Marigold Events – Indian Wedding Inspirations

High school sweethearts, Jasmine and Gautam, met (and were eventually engaged!) on a tennis court. Their beautiful wedding took place at the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center in Washington DC.

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A wedding planner once told me, “Your wedding invitation is the first impression of your wedding.” That thought has stuck with me, and I truly believe, that your wedding invitation should be put together with great thought, and be a reflect what your wedding will be like. The trends in wedding invitations change every year, and it can be hard to keep up with them. One of the hottest wedding trends these days are luxury boxed invitations. Marigold Events (ME) had the opportunity to talk to Puneet Gupta (PG), who designs these kind of boxed couture wedding invitations.

ME: What is your background? How did you get started with designing wedding invitations?

PG: I am a NIFT graduate and have had a love for design since my childhood. After having worked as a design consultant for various Indian & International brands in the lifestyle and fashion industries, I finally decided to use my design capabilities, technical expertise and love for beauty to launch a luxury line of bespoke wedding invitations and favors. Since then, there has been no looking back and with every wedding invitation we produce, this passion for designing has grown stronger and my love for print novelties is getting deeper. Read more »

An Indian Wedding Planning Checklist can be a really long one, especially if you are having a multiple day celebration. While it is imperative to be organized, it is also important to relax and keep your cool throughout the process. Brides can sometimes get overwhelmed with all the various details they have to handle in order to make their big day memorable: from venue, caterer, decor, cake, to invitations, bridal wear, and jewelry; throw in keeping up with the latest trends.

Image Copyright: Rani By Neha Mahajan

While your wedding planner can take care of your venue, caterer, decor, cake, photo, video, and day of coordination; how does one get her wedding shopping done? Should you go to India, or should you look for clothing  and jewelry vendors locally? If shopping in India, It is overwhelming to get all the shopping done, while trying to maneuver through a new city, and especially if you do not have family in the city you are visiting.

Enter Neha Rani Mahajan. Neha offers a wonderful personal shopping experience to South Asians based abroad in Delhi, India. Born, and raised in Cherry Hill, NJ, Neha spent many summers in India while growing up. A graduate of Penn State, Neha moved to New Delhi in 2007 after getting married. She planned her own wedding in Delhi while she was in the US, and has many years of first hand experience shopping in India. Not only does she keep up with the latest trends, she also understands what an Indian American bride is looking for. She says, “When Indians from abroad come to Delhi, they have a long shopping list and a very limited time. Throw in the mix: haggling with the vendors, communicating in Hindi, and an unfamiliar Indian business culture. My goal is to give the South Asian brides abroad, a stress free, and relaxing shopping experience.”

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Shopping in Delhi is fabulous! It is full of cute shopping areas with nifty stores. Yesterday I was shopping around in Greater Kailash I, N Block market, and found this amazing gift and home accessories store called Kassmi. Kassmi has some amazing collection of accessories and gifts, which can be used as wedding favors, gifts, as well as wedding trousseau.

They have an amazing range of products, hand crafted using brocade and zardozi or dabka work, like trays, jewelry boxes, coasters, photo frames, lamps, corner tables, umbrella stands, planters, and lots more. I had the pleasure of meeting the owner, Smita Kasliwal, one of the owners of Kassmi, and talk to her about her work.

Zardozi work is very intricate, gold thread work, which never goes out of fashion. Brocade and Zardozi are usually used on sarees, salwar kameez and lehengas, but Smita has taken these fabrics and hand embroidery to a more unique level, by using it to design home accessories.

I found the stuff at Kassmi beautiful, practical, as well as reasonably priced. I really liked their coasters and I think that would make for a gorgeous and a very practical wedding favor. Kassmi take appointments at their store. I highly recommend shopping at this store as it has stuff in every budget range.

Next week I will be giving away a home accessory that I picked up from Kassmi. Please note that the views presented in this blog post are my unbiased views and this is not an endorsement.

I love shopping in Delhi! When I got married, I did all my shopping from there and really enjoyed my experience. The amazing choices, affordable prices, and VIP treatment are just a few reasons why you would go there for your wedding shopping. In this blog post, I will talk about the various shopping districts in Delhi and some of my favorite stores shopping for wedding trousseau.

• South Extension (Part I and II): Conveniently located in South Delhi, South Extension is a shopping area full of big stores:

1. Ushnak Mal: Great for Lehengas, Salwar Kameez and Chudidars. Highly recommended!
2. Nalli – Famous for South Indian Saris, especially Silk Kanjeevarams.
3. Regal: Wedding Shoes, purses and accessories. Comes recommended!
4. BG’s – Purses, clutch bags, bindis, and accessories. Very stylish!
5. Wedding Weaves – Men’s sherwanis. Amazing designs – Highly recommended!
6. Big Joes - Accessories
7. Jass Jewelers: Great for silver jewelry, accessories and gift items. Pricey, but recommended!

Shoes by Regal

Greater Kailash I: This area is also located in South Delhi, but comes with a big price tag. Worth checking out though.

1. Laffaire: Nice sarees, but a little pricey.
2. Street Hawkers: Check out the hawkers on the side of this shopping area for amazing accessories.
3. Champalal Jewellery: Beautiful diamond, and polki jewelry. Highly recommended!
4. Hazoorilal & Sons Jewellers: Nice jewelry, but a little pricey.

Diamond Jewelry by Champalal

Hauz Khas Village: This shopping area, located in South Delhi, is full of small and unique boutiques.

1. Rewaz Boutique: Amazing collection of sarees! I bought three gorgeous sarees from here for my wedding.
2. Ogaan: This is a fairly new boutique for Indian outfits.

Crescent Mall: This mall is full of designer labels and is located on Mehrauli Road. Very exclusive collections by Manish Malhotra et al!

Lajpat Nagar: Located in South Delhi, this area is full of big and small stores. Don’t forget to check out the street hawkers for some amazing accessories.

1. Roshan’s: I love the stuff here! They have the most amazing suits and lehengas at great prices. I bought my reception lehenga from here. Highly recommended!
2. Shakuntalam: Very stylish lehengas and suits.

My Reception Outfit by Roshan's

Karol Bagh: Karol Bagh is another major and oldest shopping district located in West Delhi.

1. PP Jewellers
2. Hari Shankar Sunil Kumar Jewelers
3. Beli Ram: Silver accessories and gift items. Highly recommended!
4. Janak’s: Great men’s traditional outfits as well as suits.
5. Wedding Weaves: Same as the one in South Extension.

Chandni Chowk: Chandni Chowk is the oldest shopping area in Delhi. Located in North Delhi (Very close to Lal Quila), it has a charm to it. Got to be careful of “eve-teasers” and the traffic, but otherwise if you are looking for great prices – it’s a must check out!

1. Surya Sarees: Amazing collection of sarees, and lehengas. I bought my wedding lehenga from here. Very unique and amazing prices. Highly recommended!
2. Champalal Jewellers: Same as the one in South Extension. Again highly recommended!
3. Rati Ram Ram Vinod: Lehenga and Sarees.

Rajouri Garden: This area is located in East Delhi and has big and small boutiques and stores.

1. Meena Bazaar: Good collection of suits.
2. Shakuntalam: Same as the one in Lajpat Nagar.

Other Places worth a mention:

1. Shapur Jat: Great for kurtis and tunics. Nice little shops for shoes as well.
2. CTC Plaza: Its a huge mall selling traditional Indian clothing and accessories.
3. Dilli Haat: If you are looking for favors and stationary – this is a great place to visit.
4. Janpath: Awesome and highly recommended, if you want custom table linen, favors etc. for your wedding reception.
5. Chawri Bazaar: Invitations and Stationary – great prices! Close to Chandni Chowk.

Candy buffets are the hottest trend in weddings these days. Not only do they satisfy the cravings of that sweet tooth, but also make for great eye candy at your wedding reception. They make a unique alternative to favors and also serve as late night snacks. So how do you go about creating these lovely candy buffets? The key points to remember when creating a candy buffet are: colors, presentation and quantity of candy. Let’s go in more detail.

Image Credit: Things Festive

Colors: Try to pick candy using your wedding color palette. If your colors are pink and white, go with the fairy tale theme for your table, where you go with bubble gum flavored candy, pink and white jelly beans, pink and white chocolate eggs etc. It might require some research, but you can find candy in shades that complements your wedding colors!

Presentation: The display of your candy buffet is equally important as your colors. The whole purpose of having a candy buffet is to add color and another element of decor to your wedding. The options are endless! However, some easy options might be to use similar vases as your centerpieces. Add some unique touches by using huge martini glasses or other shapes of floral vases. Vary the shapes and heights to make it look more dramatic. You could also add some bags of candy, for guests to take away with them. Often times, brides would accessorize the candy buffet with a separate centerpiece, fabric and ribbon.

Quantity: In order to have a perfect display, you need to have the right quantity of candy. One would think to start with the guest count in order to determine the quantity. I would say no! If you have 100 guests at your wedding and you decide to serve 3 ounces of candy to each guest, that is just going to be 18.5 pounds. This is not enough to have a good display! For a presentation of your buffet that will wow your guests, choose from 5 to 10 types of candy and buy around 15 pounds each – even if you don’t need that much. When it comes to candy, the more the merrier!

In our last post we talked about the use of candles in decor. Candles add a touch of romance to your wedding. How about if this touch of romance was married with tradition? Surinder Marbha, owner of “All About Henna“ did exactly that, where she decorates candles with gorgeous henna patterns. What a beautiful fusion of romance and tradition!

As a child, Surinder dabbled with many crafts. Surinder was inspired by the tradition of mehendi, when she saw her older sister getting henna applied on her hands. Surinder first started applying mehendi/henna as a hobby when she was five years old. When she moved to the US, she took it up again, where she started applying henna tattoos on people. With the encouragement of her friends, she started to take it more seriously. Surinder started experimenting with henna on different media like cloth/candles/candle holders/canvas/frames/boxes/pouches etc. Surinder exclaims, “World is my Canvas!”

Surinder is all about henna! She loves its fragarance, design, and color. Over a year ago she started a business called “All About Henna” (based out of Dallas, TX), where she started applying henna tattoos, selling henna painted candles, paintings and boxes. Her friends affectionately call her “Rockstar of Mehendi”!

For candles, Surinder uses embellishments like jewels, rhinestones, paint, glitter glue, micro glitter, mirrors and Swarovski crystals on the henna patterns. She says that when the candle burns, it plays around with the jewels and glows. She also paints resuable candles and candle holders. Surinder’s uses Arabic henna style in her work. Not only is it trendy, but very gorgeous. She uses flowers, vines, and a lot of dots and swirls. Arabic style has thicker edges with finer work inside and more contrast in color which gives it a bold look.

Surinder’s exquisite candles can be used as centerpieces, and wedding favors. She also personalizes favors with pictures. Recently, she also started to do henna invitations and jewelry boxes. Currently, Surinder is custom designing the entire set of wedding favors order for an Indian Bride in Dallas. The order is an assortment of wax hurricane candles and are individually decorated with a combination of henna, gold paint, red paint, kundans, jewels and svawrovski crystals.

We are giving away one of Surinder’s beautiful hand crafted candles. This hurricane candle is from her new line of flameless candles (operated by AA batteries) adorned with henna art and Swarovski crystals. This candle is inspired by the beautiful colors of spring, where she has incorporated flowers and leaves in the form of henna patterns on this flameless candle and added accents of stunning Swarovski crystals. The end product simply breath taking and will last forever! Its true elegance is seen in a dimly lit room when the warm glow of the flame reflects off the crystals on the surface, creating a mesmerizing hue in the room.

To enter the giveaway, please comment on this blog entry telling us why you like these candles. Don’t forget to mention your email address when making the entry. For extra entries in the giveaway, become a fan of Marigold Events on facebook, follow us on twitter, tweet about it (don’t forget to mention @marigoldevents) or blog about it. If you making extra entries, email us at neha@marigoldevents.com to let us know how many entries you made. The giveaway starts on May 17, 2010 and ends on May 23, 2010. We will announce the winner on May 24, 2010.

Candles adds to the romantic ambience of your wedding. There are a number of ways to incorporate candles in your wedding:

1. Decorating along the aisle with candles secured in hurricane glass or lanterns
2. Adding taper or votive candelabras on the guest dinner tables
3. Creating or Dressing up the Reception centerpieces
4. Accenting the cake or guest book table
5. Using candles as unique wedding favors

Following are the different kinds of candles you can use in your wedding decor:

• Pillar Candles: You can add a dramatic flair to a centerpiece by using pillar candles of varying heights. These are free-standing, thick, round, square or hexagonal columns, which can be plain or decorated. A great idea of using pillar candles could be to tie thick ribbon around the candle and use a bunch of these candles in varied heights, or use them in a secured hurricane glass, surrounded by flower petals. These make excellent centerpieces for guest tables or even sweet heart tables.

Pillar Candles used in varying heights

Hurrican Candles

• Votives: Votives are short round candles displayed in a cup or a votive holder that holds liquified wax residue. They come in many colors. Votive holders come in colored glass, crystal, wood, bamboo, stone and plastic. Hanging votives make a gorgeous centerpiece. Votives are usually hung on natural trees or metal trees, which is an adequate size for the tables. Votives can also be used to accent centerpieces or even as favors.

Hanging Votives

Stemmed Votive

• Tealights: Tealights are very small, short candles, customarily contained in a metal or plastic base. These, again, can be used to accent centerpieces or even on the placesettings as a decorative piece.

Tealights used as centerpieces

Hanging Tealights

• Lanterns: Moroccon style lanterns are very colorful and can add glamor to an Indian wedding. Candles, when placed inside the lantern, creates a great ambience. These can be hung on sheperd hooks along the aisle, or just placed on your reception guest tables to create a romantic atmosphere.

Lanterns

• Floating Candles: Think about using tall cylindrical or square glass vases of varying heights and placing floating candles in them. These look gorgeous and are perfect centerpiece for a sweetheart table. Consider tinting the water with food coloring or adding glass pebbles, leaves, orchids, rocks, sparkeles or marbles to the water.

Floating Candles

• Tapers: Tall and thin, also known as dinner candles, can be placed on candelabras and placed on guest dinner tables.

Tapered Candles used in centerpieces

• Gels:  Gel candles are soft and transparent candles which hold decorative wax items inside. These can make for unique favors or centerpiece accents.

Gel Candle used as favor

Next week we will have another interesting post along with a really cool giveaway. Keep an eye out!

Indian Weddings are known to be elaborate affairs, where families spend a lot of money to entertain their guests and celebrate. No matter how big of an amount you are spending on the wedding, there is always a budget. So how do you come up with a budget for your wedding? Start by compiling a list of finance sources, which could be you (the bride), the groom,both sets of parents, as well as other generous family members or friends.

In this article, we will go through all the steps to decide how to plan your wedding budget. So start with coming up with a realistic figure.

Enter total budget: ________________

Once you have a realistic figure for your budget, we will divide that amount into various categories.

Image Courtesy: Flickr (soo12)

Ceremony: 5%

• Cost of the venue
• All transportation like horse carriage for Baraat, limos etc. for guests, family and bridal party to and from the hotel/house of the bride and groom to the ceremony site.
• Enter Ceremony Budget: ______________

(Multiply total budget by 0.05)

Reception: 40%

Your Wedding Reception will take up the bulk of your wedding budget. The budget for your reception will include:

• Cost of the venue
• Event Rentals (Chairs, Tables, Flatware, Glassware, China)
• Catering and Servers (including taxes and tips)
• Bar and non-alcoholic beverages
• Wedding Cake
• Valet parking, if applicable
• All transportation like shuttle service, limos etc. for guests, family and bridal party to and from the ceremony site to the reception venue.
• Enter Reception Budget: ______________

(Multiply total budget by 0.4)

Music and Entertainment: 5%

This includes:

• Baraat and Ceremony Music – Dhol, DJ
• Cocktail hour – DJ, Live Performers
• Reception Entertainment and Music – DJ, Dancers, Live Performers
• Enter Music Budget: _______________

(Multiply total budget by 0.05)

Decor: 15%

In an Indian Wedding, decor takes up a good chunk of your budget, especially because there are so many elements that go into it. This includes:

• Mandap and Ceremony decoration
• Chair Covers/ Sashes
• Overlays/ Table Linen
• Bride and Bridesmaid’s bouquets (if applicable)
• Boutonnière’s for Groom, Groomsmen, Ring Bearer and both Fathers (if applicable)
• Flowers for both the Bride and Groom’s Mother (if applicable)
• Flowers to decorate the Flower Girl’s basket and petals to toss
• Reception centerpieces and decorations
• Flowers for the Wedding cake (if applicable)
• Sweet heart table/ head table
• Enter Flower Budget: _______________

(Multiply total budget by 0.15)

Wedding Attire and Jewelry: 15%

• This includes:
• Bridal Saris/ Lehengas for the Ceremony and Reception
• Bride’s lingerie
• Bride’s jewelry for Ceremony and Reception
• Wedding Bands
• Bride’s shoes
• Hair and makeup (including Mehendi)
• Groom’s Sherwani/ Tuxedo and Shoes for the Ceremony and Reception
• Enter Wedding Attire Budget: _______________

(Multiply total budget by 0.15)

Photography: 10%

This will include:

• Photography
• Videography
• CDs or other digital media with all the photos
• DVD of the Wedding Video
• Engagement portraits
• Ceremony and Reception – album package
• Additional albums / photographs for gifts

Enter Photography Budget: _____________

(Multiply total budget by 0.1)

Stationery: 4%

This includes:

• Invitations and enclosures (R.S.V.P. cards & envelopes, maps, etc.)
• Announcements
• Thank – you notes
• Postage
• Wedding Programs
• Enter Stationery Budget: _____________

(Multiply total budget by 0.04)

Miscellaneous: 6%

This is where all those random “little” items add up. Make sure you have an extra cushion for all those extra expenses.

• Gifts for the bridal party (if applicable)
• Wedding gifts for each other (if you choose to do so)
• Favors for the guests
• Welcome baskets for out-of-town guests
• Hotel room / “Honeymoon Suite” for the wedding night
• Marriage and other licenses
• Dakshina/ Fee for the Priest
• Enter Miscellaneous Budget: _____________

(Multiply total budget by 0.06)

I hope this worksheet gave you a good idea on how to plan your wedding budget and will be helpful.

Congratulations on your engagement! Wondering where to start from? Here is a checklist of items which will walk you through your wedding planning process. According to 2008 Wedding Industry Facts, the average length of engagement is 16 months (Courtesy: Hudson Valley Weddings). For this checklist I am going to assume an eight month engagement and wedding planning period, since Indian engagements are usually shorter. Your first month planning will definitely be the busiest. Even though the list is top heavy, don’t be afraid as the more work you do in the beginning, the less you will have to worry later.

Week 1

1. Pick a Date/Weekend: Give yourself enough time for preparation when picking a date. Also, think about the season you would prefer to get married in.
2. Estimate your Wedding Budget: Are you planning on using your own savings for the wedding? Are the parents chipping in? Now is a good time to get to talk to your fiance and both families to get the finances together for the wedding.
3. Finalize all the events: There are many events associated with an Indian Wedding Celebration. Do you want to have an engagement party, haldi, mehendi, sangeet in addition to the wedding and reception? Now is a good time to decide.
   • Tip: Take your budget into consideration when deciding the number of events and how they will be scheduled on the weekend to accommodate your out of town guests.
4. Estimate the number of guests and start a guestlist: Once you have a set budget in mind, you should estimate how big of a wedding you want. This will help you decide the other planning aspects of your wedding.
   • Tip: Make a spreadsheet of all the guests. I would suggest using Google Docs and use the following heading items for your spreadsheet, which accounts for all the details related to your guests: Guest Family, Number of people invited, Address, Email Address, Phone Number, Events invited for, Out of Town?, Save-the-Date sent?, Invitation Sent?, Gift received, Thank You Card Sent?
5. Hire a Wedding Planner (optional): If you want a planner to assist you find you your venue and other vendors, go ahead and book your wedding planner in the first week itself. This will ensure that you get maximum benefit out of hiring a planner. Make sure you get referrals from family and friends. Yelp and Wedding Wire are great places to start looking as well. A lot of planners have negotiated (discounted) rates with vendors, which can work in your favor. On the flip side, they may steer you towards the vendors with whom they have a relationship.
   • Tip: Most planners and even other vendors offer a discount if you pay them the full amount when you sign the contract. Consider doing so only if you are sure about your planner/vendor selection.
6. Start researching Venues: Finding venues for all your wedding events, which are open for the dates you picked can be very trying. Get a head start so that you can book the wedding venue of your dreams!  Schedule appointments to go visit the selected venues and start shortlisting.
   • Tip: Find out the venue requirements and policies for lighting candles, havan rituals/ fire, alcohol, parking, vendor and event insurance, cancellation or postponing the event.

Week 2

1. Choose your bridesmaids and groomsmen (optional): If you choose to do so, select your bridesmaids and groomsmen and invite them to be in your wedding party. It is always nice to send a hand written note to invite your friend/relative to your wedding party, followed by a phone call. Once they confirm, it’s a good idea to get their measurements for their outfits.
2. Pick a theme/colors and start collecting ideas: If you choose to do so, pick your colors/theme for your wedding. Regardless of whether you are having a theme of not, start gathering ideas for your wedding. Look through magazines, wedding planning blogs, even talking to your friends and cousins who recently planned their wedding.
3. Send out Save-the-Dates: Once the guestlist is finalized, send out your Save-the-Dates. You could go with something which you Do-it-Yourself, or even go to a local paperie/paper store and get them ready to be sent out. Often times, brides go with magnets with a picture of them and their fiance, or even very creative DIY Save-the-Dates according to their theme.
4. Plan your Engagement Party (optional): If you decide to do so, start planning your engagement party. You may want to have it at your parent’s house or backyard if the weather is nice, after taking the guestlist into consideration. Think about what kind of party you want: Brunch/ Hors d’oeuvres/Dinner.

Week 3

1. Finalize the Venue: By this time you should have selected your venue. Sign the contract and make the deposits.
2. Start your Wedding Registry: Decide the stores or online website where you would like to set up your wedding registry.
   • Tip: Most people go with Macy’s, Crate and Barrell, Bed Bath, Target,  Beyond and other big department stores. Personally, I recommend online websites like myregistry.com for setting up your wedding registry, as it gives you a lot more flexibility. You can add any product online and place it on your registry. Moreover, if you are a smart shopper, you can shop for the best deal to save your guests money!
3. Wedding Website (optional): Set up your wedding website with all the details of your wedding. You can purchase a domain and server space from website hosting companies like bluehost.com, godaddy.com, 1and1.com with your and your fiance’s name, for example: nehaandkart.com. Once you have the domain, you can have a friend/cousin/web developer or even yourself create a wedding website with details such as how you met, proposal, photo gallery, wedding venue and details, link to registry, RSVP, guestbook etc. Alternatively, there are many wedding planning websites, like weddingwire.com, which already have templates for wedding websites, and all you have to do is enter the content and the website is automatically created for you. You can choose to forward it to your own domain rather than the one generated by the website company. Email the website link to your friends and relatives.

Week 4

1. Start Researching Caterers: Put a little thought into your wedding menu. Are you thinking live stations, ice sculptures, chocolate fountain, fondue, specialty appetizers and drinks or simple buffet? Browse through directories of local restaurants, which fit your requirements and schedule tastings. Get per person estimates when you go for the tasting. You might also want to talk to your caterer about drink packages. Make sure that the caterer is licensed by your venue.
2. Start Researching Event Decorator/ Florists/ Mandap: Based on your theme, ideas and colors, start thinking of decor ideas. Make a list of things you need from a decorator/florist. Are you going to have special lighting for your events? Talk to various florists for centerpieces and flowers for the ceremony and reception. Also start looking for overlays, Indian event decorations, Mandap, stage for Sangeet and Sweetheart table set up etc. Get estimates for everything.
3. Start Researching Photographers: Good photographers are often booked months in advance. Get on your game and schedule meetings to book your photographer. You should definitely look at the samples of the different photographers so that you know their style (posed, photojournalistic etc.). You should also try to negotiate a photo package for all your wedding events as you don’t want to miss the special moments. Important occasions for photos include Engagement Portraits, Engagement Party, Mehendi, Sangeet, Getting Ready Pictures, Pictures of just Bride and Groom on the Wedding Day, Pictures with the Bridal Party, Ceremony, and Reception. You might want to ask the photographer for the rates of an assistant, should you need one.
4. Start Researching Videographers: Go for a videographer who has shot Indian Weddings before because they will have a good idea about the lineup of events on your wedding day and would not miss shooting your important moments. Also you would want to discuss how the media of the video: HD/ Blue Ray DVD/ Video Tape etc, whether you want raw footage or the edited video or both etc. Decide which events you need the videographer for and whether they need to have assistants or not.
5. Start Researching DJs: Do your homework to find a good DJ. Talk to different DJs to get a vibe of what kind of music they play and how often they switch it up. If you need a projector for slideshow, cables to hook up your computer to the projector, special sound system, other tech equipment, you might want to talk to the DJ and negotiate a package for that and all your other events. Also, ask the DJ if he can provide dhol/ entertainment/ music for the Baraat. It is best to select a DJ based on a performance that you have seen.
6. Start Researching Event Rentals (depends on the venue): If you are having your wedding at a museum, hall or a special location, most probably you would need to rent out everything needed for your event, from china, glassware, tableware, tablecloths to tables and chairs. This can get pricey depending on your guestlist and you definitely need the correct estimates for the number of each item to be rented with extras to spare. Do your utmost to research the most reasonable event rental company in terms of finding the best choice of rentals, as well as a company which has relaxed policies. Sometimes your caterer can provide some good referrals for the event rental companies.
7. Pick out your invitations: Start looking at different Indian Invitations Websites to look for the perfect invitation. Also, read our article on how to select a wedding invitation for some useful tips. Once you have a winner, finalize the invitation text (include your website and registry information on the invitation), and order the invitations as it takes a couple weeks for the order to be processed and shipped. You want the invitations at least 4-5 months before the wedding, so that you have enough time to address them.

Month 2

1. Finalize your Caterer, Event Decorator/ Florist/ Mandap, Photographer, Videographer, DJ, Event Rentals: You should have these vendors finalized and locked in so that you can start planning the wedding details with them. Review the contracts thoroughly before signing. Make sure they provide a reasonable alternative person/company to fill in case they are sick or under circumstances beyond their control.
2. Book your Priest/ Pundit: Based on the kind of ceremony you want, book your priest. Its always good if the priest can speak in English and translate the ceremony for the guests. Confirm their dakshina or honorarium and also the date of the wedding.
3. Select you Cake Vendor and Cake Design: If your venue or caterer does not provide one, then start looking for a cake vendor. Regardless, you will need to pick a design for your cake.
4. Make the Arrangements for Baraat and other transportation: Reserve the horse carriage, get permits if need be for the Baraat and make arrangements for limo/transportation for the day of your wedding. You may also want to book a shuttle to transport your guests to the wedding venue if different from the accommodation.
5. Book your trip to India (optional): If you are doing your wedding trousseau shopping in India, then book your plane tickets and make appropriate arrangements to take time off of work etc.

Month 3

1. Select a vendor for your Mehendi, Hair, Make up and Arranging your Dupatta or Sari: Make sure you have make up and hair trials, before you select the vendor. Interview them to make sure that they can arrange transportation to come to where you are. Also, you might want to bring pictures and discuss with them the way you want your mehendi, make up, hair, and dupatta arranged.
2. Select Wedding Outfits for the entire bridal party and Jewelry Sets for yourself: If not going to India, find a local store or travel to a city with huge Indian diaspora in the US to purchase jewelry sets for yourself and traditional outfits for yourself, your fiance and your entire bridal party. Also start looking into suits and tuxedos for the groom and groomsmen.
3. Travel to India to purchase your Wedding Trousseau (optional): Read our article on how to shop for your wedding in India for special tips.
4. Block Hotel Rooms for out of town guests: Get a block of rooms for a discounted rate for all of your out of town guests. Update your website to include the hotel information and the code to get the discount.
5. Honeymoon Suite: Book accommodations for your wedding night.

Month 4

1. Purchase your Accessories: If not going to India, then start looking for matching purse, bindis, bangles, and footwear.
2. Start planning and book your honeymoon: Decide on a destination, and book your travel, and hotel for the honeymoon. If you are traveling internationally, make sure you have valid passports and appropriate visas/ other travel papers, vaccinations etc.
3. Finalize your Menu and Service details with your caterer
4. Finalize your Decor Arrangements

Month 5

1. Get your invitations ready and Mail them: Address all your invitations and put stamps. This process can take a good week, especially if you are still in process of compiling addresses and have a huge guestlist. Use vellum or metallic labels to print addresses. You might also want to consider calligraphy.
2. Order your wedding rings/bands
3. Start looking for favors: Read our article on suggestions for special wedding favors.
4. Childcare for your Ceremony and Reception (optional): If you have many guests with babies and small  children, you might consider making arrangements for them.

Month 6

1. Alcohol and Bar Arrangements: Order liquor/alcohol for your event if you are not getting it from the caterer or venue. You might have to get a permit to serve your own alcohol at your venue and hire bartender as well.
2. Prepare Ceremony Programs and Other Stationary: Design the proof of concept for your ceremony programs. If you are designing any other stationary, scrapbooks for display etc., you should consider doing it now.
3. Research Marriage License Requiremnts: Also schedule a blood test appointment, if required by your state.
4. Song for First Dance: Select the song for your First Dance. Consider taking dance lessons or choreographing it yourself.

Month 7

1. Purchase your Guestbook, Pen and Pen Holder
2. Purchase gifts for your bridal party and close family members
3. Contact close family and friends for Sangeet Performances (optional)
4. Get all the sari and lehenga blouses stitched: You should do this for yourself and your bridesmaids.
5. Make sure that all your outfits fit properly: You still have some time to get the outfits tailored to fit you in case there have been a size change.

Month of the Wedding!

4 Weeks Before

1. Have Sangeet Performers submit their music to you
2. Send a Song List to the DJ: Make a list of your must-play songs and do-not-play song list and send it to your DJ. You should also send all the sangeet songs and the song for your First Dance to make sure the DJ has all of your music.

3 Weeks Before

1. Call guests who have not yet RSVP’d and get the final head count
2. Determine the order of your receiving line, if you are having one
3. Prepare a timeline for all your wedding events
4. Prepare a list of assignments for your bridal party and family members

2 Weeks Before

1. Give the final head count to all your vendors
2. Give the timeline of wedding events to all the vendors, members of your bridal party and family members helping
3. Create your seating chart and make the place cards: Give your seating chart to the vendors in charge of directing guests to their tables, arranging the chairs, tables, table numbers and place cards.
4. Prepare your toasts and thanks to family and friends
5. Confirm all your final payments and have them ready to be mailed out or handed over to the vendor

Week of the Wedding!

1. Hand over all the favors, guestbook, placecards, programs etc. to the event planner or the person in charge of arranging them
2. Put together an emergency kit: This should contain Aspirin, Hairspray, Make up, Safety Pins, Mints etc.
3. Pack your suitcase for the honeymoon
4. Get pampered at a Spa
5. Enjoy your Wedding Celebrations!

After you come back from your honeymoon

1. Ensure all your vendors have been fully paid: As a courtesy you may review them on wedding planning websites.
2. Arrange for your outfits to be cleaned and preserved
3. Write all your Thank You Notes: Traditional etiquette gives you an 8 week grace period.
4. If you choose to do so: Do all the paperwork to change your name, and arranging to combine finances, insurance policies etc.

I hope this checklist is comprehensive enough and will be useful for you in planning your wedding. As usual, please comment on this entry with your suggestions or email me  at neha@marigoldevents.com.

Couples do meet in unique places and situations, and so is the story of our featured couple, Sneha and Rajat. Sneha and Rajat met in college during a fire drill! Once the two were ready to tie the knot, Rajat proposed Sneha on an Eastern Caribbean Cruise after asking her parents for permission. I had the pleasure to talk to Sneha about her engagement and wedding planning experience. I will share the highlights of her wedding and some of her planning tips with you.

Engagement Portraits can be a lot of fun!

When starting to plan their wedding, the first thing Rajat and Sneha did was have their engagement portraits taken. Tip #1: Engagement portraits are great for when you are designing your Save-the-Dates, Favors, Guestbook or just for display at the wedding/reception. The couple planned their engagement party at the Heritage Club in the DC Metro Area.

The Heritage Club has a Rajasthani themed decor and is perfect size for an engagement celebration.

As a part of their engagement celebration, Sneha and Rajat hired a limo to go on a tour of DC with their friends. Here is a beautiful shot of both at the Washington Memorial taken by one of their friends:

Picture Perfect!

As is the dilemma of most couples, Sneha and Rajat were faced with the same: Venue for the wedding! The couple wanted a small and intimate wedding with their close family and friends and were not having any luck finding a venue in the DC area. While Sneha and Rajat were visiting Sneha’s parents in California, they decided to take trips to the wineries nearby. They were fascinated by this one winery in particular called Hecker Pass Winery in Gilroy, California. The weather there was gorgeous and the owner of the winery was very hospitable. Sneha and Rajat were sold and decided that they wanted to have a destination wedding at the winery. Tip #2: A unique destination wedding venue could be a Winery; the weather is gorgeous and its perfect for a scenic and intimate wedding.

Candid Shot at the Sangeet

The wedding was a 3 day affair, where the couple had Haldi, Mehendi, Sangeet, Wedding and Reception. The Sangeet was held at the winery, where the decor was a typical Indian seating set up of “gaddas” and cushions. Sneha stressed how this was a group effort and everyone contributed towards the Sangeet arrangements. Tip #3: Don’t be afraid to ask for help and delegate the responsibilities, group effort often has the best results!

For the Sangeet entertainment, the couple hired live singers combining Punjabi Dhol, folk, bollywood and dance in a unique live performance. They sang Bhangra, typical Sangeet songs, Bari Barsi, Kala Shah and many other numbers, which all the guests really enjoyed. They had a lovely favor basket of “chudis” and “bindis” for the ladies.

Sangeet Favors: Bindis and Bangles

Sneha chose very trendy and unique colors for her wedding: pink and chocolate brown. The colors are rarely seen in Indian wedding, and I must say that everything was put together beautifully at the wedding using that color scheme. One can tell how meticulously Sneha planned the wedding by the attention to detail. Sneha made some beautiful welcome baskets using the colors of her wedding for the guests staying at the hotel. The basket contained a wine bottle from the winery with a custom label designed by the couple, and some chocolates. Tip #4: Apply your wedding color scheme also to the details like gift bags, money envelopes, programs, welcome baskets etc.

Welcome baskets: Coordinated with the Colors and Theme

I loved the way the pink organza fabric was draped around the chivari chairs that were used in the ceremony. For the decoration along the aisle, floral balls made of roses were hung on shepherd’s hooks. Tip #5: You can add beautiful aisle decorations by using shepherd hooks. You can use floral balls, lanterns, ribbons – the choices are endless!

The beautiful details

Sneha, along with her bridemsaids, spent hours designing the concept for her wedding program. The end result was fabulous! Tip #5: Using ribbons hang your wedding programs from the ceremony chairs. This adds to your decor.

Sneha's DIY Ceremony Program

Rajat and Sneha had five bridesmaids and groomsmen. The bridesmaids wore coordinated pink saris with golden sequins border and small flower shaped motifs stitched all over it. Sneha said that she was having the hardest time finding coordinated saris for all her bridesmaids in India. She said it’s nearly impossible to get two saris with exactly same color and design ready made. So on her shopping trip to India, Sneha got the saris made from scratch! She had to buy the sari material, get it dyed pink, and finally get the border and motifs stitched to each sari. I think this is a great idea for all the brides who want the exact same sari for their bridesmaids. Tip #6: Simplest way to have the same sari for every bridesmaid – Buy white material, borders and trimmings, Dye the material with your choice of color, get the borders and trimmings stitched on to the sari.

Here comes the Bride

Sneha wanted a brown mandap for the wedding, to go with the colors chosen by her for the wedding. It was impossible to get one in the States, and so on her trip to India, she got one stitched. She got the measurements and instructions for the mandap from her decorator and got them stitched for a very reasonable cost in India. During the wedding, the mandap was draped on pillars and hooked on for extra protection. Tip #7: If you have unique wedding colors, consider getting your mandap stitched in India. Ask your decorator for the measurements. Check out the beautiful mandap:

Ever seen a chocolate brown mandap before?

Sneha mentioned that one her memorable moments from the wedding was from the “joota chupai” ceremony. She said that the groomsmen and bridesmaids were going back and forth with the shoes and negotiating the amount for the shoes. The final deal between the two sides was for all the bridesmaids to dance around Rajat to “Joote do Paise lo” and then get the money!

Paise De Do, Joote Le Lo!

Since the wedding was at the winery, that ended up being the underlying theme – from the welcome baskets, to the table numbers, which were named after different wines. Tip #8: To add a unique touch, consider having table names instead of table numbers based on your theme.

Rajat and Sneha got portrait shots for all of their major events

Another DIY project that Sneha did was putting together their favors. Sneha put together a CD of her and Rajat’s favorite songs and put them in a beautiful case that she designed herself. Sneha used cdprintexpress.com for the production of the favors.

Beautiful Cherry Blossom Design for CD favors

Here are some beautiful pictures of Sneha and Rajat’s Reception:

First Dance: "Pehli Nazar Mein" from the movie Race

Beautiful Centerpiece on a chocolate brown overlay

Reception Setup

Custom Guestbook

Hope Sneha and Rajat’s gorgeous wedding photos and planning tips will be useful and give you ideas to plan your beautiful wedding!  (Photo Credits: Sandhya Photography)

If you would like to submit your wedding, please contact us through this form or email me at neha@marigoldevents.com.

Wedding Favors are small gifts, given as a token of gratitude to guests from bride and groom during a wedding ceremony/reception. The tradition of giving favors is a very old European custom, where a small trinket box was filled with sugar (believed to contain medical benefits) cubes or confections were distributed. We will put an Indian twist to this tradition and present some creative favor ideas. Get ready to wow your guests with your unique favor ideas!

Personalized Chai Kit

Chai is a favorite Indian beverage of choice for many people. How cool would it be to have that as a favor for your wedding. The presentation is key here. A Personalized Chai Kit could be made by putting all the dry ingredients of tea in small organza bags, and then placing it in a small wooden box. You can choose from a variety of boxes online, or even get them from India. One of my favorites is the Gemstone Picture Box, which can be later used as a jewelry box. These boxes come in different designs and look absolutely gorgeous. Now to add an extra personal touch, type out your own Chai recipe and insert it in the Chai Box. Your very own Personalized Chai Kit is now ready.

Personalized Trinket Box

Trinket boxes make a great gift and also look beautiful on your place settings. Check out this Golden Lac Box with Beads and Mirror:

You can fill these boxes with mouth freshners, pot pourrie, small charms, hershey kisses or any candy of your choice. To add a personal touch to it, you can insert seating card or a personal note on the top of the box for your guests. To make the seating card or note, buy some card stock or printed paper, print the guest name or personal note, and then use a circle paper cutter to cut out the name or the personal note. Once you insert the the card on the top of the box, you have a beautifully assembled and personalized trinket box.

Personalized “Lucky Elephant” Tea Light Holder

Check out this gorgeous “Lucky Elephant” Antique Ivory-Finish Tea Light Holder.

The elephant is beautifully detailed and crafted, and comes with a tea light and in a display gift box which includes a rich, sheer, organza ribbon and bow. These tea light holders serve a dual purpose, where besides being a gift for your guests, they can be also used as a personal note/ seating card/ photo holder (There is a lipped rug under the howdah for this purpose). This favor will look absolutely stunning on your place setting. Not only does it look royal, but is also considered a source of luck and good fortune, as the elephant has a raised trunk.

We hope you liked our favor ideas. We would love to hear your favor ideas on our blog!