To sleep good, eat good or save?

The groom and I were discussing whether to have our reception at a hotel, restaurant or function centre?

Basically the hotel would provide a room for the bride and groom included in the wedding package, they may also provide discounted rates for relatives that wish to stay in the hotel. Plus there is that whole sophisticated ambience inherent in a (five-star?) hotel!

The restaurant (e.g. ARIA, Orso Bayside) will guarantee good food. Good food makes people happy and will ensure the day is a happy memorable one rather than "the wedding was beautiful but the food was like cardboard".

The function centre will be saving us lots of dough. I've seen some pretty nice function centres (on paper, havent seen it in real life yet) that go for $66 a head!!! Amazing price!! And no doubt it is easy to find a function centre, close to home, providing easy access.

After discussions weighing the pros and cons of the tree types of venues (we will not consider outdoor venues such as the beach, simply cos I do not want to worry about the weather or a hair falling out of place due to high winds), we have decided to go with a hotel.

Now this makes my job a lot easier, just having to sift through Sydney Hotel's wedding kits and packages. YAY.

Chapter 1: Adam & Eve

This blog comes about because I'm planning my wedding, and it is quite an ordeal and although this experience could be stressful, it would be nice to reminisce down the track at how I started with nothing and hopefully see all components of the wedding fall into place! I have no idea where to start so I've purchased some bride mags to kick-off the planning. Cosmopolitan Bride A/W 2009 was the first magazine I bought and it came with a nifty purple planner which I hope will provide a decent platform for me to start planning!

First things first, a quick introduction - the hurzy sweethearts are a 23 year old tax-chick and a 24 year old train-boi living in a cozy little villa in the Sydney suburbs who have been dating for over 4ish years (5yrs come September). The proposal took place sometime in November 2008 on a jetty in Hervey Bay while bike-riding where the tax chick scored a simple yet beautiful tiffany diamond ring. No date had been set at the time - until recently where we have decided to tie the knot on 10 October 2010. Yayers :)

So far in relation to the planning, we have attempted to compile a rough guestlist (currently standing at an intimate group of 70 family and close friends), we are searching for the perfect venue and are thinking about who will be in the bridal party. Gah - decisions decisions.

Will keep you posted on the progress of the venues as I think it is the most important thing to check off the list at this stage. The difficulty is deciding whether to go for classic, contemporary or near water views...Currently my weekends are chocers full of bushwalking, cooking, and whatnot, but once I manage to find some time, I hope to begin making site visits at all the potential venues.

xx Colz