Wedding on a budget tips

[jcemom]

I saw a very pretty, simple centerpiece at an informal wedding once, it may not be right for you but someone else reading this may want to borrow the idea for a wedding or shower...

An inexpensive glass bowl (our dollar store has them) with glass stones in the bottom in whatever color you need (also from the dollar store), with a betta fish and a plant (not sure what kind of plant usually goes in those, I've seen them but don't know what they're called). In my area the fish are around $3 each, not sure what the plants cost but the bride said she had split them to make several out of each one. The bride gave them to the bridesmaids and other family members afterwards to take home.

 

[Caglehead13]

One more thing...since you mentioned the tables....

We had the long rectangular tables too - we got the 180 thread count plain white sheets at Walmart - they were $2.50 each - worked great for covering all the tables - much cheaper than renting linens!

Oh...and here's a link to what the silverware looks like -
http://www.nationwideparty.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=212

And here's a link to what the plates look like (they have a silver ring around them - people thought we had real china set out til they got up to it).
http://www.pjpmarketplace.com/servl...etail?zmam=9154908&zmas=1&zmac=17&zmap=344550

Also - if you need alterations on your dress, don't do it at the bridal shop - ask around for a good seamstress or alterations shop. David's Bridal wanted $80 for just the bustle for my dress - I asked friends and found a lady at an alterations shop who did all the work I needed (bustle, two extra hooks for the sash, sewed in a patch (my something blue - had our names & wedding date on it), fixed the front panel - the snaps were making it look funny, so she sewed it in instead, shortened the strap on the halter part, steamed my dress & a bridesmaid dress for $120 - it probably would have been twice that at David's.

 

[fakereadhed]

If you go with fresh flowers, it's not that much more to add flowers to your cake. Not only does it dress up the cake, it gives more flower punch to the reception for not much $. We had one arrangement made for the unity candles to use during the service, and then moved it to the reception to decorate our table. We also added a couple of blooms to a swag of tulle for pew decorations. Those were the only flowers at the wedding. We decorated the reception tables with helium balloons and tea lights. We also hired a harp player for the service and reception instead of an organist. We hired her from a local university's school of music. It was very inexpensive and several people commented on how elegant it was. We had an early wedding and the reception ended in the late afternoon, so people didn't seem to mind no alcohol(reception hall rules)and no dj. We just served a really nice meal with classical harp music in the background. We had about 60 people, and with a smaller crowd, all of those people you know well and they are just there to celebrate your marriage anyway.

 

[BadgerGirl84]

One cost-saver that I have heard about is skipping the DJ and just having a music mix on an IPod. It is nice because you can pick just the music you want to play...and is basically free if you can find some speakers to borrow for the evening.

 

[Minnie_me]

We got married 3 days after Christmas, and we were so thrilled to discover that the church AND the reception place (a country club)would both already be decked out in beautiful decorations! We got so many compliments on them, and we had nothing to do with them - LOL!

We also checked at the high school and asked the photography teacher to recommend his best student as our photographer. The photos were GORGEOUS, and really creative! We decided to have pictures taken only at the church. At the reception, we had the disposable cameras at each table, and really enjoyed the candid shots. We weren't doing any "photo op" moments at the reception that you would usually want pictures of (cake cutting, bouquet tossing, etc.).

 

[dopeynme]

HI! It sounds like you have a lot of great isead already!

I got married in July. I wore a bridesmaid's dress in ivory and it was under 250. It is definitely something to consider, especially if you are interested in something more plain. (which I was). A lot of the bridesmaid dresses come in ivory and they are much cheaper that brides dresses.

 

[estherhead]

Hiya! I have lots of tips but first, if you like the cupcake idea, my dh made me a very simple, out of plywood in our garage, cupcake tree:



Here it is with another way I used it:



We just painted it white.

As for other ideas, my big thing is pick a theme. Dollar Tree, Big Lots, Wal-Mart stuff can look cheap & tacky unless you have a definate theme. Then the theme begins to overtake everything and stuff just comes together. For example, if you want to do Mexican food then maybe Spanish tiles could be a theme & you could have bright colors and find cheap tiles at Lowes for centerpiece bases (instead of a mirror, ya know?) with just a bowl of water on top & bright flowers floating in it. But then I probably wouldn't make macaroni salad, unless it too was somehow Mexican with cilantro or something.

Also, my family really loves fresh flowers. You can order them from Sam's club (without a card) on-line and they will ship them right to your house. You can find directions on line on how to make boutonnierres and making simple hand tied bouquets. It is cheaper than silk and smells so delicious. And I've never had a problem ever with it.

Big Lots is also another big thing with me. They have summer garden stuff on sale right now. And you can buy fabric at Wal-Mart or Jo-Ann's sometimes for $1-2 a yard and well placed fabric can truly add a pop of color.

Also, start watching wedding shows on tv non-stop. Those wedding planners truly have amazing ideas.

I just helped with a wedding reception last winter and their budget was $100. No joke. A friend was a janitor at a local high school so we got the cafeteria for free. But it was ugly. So we made it very dark & picked a winter wonderland theme. We put 2 arches ($5.00 a piece at Big Lots clearance) with twinkle lights all over. The centerpieces were sticks painted white with glitter glued on in glasses with the battery operated twinkle lights bough 90% off at end of Christmas sale. We had the dance floor surrounded by twinkle light tubes. We had fake snow everywhere. And then we put tap lights (dollar Tree) in white bags (Dollar Tree valentine's day hearts already cut out) all over for added light. Family made & donated the food and I donated the cake (I do it professionally.) I would have preferred a bit more money to decorate but the bride LOVED it.

You can do this. Watch the shows, look for sales, and PICK A THEME. A fun & funky theme.

 

[matosfam]

We also got married right around Christmas on a small budget.

My best decorating suggestion is lots and lots of twinkle lights! Get them cheap right around/after Christmas and swag them, wrap them in ivy garlands to hang and/or decorate the cake table and put them around entry doorways, etc.

We also used simple glass votives on the tables (with a ribbon hot glued on to dress them up) and kept the lights low in the hall -- everything just seemed to sparkle!

Also, I whole-heartedly agree about talking with your florist! We told ours the amount we had budgeted for flowers and she gave us several beutiful options. She put a few live flowers on the cake as well and the cake topper was also the "throw-away bouquet" ! (Highly recommend this $-saving idea!) A beautiful necessary decoration with a double purpose... what could be better!

 

[dreamin_disney]

I've been out and about all day. I love reading all the great ideas that have been posted.

I'm going to do navy blue plastic table clothes. NOt sure what center pieces yet. I really want candles or lots of twinkling lights. I'll have to see if candles are permitted. Since my colors are navy blue white and sliver(metalic) i plan on spreading hershy kisses on the tables, so i have the navy, sliver and most likely white center pieces.

I also Was thinking if we buy 3 white pillars and add flowers going around it and set th ose on a table buy itself with each pillar holding one cake. The two on the side would be slightly shorter and the center pillar a bit taller. Each holding a cirlce decor cake. The center cake would be larger with topper. I think cakes like that would run 20-30 total around 90.00 instead of 229.00 for three tier cake i was going to get. We shall see.


I went to Michaels just to look. I saw some really cute sliver heart stuff but not sure if i should go with the snowflake winter theme.

I'm going to go to David bridal shower just to see what prices dresses go for. I plan on trying to lose some weight so do i look for a dress now or wait 1,2 months before?

Dis sis who said the lil things are what add up, i can already tell-lol! I need to find a list of Must do for weddings. I also need to find out about the marriage license. This week we will set up an appt with the church and once thats booked and approved , then we will put a deposit down on the Hall.

We are going to wdw for the 1st time in NOv.so I need to put money toward that, then when we get back I will start buying stuff lil at a time.

I wish lowes or Home depot had some heart shaped tiles

 

[poohnpigletCA]

Costo does wedding bouquets that they sip to you.
http://www.costco.com/Common/Category.aspx?cat=62777&eCat=BC|62777&lang=en-US&whse=BC&topnav=

Our friends are buying their daughter a smaller professional cake and then using Costco sheet cakes to serve.

One warning about the disposable cameras on the table, don't do it.
We had a friend that put them on every table instead of having a photographer. The entire wedding and reception you hear click and then the sound of everyone manually rolling it to the next picture. They had about 15 cameras and it did grate on the nerves.

Congratulations.

 

[wld]

DD1 took her dress from davids home with her and had it altered elsewhere. It did take a couple of weeks though for alterations.
DD2 had to order her dress. They said it was going to take almost 8 weeks from Davids but it came in about 2 or 3 weeks so be careful how long you wait.
Don't blame you for wanting to lose weight but I'd hate to have you wait until a month before. May be cutting it close!
My girls found their dress of their dreams fairly quickly. I'm not sure that is always the case!

 

[Promomx2]

Just a suggestion. DD went to Davids and tried on the dresses,found her absolute favorite. They I ketp checking ebay and I found the same Davids dress in the size she had tried on for only $137 (including the crinolin) and at Davids the dress alone was $899. Yes the wedding isn't until Jan/2010 so we have time in case the dress didn't work out. But it was well worth it. Also don't forget to check and ask about the rental fees being cheaper for "off" season. We're looking at a gorgeous place, in-season is $3000 but off-season is only $750. I'm doing all the bouquets and I've been buying flowers here and there, when I find them at Michaels or whereever on clearance. I did my cousins wedding a few years ago, so luckily I know what's involved. DD and I were looking at Walmart today and the wedding things they had were not too cheap looking but reasonable priced. Althought DD found the unity candle she liked for $22 and all it was a white candle w/rhinestones. That's easy enough to do. And instead of favors, we're going to be makeing a donation to a charity that supports the marines. DD's fiance is currently a marine.

 

[dreamin_disney]

I've been so busy with dd and her swim lessons. We called the church and reserved Jan 3rd. A few days ago there were no booking so time slots were 12:30pm, 2:30 pm and 3:30pm. We were shooting for the 2:30 time slot but as of today it was taken. We decided to go with the 3:30 one. I hope the ceremony is only 45-1hr long or less. Then after we will take pictures with family then drive to a park in a town the reception will be. We are thinking of starting the dinner reception at 6pm or 6:30. Whatcha think?
3:30- 4:15 ceremony(not sure if this will take 45 min or 1 hr-catholic wedding)
4:15-4:45 pics
4:50-5:00 drop off flowers at my mom grave
5:00-5:25 drive to the park for pics
5:25-5:55 pics at the park(hopefully weather is nice here in S. calif)
6:00-6:15 arrival at the reception Hall

Cutting it close so maybe i'll drop off the flowers at the grave the day before and depending on the weather if pics will be taken at the park.


I tried calling the hall and no answer. I hope its available for the date we want.


My sister called and is so excited. She was trying to help me plan which was nice and helpful. We were on our cells(not driving) so we plan to discuss it more on Sat. She offered to pay for my cake, which is sweet of her and very helpful. The cake is 229.00 and after she heard the price thats when she offered to pay for it. I'm going to offer to pay 1/2. I feel kinda bad having her pay for it but it will be a big help.

I took DFI to michaels with me and dd to look at the stuff. He also liked the sliver heart designs. I was going to make the invites but we saw some really nice ones for 34.95 but with a 50% off coupon thats only $17.48. I forgot to see how many invites came with it. It also had a nice sliver/grey ribbon and a nice diamond clip type of thing that the ribbon ran through. I only need about 30 invites so this might work(less wk for me and less stress-lol!)

favor bag -I know of a place where I can use ellison machine to punch out favor bags. I can add a sticker label to it with the sliver hearts(anyone know how to make metalic looking heart on the computer?)The bags would have our name and dates. Each bag would have a heart tin (from Michaels) with a personalized wedding label. add some sliver wrapped hershey kisses. Maybe a 2x2 tile magnet with our name and date. Any other ideas?

anyone know when Davids Bridal had their BIG sale????I'm here in S. calif.

 

[winnapooh]

I didn't read the entire post, but we did our wedding inexpensively as well. First, my mom bought my dress as my/our gift. We rented a lodge at a county park (it was brand new and absolutely beautiful, and we got it cheaper since we were one of the first to rent it, but worth checking out...it was heated with a large fireplace). We got married outside at the lodge (not really an option in Jan...but our minister loved the idea; after all, God created nature!) We made all our decorations and centerpieces. We bought inexpensive white flowers (silk) from Michaels with coupon, and used fake ivy and made the centerpeices, added some ribbons with my colors, and used battery-operated candles (look around Christmas, it may be last minute, but you can get them really cheap then).

My great aunt made our cake as our wedding gift. She has made many cakes for our family, and though she's not a professional, it was beautiful. Ask around your family, I'm sure someone likes to bake and is crafty. For our food, we hired a local bbq caterer; yeah, it sounds hokey, but it was the best wedding food most people had ever had! At my brothers wedding, we made all the food.

Another idea would be to hire some teenaged neighbors, or local college students to act as "waiters" ($50 for the night), and have them collect trash, check on the cups and supplies, etc.

For bouquet flowers, I found a wholesaler (check the phone book). I got a huge box of white roses (like maybe 3 dozen or so) and baby's breath/ferns for about $100. My aunts put the bouquets together the night before and we stored them in water in the fridge (adjust the temperature first). We used ribbon I got on sale at craft stores.

For favors, my mom rooted a ton of ivy (she bought one or two plants and kept taking cuttings off that) over a few months. Then a couple days before the wedding, she put a small amount of soil into clear plastic cups, tied a ribbon around the cup, and planted a sprig or two of ivy into the cup. We set one at each place on the table. It was both a decoration and a favor, and people loved that it wasn't just another thing to take home, but something they could keep. And since Ivy means friendship, it worked well!

We used white christmas lights and ribbons for decorations, and white tableclothes we got at BJ's, white plastic plates and clear plastic silverware from BJ's, and white napkins. All very inexpensive, but good quality. We bought a bunch of 2-liters from Walmart, set them in a corner on a table, with some ice buckets. People helped themselves. We also had water and punch that we made. We did get a keg, but I could have done without that.

If you know of anyone into photography, ask to see their work before "hiring them." My cousin did our photos (he's a professional, but we got a family rate!) Also, a neighbor could be a "DJ" with a bunch of music and they can do some announcements (rent a karyoke system, or buy a cheap one).

Hope some of this helps.

 

[Promomx2]

As for the michaels sale. I know they have one the day after Thanksgiving and if you can use the coupon on everything in the store, including sale items. Don't know if you can wait that long.

 

[winnapooh]

anyone know when Davids Bridal had their BIG sale????I'm here in S. calif.

I just saw the commercial last night for the $99 sale.

 

[KigerKat]

DH and I were married last year, and paid for everything on our own so I learned how to make our $$$ stretch as much as possible. Here are some suggestions for you:

1. I know you said you really wanted to have a church wedding, but you can save a lot of money if you combine both the ceremony and reception at the same location.
2. Have you set a date already? You can get a discount if you have your wedding on a less traditional day, like Friday or Sunday.
3. Cut out a DJ (unless you want a typcial MC style reception) and rent a sound system and plug your i-Pod into it. You can pick exactly what songs you want played and the order they will be played in.
4. Our centerpieces - a simple glass bowl from Hobby Lobby for about $1 each with some colored marbles at the bottom and a floating sunflower candle in the middle. Classy and affordable!
5. All of our decorative floral arrangements were silk - cheaper to make (or buy pre-made at Michael's) and you can keep them and use them around your house. The only fresh flowers we had were in the bouquets and bouts.
6. This might sound tacky - but look into renting a wedding dress. You're only going to wear it once, right? You've got to buy a tiara/viel, jewelry, shoes, underwear....why spend all the $$$ on a dress as well? Then you've got to get it altered and pay to get it cleaned afterwards. Unless you plan on making it a family heirloom, you might be better off renting one.
7. For favors, we bought cd kits at Michael's and made cds with our favorite love songs on it. It was sentimental and something your guests might actually use after leaving. We also did the Jordan Almond thing, and it wasn't expensive either.
8. How big is your wedding party? Keep this in mind if you plan on having a rehearsal dinner. I know this sounds cheap, but you've got to pay for all those people to eat at the rehearsal dinner and then traditionally give them a gift for being a part of your wedding. Wouldn't you rather they enjoy everything as a guest?

These are just a few things off the top of my head. I did TONS of research and tried to do as many things as I could on my own. We ended up having a beautiful wedding, that didn't break the bank. It was such a good feeling to know that we didn't rack up a ton of credit card charges and start our marriage off in debt.

 

[mrs_hower726]

I got married 4 years ago and only spent $2,500 and here are some things I did:

For the bouquet's and flowers - all silk from michaels and joanne's. Since I had a Disney themed wedding, I also added yellow and red ribbon to it.

For the centerpieces, I bought a little disney plush for each table and also dollar store candleholders that I bought floating candles and added red and yellow food coloring.

For my dress, I got married in July so I waited until prom season to buy my dress. I would go looking at retailers such as Sears and JCPenney's next month around homecoming season and see if you like anything. I found a simple white silk dress at Fashion Bug for $60 which needed no alterations.

For photography/videography - I had a husband/wife team (also good friends of mine) who did it plus I made sure a few other friends had cameras and I had disposables set up at all of the tables. I got beautiful pictures.

One thing to consider is that you want to have a Catholic church ceremony. The catholic weddings I've been to lasted about 1 1/2 hours. You might want to give yourself a little more time in case it does go over an hour. Then if the ceremony is shorter, use the extra time to go to the cemetery.

Congrats and best of luck for a wonderful marriage.

 

[dreamin_disney]

DH and I were married last year, and paid for everything on our own so I learned how to make our $$$ stretch as much as possible. Here are some suggestions for you:

1. I know you said you really wanted to have a church wedding, but you can save a lot of money if you combine both the ceremony and reception at the same location.
2. Have you set a date already? You can get a discount if you have your wedding on a less traditional day, like Friday or Sunday.
3. Cut out a DJ (unless you want a typcial MC style reception) and rent a sound system and plug your i-Pod into it. You can pick exactly what songs you want played and the order they will be played in.
4. Our centerpieces - a simple glass bowl from Hobby Lobby for about $1 each with some colored marbles at the bottom and a floating sunflower candle in the middle. Classy and affordable!
5. All of our decorative floral arrangements were silk - cheaper to make (or buy pre-made at Michael's) and you can keep them and use them around your house. The only fresh flowers we had were in the bouquets and bouts.
6. This might sound tacky - but look into renting a wedding dress. You're only going to wear it once, right? You've got to buy a tiara/viel, jewelry, shoes, underwear....why spend all the $$$ on a dress as well? Then you've got to get it altered and pay to get it cleaned afterwards. Unless you plan on making it a family heirloom, you might be better off renting one.
7. For favors, we bought cd kits at Michael's and made cds with our favorite love songs on it. It was sentimental and something your guests might actually use after leaving. We also did the Jordan Almond thing, and it wasn't expensive either.
8. How big is your wedding party? Keep this in mind if you plan on having a rehearsal dinner. I know this sounds cheap, but you've got to pay for all those people to eat at the rehearsal dinner and then traditionally give them a gift for being a part of your wedding. Wouldn't you rather they enjoy everything as a guest?

These are just a few things off the top of my head. I did TONS of research and tried to do as many things as I could on my own. We ended up having a beautiful wedding, that didn't break the bank. It was such a good feeling to know that we didn't rack up a ton of credit card charges and start our marriage off in debt.

The church cereomny is 150.00 and it will save us many headaches in the future. Being unmarried and catholic was very difficult when we baptised dd and when she did her comunion. The deacon and his wife always gave us a bad time to the point of me leaving in tears several times or upset. I didnt let them break my spirit though. Many people complained about them but they are close to father. We want to try for another baby so baptizing and communion will be easier for us.

My wedding party will be small. It might just be dfi's brother as best man, dfi's sister, my 3 three sister and nephew .
Best man wont be able to go to dinner because of his wife, my older sister well she will be gone after the rehersal.

Dfi's side of the family want the D.J.

I looked at Micheals and got a few ideas. My sis said i need to look at some mags.

I love the cd favor songs ideas

 

[dreamin_disney]

As for the michaels sale. I know they have one the day after Thanksgiving and if you can use the coupon on everything in the store, including sale items. Don't know if you can wait that long.

i could get some stuff like the heart favor boxes and candy, ribbon, tulle, flowers etc