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"Pros cost a lot of dough. And you&amp;amp;#8217;ve got plenty of pals (very talented pals!) who are willing to get the job done for a whole lot less (maybe nothing at all!). Should you take them up on their generous offers? It depends. For pre-wedding services like your stationery, sure. A good graphic designer can make your wedding paper dreams come true, even if their day job is designing brochures for pharmaceutical companies. And if you&amp;amp;#8217;re not totally in love with the end result, there&amp;amp;#8217;s still time to seek out a traditional wedding invite pro. For day-of services? Maybe not. For one, if this friend is a good enough buddy to offer something major like this to you, wouldn&amp;amp;#8217;t you prefer that she enjoy your wedding as a guest instead of work during it? For another, if your BFF messes up at the wedding, there&amp;amp;#8217;s not much you can do about it at that point--and it could jeopardize your friendship. Plus, there&amp;amp;#8217;s a big difference between a band and a wedding band, for instance. Your friends may have killer tunes and be a sought-after house party act, but can they play songs your entire guest list will enjoy? Can they also play the part of MC, keeping the wedding events flowing and making announcements as the night goes on? Do they have the right equipment to fill your reception space? Do they have a backup plan in place if, say, the lead singer comes down with a mean case of bronchitis? Similarly, photographers who have never shot a wedding may not know to take all the standard couple/family shots you&amp;amp;#8217;ll want to have down the line (no matter how much you love candid, photojournalism-style images right now), and they may not even own large enough memory cards to capture every moment of your six-hour event. Floral designer and hair and makeup artist friends are usually okay to use, but see a sample centerpiece/get a trial first to be sure you&amp;amp;#8217;ll be happy with the wedding-day product. If you do go the buddy route, put the following in writing (yeah, it&amp;amp;#8217;s weird to have a &amp;amp;#8220;contract&amp;amp;#8221; with a friend you know wouldn&amp;amp;#8217;t screw you over, but a little awkwardness is worth it for some peace of mind): the date and start and end times of the service, leaving time for setup and breakdown the address of where the wedding will take place the exact service provided (for instance: a three-course plated meal of Caesar salad, filet mignon with potatoes, and chocolate mousse for 80 guests, plus accompanying china, silverware, and glassware) the fee, and when and how it should be paid what else you&amp;amp;#8217;ll be providing them (plug-ins, amps, a kitchen, or even a meal) a plan B if someone can&amp;amp;#8217;t make it Are you having any of your friends stand in as wedding vendors? Are they pros? Are you paying them? More Helpful Wedding-Planning Pointers How to Handle Wedding-Day Disasters What the Week Before Your Wedding Should Look Like Get a Proofreader to Look at Your Stationery More Ways to Get Glamour Visit Shopglamour.com for cute stuff starting at just $10! Enter the latest Glamour sweepstakes! Follow us on Twitter Add us to your iGoogle homepage Photo: Jupiterimages"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.glamour.com/weddings/blogs/save-the-date/2010/07/would-you-hire-friends-to-be-y>