(via mpinspirationables)
And here are some invites to go along with the yellow.
How to cut costs and still have a fantastic wedding
I’ve got a wonderful friend who is recently engaged, and in an effort to help her shave a little cost off of her wedding budget I’ve put together a list of ideas that we utilized on our big day. I got to thinking that maybe some of you might find it helpful too.
1. Cake. Brent and I decided we were pie people. Instead of serving cake, Brent and I asked a group of our grandmothers, great aunts, and close family friends if each of them would bake 4 pies of their choice for our wedding. We then displayed them on cake plates of different shapes, colors and sizes on one table. It was an awesome way to cut costs, do something REALLY different, and it still looked fantastic.
2. Flowers. Find out what is in season during the time of your wedding. This will save you alot of money as out-of-season flower costs are double or triple those flowers that are readily available. Consider non-flower alternatives for boutinniers- Consider making something like this with pretty ribbon, feathers, and silk notions from the craft store:
Additionally, instead of flower centerpieces on the tables, my mom grew an herb garden for months before our wedding, and we used fresh potted herbs in small planters instead. They also doubled as great take-home thank you gift for folks who attended.
3. Dress. You can still have your dream dress without spending a huge chunk of change. I was in love with a $3800 Reem Acra dress while gown hunting in Atlanta, but that was WAY more than I wanted to spend. Instead I found my dress on a clearance rack at a local bridal boutique:
It was 5 sizes too big, and I hated the neckline. But I loved the fit and the material, so I had the top altered into a replica of the Reem dress. And it ultimately turned out look almost EXACTLY like it for $3000 less.
4. Veil: Try on veils at the bridal boutiques you visit to get an idea of what you like and what works with your dress. However, I don’t recommend buying my veil in-house. They are WAY overpriced. I found a very similar veil, of high quality at www.weddingveil.com - every style, material, color you can imagine. And if you don’t like it, they offer free return and exchange. I had to send mine back once before I got the right length!
5. Invitations: Hire a local graphic artist (or even better, ask a talented friend) to design your invitation. From there, work with a local printer to print your invites. It really was cheaper to go this route than to have invitations printed by traditional methods. Additionally, I bought a huge spool of vintage lace of ebay and wrapped the three-pary invite in a piece to give it a personal touch. I also found our brown paper envelopes on the web for a great price. Then I got a group of bridesmaids and my godmother together to have a little invite stuffing/addressing party.
6. Ceremony: We used an ipod for most of the ceremony music. It actually worked out pretty well and I had a trusted friend designated to turn it up and down at the appropriate times. I made a play list of all of our favorite songs. From Allman Brothers to the Beatles and Van Morrison for the background music as people were seated. The bridesmaid’s walk down the aisle to Van Morrison’s Sweet Thing and I walked down to a piano version of Elvis’ Unchained Melody. Personalize your big day with music that represents you!
7. Alcohol: Instead of having a full open bar, we did beer, wine and a signature cocktail. To pay homage to our southern roots, we served spiked lemonade in mason jars (I found my mason jars during canning season at Big Lots for next to nothing)
Having one liquor drink cut down on our alcohol costs significantly but still offered something fun and playful for guests to enjoy.
8. Lastly, research EVERYTHING! You’d be amazed at how many tutorials there are out there to help you make things yourself. Don’t accept the first price that any website or vendor gives you. Utilize the internet, wedding message boards, and your personal contacts to brainstorm ways to get the same thing for less.
Once the day comes, let it happen and don’t stress over the details. Hope these tips help and I welcome you all to share your own creative cost-cutting wedding efforts!
Love,
M
mentioning our wedding cake topper in my previous post made me dig into my iphoto library and pull up a pic of the bobble heads we had custom made for our big day. i’ll let you be the judge- how accurate do you think the artist was? personally, i think andy’s is DEAD ON. mine, not so much…
Bobble heads! So cute!!
When Brent and I got married, we decided we didn’t want a cake - so instead we had a table full of family recipe pies served on pretty cake plates. I will always love this idea and it was so much more economical (and just as delicious) as a wedding cake.
(via darlingdexter:Once Wed - designer wedding dresses for less)
this was served at a wedding , donuts from Tim Horton’s in remembrance of the couple’s first date - the groom Ben brought his bride to be two donuts in a bag, not flowers…. the way to her heart. The favours were little canisters filled with sprinkles - the label read “Ben’s Love Potion”
Adorable. especially for those who do not see the point of spending so much on the grooms cake. He’s not that important anyways, right? haha
