A glowing review for '1001 Ways to Save Money and Still Have a Dazzling Wedding'

1001 Ways To Save Money . . . and Still Have a Dazzling Wedding by Sharon Naylor

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You HAVE to get "Signature Sasha"

It's new. It's amazing. It's my dear friend and colleague Sasha Souza's phenomenal book Signature Sasha, filled with breathtaking images of her wedding designs.

Sasha is known for her amazing color artistry, and you're going to find so much inspiration in here for your own big day. It's packed. And gorgeous.

And here's another awesome perk: if you order through Sasha's site, you can get an autographed copy. So, Moms and Dads, bridesmaids and friends, this could be a great gift for the newly-engaged couple. Brides and grooms, how great would it be to get personal congrats from one of Modern Bride's Top Trendsetters and our newest addition to the circle of celebrity wedding book authors?

Check Sasha out, follow her @sparkliatti, and follow her blog. She's a different kind of celeb wedding coordinator: almost sinfully talented, yet still the cool sister or best friend you'd like to hang out with and throw back some martinis. I'm thrilled to know her, and thrilled to point you to her site so that you can get to know her, too!

Budget-Saver: Use Locally-Grown Foods in Your Menu....But What Are They?

You see the advice everywhere in articles and books on how to save money on your wedding: use locally-grown, in-season foods in your wedding menu. Importing costs extra money, after all. But how do you find out what these foods are?

As I'm researching my newest book, I came across these fabulous resources for you! Check out the following to find lists of the local foods in your region, searchable by season:

LocalHarvest.org
and
NRDC.org, which is organized so beautifully! You just enter your state and the season, broken down by 'early October' and 'late October' and such, to really zero in on what's in-season...as well as what's in-season in states near you. A great resource that's going to help you work so much better with your caterers!

Bring in your European heritage through flowers

I'm all about personalizing weddings, and bringing in the official flowers of your heritage is a great way to do so!

Here are the official flowers of some European countries, so that you can combine your His and Hers heritage in every floral detail:

Albania: Red and black poppy
Austria: Alpine gentian
Bulgaria: Rose
Cyprus: Cyprus cyclamen
Denmark: Red clover
Estonia: Cornflower
Finland: Lily of the valley, and the white rose
France: Fleur de lis
Germany: Cornflower
Greece: Laurel branch, and the violet
Iceland: White dryas
Ireland: Shamrock
Italy: Cyclamen
Macedonia: Poppy
Netherlands: Tulip
Norway: Heather
Portugal: Blue-white hydrangea, among others
Romania: Romanian peony
Serbia: Plum
Slovakia: Tilia cordata
Slovenia: Carnation
Spain: Carnation
Sweden: no national flower, but each province has its own flower
Switzerland: Edelweiss
Turkey: Tulip
United Kingdom: Tudor rose, and each county has its own signature flower

Perfect flowers for Asian-themed wedding events

If your wedding -- or your cocktail party, rehearsal dinner, or bridal shower -- will have an Asian theme, bring the tone and feel of an authentic Asian wedding into your celebration beautifully by using the Official Flower of your chosen Asian region:

Bangladesh: Shapla
Bhutan: Blue poppy
Cambodia: Romdual
People's Republic of China: Peony (also the plum blossom or the chrysanthemum)
Hong Kong: Bauhinia blakeana
Macau: Lotus
Indonesia: Melati (a type of jasmine) or moth orchid
Japan: Cherry blossom or chrysanthemum
North Korea: Magnolia
South Korea: Hibiscus syriacus (Rose of Sharon)
Malaysia: Chinese hibiscus or Phalaenopsis orchid
Singapore: orchid (Vanda Miss Joaquim variety)
Taiwan: Plum blossom
Thailand: Dok Khuen
Vietnam: Red lotus

Use one, or use a combination, to pay homage to your culture, or just to your chosen style for your big wedding events.