I Will DO Their "I DOs"

Here's our schedule for the rest of the year (so far):

May 15, 2010 - Onin & Lara
(Madre De Dios Chapel / Tagaytay Midlands)

May 26, 2010 - Mike & Jhona
(Holy Family Parish / Portofino)

May 29, 2010 - Mike & Jhona's After Party
(The Columns Ayala)

June 12, 2010 - Ranjan & Angelyn
(Nuestra Señora de Gracia / Makati Palace Hotel)

June 21, 2010 - Malvin & Catleya
(Manila Cathedral / Diamond Hotel)

September 18, 2010 - Gino & Angela
(Caleruega / Hacienda Isabela)

October 9, 2010 - Mark & Haidee
(Sanctuario de San Jose / Light of Love Events Place)

December 21, 2010 - Essex & Sweet
(Cainta Church / The Grove by Rockwell)

What with my full-time job as a Core Skills Trainer, my Spirit Quests, constant tambays and get-togethers with various groups from the car community, the new car club I formed at work, my position as VP-Marketing in Honda Club of the Philippines, Thespians' Clique (a theatre organization consisting of my co-workers from all our sites) as well as the quiet time I allot for myself, I can only handle a moderate amount of projects that Concept Magic would provide.But hey, I'm not complaining. I like the busy life. I love my bosses and the people I work with at my full-time trainer job. I'm getting used to having a day shift (but I would much rather prefer going to work at night to avoid stress and traffic.) I love the whirlwind of activities that I have left and right. I like meeting new people and getting invited to all sorts of functions. I like interacting with different kinds of personalities. I like doing favors for others. I feel productive and fulfilled. I feel young, happy and exuberant. I feel energized and spirited. I feel that I am learning new things every day - and I'm never going to stop learning more!

By the way, contrary to what most would think, Concept Magic is not after quantity - which is a principle that proves to be very convenient for my lifestyle right now. You see, if we handle too many projects, how can we assure the clients of quality output? How can we deliver our tasks efficiently?

Although our company now has Planning Associates aside from our on-call team of coordinators, Concept Magic's goal is to make sure that each occasion is a personalized one. Of course, with the promise of more projects, more income would be expected. However, what I like about Concept Magic is that the company is willing to prioritize quality service over revenue, yet maintain that balance between customer satisfaction and smiles on our team's faces. Everyone at Concept Magic works part-time or on a project-basis, because what drives us to work is simply the love of it. If we work on too many events all at the same time, where is the focus there? That is why I also came up with the directive that we can only accommodate 2 events per month and nothing more than that!

I guess that explains why the company doesn't advertise. We have never joined (maybe in the future we'll consider this, though) any bridal fairs or wedding conventions. You will never see any company advertisements in Metro Weddings or the Wedding Digest. Our one and only directory listing is with WeddingsAtWork (W@W). You see, the best clients are word-of-mouth clients. That, I believe, is a key factor in personalizing social events. We work on a referral-basis (from friends, other friends who became clients, and previous clients who have BECOME friends), and that is actually the most powerful propaganda technique in the world. It's kind of like network marketing: you earn through referrals, and you don't spend a lot of money on advertising which doesn't even guarantee you a client base.

Concept Magic began with friends, and it will continue to make more friends each and every time we finish a project with success. :-)

Budget Wedding Boosters!

Here's my two cents on the whole matter:

1. Make a strict budget allocation in advance, and STICK to it. (No matter what your family, your fiance, your suppliers, and even those wedding magazines would say.) Focus on one or two particular aspects of your wedding that you want to highlight (i.e. food, photo/video, cake, gown.) You can spend just a wee bit more on these, and then scrimp on the rest.

2. Do you honestly need to dress up in a hotel?

3. Learn the wonderful and creative art of Do-It-Yourself. Be hands-on.

4. Instead of hiring a wedding planner, ask help from your family and friends. You might be surprised at what these people are willing to do for you since they care for you so much! Make it a clan and barkada effort! Then hire a wedding coordinator to just put everything together on the day itself.

5. Trim your guest list. Intimate weddings are more poignant because you're celebrating it only with your family and closest friends. Then just throw a simple after party for the rest of your circle later on.

6. Borrow a friend's car for your bridal car. Just pay for the gas and floral arrangement, and have your friend drive you to the church.

7. Opt for a no-prints photo package and just negotiate for a nice photo AVP of your pre-nups and on-the-day preps. Save the Earth! Besides, you can always have those photos printed later on.

8. Send e-invites to friends and acquaintances. Save the real invitations for the VIPs and Principal Sponsors.

9. Find a designer who is willing to be paid just for making the gowns. Buy the cloth/materials separately. Opt for barongs and not suits. That way, you won't need to buy boutonnieres for the male entourage.

10. Hold your wedding during a weekday. Usually venues and suppliers give lower rates during regular days of the week.

11. Book and reserve suppliers waaaaay early! Their rates increase every so often!

12. Use hand-tied bouquets and flowers which are in season.

13. Cut down your entourage members. You don't need 5 bridesmaids AND 7 junior bridesmaids, plus 4 flower girls! Give these people other roles!

14. Always ask suppliers for freebies and add-ons they can offer. Sometimes, suppliers offer more than one service, and it's better to avail of services from just one source because they can package it for you - at a lower price than booking each and every service provider separately. Don't be afraid to negotiate for the rates given to you by your suppliers. They're willing to bend the rules... a little.

15. The cake will just be used for cutting. So just get a two-tiered one instead of all those fancy-schmancy designer cakes which nobody gets to eay anyway.

16. Divisoria is your friend, my dear. And so is Google.

17. Opt to pay for your wedding rings on an installment basis, so that you don't have to worry about paying for it until after the wedding. Buy those wedding rings a month before the wedding date so that the installment plan can start at a much later point in time.

18. Always do RSVP. Encourage your guests to confirm their attendance. If not, proactively call them and ask them if they're going. Be meticulous with your list of confirmed and unconfirmed guests, so that you can have a clear idea on the headcount.

19. Indicate the number of seats reserved per guest in your invites, and be strict with this. You never know when one guest might bring the whole barangay to your wedding!

20. Sign up for a honeymoon bridal registry. That way, you can have your guests pay for your honeymoon as wedding gifts!

21. Ask a trusted friend, colleague or family member to be the emcee during your reception. It makes the whole program more personalized as well.

22. For destination weddings, try to book suppliers who come from the same area to save on out-of-town fees.

23. Get married during off-peak season. Avoid setting your wedding date in June and December!

24. Consider getting a civil wedding first, then have a private and more intimate church wedding later on. It opens up more opportunities to be creative with the ceremony!

25. Select a caterer that offers to package event styling (and lots of other freebies) with their food services. Caterers are able to offer a lot of stuff, so take advantage of this privilege!

26. Instead of getting the full services of a mobile bar, just buy their signature drinks and shooters (like how SoberClub does it!) Usually they package this at a much lower price and you get all the booze good for all your drinking guests. Ask the caterer if you can just pay for an extra waiter to serve the liquor. Be wary about the corkage, though.

27. Instead of getting a guest book, why not make a set of questionnaires/forms that guests can fill out? You can even personalize it with quotes, pictures (like in a scrapbook), mementoes, and even special questions that would encourage the guests to be specific with what they will write. Afterwards, you can just have them bound together - voila! A personalized guest book!

28. Focus more on videography. Anyone who owns a DSLR can take pictures, but the video footages are a different case altogether.

29. Use CDs or MP3s instead of getting a live band. If you really want live entertainment, get a soloist (instead of a choir) for the ceremony, and an acoustic ensemble (instead of a full band) for the reception - or why not get that same ensemble's members for both the ceremony AND the reception?

30. Choose dishes that are simpler and easier to prepare, and ask your caterer if he/she can reduce the price per head.

31. Be bold. Be frank. Indicate in your invites that you prefer CASH and not material gifts. We have to be practical during these times.

32. You might be amazed at the vast array of potential souvenir items priced at 10 pesos in many tiangges all over the Metro! And these are not even in Divisoria yet!

33. Borrow jewelery from your family members. At least that takes care of the "something old" or "something borrowed" line.

34. Be active in online communities, such as Weddings At Work (W@W) - the people here are more than willing to help you out, recommend low-priced suppliers, and give you more tips on how to save!

35. If there's a wedding ceremony before or after yours, try to coordinate with the other couple and propose if you can share the cost of the floral arrangement at the church - it also saves preparation time that way.

36. Give yourself a fabulous bouquet, and have everyone else wear wrist corsages. Hey, it's YOUR day, right?

37. Hold the wedding rehearsal and rehearsal dinner at your house, and suggest a potluck dinner for all. You can also serve home-cooked dishes instead of ordering food, or having it catered.

38. Hold your wedding during the morning or noon, so that you won't need to pay extra for a lighting setup from the sound system.

39. Missalettes can easily be photocopied, you know.

40. There is honestly no need to pay for ALL the gowns and hair/makeup services of your female entourage members.

In the end, what's more important, anyway? Is it the wedding, or your marriage? Try to reassess your priorities here, and really figure out what you're spending for. Is it just that one occasion, or is it better to invest in your future together? Think about it.