Place cards, save-the-date & invite questions & more

[rumrunnergirl]

I have been to receptions without place cards, so I guess they aren't totally necessary?

I am checking out favors and whatnot online and am wondering if I will need place card holders. With a maximum of 18 guests allowed, I am not really seeing a need. Or is that tacky to not have them?

I think I am going to make my own save-the-dates as I can't find anything super-budgety (LOL) online.

We have decided to go with a "Wish Upon A Star" theme instead of Cinderella or Mickey/Minnie, so I'm looking for invites with stars on them - the price of invites is way more than I thought it would be! Ouch! Anyone make their own invites? Not too fancy, with items from Michael's or another craft place? I just can't see spending $100+ for 25 invites. I have seen the other invitations thread, but I am not *that* crafty. I don't need ribbons and whatnot, just somthing simple.

My budget now is about $7300 for the Escape wedding, reception lunch, room (CBR), extra champagne/cider for toast (do I have to buy that from Disney?), clergy, dresses/tuxes, guest book, favors, rings (we don't need anything fancy), invites, hair/nails and honeymoon food. I need to get that down some because I totally want the Coach ride, LOL! John would be happy doing a civil service, and we want to save to buy a camper, so I need to keep the cost of this wedding as low as possible.

If we only have a few guests, instead of a meet and greet/rehearsal dinner/dessert party I am thinking of just serving drinks/food from our room. Would that work?

Any help or advice is appreciated. Thanks!!!

 

[PrincessBride07]

I don't really see the need for place cards if you are only having 18 people, let alone place card holders. If you choose to use place cards, maybe you could use the ones that are folded and stand on their own.

You don't have to buy the extra champagne/cider from Disney, but they will charge you a crazy corkage fee. You can compare the prices, but I would imagine sticking with the cheapest Disney offers might be the best.

There have been brides on here that use the invites from Michaels/Hobby Lobby. The ones where they have already done a border for you, and all you have to do is print you text in it. There are a lot of simple DIY wedding stuff at those stores.

Are you planning on having everybody in your room, or bringing your food from your room to some place else?

With only 18 guests maybe you can do some creative stuff. (I admit I stole this from another Disney Bride) I used a Disney Autograph book for my Guest book. I had a small guest count, and I didn't see the need for a $30+ book that only 1 page would be written on.

 

[hiwaygal]

I agree with you that place cards probably aren't necessary for so few guests.

Check out different "make your own wedding invitations" places on line. Maybe even go to Michael's to see what they have. Keep looking at ideas and try some things with a word processing program to get something you like. There are lots of images and fonts you can easily download to help you create the exact look you want. I didn't make invitations (didn't send any) but I did make my own announcements.

I just downloaded a Disney font and put a picture of DH and I (from our wedding trip) on the front...so not as complicated as an invitation but very easy to do!

Check with your coordinator about having to buy the extra drinks through DFTW. I know you can get the Fairy Tale Cuvee at many of the resort shops (I saw it recently at Trader Joe's at the Poly) for a lot cheaper...but they may not let you do that because of health code reasons.

Personally, I think if you are planning a lunch reception for your guests you don't need to do anything more (meet and greet, dessert party, etc). Many of them may consider coming to your wedding as a bit of a vacation for themselves and their families and may prefer to do something on their own.

 

[clh2]

Just an idea or so for your wedding invites. Why not go to a scrapbook store, and get some vellum (in a 8.5 x 11" size) and then get a light colored cardstock (also in a 8.5 x 11). Each vellum/cardstock combination will make 2 invites, and will cost about 50 cents each...give or take a little. If you get a little ribbon, that may add a couple of bucks to your project. The size of envelope you would need to mail these out would be readily available in an office supply store.

You can do this for probably in the $10-$15 range, for 15 or so envelopes and invites. If you do a "postcard" style response card, you can get 4 out of each piece of 8.5 x 11 cardstock.

There are some examples of invites with vellum, check out etsy.com and search on vellum invitations, and you'll see some EASY ideas.

Good Luck!

 

[rumrunnergirl]

Are you planning on having everybody in your room, or bringing your food from your room to some place else?

With only 18 guests maybe you can do some creative stuff. (I admit I stole this from another Disney Bride) I used a Disney Autograph book for my Guest book. I had a small guest count, and I didn't see the need for a $30+ book that only 1 page would be written on.

I am thinking of having everyone in my room, or maybe an area by the pool? I have never been to CBR so I haven't seen the layout, just an online map. I can check it out later this month or next. I was just thinking some beer & wine, maybe order some pizza and have it delivered.

I like the autograph book idea! What if I take a pic of us and put it inside the front? And I can splurge on a Disney princess pen, LOL.

Check out different "make your own wedding invitations" places on line. Maybe even go to Michael's to see what they have.

Check with your coordinator about having to buy the extra drinks through DFTW. I know you can get the Fairy Tale Cuvee at many of the resort shops (I saw it recently at Trader Joe's at the Poly) for a lot cheaper...but they may not let you do that because of health code reasons.

Personally, I think if you are planning a lunch reception for your guests you don't need to do anything more (meet and greet, dessert party, etc). Many of them may consider coming to your wedding as a bit of a vacation for themselves and their families and may prefer to do something on their own.

I have been to the "DIY" online sites, and they were still more than I'm willing to spend. I'm going to head over to Michael's tomorrow.

The PDF I received says "wedding events for over 4 guests plus the bride and groom will be required to purchase additional beverages. Please contact your Escape WC for further details", so I will ask about that on Monday. If I *have* to buy my extra from them, I will get the Cuvee at the Poly, or just go with cider for everyone else.

I guess that after I find out who is coming I will ask if they want to do anything the night before. No sense in me worrying about that 8 months ahead, right?

Just an idea or so for your wedding invites. Why not go to a scrapbook store, and get some vellum (in a 8.5 x 11" size) and then get a light colored cardstock (also in a 8.5 x 11). Each vellum/cardstock combination will make 2 invites, and will cost about 50 cents each...give or take a little. If you get a little ribbon, that may add a couple of bucks to your project. The size of envelope you would need to mail these out would be readily available in an office supply store.

You can do this for probably in the $10-$15 range, for 15 or so envelopes and invites. If you do a "postcard" style response card, you can get 4 out of each piece of 8.5 x 11 cardstock.

There are some examples of invites with vellum, check out etsy.com and search on vellum invitations, and you'll see some EASY ideas.

Good Luck!

I like that idea! I will head over to Michaels tomorrow, and etsy. I am thinking of just two colors - like a white on lavender, with maybe a dark purple font. I did download some stars clip art earlier this year for my DS's Star War b'day party, or maybe I can buy a stamper.

Thanks for the help!

If anyone knows about the extra champagne over the 1 bottle provided, please post and let us know!

 

[rumrunnergirl]

Two more questions:

My FAQ says that "cake topper, toasting glasses, cake knife and/or cake server will be provided for use on the day of your wedding."

Do I get to keep the cake topper?

----------------------------

Song list - is that what the violinist plays? Do they play Here Comes the Bride? What music does the violinist play?

TIA!

 

[tiggerrifficheidi]

They boxed up our cake topper from our Escape wedding, so I'm assuming that's the norm.

The violinist can play loads of things. I'm sure "Here comes the bride" is one of them, but we didn't use that. We used different Disney songs. Just send your WP a list of songs you want, and they'll tell you if they can't play one of them.

 

[lurkyloo]

Do I get to keep the cake topper?

What music does the violinist play?

You get to keep the topper. The violinist will play whatever you want - even non-traditional and non-Disney songs. Your WP can find out what s/he knows already, and you would just need to provide sheet music for anything not in the standard repertoire.

The PDF I received says "wedding events for over 4 guests plus the bride and groom will be required to purchase additional beverages. Please contact your Escape WC for further details", so I will ask about that on Monday. If I *have* to buy my extra from them, I will get the Cuvee at the Poly, or just go with cider for everyone else....

If anyone knows about the extra champagne over the 1 bottle provided, please post and let us know!

What they mean is, the included bottle of Fairy Tale Cuvee only serves 6 (though I think you can get more out of it if you do half glasses). So if you want more than six people to have drinks, you have to pay for more beverages. It could be another bottle of Cuvee (about $60) a bottle of cider (about $24) or sodas.

OR you could substitute two bottles of cider for the one bottle of Cuvee included in the package and then you'd potentially have enough for everyone to drink without buying anything extra!

 

[rumrunnergirl]

Thanks!

Lurkyloo - I thought you mentioned in another thread that if your wedding is held at a resort, you could use your own floral. Today when I spoke with Bree (I don't have a consultant yet), she said all weddings held in public places must use Disney floral. I wanted to add a little more floral to the chairs but I didn't want to pay Disney prices.

Also, Bree said that any extra drinks needed must be ordered from DFTW. I was going to head to the Poly and get extra *from* Disney, but I wanted to pay $24 per bottle of champagne instead of $60. So - I guess I will have to go with cider at the toast and get my own champagne for my room, LOL!

 

[hiwaygal]

Also, Bree said that any extra drinks needed must be ordered from DFTW. I was going to head to the Poly and get extra *from* Disney, but I wanted to pay $24 per bottle of champagne instead of $60. So - I guess I will have to go with cider at the toast and get my own champagne for my room, LOL!

That's what I meant by my post earlier. Although it is available cheaper elsewhere, in order for Disney to serve it at your wedding, they must provide the unopened bottle themselves (at $60 a pop).

As for the floral, the newest policy is that weddings at any outdoor location can no longer use outside vendors for floral, decor or entertainment.

 

[lurkyloo]

Lurkyloo - I thought you mentioned in another thread that if your wedding is held at a resort, you could use your own floral. Today when I spoke with Bree (I don't have a consultant yet), she said all weddings held in public places must use Disney floral. I wanted to add a little more floral to the chairs but I didn't want to pay Disney prices.

What I was talking about was *personal* floral. You can still bring in your own bouquets and boutonnieres, but yes, Disney has a new policy preventing outside vendors from doing any decorations, chairs, linens, etc. at outdoor locations.

 

[rumrunnergirl]

Well poo, I guess the chairs will go bare. LOL

Thanks!

 

[disprincessatheart]

I have been to receptions without place cards, so I guess they aren't totally necessary?

I am checking out favors and whatnot online and am wondering if I will need place card holders. With a maximum of 18 guests allowed, I am not really seeing a need. Or is that tacky to not have them?

I think I am going to make my own save-the-dates as I can't find anything super-budgety (LOL) online.

We have decided to go with a "Wish Upon A Star" theme instead of Cinderella or Mickey/Minnie, so I'm looking for invites with stars on them - the price of invites is way more than I thought it would be! Ouch! Anyone make their own invites? Not too fancy, with items from Michael's or another craft place? I just can't see spending $100+ for 25 invites. I have seen the other invitations thread, but I am not *that* crafty. I don't need ribbons and whatnot, just somthing simple.

My budget now is about $7300 for the Escape wedding, reception lunch, room (CBR), extra champagne/cider for toast (do I have to buy that from Disney?), clergy, dresses/tuxes, guest book, favors, rings (we don't need anything fancy), invites, hair/nails and honeymoon food. I need to get that down some because I totally want the Coach ride, LOL! John would be happy doing a civil service, and we want to save to buy a camper, so I need to keep the cost of this wedding as low as possible.

If we only have a few guests, instead of a meet and greet/rehearsal dinner/dessert party I am thinking of just serving drinks/food from our room. Would that work?

Any help or advice is appreciated. Thanks!!!

We did most of what you're thinking of. I made my own Save the dates - just used the template disney uses for the Wishes wedding info. No place cards and we didn't miss them. I did the invites on our home printer from Michaels - they came out really nice I thought and I got them on clearnace so they cost $5 I also got my sister's boquet there, also on clearance, for $5

For the cake cutting, we swapped the fairtytale cuvee for asti as we don't like champagne. We bought 1 extra bottle of asti and still had more than enough for the 16 adults at our cake cutting. Actually in the middle of the afternoon I wish we'd had waters for everyone instead and I don't think anyone was really counting on alcohol at that time.

For our rehearsal, and another meal that week, I made reservations for our whole group and let people know they could come if they were interested, but that we weren't paying (said it nicely ) and we had most people attend both events. They were just happy to have reservations they didn't have to worry about.

 

[rumrunnergirl]

I found a "complete invitation package" with 40 invites & envies and reply cards & envies on clearance for $7 at WalMart! And I found a wedding scrapbook at Target on clearance for $2.98! My DD was given a white pen with ribbons w/silver stars on it - so I snagged it for my guest book! I found a guest book at AC Moore - they are having a 40% off sale on wedding stuff.

Woo hoo! Oh - I also found bride and groom baseball caps at Target for $10.

 

[MegKate]

I found a "complete invitation package" with 40 invites & envies and reply cards & envies on clearance for $7 at WalMart! And I found a wedding scrapbook at Target on clearance for $2.98! My DD was given a white pen with ribbons w/silver stars on it - so I snagged it for my guest book! I found a guest book at AC Moore - they are having a 40% off sale on wedding stuff.

Woo hoo! Oh - I also found bride and groom baseball caps at Target for $10.

Good grief - you really cleaned up shopping! Awesome!

And another thing with the music, I talked to my WC and she said all I had to do was find the sheet music for the musicians. I looked online and found "our" song - "Answer" by Sarah McLachlan sheet music. It's a cool thing you can do to personalize the ceremony!

 

[rumrunnergirl]

OMGosh, I am freaking! Something happened to my computer yesterday and I cannot print! I wanted to test my Save the Date notices, and I need to print out my DFTW contract!
Something is wrong with the print spooler and I can't get it started! WAH!