Wedding Planning Blog

Hi All,

I am very, very excited. After working for a year, my new wedding planning DVD is finally here and available to you! Susan Southerland’s Wedding Planning Secrets has my most sought-after advice in one DVD.

I share my secrets for choosing colors, creating a reasonable budget, dealing with vendors and organizing the day. Check out the website for more information.

I will be at the Perfect Wedding Guide wedding show on Sunday at the Buena Vista Palace. If you are in Orlando, come see me. I am looking forward to discussing your wedding plans with you and on my table, is my Ten Inspirational Ideas for an Out of the Ordinary Wedding idea list, to assist you in planning a memorable wedding!

I hope to see you there!

I wrote about the price of roses going up on Valentine’s Day and made a couple of suggestions for decor not using flowers. I left off one of my favorite ways to decorate a wedding — no flowers involved.

LIGHTING! Lighting can make all the difference in a room. You can select lighting to change the mood throughout the evening of the wedding, or even to project images. Below is an example that Diane Parsons from Nifi’s Wedding Planning sent over to me.

Doesn’t it make a huge impact?

Lighting is a wonderful accent to all types of decor. It can even make a not-so-beautiful room look spectacular.

When thinking about wedding decor, don’t forget the lighting.

With Valentine’s Day right around the corner, it brings to mind a very important issue regarding planning your wedding budget. While February 14th is a very romantic day to wed, did you know that flowers, particularly roses, are much more expensive this time of year? It isn’t the florists being greedy, the demand for roses is just so high at that time of year, that the wholesalers charge the florists more per stem.

If you don’t want to change the time of year for your wedding, there are tricks to combat this price increase. Try decorating with more candles. There is nothing more romantic then candle light. You can also use statues or other objects of art for the center of the tables. Gorgeous linens and place settings create a beautiful table as well.

Go to a reputable florist and discuss your wedding date vs. your spending parameters with her. She will be able to give you suggestions to make the most of the money you spend on your flowers.

Now be sure to take an evening off from your wedding plans and spend a lovely, romantic evening with your bride or groom-to-be. I always want to make sure hat while going through the wedding planning process that you don’t neglect the one you love. It is important to work on your relationship while you are working on your celebration.