Wedding on a budget tips

[dreamin_disney]

? abouot the plastic ware that looks like sliver utensils. Does costco/Sams see just forks or is it the sets? How many in a box?

 

[JackJack08]

I have been a professional freelance floral designer for 21 years. You have gotten some great tips here. May I just say, whatever you do...DON'T order your wedding flowers online. I have fixed many "botched" bouquets, the day of the wedding. It is just an added stress that you don't need.
I also, love the cupcake idea. They are so trendy right now...and look so beautiful! I would check Costco or Sam's and see if they could make you some, that are a little "fancier" than making them yourself. (And they are soooo cheap!) Then google wedding cupcakes for some great display ideas.

 

[dreamin_disney]

Guess what i got yesterday? I got two huge rolls of the carpet rolls to make colums. I wish I could see a pic but i will have to play with it. I told dfi about
j_kids idea. He thought it was cool enough to deal with those long huge rolls-lol! I figure ivy with white roses would look nice or just the ivy and a candle bowl on top or floral arrangment. . Wish me luck.
I will go with fake flowers. What flowers are in season in Jan or would look nice.
Theme double sliver hearts
Colors navy blue, white and sliver

 

[Promomx2]

Great find on the carpet rolls!! If you need ideas check out the martha stewart wedding site. I found it the other day and was checking out other weedings and got some new ideas. Don't forget maybe to use those little christmas lights in the tulle. I'm sure you'll make up something beautiful. It seems whenever I have to make something with no funds it somehow turns out better than if I had a fortune to spend. Check out the christmas ornaments and picks around in silver. I found some cute christmas ball picks that are pink w/gold that I'm going to use in dd's reception decorations. Especially the dollar store for just a hint of the silver, silver leaves maybe??

 

[Todd&Copper]

. . .
Favors:
Go to ebay and get ideas. They have lots that people are making and selling, but alot of them you could make your self. One that is easy and kinda of cheap is the scrolls. You can buy the same paper at wal-marts that they use, then print them out your self. Takes alittle playing on the computer to get it right, But you can get four out of one sheet of paper and then just buy the little rings at wal-mart. another fairly cheap favor is the mints. Buy the small bag-it bags at micheals (with your 50% off coupon). put a life saver mint in it, attach a note to the ribbon that reads : mint to be, your names and the date. tie a bow with the ribbon. bought small wedding gift bags at the dollar tree ( had tissue paper in the bottom so that it looked full and had these sitting on the tables. Had my center pieces in the middle of the tables and then a bag of each on either side of it.
My center pieces were square vases from wal-mart with white rocks in them with candles. Last year at the dollar tree they had rub on wedding poems or sayings on them. I will post a picture. Have any question about any of this just ask. sorry about being so long!


. . . .

Bolding is mine: I can guarantee thsoe will end up in the trash. Do not waste your time or money.

 

[Promomx2]

Just wondering how the wedding plans are going???

I'm hoping no news is good news.

 

[mickeymaker2003]

When I got married ten years ago, my colors were also blue, white, and silver. We bought a bunch of artificial flowers with blue and white in them around memorial day and there is tons of blue and silver around for Hannukah. We used silver Christmas tree garland like swags on the tables and put a blue ornament at each connection point. It was cute, inexpensive, and we still have some of those ornaments for our Christmas tree each year.

 

[mickimousemama]

I was just reading over your thread, I did everything for our wedding in November 2006 because we were on a budget, one thing that stands out to me that I'm not sure if you know about is Cooking your own food to have at the reception, None of the Legions, VFW's, ect allowed it in our state (Minnesota) They can't because of insurance reasons, so be sure that they allow you to serve your own food.

After Christmas you should be able to pick up lots of lights and such, Michaels has the little silver double hearts, sort of like wedding rings in packages you could have on the tables.

Instead of a unity candle we did Sand, we each (DH, Myself, and each of our 3 kids) had our own colored sand in a sea shell, and poured it together into a heart vase I'd had personalized on ebay. It was really awesome, and I love to look at it! We then used it as our wedding topper

I was recently at a wedding that instead of a guest book had a wishing tree, I thought it was a great idea. They just took some branches and put them in a tall pretty vase, then had a framed note asking guests to leave wishes for the bride and groom. That had taken card stock and cut it into quarters, or maybe they were just note cards? they punched holes in the top and ran ribbon through them of the wedding colors, by the end of the evening it was absolutely beautiful to see the tree dressed up with all those messages. You could add twinkle lights for a little extra something. Or spray paint the twigs with silver.

This was our wedding invite. I think you said you were making your own, thought I'd share with you how I worded ours

We had a winter beach wedding, actually had a blizzard two days before our wedding so it was COLD, but I still loved how it all came together.

I had my dress made by a company on Ebay, My dress was $45 and $40 shipping it was BEAUTIFUL, I also had them make a coat, because it was cold for another $40. I did have to have it hemed but that was only another $50 so it ended up being pretty cheap and I Loved it.
This was the dress off of their listing

And here is a close up of my actual dress

and this is how it fit the day it arrived.. PERFECT

Another hint, if you are having a ring bearer, I bought my boy's Tuxes on ebay as well, they were under $20 to buy and $75 EACH to rent.. DS5 is wearing DS10's tux from the wedding this year for halloween LOL.
I actually got all 3 kids outfits from the same seller on Ebay and all three together were less than the cost of ONE tux rental

I will pull out my wedding journal and see what other things I did to cut costs too.

 

[dreamin_disney]

Just wondering how the wedding plans are going???

I'm hoping no news is good news.

Things are going ok. I've been on amazon and you listening to different types of wedding song. We have another appt with the father tomorrow. The church and hall are booked and ready to go. I need to call The D.J. during the week. Today dfi went and looked at rings for him. I boiught him a white gold ring that he wanted.. I've had my engagement ring for 9 years and in Feb he just bought me the band(he did a great job picking out my rings-lol).
Now I'm trying to decide if the main wedding party table should be white or navy like the guest tables.

I'm also a lil bummed. My oldest sis is being a negative person. I asked her if she would be in my wedding along with my other sister. Well she ignored my e-mail for 2 days(we e-mail because she rarely answers her cell and she doesnt have a house phone). Then she asked what would it intell and if i was going to have pardinos(pardinos usually pay for certain things in the wedding). She makes me feel like shes thinking i'm going to ask her to pay for the whole wedding, which i'm not. This sis always travels has a BMW and keeps up with the jones so ya get a better pic of her. I would never ask for $$. My other sis was totally blown away about how she is acting because my other sis only sees the sweet nice side of her. My oler sis even txt me to tell me her DD saw my ex fiance (we boke up 15 years ago). Sad thing is i knew she would do something like that. She no definite answer if she said yes or no .
Then MIL keeps asking if my sis is going to be in it or not because that affects dfi other brother from being in it. Remember MIL also wants to be a bridemaid . I told dfi thats why i wanted a simple wedding bestman (his borther) and maid of honor (my 2nd youngest sister-she's been so supportive- i have 3 sisters).

And My 2nd sister is plus size and will only wear a pantsuit, which i'm fine with but we have to make sure the suit matches with the dresses.

At this point i just need to get through the rest of the month at work, then focus on wdw trip in NOv and find a darn tankini, focus on weightloss

So next month the BM can get their dress or pick them out and if my 2 sister back out then oh well, i'll be hurt and mad but what can i do. I'll just have 1 sis and dfi sis in it which means 2 fo dfi brothers wont be in it and MIL will be mad.


Thanks for asking about how i'm doing, nice to know some cares

 

[dreamin_disney]

I was just reading over your thread, I did everything for our wedding in November 2006 because we were on a budget, one thing that stands out to me that I'm not sure if you know about is Cooking your own food to have at the reception, None of the Legions, VFW's, ect allowed it in our state (Minnesota) They can't because of insurance reasons, so be sure that they allow you to serve your own food.

After Christmas you should be able to pick up lots of lights and such, Michaels has the little silver double hearts, sort of like wedding rings in packages you could have on the tables.

Instead of a unity candle we did Sand, we each (DH, Myself, and each of our 3 kids) had our own colored sand in a sea shell, and poured it together into a heart vase I'd had personalized on ebay. It was really awesome, and I love to look at it! We then used it as our wedding topper

I was recently at a wedding that instead of a guest book had a wishing tree, I thought it was a great idea. They just took some branches and put them in a tall pretty vase, then had a framed note asking guests to leave wishes for the bride and groom. That had taken card stock and cut it into quarters, or maybe they were just note cards? they punched holes in the top and ran ribbon through them of the wedding colors, by the end of the evening it was absolutely beautiful to see the tree dressed up with all those messages. You could add twinkle lights for a little extra something. Or spray paint the twigs with silver.

This was our wedding invite. I think you said you were making your own, thought I'd share with you how I worded ours

We had a winter beach wedding, actually had a blizzard two days before our wedding so it was COLD, but I still loved how it all came together.

I had my dress made by a company on Ebay, My dress was $45 and $40 shipping it was BEAUTIFUL, I also had them make a coat, because it was cold for another $40. I did have to have it hemed but that was only another $50 so it ended up being pretty cheap and I Loved it.
This was the dress off of their listing

And here is a close up of my actual dress

and this is how it fit the day it arrived.. PERFECT

Another hint, if you are having a ring bearer, I bought my boy's Tuxes on ebay as well, they were under $20 to buy and $75 EACH to rent.. DS5 is wearing DS10's tux from the wedding this year for halloween LOL.
I actually got all 3 kids outfits from the same seller on Ebay and all three together were less than the cost of ONE tux rental

I will pull out my wedding journal and see what other things I did to cut costs too.

Thank you for the tips. I love the glass heart bottles. You dress is so pretty, you got a great deal! Your kids look so cute. My dd(9) will be flower girl and i think she might just wear her communion dress if it still fits her.

 

[dreamin_disney]

The american legion here does let renters cook food. They charge a kitchen fee of $50-$75 and even if you use it to warm up already prepared food it still
$50-$75 . MIL and dfi nana will prepare the food then warm it up at the Hall.

 

[Shleedogg]

If you haven't found a dress yet, check out www.juliusbridal.com. They made a custom dress for me, inspired by a $4k Alvina Valenta for $180. It was by no means the same quality as the original, but it looked great that day and in photos.

I made all our invitations. We did pocket folds. Total the invites cost $12.50, envelopes were about $25 if I remember right from mygatsby.com(it was a couple years ago. I highly recommend buying your paper supplies from AC Moore, they are by far the cheapest place. Sometimes you'll catch sales where they sell 12x12 sheets of cardstock for 6 cents!

 

[dreamin_disney]

If you haven't found a dress yet, check out www.juliusbridal.com. They made a custom dress for me, inspired by a $4k Alvina Valenta for $180. It was by no means the same quality as the original, but it looked great that day and in photos.

I made all our invitations. We did pocket folds. Total the invites cost $12.50, envelopes were about $25 if I remember right from mygatsby.com(it was a couple years ago. I highly recommend buying your paper supplies from AC Moore, they are by far the cheapest place. Sometimes you'll catch sales where they sell 12x12 sheets of cardstock for 6 cents!

can i see a picture of your pocket fold. Is there a template to make one?Thanks for the link

 

[dreamin_disney]

update so far.
I e-mailed my sis and asked her straight out if shes going to be in my wedding or not. I told her i felt like she is avoiding me and being stand offish.. She said she will be in it shes just had the flu . I know awhile back she mentioned her Dr. wants her to have a hysterectomy. She already has an iron problem so surgery would be dangerous for her. I figured I'd take that into consideration and asked her if she was ok and what was going on with her medically. My sis is very private and wont ask for help.
My MIL has been asking DF if my sis is in it or not because that will affet her other son from being in it. I told df to tell her before i got the thumbs up to tell his mom my sis hasnt confirmed and if shes in it shes in it and if not then not , but i'm not adding another person and "No'MIL can not fill in(as bridesmaid) like she wanted to She is so stressing me out. I've been able to avoid her but tomorrow i will see her and i'm sure she will ask lots of ?'s and give lots of suggestions.

Right now i'm trying to get through work, i have two more weeks then its vacation time. Hopefully some 50% coupons will come out for Jo-anns so i can get my invitations. The 1st two weeks of Nov i'm going to try and get as much done as possible. We leave on the 14th to wdw so lots need to be done before that.

Oct must do's
-confirm D.J.
-

Nov. must do's
-buy invites and send out by Nov 3rd
-figure out centerpieces and purchase supplies
-pick out ceremony and reception songs
-pick out wedding dress ,bridesmaid dresses and flowergirl dress
-have df decide on tux

Dec. Must do's
-order cake
-buy paper goods
-buy decorations
-put together pew bows,centerpieces, favor bags
-check in with church, d.j. and hall
-get marriage license
-buy shoes and accessories


why do i get a feeling like its going to fly buy-lol! Wish me luck for tomorrow when i see MIL-lol!

 

[Mouse House Mama]

Why can your future bil be in the wedding even if your sister backs out? Have 2 men walk one girl down the aisle. Lots of people do that. Good luck.

 

[dreamin_disney]

Why can your future bil be in the wedding even if your sister backs out? Have 2 men walk one girl down the aisle. Lots of people do that. Good luck.

because it wont be even and df and i want it even. We havent asked him yet either but MIL went and told all of her kids they are in the wedding. She told df if hes asked his sister yet and he told her "well you already jumped the gun on that one"

We arent being mean to her. We are trying to be as nice as possible. Our orginal plan was just one brides maid and best man but when she talked to df she said your sis and bro are in it right! He told her we wanted it simple. I figured i'd just hAVE SIBLINGS in it so she wouldnt get pissy. If it was up to me it would be simple just me df, dd and I. It would be less of a hassle and so much cheaper for us. But i'm doing this to please df and MIL. DF even agreed with me that it would be weird to have her as a bridemaids. Last party we had she stressed me out sooooooooooo bad that i was so mad and upset but i kepted it all inside, but it ruined the party for me. We get along i guess i need to speak up for once and not worry about making waves.otherwise this will be her wedding and not mine.

At this point anything is possible. I get a feeling one of my sis might pull out. the other sis is plus size and wants to wear a nice pantsuit and if she doesnt find it in blue i think she will pull out. I told df this is why we were to keep everything hush hush until everything was closer to the date and everything settled. He told his Mom and the first 10min she called the dj, the next few min called the siblings

My mother is deseased and not sure if my dad will show up. So i wont have a dd /father dance if if dad shows up(he's never been there for me)I asked df if he wants a mother/son dance and he said no, so i'm trying to be nice and not the mean dil-lol! We just want simple.wait til she finds out i dont want the garder toss. maybe she will make the same face when i said i didnt want a pure white dress(i'm not pure df and i have an almost 10 yr)

 

[mybestieismickey]

You mentioned earlier that you were worried about the kids getting into cakes on the table. When I got married, I wanted to keep the kids from being bored (and out of trouble). Here's what I did: I covered a couple of tables with butcher paper and put out bowls of crayons and gold fish crackers. It kept the kids entertained (and some of their parents too). Yeah, it's a little tacky, but it kept them out of my cupcake display

 

[jlima]

PLEASE do not waste your money on table favors that will just get thrown away. I looked at the cute little plastic baskets and plastic shoes at Michaels; and the first thing I though was, what happens to this when someone takes it home? Well, it gets trashed. Plus, they were 50 cents each (in 1991!) and to buy 120 of them was $60. I ended up buying a pack of tulle circles; and two 3-pound bags of Kisses - one plain, one almond (wrapped in gold foil). I put 4 Kisses in each circle (two of each color); tied it up with about 10 inches of ribbon, tied a little plastic ring into the bow and that was that. Total cost for 120 table favors was less than $50. The though of a tulle circle getting tossed out was easier than me spending $60 on something plastic that, while it was cute, would end up in a landfill.

As you get closer to your wedding, you will come across a lot of things that will sound great but cost lots of money. Resist the urge! It seemed like $80 was the magic number for me. About 2 weeks before my wedding I thought was would be nice for the bridesmaids to have gloves. The ones I liked were $20/pair. It would have cost $80 for "nice", for all four bridesmaids. I passed. Same price for the florist to decorate my cake knives. I passed on that too; the cake knife and server were just plain.

Good luck!

 

[winnapooh]

You mentioned earlier that you were worried about the kids getting into cakes on the table. When I got married, I wanted to keep the kids from being bored (and out of trouble). Here's what I did: I covered a couple of tables with butcher paper and put out bowls of crayons and gold fish crackers. It kept the kids entertained (and some of their parents too). Yeah, it's a little tacky, but it kept them out of my cupcake display

You just reminded me of something we did. We had a bunch of kids at our wedding, so I went to Walmart to the toy section where they have those 88 cent toys, and got a few bags of things (the stretchy animals, and glow bracelets, etc.), and stuff from the dollar store. Anything where I could get stuff to divide out for multiple children for less than a dollar (unisex stuff). I made some small bags out of leftover fabric and ribbon, then stuffed the bags (they were small, only about maybe 4 square inches). They matched my colors.

I put all the bags into a cute basket that I already had. At the beginning of the reception (when pictures were being taken), I had my neice take the basket around and give one bag to each child that wanted one. I think they appreciated them, because I did see kids playing with stuff from the bags, and since it was something new to keep them entertained, the parents appreciated it (since their kids got age appropriate gifts). Sure it was stuff that would probably be thrown away at home, but if it kept them entertained at the wedding, it was worth it! I also made sure not to get anything that might ruin clothes (like silly putty or anything).

I also filled a basket with some small dollar store games, but I'm not sure how many of those got played with.

 

[DearDaisyinDurham]

a pp mentioned sam's, along same lines, we ordered all of our roses thru costco. they were stunning! I think we ordered like 5 dozen and had a florist make 5 bows for our hand tied bouquets- my bouqet had a dozen roses, each 'maid had half dozen, and we used the other two dozen for center pieces and then gave single roses from the center pieces to the ladies at the end of the night. truly gorgeous flowers.