One of my girlfriends is getting married. This gal pal is a bit of a control freak (yeah, we’re still friends). She not only wants pink roses, she wants pink roses from some special South American country (she told me multiple times but I still can’t remember), a special pink, and the blooms can’t be completely open, they have to be semi-closed and…and…and…
She is driving her poor florist nuts and getting upcharged left, right, and center for that privilege.
Then there was me and my rather relaxed wedding planning. When I went into the florist to get my flowers arranged (the florist is one of those honorary Aunties, treated like family but with no biological connection), she asked me what I wanted. I told her that the now hubby and I had been going out for five years so I’d like five roses in my bouquet. Oh, and the reception was at a Chinese restaurant, the lucky colors being red and gold, and my dress was ivory and here’s my rather slim budget. Any specific look for the bouquet? Nope. What did I want on the tables? Didn’t matter.
She looked at me suspiciously like I was about to yell “fooled you” at her. “Are you serious?” she kept asking. “How many weddings have you done?” I asked right back. Thousands, she had recently been flown to Hawaii to do some multi-million dollar affair. Well, this is my first wedding, I told her, lets go with your judgment.
Repeat the above discussion with the cake lady (another honorary Auntie) except that I gave her the phone number of the florist so they could huddle.
Did I get what I expected for flowers and cake?
Nope.
The result far exceeded my meager expectations (and budget). Giving these two experts flexibility meant that they could bargain shop. Giving them some control meant that they could do the wedding they wanted to do. Total creative freedom. I got left over ribbon from the million dollar wedding. I got extra sugar flowers from a last minute cancellation (one bunch took a month to create and ten years later, I still have them in a display case).
Oh, and my roses came from some exotic South American country too (the name still escapes me).
Comments (2)
Weddings! There are people in NZ complaining that they can't afford to buy a home when they've just spent $40K on their wedding.
I totally understand that people want to have a special day (although I skipped all that for a $30 Vegas wedding...) but, as you say, there are ways of doing it without paying through the nose.
Posted by Rich Minx | May 11, 2007 10:44 AM
Posted on May 11, 2007 10:44
I have to fess up to us having a pretty pricey wedding. It wasn't overly fancy (bought my dress on consignment, made the wedding favors, etc) but it was pricey.
Both of us are lucky enough to have very large families (We had 300 people at our housewarming). And because many were flying in from all over the world (Asia, Europe, South American), we went out of our way to ensure that they were well fed and well watered.
But our financial plan included this large expense. We invested seriously for five years and had enough for a house down payment.
Posted by Kimber | May 11, 2007 12:55 PM
Posted on May 11, 2007 12:55