Someone once said to me that the main reason why a couple chooses to have a destination wedding is to keep the wedding small without having to compromise on the guest list. Whether or not you agree with that, here are six things not to do when planning a destination wedding:

1. Inviting people you dislike: Since your guests will be spending money and time to fly to your wedding, they will most likely also turn the trip into their own personal vacation and stay longer than the actual wedding.  So before you send your ex an invite, ask yourself if you really want to see him for more than a day.

2. Sending invitations at the last minute: If you want anyone to show up, you need to send out invitations, or at least save the dates, as soon as possible so your guests can plan ahead. Digital invitations can save you a lot of time!

3. Forgetting to the check the weather: The last thing you want is a hurricane to ruin your wedding day.

4. Forgetting to take care of your guests: Did Sally fly to the wrong airport or Marcus get a sunburn because he forgot to pack sunscreen?  Remember to provide important transportation information on Greenvelope’s details page and welcome baskets with essentials for your guests.

5. Not asking for help:  Planning a wedding at a distance can become overwhelming. Hire a destination wedding planner to help shoulder some of the burden.

6. Underestimating costs: It’s easy to forget to factor in expenses such as welcome bags, unexpected activities, and travel costs.

Did we forget something? Comment below!

Gideon Photography 

Let’s face it.  There is a lot that goes into planning pre-wedding festivities, the wedding and reception, and the honeymoon. Hiring an event planner may be the answer, but remember they want to be your planner, not your personal therapist. So whether you need a shoulder to cry on or just a sounding board, finding the perfect bridesmaid can make all the difference. Here are five signs you found the perfect bridesmaid:

read more…

Gideon Photography

Wedding planning brings with it a never-ending flood of little details and big decisions and oftentimes, amidst all the chaos, being environmentally friendly gets lost in the mix. So we’ve compiled 7 easy (and affordable!) tips that you can use to make your big day green and join us in helping to preserve our world for future generations.

1. Choose a Green Venue: This doesn’t necessarily mean you have to get married in a forest or on the beach (although those weddings are always cool), but when you’re choosing a venue, be sure to ask about the building’s sustainability commitment. The way your venue utilizes its energy for lighting, heating, cooking..etc has a huge impact on the environmental cost of your event. read more…

With the average New York wedding costing more than $80,000, there is plenty of opportunity to save money. One way that requires little sacrifice is simply by changing the date and time of your wedding and reception. For most of the country, June and September are the most popular months for weddings.  You can expect prices to rise during those months due to the high demand.  Avoid holiday months as well such as December and February when you will be competing with holiday parties that may use the same venue. Also plan your wedding and reception around local high school and college graduations, school vacation days, and large city conferences.

read more…

One day you will have children of your own, perhaps even a daughter. You’re going to love and provide for her during her formative years. But you know that the day will come, when a strapping young man whisks her away from you. That’s definitely a big deal, and you wouldn’t want to mess it up for any father in the world. So without further ado, Greenvelope gives you 5 tips to asking the father for his daughters hand in marriage. (And yes, you definitely have to ask.)

read more…

Just a year ago if I was asked whether I would hire an event planner or plan my own wedding, I would say, “Of course I would plan it!” Now after working in the wedding industry and learning all the intricate details that go into planning the perfect wedding, my answer has changed. Event planners are lifesavers.

Here are the 3 top benefits of hiring an event planner:

1. Save Money!  Initially it may seem expensive to hire an event planner, but having an event planner can actually work in your favor by keeping you on or under budget.  Think of it this way, most event planners have developed relationships with multiple vendors, which means they  know where to go and who to talk to, and how to negotiate for the best deals. read more…

Morgan and Will shared a passion for travel and wanted to treat their friends and family by taking them to Costa Rica for their destination wedding.  Guests filled every villa at Hotel Villa Caletas and the wedding ceremony and reception was held at the beautiful Zephyr Palace.

The rehearsal dinner, wedding and reception was a blend of the natural and exotic elements of Costa Rica with a touch of the glitz and glamour from “The Great Gatsby”.  At the rehearsal dinner, each table had bunches of bananas painted gold, green coconuts, pink ginger and dark green Tiger Paw leaves, and wooden table numbers in 3-D also painted in gold to match. Pink and green (inspired by The Beverly Hills hotel in Los Angeles) were chosen to highlight the palm leaves and the gorgeous pink flowers of Costa Rica.  They also added subtle hints of 1920’s fun with the gold dipped feathers, a speakeasy (rum and cigar lounge below the reception) and flowers inspired by The Great Gatsby movie. Matching the theme, Morgan wore a jaw dropping beaded art deco dress from Les Habitudes.
read more…

Love makes anything and everything suddenly possible. When a woman is truly in love, the thought of marrying and spending the rest of her life with her significant other is only a kneel away. Ideas of when and how he will propose starts flashing inside her mind.  This means that she is ready and waiting to see how you will pop the question.

1. Down Memory lane

As Cliff mentioned in Part One, waiting for the right time and finding the right place is very important.  A time and place with sentimental value is much more important than the size of the rock (for most women).  Find out ahead of time if her schedule is free or wait till your next anniversary and propose at the place where you first met or shared your first kiss. If you met in a city different than the one you are currently residing in, surprise her with plane tickets! Or if there was another moment in time that both of you are very fond of, take her there and recreate the experience. read more…

Maris Events invited guests with Greenvelope‘s wedding invitation design, “Berries and Blossoms” by Petra Kern, to the unveiling of Thomas Family Farm as a new wedding venue.  For the party, they embraced the fact that the venue is a working farm and drew inspiration from farmers markets, wood, metal, fruits, vegetables, foliage, and herbs. The color palette of the event was neutral with the only colors coming from fruit, vegetable, and floral displays. read more…

If you’re reading this, congratulations, it seems like you have found the one! While ultimately we do believe that your significant other already has his or her mind made up, we here at Greenvelope are here to offer some advice to make sure your proposal goes smoothly!

1. Be as sure as you can that she’ll say yes!

Nothings more awkward than a proposal gone wrong, for the proposer or the proposee. Make sure you bring it up in conversation beforehand, when you propose it’s not only about knowing that you want to spend the rest of your life with her, but also knowing that she would like to spend it with you.

2. Talking to the Parents.

As old fashioned as it seems, it is crucial to ask the father for his daughter’s hand in marriage, or at least inform him of it. The reality is, your future wife was their little girl for a large part of her life, and the least you can do is state your intention to them. After all, eventually you’re going to want to be given the same courtesy when it comes to your future daughter.
read more…