Donnie Brown's Tips For An Affordable Wedding

Wedding planning is quite stressful because there are lot of things that you have to prepare.Here to rescue bewildered brides from the woes of wedding planning is celebrity wedding planner Donnie Brown. The star of the Style Network's hit show "Whose Wedding Is It Anyway?", Brown is one of the industry's most beloved experts. With his first book, Donnie Brown Weddings: From the Couture to the Cake, to be released this fall, Brown is sharing his wedding planning expertise with brides everywhere. So to help you maximize your budget and create an affordable, yet luxurious, wedding here are few secrets shared by him.

How should a bride, bound by a budget, approach planning her wedding?

The most important thing a bride can do is to develop (or have her planner develop) a working budget that is well thought out and consistent with [her] personal tastes and requirements for the big day.

Where should she save and where should she splurge?

Every bride has a set of priorities. She should spend the most on those items she cares most about.

What are some luxurious elements that a bride can incorporate into her décor without breaking the bank?

Most brides utilize hotel ballrooms for a very good reason- they have almost everything you need, including in-house catering in most cases.


What do you believe is the most valuable tip or advice for planning a wedding

1) Hire a good wedding planner and allow them to negotiate your contracts for you.

2) Get a no-interest bearing credit card like American Express and put all the charges on it.

what is the most common mistake brides make when preparing for the big day, and how can they avoid it?

Many couples determine how much money they have for the wedding and then start shopping with no consideration to how to [best] allocate the funds.

What is the key to a successful wedding?

The key to a successful wedding is careful planning and taking care of one another during the process. Don't let the stresses and strains of the planning process cause a riff between you and your fiancé.

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Diamond in the Rough For Your Wedding Jewelry

Diamonds have always been the choice when it comes to engagement rings and wedding jewelry.For decades, nothing has said bridal bliss like a little blue box from Tiffany's. For those of us who yearn to diversify the diamond portfolio, who crave something wholly unique, diamond in the rough awaits discovery.

At Diamond in the Rough, says President and Creative Director Anjanette Dienne Clisura, "we create wearable works of art." By combining the ancient lure of untouched rough diamonds with exquisite modern craftsmanship, Diamond in the Rough offers brides the opportunity to express their own particular love story, as well as their individual personality, through jewelry. According to Clisura, "Each piece of jewelry is composed of rough diamonds that we select by hand...some rough diamonds are opaque and mysterious, other rough diamonds are so clear that they appear polished."

Whether you choose just one, or a combination of several, these dazzling diamonds are guaranteed to be as exceptional as you are. So leave the traditional cut, color and carat comparisons to the second floor specialists at Tiffany's and visit Diamond in the Rough's online boutiques to get those creative juices flowing!

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Wedding Traditions

Most of us follow the different wedding etiquette but we rarely understand it's origins. "Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue and a silver sixpence in her shoe." This is a good luck saying during the Victorian times. Something old represents the link with the bride's family and their past. Something new represents good fortune and success in the bride's new life, usually symbolized by a newly purchased wedding dress or piece of jewelry. Something borrowed is to remind the bride of the family and friends who are there to support her in this new life endeavor. The borrowed object is often a lace handkerchief, pearl bracelet or classically understated item donated by a bridal party member. Something blue is the symbol of faithfulness and loyalty. And for a silver sixpence, that's to wish the bride wealth, but this part of the tradition has long been forsaken.

Tying the Knot

The purpose of this tradition was to make a contract of marriage between the two parties through the joining of hands.


Tying Shoes

There was once a time when a bride's shoes were a symbol of authority and possession. During the ceremony, the shoes would be handed over to the groom by the bride's father, transferring his authority to the new husband.

The Language of Love

Setting mood for your wedding has many different ways. The time of day, the music, or even your color scheme, can have a big impact on the impression you leave on your guests. One of the easiest and beautiful ways to create the mood is with the flowers. For some brides they go for the color, the size and structure of the blossoms, scent and they choose the blooms based on how they look.

Another unique way to create a mood for your wedding is to use the language of the flowers. By understanding the meaning of an arrangement, just like Victorians, you too can add personal touch and atmosphere of your choice. Here are some of the meanings that you may choose as your wedding flowers.

Anemone: Unfading love
Baby's Breath: Everlasting love
Bells of Ireland: Good luck
Calendula: Joy
Red Carnations: My heart aches for you
Daisy: Innocence
Fern: Sincerity
Forget-me-not: True love
Forsythia: Anticipation
Gladiolus: Love at first sight
A Garland of Roses: Reward of virtue
Hibiscus: Delicate beauty
Iris: Faith, hope, wisdom and valor
Ivy: Fidelity