The 12-month wedding planning timeline: Does it work in Nigeria?

I do not know about you but in the time that I have spent planning weddings, the 12 month planning timeline has not worked for me, especially not in Nigeria. 

People just don't seem to understand how to start planning a year before their wedding date. Yet, at wedding seminars and trainings, it is been taught to follow the 12 months planning timeline.

So how does this work when your client comes 6 months, 3 months or even a month to their wedding date, expecting a miracle he or she believes only a planner can perform?

We advise that couples should start planning early but not everyone would understand this and not all couples plan ahead and sometimes, some couples want to but do not have the financial capability to start early (which is the case 70% of the time).

I for one, feel that we should all learn to apply what works best for you. Having in mind that someone somewhere created the 12 month planning timeline because it worked for him or her.

 I have had clients who actually intended to start a year before and had it all planned out, only for us to end up starting 6 months to their wedding date.

Another thing I must say is that, it is not everything you read online that you must apply. The truth is, it may be a guide but it does not necessarily mean that it is the right guide for you.

There are a whole lot of reasons as to why the 12 month plan may not work and I will list one or two reasons here.

One, financial restraints. You probably thought you would have some money to start with the planning by a certain time and along the line, some things came up and the money you had thought you would have, somehow got delayed. 

Two, change of date. For whatsoever reason, your initial wedding date picked can change for several reasons. It can be pushed forward or backwards depending on the circumstances.

Three, your preferred vendor may not want to get paid far in advance, as this was not the case before. Vendors used to prefer getting paid far in advance but it is not the case anymore and we cannot blame them, especially not with the economic state of the country.

Things are changing and the country is changing as well. It is difficult explaining to a client why the initial agreed price wont work anymore after receiving a deposit payment, due to flunctuation in exchange rate or any other economic crises at that.

As a planner, only you can determine which planning system works for you. If a client stays true to a plan, then you can follow up with the plan but do not force yourself to plan a wedding using a timeline that will not work for you or your client or a vendor.

In a few weeks, I will be holding a training for those who aspire to be wedding planners and would like to learn how to make a name for their brand in the highly competitive market.

The good part is that I would be sharing secret tips on how to move up the competitive wedding planning industry ladder and get your brand recognized in no time.

The sad part is that we have only 6 slots available. So stay tuned! 

Olamide~ The Heiress

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My White Wedding Budget Breakdown

In my previous post, I broke down my Traditional Wedding Budget. In this post, I will be breaking down my White Wedding Budget.

THE BUDGET

Our Budget was Two Million Naira for both the white wedding and the traditional ceremony. But we decided to work with a 1.5 Million naira Budget, keeping the five hundred thousand naira as our extra, in case we had one or two other expenses that may come up.

We had a budget, so I knew better than to visit some wedding stores I knew I would breakmy heart if I eventually ended up buying nothing from. 

PRIORITY

Pictures, our pictures had to be good.

Food and drinks: Everybody must have enough to eat and drink

Shoes: My shoes had to be comfortable as I am not a heels person. More so, it was going to be a garden wedding, so I had to choose my shoes carefully.

We also agreed that we wont be borrowing or asking for money from anyone be it family or friends. We were going to work with what we had. And that was exactly what we did!

Before now, we had asked both parents where they were willing to contribute and we were well informed. We also informed them that we wanted to keep it small and intimate and we were working with a 200 guest list.

We spaced our dates, our Traditional Wedding was in November 2015 and the White Wedding was in February 2016. Both events took place in Ibadan.

WEDDING THEME: Vintage/Rustic

White Wedding Expenses Breakdown

GUESTS: 200

1. HALL: We decided to use a garden. It cost N30,000. ($75)

2. DECORATION: For our white wedding, the decor was not important, mainly because of the wedding theme, so we opted for a simple and vintage look and feel. This cost N200,000. ($500)

3. TABLE, CHAIRS and CANOPY RENTALS. 75,000 ($185.7)

4. TABLE SETTINGS: this comprises of charger plates, cutleries, wine and water glasses, napkin fold. This cost N55,000. ($137.5)

5. CATERER: My mother is a caterer and she was handling the catering but we supported her by giving her N50,000 and some ingredients to aid her cooking. ($125)

6. DRINKS: I bought the drinks myself and found a means to transport the drinks to the venue. Rented chilling chests and got waiters and put someone in charge of the drinks. We opted for breakable bottles instead of the plastic bottles. This cost N130,000. (No alcohol). ($325)

7. MAKEUP:  I had bargained the price for both days since my traditional wedding. So I paid half during the traditional and balanced it for the wedding. N15,000. ($37.5)

8. PHOTOGRAPHY: N60,000. ($150). Bear in mind that I had also bargained for the two days since my traditional wedding. We requested for just soft copies of the picture, since my husband is a photographer, we agreed that he would make the photo books instead. We had no videographer, (we were not going to watch it anyways)

7. MC: N80,000 ($200)

8. CAKE: we opted for cupcakes instead of the regular tiered cakes, we both are not big on cakes. This cost N30,000. ($75)

9. HOSTESSES: Our beautiful La' Heiress Hostesses offered to contribute this as their token of appreciation. (Free)

10. OUTFITS: My wedding dress cost me N38,000. My veil and basket cost N4,000.  My husband's outfit cost N25,000.

Total= N67,000. ($167.5)

ACCESSORIES: My shoes cost N10,000 (I had them custom made) while my husband's shoes cost N15,000, (custom made too). Husband's hat cost N1,500 . My earrings cost N500 (God bless Lagos Market). My Garland cost N1,000. My Bouquet cost N5,000. My umbrella cost N2,000.

Total= N35,000 ($87.5)

12. WEDDING BANDS: N86,000 ($215)

11. DJ: N70,000 ($175)

12: Bride's Parents outfits: N30,000 ($75)

13. WEDDING STATIONERY: invitation cards, menu and reception programmes, welcome frame, toppers, name place cards, table numbers, stickers, banners, directional signs and the likes. N100,000. ($250)

14. CHAPMAN: N45,000 (200 cups). ($112.5)

15. DONUTS: N30,000 (200 donuts). ($75)

16. SMALL CHOPS: N25,000 (100 plates). ($62.5)

17. HOTEL: N48,000 ($120)

18. SECURITY (bouncers): N40,000. ($100)

 (2 bouncers) this also included their logistics expenses because they were coming from Lagos.

19. MISCELLANEOUS: N50,000 ($125)

Grand Total= N1,401,000 ($3,375.7)

Special thanks to all our vendors that made our day beautiful and memorable

1. Decoration: @decormastaz (traditional), @enazcreativitydecor (white)

2. Caterer: @incredibleediblesng

3. Hostesses: @laheiress

4. Stationery: @ebenezerruth

5. Small chops: Muyiwa

6. Cocktail: @boboschops

7. Donuts: @exquisitosconf

10. Cupcakes: @shonoikid_exousiacakes

11. Security: Eze and Crew

12. Hotel: Old Town Hotel (White), Solam Hotel Oluyole (Traditional)

13. DJ: DJ A- Slide

14. MC: @tomiwasage

15. Makeup: @darushmakeovers

16. Photography: @sam.fotography

17. Wedding shoes: @shuufootwear

18. Wedding dress: @franchybridals

19. Groom's outifts: @sd.schon

20. Bride's traditional outfit design: @boosowlar

21. Bouquet: @mz_leemar

22. Garden: Botanical Graden, University of Ibadan.

Pease note that we adopted a strictly by invitation method and many of our parents friends could not believe that it actually worked and kept asking them how we were able to achieve such a wedding in Nigeria. 

Even with the budget we set aside, we still had to spend a little more above it.  That just goes to say that weddings are generally expensive.

Planning my wedding was easy for me because once we were able to make up our minds about our budget and vendors, we started paying them immediately, which took the financial stress totally off us.

I wouldn't have been able to deal with the stress of planning three weddings in the same month as mine, if I had not started with the planning process early.

Your wedding can be as beautiful as you want it to be. It really isn't about how inexpensive or expensive it is. It is really all about you being happy.

So if you want an expensive wedding and you are financially capable, by all means please go ahead. This post is basically for those who feel ashamed to admit that their wedding was one on a budget.

DISCLAIMER: These prices may not work for these vendors now. This post is just to show that you can have a memorable wedding without having to break the bank and also to show that there are vendors who are willing to work within your budget and still deliver quality services. Thank you.

Olamide~ The Heiress

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My Wedding Budget Breakdown (detailed)

Like I had promised in my last post, I have come to pay my debt. Lol.

The Wedding Budget

Our Budget was Two Million Naira for both the white wedding and the traditional ceremony. And we were working with a 1.5 Million naira Budget. The five hundred thousand naira was going to be our extra.

Now let me say this, I was a different kind of bride. I do not get easily swayed by social media paparazzi, I have never been the kind of girl to wear what was in vogue when in vogue. I couldn't be bothered with that. That's my kind of person.

For me and my husband, the most important thing for us was our pictures, we wanted pictures that we would see 10 years from now and still be happy. So we both agreed to splurge on our photography but not at the expense of other expenses.

We also agreed that we wont be borrowing or asking for money from anyone be it family or friends. We were going to work with what we had. And that was exactly what we did!

Before now, we had asked both parents where they were willing to contribute and we were well informed.

More so, we spaced our dates, our Traditional Wedding was in November 2015 and the White Wedding was in February 2016. Both events took place in Ibadan.

Traditional Expenses Breakdown

Guests: 200

For our traditional wedding, the decor was important, mainly because we were using a compound.

1. Hall: We decided to use my compound and spend the money for the hall on the decoration instead. (so no cost there)

2. Decoration: I knew the decor had to be top notch, I brought about 4 decorators before I was able to come to a conclusion. N130,000

3. Caterer: My mother is a caterer and she was handling the catering but we supported her by giving her N50,000

4. Drinks: N120,000 

5. Makeup: N15,000 

6. Photography: N70,000. We requested for just soft copies of the picture, since my husband was a photographer, we agreed that he would make the photo books instead. We had no videographer, (we were not going to watch it anyways)

7. Alaga: N30,000 (she was a friend of my husband). One advice, try as much as possible not to expect free jobs from family members or friends.

8. Cake: N25,000

9. Hostesses: Our beautiful La' Heiress Hostesses offered to contribute this as their token of appreciation. (Free)

10. Outfits: I went to a local aso oke market in Ibadan and bought our aso oke, I bought two bundles for my self at N2,500 and N3,000 respectively (N5,500) and I bought for my husband 2 bundles at N3,000 each (N6,000). Totalling N11,500. I decided to let these local aso oke sellers join my aso oke for N300 and I bought beads and attached it to the gele for its special bling effect. That cost me about N3,000. My husband gave his aso oke to his brother who is a very good designer to sew for him at N13,000. Total= (N27,800)

I opted for a dress instead of the normal Iro and Buba. I bought my lace N3,500 per yard and I bought 4 yards. (N14,000). My fashion designer of life, Elan Dash designed something for me and I gave it to my neighborhood taylor to sew for me at N2,500. Total= N16,500

Shoes: My husband shoes cost N15,000 while mine cost N3,500 (flat shoes). Total= (N16,500)

Accessories. My aunt offered to pay for my neckpiece. So that was free. I wore my old gold watch since my colours were black and gold. My husband beads (Iyun) cost N1,200.

Total= N34,200

11. DJ: N30,000

12: Bride's Parents outfits: N30,000

13. Wedding stationery: invitation cards, menu and reception programmes, welcome frame, toppers, name place cards, table numbers, stickers, banners, directional signs and the likes. N85,000.

Hotel: N32,400 (3 rooms)

Miscellaneous: N50,000

 Grand Total= N729,400

I decided to attach pictures because I wanted everyone to see that sometimes, it is not about how famous your vendors are or how cheap they are, you can still get good deals and great quality services. 

More so, there are some good and creative upcoming vendors that are still willing to work with your budgets, you just need to look for the ones who suits your taste and pocket.

I will be posting my white wedding budget breakdown in my next post. 

Olamide~ The Heiress

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Having a budget wedding is nothing to be ashamed of

I often wonder why many couples often find it difficult to accept that they had a wedding on a budget.

Budget weddings can be explained in two ways:

1. Small guestlist and a small wedding budget.

2. Small guestlist and a large wedding budget. 

Either ways, it is a budget wedding because of the limited number of guests. These days, be it a budget wedding or not, weddings are expensive because vendors are expensive, even the upcoming ones. 

Vendors now charge what they feel they are worth and we cannot blame them, especially not with the situation of things in the Nigerian Economy.

I had a budget wedding that still gulped about two million naira. And I did not use famous vendors neither did I go above my budget nor wanted extravagant things or did anything in excess.

It is just the reality of weddings these days. 

Whether you had a budget wedding or an extravagant wedding, the bottom line is that you got married to the man or woman of your dreams. It doesn't make you lesser than those who had bigger weddings. 

It is frustrating for me because, whenever I try to interview a couple who I knew had a small wedding, just for the sole purpose of educating the general public that you can still have a small and intimate wedding to save cost and still be happy, they blatantly refuse and deny that their wedding was a budget wedding. It is nothing to be ashamed of. 

In light of this, I will be breaking down the expenses for my own wedding in my next post. Hopefully, this will help others be more open about their wedding expenses so that we can achieve a bigger goal.

Olamide~ The Heiress

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Should Wedding Planners Force Clients Into Using Certain Vendors?

This has been a sensitive topic for me to talk about. For one reason, I am a wedding planner and I wouldn't want to put other planners on blast. After much thought, I have decided to damn the consequences.

If you didn't know, the same way clients have expectations is the same way planners have expectations. I have talked about Client's Budget VS Client's Expectation. Today, I will be talking about Planners Expectations VS Client's Budget. 

Every planner wants that jaw dropping moment for every event they plan but not all clients can afford these jaw dropping moments. Some clients just want to get married and get it over with, while the planner has a different game plan for the event and end up forcing their clients to use their preferred vendor to create the jaw dropping moment they so much desire. And this may cost a fortune.

Recently, the stories I hear from clients and vendors are quite heartbreaking. So before brides start to think that all planners are the same way, it would be safe to talk about this and express my disapproval of this new method of planning adopted by some planners.

A planner is meant to ease off your stress; not just mental and physical stress but also financial stress. A planner should not make you incur more debt. 

A client called me recently and told me she was cancelling her contract with another planner she had already contracted her wedding to. Her reason was that, the planner was forcing expensive vendors on her and also charging her 10% service fee and 5% vat on each of these expensive vendors. This planner also asked her to increase her budget to N10 million from N6.5 million which was her initial wedding budget (for 600 guests minus the hall expenses). 

She went further to say that she no longer reads her emails because it meant more money and she was already feeling pressurized and she did not like it.

This is unacceptable. As a planner, you cannot force a particular vendor on a client, just because you want perfect pictures for social media pages or because of the 10% you demand from these vendors.

Different planners have different terms of service that work for them and we cannot question it or say what you charge for your services is unreasonable but please do NOT force your preferred vendors on your clients. Your main aim is to make your client happy and stress free on their wedding day. You can make suggestions and allow your client decide on what she wants.

Please brides-to-be, do not get carried away by the pictures you see; feel free to say NO when you are being forced against your will. You have the right to say no, after all it is your money here and not theirs.

A good planner should be able to work with any vendor irrespective of their class or 'status' in the events industry and should help their client save money and not incur more wedding cost.

More so, any planner that demands 10% from vendors, can only achieve one or two things. One, the vendor would most likely compromise in service delivery and two, the vendor will only charge higher, so as not to run at a loss after paying the kickback. This simply shoots the wedding budget up and incurs more cost for the client. Imagine collecting 10% from a small-chops vendor. 

Brides out there, please do not allow yourself to be forced into doing what you cannot afford. And dear planners, do NOT force your clients to use your preferred vendor just because... (whatever your reason is). 

Olamide ~ The Heiress

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It is NOT OKAY to Owe Your Weddding Vendors

I have decided to talk on the issue of owing vendors after their services have been delivered because I have personally been a victim of this.

It is sad to know that some clients feel owing vendors is the right way to go. Like I always advise, plan according to your budget. Don't plan your wedding thinking that one uncle or aunty somewhere will foot the bills or give you some money. 

There are disadvantages of owing vendors:

-  By owing vendors, you give them a reason not to deliver fully on your wedding day. For instance, you hire a decorator, she charges you N400,000 and you pay her N200,000. She will probably rent all that she needs, pay her workers and transport these items to the venue... Now, if she is supposed to rent stuffs worth of N250,000 to make your venue look extra nice and you have paid her only N200,000, what she is likely to do is rent stuffs worth of N100,000 and manage it. 

Now, this can only mean one thing, your venue won't look as fab as it should have and two, the decorator will still get her balance. But she is trying to play safe by not running into debt.

- The client also stands the chance of getting disappointed. I have worked with vendors who won't show up until their balances have been paid; can you blame them? The answer is NO. Some vendors won't even set up if they don't get their balances.

I, for one, have learnt to stop all activities once the client does not abide by the rules of my contract. Once bitten they say, twice shy.

It is wrong to owe vendors, and it is a struggle to get balances after the wedding; the couple most times, just go into hiding. They stop picking calls, stop liking or commenting on pictures on social media, even when you mention them. They stop reading your messages, both text and WhatsApp messages... The list is endless really.

And to crown it all, you won't even know how or when to call them. You call too much, you are pestering them. You don't call, then you are ready to forfeit your balance. 

It is just plain cruelty. If you cannot afford a particular vendor, there are many others who are equally good and are ready to work within your budget. 

Please and please always try to balance your vendors before the day. If you are using an event planner or a coordinator, always make sure that the vendors' balances have been handed over to the planner before the event and he or she can disburse after the event. We wouldn't like to start pestering you with calls after your wedding day to ask for balances.

Let's help our vendors grow by not owing them. Thank you.

Olamide~ The Heiress

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The Importance of Having A Vendors Meeting

I don't know if this happens to just me or to other event planners as well. I was speaking with a couple of colleagues recently and they all had a thing or two to say about some vendors who feel the need not to attend a vendors meeting and then come on the event day to create a scene. 

If planners can make out time to fix a date for a vendors meeting then I think it will only be fair for the vendors to attend it. 

Vendors meeting is not a luxury; it is one of the crucial aspects when planning a wedding. Many times, we have vendors missing details or not knowing, for instance, the colour of the day as a decorator. 

Sometimes, a bride only hires a day-of Coordinator and may skip one or two things. Hence, the need for a vendors meeting. 

It is during this vendors meeting that all vendors can come together to see how they can work together as one big team to create a successful event. For example, we all know that there is always this feud between the band and DJ. At a vendors meeting, they can talk about their differences and which aspects of the programme they will be responsible for, thereby allowing peace to reign on the day of the event.

The importance of the vendors meeting is basically to go over all the details so that nothing is missed out. Also to see the other vendors that will be working on the day, to go over the floor plan for the event, talk about balances where need be, bring up suggestions as to how the event can run successfully without hitches.

This is an appeal to vendors out there, please make our work easier and please attend vendors meeting when asked to.

Olamide~ The Heiress

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Did you know?

Did you know? 

Queen Victoria started the Western world's white wedding dress trend in 1840. Before then, brides simply wore their best dress.

I often wonder how trends start but somehow i believed that someone somewhere must have started it. For me, it simply means that a trend can be started by anybody. 

The bottomline is, don't kill yourself with trends. The fact that your friend had an after party does not mean that you should too. The fact that she wore an expensive wedding dress, does not mean that you should too. You can be a trend setter with your inexpensive dress or wedding.

Olamide~ The Heiress

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My Wedding Diary

Wedding planners are not perfect. Many a times, i hear brides say all sorts about a planner who forgot to do this or that on their wedding day and as compelled as I feel the urge to reply, i don't.

And this is my reason: No matter how I choose to reply, it can only bear a double perspective. One, i will be chastising them and praising myself OR  I will be defending them. Either ways, it doesn't sound good.

Wedding planners are also human. They can forget a thing or two. And remember that along side yours, they are also planning for other brides. Cut them some slack. They sure want the best for your day and try as much as they can to bring in all the details and create a wonderful day for you, hence the need for you to appreciate their every effort.

Recently, I have been super busy creating wonderful experiences for my brides and i can say for a fact that nothing prepares you for brides and their tantrum where weddings are concerned. If people knew the stress and skills involved in dealing with different brides and their peculiar wahalas, you will probably appreciate Wedding Planners a whole lot more.

Once again, I sincerely apologise for being M.I.A (missing in action) . But please feel free to send a mail to (olamide@la-heiress.com) and i would always reply.

Olamide~ The Heiress

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