Congratulations on your engagement, we know you’re anxious to start planning for your special day!  To get the planning party started for your wedding, we highly recommend attending Bridal Fairs in your local area put on by local vendors that are there to help make your wedding day a succes!  Bridal Fairs are  fun to go to since they are full of ideas and trends for decor, floral arrangements, wedding photographers, delicious cake and catering samples, DJs, favors, etc., however without having a clear game plan for tackling the day, bridal fairs can be overwhelming.  Here are our insider tips of how to survive a bridal fair while collecting vendor information effectively:

1.  Bring Mailing Labels with your Name, Address, Contact Number, and Date of Wedding. Every vendor you meet at a Bridal Fair will most likely ask you for your contact information.  To save time, print out labels before hand with all your contact information as to have more time chatting with your vendors rather than filling out forms.  If you don’t mind sharing more information, you can also include the color palette and venue selection for your contact  label.

2.  Don’t be shy, ask questions.  The purpose of a bridal faire is to be able to provide a personal opportunity for you to be able to meet and chat with your vendors.  Instead of glancing, picking up a flyer and walking away keeping a mental note of the vendor, take the time to actually chat with the vendor, see who they are, what they’re about and take time to bounce ideas off of them.  The more you talk with a vendor, the more you are able to understand what it is they can do for you and the more they will understand of what you are looking for in them.

3.  Bring a pen, take some notes.  Undoubtedly, you will meet many vendors and gather lots of information.  As we all would like to have immaculate memory, bridal fairs can sometimes be information overload.  Bring a pen with you and take time to jot down comments and remarks of your experience with each vendor and what you liked about them.  This will help you quickly sort through the vendors that you feel are a “good fit” for you and help you focus in narrowing the vendors down to your final choice.  (Digital Cameras help to create visuals as well!)

4.  Have an open mind. You may or may not know exactly what services you are looking for for your wedding day.  Do not limit yourself to what you think you need, spend the time to do a walkthrough of all the vendors.  You never know what surprises in services or goods you might find that you would want to use.  Take bridal fairs as an inspirational experience and absorb, absorb, absorb!

5.  Be comfortable.  With all the excitement at a bridal fair, it can take you 1-3 hours to do a complete walk through.  Make sure you are comfortably dressed with comfortable shoes and bringing friends and family who you trust are a plus!