With the sun in the sky and the beautiful backdrop of nature, an outdoor wedding can be a splendid occasion. If you’re planning on tying the knot outdoors, follow these tips for the best chance for a perfect day:

1. Have a back-up plan: We can’t stress this enough. No matter what time of the year it is, there is always a chance for rain. Even if no drops actually fall on your ceremony, watching a looming storm from afar while constantly updating Weather.com on your BlackBerry isn’t the best way to spend the morning of your wedding.
2. Offer your guests comfort: If you’re getting married in the dog days of summer, and the sun is beating down on your ceremony, help out your guests. Print your programs on paper fans or set up a cooler with icy water bottles at the back of the ceremony. Even set up a table with decorate beverage dispensers, filled with water, lemonade and iced tea (or even champagne punch, if you want to get the party started early).
3. Play it safe: If you’re planning an outdoor reception, talk to your caterer about food safety. There are plenty of risks involved with keeping food exposed to the elements, ranging from the effect of sun on creamy food items to bugs swarming the food.
4. Speaking of bugs … : Citronella candles are a blessing (and not as ugly as they used to be). Place one on each table as part of the centerpiece to keep mosquitoes at bay.
5. Tailor food and drinks to the weather: Spring and summer weddings call for light food, such as cold soups and salads, and cocktails, like mojitos or mint juleps. You want everyone feeling refreshed and satisfied, not heavy and lethargic.
6. Talk to the appropriate authorities. If you’re getting married in a public venue, such as at a park or even in your own backyard, you might need permits for sound and lighting. There could be time and noise restrictions, as well, along with alcohol restrictions. The last thing you want is your party getting shut down before it even really takes off.
7. Wear the right shoes: Heels can get stuck in grass, white shoes can get stained by freshly cut grass. Protect your piggies by placing a runner down the center aisle.
8. Don’t make them squint. A sunset wedding sounds perfect, doesn’t it? Think about what it feel like when you’re driving into the sun — not so perfect. You and the groom get to stare into each others eyes, but the guests will be trying to avoid the glare of the sinking sun behind you.

Now that you’ve determined that hiring a wedding planning would be in everyone’s best interest, how do you find the right planner for you? Pick and choose very carefully — after all, this planner has your wedding in their hands.

Make sure your personalities mesh. Over your engagement period, you’re going to be spending a lot of time together. If you’re a very scheduled person and your planner is pretty laid back, then it’s probably not the best fit. You’ll make yourself crazy continuing to call, e-mail and text until everything gets done.

Make sure your styles mesh, too. Some wedding planners think that all weddings should be grand affairs consisting of speciality lighting, seven-course meals and a live band. That may or may not be in your budget, so you need to find a wedding planner who can envision your slightly smaller (but just as beautiful) wedding without pressuring you to go bigger.

Interview over the phone first. There’s no point in meeting them in person if their fees are too high or you instantly get the feeling that your personalities won’t jive well together.

Ask for references (and use them). A wedding planner’s reputation is everything, so they should be ready and willing to hand over a list of couples who are willing to sing their praises. You can even ask to see photos of weddings they’ve planned (it should give you an idea of their style).

Ask about their connections. A good wedding planner should be well-connected within the industry. While you shouldn’t expect a 50 percent discount on flowers because the planner went to high school with the local florist, a planner who can’t name any local florists — by first name, not just the company’s name — should probably be avoided.

Don’t count out first impressions. In the business industry, looks matter. You want to find a wedding planner who responds to all communication promptly and professionally, has a legitimate office (even if it’s an at-home office) and business cards, and dresses like a professional. Trust your instincts — as we said before, you have to work a lot with this person, so go with your gut.

Some questions to ask during your first wedding planner meeting are:

Do you have references?

How do you bill for your services?

Do you have a list of vendors you work with?

With a $X budget and my colors of Orange and Blue, what are some decor ideas you have? (This is to see their creativity)

What type of packages do you offer?

What hours do you work?

Do you have an assistant?

Brides constantly remark on how surprised they were when they started wedding planning: “Everything costs so much!”

And it’s true. It takes creativity and dedication to plan a beautiful wedding on a budget, especially because all the little items add up incredibly quickly. There are some ways though that you can easily save some cash when wedding planning — and we bet the guests will never be the wiser.

• Recycle your decor. All hail the power of the Internet — from www.theknot.com to www.weddingbee.com, brides have never had more resources to purchase wedding decor from other brides. The bride who bought 12 square glass vases for her centerpieces will likely never need them again, so now she’s selling them for half-price to local brides. What a steal! You can even buy your decor brand-new and then attempt to sell afterward. Any cash you make back is a bonus.
• Go for a smaller wedding cake. Opting for a two-tiered cake instead of a four-tiered can save a lot of money. And, don’t worry, you can still serve all your guests by cutting up a sheet cake in the same flavor in the back and serving that to the guests. Honestly, they will never know the difference.
• Order a white bridesmaid dress. If you’re interested in a simple sheath dress, say for a beach wedding, or a less-complicated strapless A-line, just look at bridesmaid dresses. They cost anywhere from $100-$300 (much less than the $1,500 designer dress you were eyeing!) and can be ordered in white or ivory. If it looks like a wedding dress, then by all standards, it is a wedding dress — even if it was originally meant for bridesmaids.
• Get the timing right. You probably already know that May-October is high wedding season, so you’re going to be paying top dollar. But don’t forget that during other times of the years, there are events you’ll have to compete with, such as prom time (April and early May), Christmas and even Valentine’s Day. Late October, early November, January and March are ideal times for savings.
• If you can swing it, skip the save-the-dates. Really, won’t everyone know about your wedding anyway? Call the people who you’d think most likely need a save-the-date and ensure they’ve got it penciled on their calendar. This can save a few hundred dollars, depending on which type of card you chose, plus postage.
• Speaking of paper products, include a postcard reply instead of an traditional enveloped reply card. You’ll save the money on the envelopes and on the postage.
• For florals, give the florist a color scheme instead of particular flowers. Don’t forget to let them know you’re looking to save money, and the florist can pick out the most affordable flowers that fit your color scheme.
• Just serve cake. So many couples spend money on extra desserts, but why? Unless you have a vendetta against wedding cake, it’s perfectly acceptable to just stick to that. If you don’t like cake, then skip it — you can probably find a dessert you like for less money. Set it up on tiers that’s reminiscent of a wedding cake, and you’re good to go.
• Consider every part of your wedding optional. Once you get the in the mindset that there are certain things you “have” to have or “have” to do, you start spending more money. You don’t NEED a videographer. If you want one, then spend the money.

Every bride’s motto should be “Be Prepared.” OK, so we borrowed it from the Boy Scouts, but it’s a great way to plan your wedding. You never know what’s going to happen on your big day, but it’s easy to fix a lot of minor problems if you’ve thought about it in advance. After all, don’t forget Murphy’s Law: Anything that can go wrong, will go wrong!

So, in that line of thinking, it would behoove a bride to put together a “bridal emergency kit” to tote along to the ceremony and reception venue. Hopefully you won’t need any of these items, but you never know. Whether a button breaks or the hair starts frizzing, there should be something in every bridal emergency kit to fix the problem. Hand the kit over to a trusted bridesmaid, friend or relative and make sure they know that it should be available at all times. Leave it in the bride’s changing room at the ceremony site, then make sure a bridesmaid swings by to pick it up for the reception. The list is easily divided into “the essentials” and “optional,” but it never hurts to bring everything from both lists. If you can find any of these items in sample size, it will help with space issues. Package it all together in a cute tote, and you’ll be good to go!

The essentials

• Small sewing kit that includes white thread, small scissors and a safety pin
• Lipstick for touchups
• Clear nail polish for stoking runs
• Fingernail clippers for a pesky hangnail
• Earring backs
• Bobby pins to fix that stray strand in the updo
• Hairspray to make sure that strand stays where it’s supposed to
• Eye drops for reducing redness, especially after tearing up during the ceremony
• Anti-nausea pills and headache medicine for any unexpected illness
• Bandaids in case a glass breaks or the bride cuts herself shaving
• Mints or gum so the bride smells minty fresh during the big kiss
• Tissues for mom and grandma’s tears
• Bottle of water in case the tap water isn’t drinkable
• Lint Brush to make sure Fluffy’s hair is brushed aside
• List of vendor’s phone numbers
• List of entire wedding party’s phone numbers
• List of taxi company phone numbers
• List of all family phone numbers
• Dental floss or toothpicks
• Spot remover — you wouldn’t want a spot on that lovely white dress, but test it out in an hard-to-see spot first.
• Extra deodorant to stay smelling fresh
• Bottle of perfume
• Double-sided tape or hemming tape

Optional

• Easy-to-eat snack so the bride doesn’t feel faint. Pretzels or dried fruit are good options.
• Krazy glue for broken heels, jewelry or any other assortment of accessories
• Straws to drink water or other beverages without messing up your lipstick
• Nail polish matching the bride’s fingers and toes
• Lotion
• $20, just in case
• Tampons or pads
• Bug spray, if you are getting married in a mosquito-prone zone
• Iron in case you have a sloppy bridesmaid
• Some quarters for a parking meter or vending machine
• Extra buttons in case one pops off
• Flat shoes so you don’t have to wear heels around the changing room

As with everything else for wedding, there’s a “proper” way to seat people at a wedding ceremony. Get the low-down on how to make seating go smoothly.

• Choose ushers prior to the wedding. An usher is a smaller player when it comes to the bridal party, but it’s still a title of honor. Ushers are usually men, but there’s no rule that says they have to be. Their basic duty is to make sure everyone is seated in comfort and perhaps hand out programs or bubbles. In general, plan for one usher for every 50 guests

If you don’t have anyone special in mind for ushers, it’s relatively common for groomsmen to perform usher duties prior to the start of the ceremony. At some point, though, they have to head up to the front of the venue, so it’s a good idea to have at least one usher dedicated to seating duties to ensure late-comers know where they’re going.

• Choose sides – or not. Traditionally, the bride’s family and friends sit on the left side and the groom’s on the right. (If you forget, just think about who stands on the left and right up at the altar.) But there’s not really any basis for seating people on different sides. In fact, if one side has invited more people than the other, you might want to spread everyone out evenly so it doesn’t look lopsided. Ushers can ask guests if they have a preference on which side to sit. If not, just give them the best view possible.

• Who goes up front? The answer to this is easy – the first few rows are typically reserved for family members (immediate family right up front, extended family just behind them). If you’re concerned about other guests taking those seats, rope them off or place “reserved” signs on the chairs.

Elderly guests should also be up close for maximum viewing potential.

• Seat the immediate family last. Once the ushers start moving the immediate family down, it signals to the guests that the ceremony is about to begin. You can even choose a special song to play while the family is being seated. Immediate family includes the grandparents, parents and siblings of the bride and groom.

The mother of the groom is seated second-to-last, followed by the mother-of-the bride. While the ushers can seat the mothers, it is often done by their sons (a brother of the bride or groom) or even by the groom himself before he heads up to the front of the ceremony.

You might have been dreaming about your wedding day since you were a little girl, but did you ever stop to consider how you’re going to pay for it?

Your wedding budget is one of the first items on the wedding planning checklist, before finding a dress, venue or any other aspect. It’s vital that you know how much you have to spend in total, and well as what percentage will be allotted to each aspect of the wedding.

If either of your families plan on chipping in for wedding expenses, start by sitting down with them and discussing the budget. Your parents might not be willing to pay for the entire reception, but perhaps your mom wants to purchase your wedding gown for you, up to $2,500. Or maybe your groom’s favorite uncle wants to foot the bill for the open bar, just to make sure everyone has a good time. It’s traditional for families to pitch in for their children’s wedding, but don’t forget to show how grateful you are for the help.

Add these contributions toward what, if anything, you’re willing to contribute to the budget. There you have it: That’s your total budget. But is that number what you need?

Wedding costs vary greatly depending on the area. The average wedding cost a little over $20,000 in 2008 (and that’s a steal based on the average cost in 2007, which was a whopping $28,000), but that doesn’t mean that’s what you have to spend. Budgeting around $100 per guest is a good starting point. Since 50 percent of the budget typically goes to the catering/reception, that’s $50 alloted there, and then $50 that goes toward the rest of it, such as entertainment, the dress, transportation, etc.

As you can see from this equation, one of the easiest ways to cut costs is to cut the guest list. You can also prioritize your wedding budget to ensure the things that really matter to you really happen, whether it be an open bar or an amazing wedding cake. Things that might not be as important such as wedding favors or lavish flowers can receive less of the total budget.

Putting the budget on paper is really important. It cements it, making it harder for you to go over that magic number. Do some research for vendors in your area and what the typical breakdown is for a wedding budget. Whip out a piece of paper and a pen or open up a spreadsheet in Excel and start balancing the numbers. Once you get appropriate ratios, print it out and take it with you when you go shopping.

One of the hardest parts about the wedding budget is actually sticking to it. If you’ve budgeted $800 for a wedding dress and then fall in love with one that’s $1,200, it’s easy to say “oh, it’s only $400 difference. What’s the big deal?” But you have to think about where that $400 is coming from. Are you going to take it from your honeymoon budget? Or get a less-expensive photographer? If you want to go over in one area, you have to compromise in another.

If you’re planning on paying for a portion of the wedding, the final step of creating a wedding budget is savings. If possible, try to save 20 percent of your monthly income for the wedding. In a year, you could save thousands of dollars that could be applied toward the wedding costs.

Don’t get stranded at the ceremony – follow these transportation tips, and you’ll be riding in style.

• Know your options. Sure, there’s always a stretch limo to ride in, but there are plenty of other choices when it comes to transportation. There’s the standard town car, a stretch SUV, Hummer limos, party buses, a Rolls Royce – and that’s just the choices for automobiles. If you’re going a shorter distance, non-automobile options such as a horse-and-carriage or even a golf cart come into play.
• Who’s going? Do you need to provide transportation for all the guests, just the bridal party or solely the bride and groom? Naturally, that will dictate which options are realistic for you. It’s a nice touch to offer transportation for out-of-town guests who might not have a car available.
• Work out the budget. For the standard limo, expect to pay about $45-$60 per hour, plus gratuity, which is anywhere from 15 percent to 20 percent. For a typical 5-hour wedding, that’s about $250-$360. Be sure to check the bill for automatic gratuity before you add in that extra money. Those prices are just for standards limos, and don’t include any upgrades like a sunroof or Champagne.
• Speaking of Champagne … You can request extras such as Champagne (or another type of your favorite booze) from the car company. If you choose to not go that route, buy your own before the wedding and stash it in the vehicle. After the ceremony, you and your new spouse can have your first toast as a wedding couple in the privacy of your own automobile.
• Scale back. To keep transportation costs manageable, consider only getting a car for the newly wedded couple. A car that seats two will be much less expensive than one for 20. The bridal party can carpool to the reception site.
• Time it right. This is more about planning correctly than transportation, but you should be aware of the route to get to the reception and how long it takes. (Get in the car and drive it yourself, if possible, going at the same time and day of the week as your wedding will be.) If your ceremony ends at 4:30 and the reception begins at 5:30, but it only takes 20 minutes to head over, what will your guests do with that extra 40 minutes? Standing around outside the reception site gets boring after about 10 minutes.
• Anticipate parking problems. This is especially pertinent if you’re getting married in a city that’s notorious for problematic parking. The first rule of thumb is that your guests shouldn’t have to pay extra to attend your wedding, so making them pay for parking is in bad form. If possible, attempt to find free parking in the area (let guests know in advance if there will be a distance to walk) or figure out a way to validate parking vouchers.

You might also consider using a valet service (about $20-$25 per hour per attendant), which can cut down on parking problems. It’s also a nice luxury for guests, especially the women wearing stiletto heels. Non-valet attendants can also be helpful in directing traffic and answering parking questions.