ROANOKE, Va. – If you’re recently engaged or getting married soon, you might want to check out the Roanoke Wedding Network’s Wedding Crawl this Sunday, March 23, from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m.
“You’ll be able to see five different venues, and when you walk in, it’ll be decorated as if it could be your wedding or it could be your reception. And you like the flowers. The florist is right there. Oh, you have a dog. Let’s talk to the wedding pet attendant. So, all the vendors are right there, and you can see exactly what they’ve done,” said Well Trained Dog and Pet Care Owner Beverly Amsler.
Busses will pick you up at the Berglund Center and take you to four different venues in downtown Roanoke where you can see what your wedding might look like.
There are 30 wedding professionals.
One business that is participating for the first time is Well Trained Dog and Pet Care. This company provides a wedding pet attendant service for couples.
Amsler said she’ll pick up your pet and take them to the venue for you. Amsler will even walk them down the aisle for you or help them be in pictures with the wedding party.
“A lot of people nowadays don’t have human children. Their fur kids, if you will, are their children. And so, I see couples want to come together and they want that special moment, especially since our poor animals don’t live that long and they want that immortalized,” said Amsler.
She also said her wedding pet attendant service helps with your big day.
“It really helps being able to coordinate with the photographer so the photographer isn’t worried about trying to get shots coordinated and things like that, and it gives the couple peace of mind that their dog’s actually being watched by a professional rather than, you know, a member of the family missing out on some part of the wedding ceremony because they have to watch the dog,” said Amsler.
All proceeds for the Roanoke Wedding Crawl go to the Ronald McDonald House Charities of Southwest Virginia.
Meanwhile, we all know weddings can be expensive.
10 News spoke with a wedding planner about how you can save money for your big day.
Owner of Inspiration Weddings and Events Peggy Walker said weddings can cost between $10,000 to $60,000.
One way to save money she said is to have a budget and stick to it.
“When you do your budgeting, make sure you also plan for additional charges up for charges florists charge for delivery and set up with your food and beverage. There are also service charges and taxes, and those are a lot of the main items. But keep track of that budget. Also, save like an additional 10% over for your tips and any additional other charges that might rise,” said Walker.
She also said hiring a wedding planner would help because they have a relationship with all of the vendors.
When looking at venues, Walker said consider one that is all-inclusive where they provide the tables and linens.
Also, consider a non-traditional day.
“The other thing is with venues is you do not always have to have a wedding on a Saturday night. You can do a wedding during the week or on a Sunday and save a lot of rent on venues,” said Walker.
Getting married during the winter can help you save some cash too.
Finally, food and beverages can be the most expensive when it comes to your wedding.
“If you can save by maybe planning to do a wedding during the day and do brunch or a late lunch, you can save money that way when it comes to your beverage with the alcohol. You could do beer and wine and possibly like two signature drinks instead of a full bar,” said Amsler.