can look around for photographers and such. Goodluck! I'm sure you will get more ideas and info from the ladies on here.
                           
  

Daisypath Wedding tickers

 

Visit my wedding website http://www.mywedding.com/alanandjarlyn

Sign my guestbook!!! :)



 


south_carolina , connecticut , october_2010 , november_2010
email friend | report thread
Reply


SpideyBridey Posts : 66 Registered: 5/17/09
Re: I need some help
Posted: Nov 11, 2009 12:14 PM Go to message in response to: LilMissSouthern...

Congratulations!

As far as planning goes - take a deep breath and relax! The engagement time is a great experience (although stressful at times!). I do suggest setting your date at least a year from now just to give yourself enough time to plan without becoming overwhelmed and hating it.

One of the first things you can do (as the PP said) is to create a budget. Give yourself an estimate on how much you can afford and if your/his parents can help as well. After that, you can move on to the fun things! Since your wedding will be in SC (which I'm assuming you do not live there) you can research local venues that create the type of atmosphere you want and fit within your budget. Ask them for their pricings and what they offer (before you go and visit).

I got engaged in May and felt totally overwhelmed as well - where do I even BEGIN??? I found that once I booked the venue I felt a whole lot better since I got something big out of the way.

Good luck!!!!! Just remember to enjoy yourself

Daisypath Wedding tickers

south_carolina , northern_new_jersey , october_2010 , november_2010
email friend | report thread
Reply


TanisJ Posts : 2,673 Registered: 4/25/07
Re: I need some help
Posted: Nov 11, 2009 3:54 PM Go to message in response to: LilMissSouthern...

Welcome to the boards. The pp's (prior posters) made some good points. Budget, guest count, date, general style of the wedding are the best place to start. For a destination wedding there are a few other considerations to think about.

1. Wedding planner - I will tell you right now I am biased because i am an event planner. I can't imagine doing a destination wedding without one.

2. Accommodation - even at a destination wedding all guests are responsible for booking their accommodation but its a good idea to try and get everyone booked at as few hotels as possible to keep things simple. I suggest looking for at least two as there is usually someone who wants a good deal and someone else who is hoping for a little more luxury.

3. Wedding website - a great idea for a destination wedding. You can post area information, transportation info (airfare, car rental and taxis), hotel info, schedule for the weekend. you can get a lot of info in a website rather than stuffing your invite with a lot of inserts. It also cuts down on a lot of questions right before the wedding.

4. Site visit to venues and vendors - I don't know where you are and how far away that is from your destination edding, but if at all possible visit the city/town at least once. you can set up a lot of appointments in a weekend. If you can't do that then try and find vendors with really informative websites. If vendors are not really responsive to your first request, don't even consider using them. Dealing with bad service when you are in the same town is bad enough, but when you live somewhere else and know you cant' drive over to their shop to get an answer it can be very stressful.

august_2008 , south_carolina , november_2010
email friend | report thread
Reply


LilMissSouthern... Posts : 22 Registered: 11/10/09
Re: I need some help
Posted: Nov 12, 2009 8:55 AM Go to message in response to: TanisJ

Our guest list is relatively small. All together we have 32 people that we are inviting and thats it...

Our budget is $6,000. I know that sounds low but thats what we can afford without help from family. We don't want to rely on them.

Now as for an event planner, I want one. Only because I want someone who has some sort of knowledge about how to plan a destination wedding. Or someone that can be my point of contact in South Carolina.

We have some little details like what we want color scheme wise. We are doing Lime green, Fuschia, and black & white... We know we want to do it on a beach but we are also aware that we need a back up plan in case weather is uncooperative.

I love you more than Reece Pieces and ice cream together.

august_2008 , south_carolina , november_2010
email friend | report thread
Reply


TanisJ Posts : 2,673 Registered: 4/25/07
Re: I need some help
Posted: Nov 12, 2009 3:33 PM Go to message in response to: LilMissSouthern...

32 peple and $6000 is very, very feasible. When I was married we rented two houses at a resort and had the ceremony in one. You can save a lot of money by having your accommodation as a venue or in your case a backup venue. You could rent a house for you and your family and/or wedding party and use it as a wedding headquarters. You can also save money this way by preparing your own meals (other than the wedding reception). We also had the spa come to us for hair and nails so no one had to leave the resort the entire weekend which meant no one getting stuck in trafficke, no one drinking and driving and also maxiumizing our time together. We spent very little on flower snd decor becuase the house was beautiful. I would highly recommend this type of plan for a small destination wedding.

august_2008 , south_carolina , november_2010
email friend | report thread
Reply


LilMissSouthern... Posts : 22 Registered: 11/10/09
Re: I need some help
Posted: Nov 16, 2009 12:26 PM Go to message in response to: TanisJ

Tanis- How do you go about getting the information to start looking at these sort of options. And as far as the reception goes how did you handle that?
I love you more than Reece Pieces and ice cream together.

august_2008 , south_carolina , november_2010
email friend | report thread
Reply


Hotari Posts : 51 Registered: 2/2/09
Re: I need some help
Posted: Nov 16, 2009 1:12 PM Go to message in response to: LilMissSouthern...

I have lived in SC for most of my life so maybe I can help you out. You mentioned maybe having a beach wedding well we have LOTS of beaches so which area are you looking at?

 Proud member of P.O.O.P People Offended by Offended People

 

south_carolina
email friend | report thread
Reply


TanisJ Posts : 2,673 Registered: 4/25/07
Re: I need some help
Posted: Nov 16, 2009 2:48 PM Go to message in response to: Hotari

This is turning into our own SC thread! Hotari I think LMSP is planning on getting married at Myrtle Beach. I am from Charleston and I see you are getting married in Hilton Head. We just took our first trip to Hilton Head a couple weeks ago and it is so beautiful. We had a rocking good time at the Jazz Corner. Of the three places I think Myrtle Beach is probably the least expensive wedding wise.
LMSP the idea of holding the ceremony in the house just came to me. Both our families had to travel (my husbands from Louisiana and mine all the way from the west coast of Canada) so we knew straight away that we wanted to put a lot of our budget into accommodation. We rented a room at the resort, but if I had it to do over again I probably would have just had a meal catered at the house and saved a boat load of money. We didn't have dancing or anything at our reception as there were only 17 of us and it was oddly quiet. I would have done that part differently.

I have 2600 posts on brides.com and I don't come here to solicit business. I just like helping other brides out, however I get the feeling you need a lot of help. I am going to send you a Private Message with some event coordinator info.

august_2008 , south_carolina
email friend | report thread
Reply


Hotari Posts : 51 Registered: 2/2/09
Re: I need some help
Posted: Nov 16, 2009 3:00 PM Go to message in response to: TanisJ

Your right on that one Hilton Head is definitely not the place for a low budget destination wedding the only reason I'm able to do mine here is because I've lived here for so long that I grew up knowing most of my vendors I have a $5,000 budget so there is gonna be a lot of DIY. OP pm me if you want any suggestions or have any questions.


 Proud member of P.O.O.P People Offended by Offended People

 

south_carolina
email friend | report thread
Reply


LilMissSouthern... Posts : 22 Registered: 11/10/09
Re: I need some help
Posted: Nov 18, 2009 8:53 AM Go to message in response to: Hotari

Tanis and Hotari- We actually found a place that is reasonable for Hilton Head. They have everything included that we would need for our ceremony and reception. We would just need florist suggestions and photographers also Dj's.

We got a few quotes from Palmetto Dunes, Seaside Pines, and Holiday Inn in Hilton Head. Palmetto was great for their prices even when compared to places in Myrtle Beach.

Tanis... We are taking your advice and looking into renting beach homes. I think that is our best option for accomodating our guests whether than making them reserve individual hotel rooms...

Any advice for florists or photographers that are relatively affordable?
I love you more than Reece Pieces and ice cream together.

south_carolina , november_2010
email friend | report thread
Reply


Hotari Posts : 51 Registered: 2/2/09
Re: I need some help
Posted: Nov 18, 2009 10:59 AM Go to message in response to: LilMissSouthern...

If you don't mind me asking how much did they quote you for I know quite a few of the places I looked at were over half my budget.

 Proud member of P.O.O.P People Offended by Offended People

 

south_carolina , october_2010
email friend | report thread
Reply


LilMissSouthern... Posts : 22 Registered: 11/10/09
Re: I need some help
Posted: Nov 18, 2009 11:16 AM Go to message in response to: Hotari

we were quoted at $5000.


I love you more than Reece Pieces and ice cream together.

south_carolina , october_2010 , november_2010
email friend | report thread
Reply


TanisJ Posts : 2,673 Registered: 4/25/07
Re: I need some help
Posted: Nov 18, 2009 12:01 PM Go to message in response to: LilMissSouthern...

LMSP I am happy you found a place, but if its $5000 that only leaves you $1000 to pay for accommodation, photographer, flowers and DJ. $5000 for approx 30 people doesn't sound like a good deal to me. Thats around $150 a person. What does that include?

august_2008 , south_carolina , october_2010 , november_2010
email friend | report thread
Reply


LilMissSouthern... Posts : 22 Registered: 11/10/09
Re: I need some help
Posted: Nov 19, 2009 8:42 AM Go to message in response to: TanisJ

That includes the buffet dinner with 4 hour open bar. It also includes the ceremony fee, the det up and take down of everything. And a bunch of other odds and ends. It also includes the set up of centerpieces of our choice...

We are staying with a friend so we don't need to worry about accomodation. We realized that our wedding budget may need to go up some...
I love you more than Reece Pieces and ice cream together.

august_2008 , south_carolina , october_2010 , november_2010
email friend | report thread
Reply
RSS

Join

Email

App

App

WIN

Give a Subscription to Brides Magazine as a Gift

Find Local Vendors

From Florists to Photographers...

are you a vendor? Click Here

Find your BRIDES wedding website below

Subscribe to Brides magazine