Coscto Size My Wedding

I have a love/hate relationship with Costco.

Love: They have everything under the sun in massive quantities at great prices.

Hate: I, without fail, leave with a ginormous bite taken out of my wallet. This is the very reason I avoid going there.

Case in point: I don't know if you're a Modern Family fan.  I am unashamedly obsessed with this show.  There's an episode in which Cameron, the country mouse, introduces Mitchell, the upscale city mouse, to the wonderful world of Costco. During their outing, doubtful Mitchell is quickly and comically converted to Costco-ism, excitedly filling up carts full of "needed" items.  (In truth, you're going to have to watch the episode to appreciate all the humor if you haven't already.) 

But this is what happens...you go in with the intention of getting a few items and, before you know it, you walk out with hundreds of dollars worth of stuff. What the hell happened?

In regards to wedding planning, I'm going to call this the Costco-syndrome. Most couples tend to under-estimate their wedding budget mainly because they start shopping not knowing what to expect, what is available and how much services will really cost.  It doesn't take long for a couple to realize they are going to need some financial reinforcement to sustain their wedding day wants/needs. Trust me, I see this all the time.  

I get it.  The options are a bit overwhelming.  Who knew that there were so many different colors and textures of linens to choose from? Personal flowers should go to other people outside the bridal party? Wedding gifts are supposed to be given the members in the bridal party?  The venue has a separate cost for cutting the cake?  Alright,I feel your anxiety. I'll stop there for now.

My solution for wedding planning is the same solution for an outing to Costco: Have a budget and shopping list ready before you get out there and get sucked into Costco-syndrome.

For my consultations, I suggest that my couples list out their priority floral items (shopping list) and some extra items they would like to have.  Then we talk about styles that will fit within their price-range (budget).  That way, when I send over the formal proposal there isn't much sticker-shock.  See, you got it.

As for me, I have yet to overcome Costco's drug-like effect.  Wish me luck.

Happy event planning!

Yours truly,

Joanna

PS - Due to a sudden influx of professional photos from past events and new editorial content, the blog post schedule will temporarily change to Monday, Wednesday and Friday.