Now that the holidays are over, you may have just got engaged over the holiday, or you have been waiting till the holidays were over to think about planning your wedding. You may even be thinking of checking out some of the upcoming bridal shows this month.

Here are three popular bridal shows that are coming up this month.

January 8th, 2011 – Bridal Bliss Classic

January 8th, 2011 – How Charming Event

January 15th, 2011 – Diamond Rings and Pretty Things Bridal Show

 

 What you need to know before you go…Before you go and stand in line waiting to enter the show…the most important thing is to develop a plan of attack before you go. If you have never been to a bridal show before they can be overwhelming and very stressful, but not if you are prepared.

Keep in mind most Wedding Vendor’s fill up their calendars for the year off of these shows! Almost all vendors will bombard you with when is your date, or congratulations (insert sales pitch here) type of methods to get you to spend your wedding budget with their service.

Before you spend ANY money, STOP!! First think about the wedding you would like to have. What does it look like? What does it feel like? What does it smell like? Think about it not just from your viewpoint…but your fiancé, family, and friends viewpoint as well.

Once you know what kind of reception celebration you would like….then write it down. Take it with you to the bridal show and take two bags we will call them Bag A and Bag B, as you are making your way through the booths and vendors are asking you questions, tell them about the wedding celebration you would like…then listen to their responses! These will be the most revealing and you will be able to tell right away if they are a vendor who has your best interest in mind, or a vendor who just has their paycheck in mind.

The ones that generally have your best interest in mind and want to talk more with you about ways to enhance your celebration….put them in Bag A…. everyone else put them in Bag B.
What you will almost immediately notice is Bag B will have way more in it. Now you can throw that bag away, and focus on the vendors in Bag A, because they are the ones that have your best interest in mind.

Thanks for reading and happy planning!