Sarina and Eric – Mexico, North America

New York based Sarina, Founder of BrideBuggy.com shares experiences of planning her own Wedding 

About us- we try to have fun in everything we do
Eric and I met four years ago while working together at a small consulting company in New York City. We quickly became best friends, sharing common interests, thoughts on life, and the same sense of humor. After years of friendship, the transition to something more serious was both natural and easy. Today, we still live in New York but work together in a new way – as business partners for BrideBuggy.com, a website that provides online planning and organizational tools for Indian weddings. Our relationship recipe- whether it’s personal or business, we try to have fun in everything we do.

 

A destination wedding- The perfect answer to our wedding vision

We both love traveling, relaxing, and the beautiful beaches. So a destination wedding seemed like the perfect answer to our wedding vision. We looked at several Caribbean islands (Aruba, Bahamas, Grand Cayman) as well as Mexico since we wanted a location that was relatively easy for our guests to travel to. After extensive research, we chose the Gran Melia in Cancun. We knew Mexico was a popular vacation spot for Indian families so the food and culture wouldn’t be an issue, and the Gran Melia in particular was very accommodating with our special cultural requests (setting up the mandap, allowing fire during the ceremony, Indian catering etc). Cancun had everything we wanted crystal blue Caribbean water, friendly people, great food and a vibrant nightlife.

Challenge- not knowing what to do when

We didn’t feel the need to hire a Wedding Planner. Me and my mother had years of experience planning the weddings of family & friends and even friends of friends would call us requesting for help & information when they were planning a wedding. We knew that the hardest part was not knowing what to do when, and keeping track of it all. The only thing we didn’t have was an easy way to manage all the spreadsheets and information. That’s when I came up with the idea of BrideBuggy.com– a site that would help other brides manage their wedding like a project walking them through what to do step-by-step, and help organize all the information in one place. The goal was to use my extensive experience and provide couples with the advice of a wedding planner, without the price tag of one. Of course, we still had a day-coordinator at the venue to manage all the vendors and logistical details on the wedding day I definitely recommend this so the bride and her family aren’t stressed about the small stuff.

Indian Ceremony

Jewish Ceremony

Wedding Shopping- Baroda

Me and my mother made a trip to Baroda to shop for all my wedding outfits. Instead of the more traditional red and white Gujarati saree, I wore an aqua blue, light green and white lehenga choli for the wedding. I wanted lighter colors since we were having an outdoor beachside wedding, and the blue matched perfectly with the Caribbean water behind our mandap. For the Reception, I changed into a deep purple / eggplant colored lehenga choli adorned with handstitched silver beadwork all over. Although many Indian reception outfits are full of different colors, I wanted to keep my look classic and elegant with one solid color and shimmering beading that sparkled during every dance.

Advice for brides & grooms- focus on what’s important

Everyone always says this, but it’s SO true. Wedding planning should be a fun, rewarding, great experience. It’s an amazing time in your life and so many couples waste it by arguing over small details, being completely stressed out, or not planning in the most efficient way. A few rules to follow to make the experience better- focus on what’s important, make sure you get organized from day one, and follow a plan so you don’t end up stressed at the last minute.

Reception

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