The Joys of a Great Wedding Planner Within Your Budget

Happy Tuesday Budget Brides!!!

Today's guest blogger is Ashley M. and she is going to share with us her journey of finding her wedding planner.

via Zazzle

I can still remember my first wedding I planned in 4th grade to none other than George Clooney and the gorgeous ceremony we had. Unfortunately, it did not last too long because he decided Italy was the place for him and I still had to get through middle school! In all seriousness from the moment I looked through my first wedding magazine, I knew that one-day I was going to make weddings apart of my everyday life.

In December of 2008, my fiance proposed to me on the Southern beaches of Alabama. It was a beautiful proposal, but immediately my mind popped into planning the big day. Since I am in my senior year of college and planning a long distance wedding I decided to hire a wedding planning because I did not want all the extra stress that we all know goes along with planning a wedding. My orginial planner was a very well established event planner and seemed to know exactly what to do: however, as the months passed I was not receiving any contact from her (no phone calls, emails, texts, nothing). I was very stressed and concerned about what was going on. I finally worked up the courage to say "I need to know whether or not you are in this until the end". The good news is that she decided to move on and finally I was able to find a planner that was perfect for what I needed.

My new planner Haley Hooper (Barefoot Productions) is young, active and very creative. She has been everything and more that I imaged my wedding planner to be. When I got engaged the best advice I received was to "enjoy every minute of planning because it goes by so quickly". After my experience with one wedding planner quitting and while searching for Haley some planners were quoting me $5,000. I was shocked. What could they possibly offer me that was worth $5,000?

In all the hunting and getting quoted outraegous amounts I knew I needed to get into business. I started my company AMH Something Borrowed and can work on any aspect of the wedding the bride would like. I am the perfect planner for the bride on a budget because I am that same bride. We should not have to pay 20% of our budget to a wedding planner who may up and leave or continue to try and plan their own wedding.

Fellow brides when searching for your wedding planning find the one that is right for you because on your wedding day your planner is going to be your best friend. She should know you so well at that point that if something does go wrong you will not even know it happen because she would have solved the problem the way you would have.

Find the right planner that is right for you and your wedding. Remember that you are hiring us and we are going to cater to you. Ultimately, we want you, your groom and families to enjoy one of the most special moments in your lives. So here are my tips for finding the wedding planner that is right for you.

Tips:

• Does she live up to your expectations of what you want your wedding to be?
• If your planner has other weddings that day - MOVE ON. You need to be her only focus because the day is all about you.
• Meet at least 3 different planners before picking one. All planners have their own style so, you want to make sure you find one that fits your style and needs.
• Your wedding is very personal, so make sure you connect with your vendors. The better you get to know one another, the better your chances of ending up with a wedding that feels true to who you are.

Ashley M. is in her senior year in college at the Arizona State University majoring in journalism. She is currently planning a budget savvy destination wedding of her dreams. In response to her love for wedding planning, Ashley has launched AMH Something Borrowed to help other budget savvy brides achieved the wedding of their dreams within their budget.

Looking for wedding services in the Alabama/Arizona areas, checkout AMH Something Borrowed.