So you've met "the one , you're madly in love and decided to be together forever. He proposes, you accept and before they both know it, the date for the big day is already set. This is the Eureka moment when the couple suddenly find themselves back in the real world faced with a bundle of nitty-gritty details to plan and having to pay for them. Managing wedding finances has become a challenge for almost all Egyptian couples. With a diverse range of products and services offered by the numerous businesses in the ever-growing wedding industry, it's tough to stay on budget - there's always that one extra detail you simply can't do without. Apart from the venue, the bride and groom need to decide on basics like decor, invitations, photography and entertainment. Prioritizing is the initial step for creating a mutually convenient budget. The bride and groom should decide together on what is most important for them. One couple may prefer to invite more people instead of having a singer; while another may want the fanciest ballroom in Cairo and are willing to sacrifice the long vase table centerpieces for it. That's the first step towards avoiding a possible financial crisis. When calculating the budget, the couple should first consider the venue: Do they want an outdoor or indoor wedding? Will it be in a hotel ballroom or a compound clubhouse? The ballrooms of five-star hotels like the Conrad, the Grand Hyatt or the Four Seasons Nile Plaza, range in price per person between LE 180 and LE 400; while in an outdoor venue like Ferme de Plein Air (Ahmed Orabi Association Land piece no. 662/line 6 North, Km 28 Cairo-Ismailiya Rd. Tel: 2477-3176, www.pleinaireg.com), prices are between LE 130 and LE 160 per person. However, this does not necessarily imply that indoor weddings are more expensive, since for example, Arabella Country Club (Ring Road exit no. 11/fifth district New Cairo. Tel: 2758-8910), charges LE 180 to LE 240 per person. Thus choosing the venue mainly depends on whether the couple wants a luxurious, upscale celebration or a casual, cozy one. Since prices are quoted per person, the number of guests is highly critical. Inviting 200 people at Arabella Country Club for example at an average per person rate of LE 200, would cost LE 40,000, as opposed to LE 160,000 for 800 guests. So try to be reasonable, no matter how much of a social butterfly you are. The décor is an element where you can actually balance your expenses according to your preset budget. You can get as creative as you want with this component, as the décor should reflect the couples' personalities. Whether you choose flowers, candles, crystals or something totally out-of-the-box, you can control the expenses to a large extent. If you want to cover the entire ceiling of the ballroom with organza fabric, it will cost you around LE 6,000, but if you only cover the area above the dance floor this amount will be cut by half LE 3,000. If you opt for the hip long vases as the centerpiece on the tables, it will cost around LE 300 for each one. Chocolates too range between LE 250 and LE 1000 per kilo, so it's entirely in your hands how much you decide to spend on them. There are small accessories which would be delightful to have but are really not that essential like golden napkins rings which cost between LE 8 and LE 12 each. Similarly, the cost of wedding invitations can be vastly different (ranging between LE 7 and LE 20) depending on whether you choose the classical card, or prefer to be more adventurous with messages in bottles, suede purses or bookmarks. If you want your invitation to double as souvenirs consider spending an extra couple of hundred on them; this won't break the bank. Entertainment, however, can be a real money-guzzler. The average audio-visual option can cost between LE 10,000 and LE 30,000, depending on the technicalities involved. Note that the lighting alone can raise the costs dramatically, so beware. With indirect lighting underneath high tables, or spotlights from different directions, or a laser show as the bride and groom enter the hall, the price can even go up to LE 100,000. You might want to consider balancing this element with the decor, so if you've spent a lot on décor, you don't really need extensive lighting effects. Nowadays it's popular to hire a wedding planner who will "take care of everything - it's a huge relief not to have to deal with the minute details, but you must bear in mind that most wedding planners suck up 15-20 percent of your allocated budget. The good news is that planners really save you the hassle of dealing with the suppliers, technicians, florists, caterers, along with all the other logistics involved from reserving the venue to the fireworks! Remember that compromise is remarkably important for sticking to a mutually convenient budget, which will make everyone happy. It's good practice for the post-honeymoon reality: marriage.
