In 2012 my boyfriend proposed. It was everything I could have imagined: romantic, original, thoughtful and well planned. Nearly the week after my left hand got a little heavier, I was already creating a budget and trying to decide what our “splurge items” would be.
I’m a cheap person. Not the kind that is featured on Extreme Cheapskates, but I’m money conscious and never buy without coupons, sales and research. Know that going into this post… I buy things for way less than the average shopper. That may help you understand that wedding planning was a fun game for me. I wanted to do it for a record low price but not let it show though the quality of our wedding.
By popular request, I am sharing my wedding saving tricks in a three post series. This post will be about pre-wedding items. Post two will be about the wedding and post three about the reception.
Let it be known that when I say “wedding saving tricks” that these hacks are CHEAP. I mean, so cheap that you probably won’t believe it. Trust me, it’s all true and if you follow my experiences I’m certain you’ll spend 50-75% less than you would doing it through boutiques, magazines and high end wedding retailers.
So let me start with my first bit of advice. SET. A. BUDGET. You can even use this handy pre-made excel sheet to keep things on track.
Second bit of advice, PAY. AS. YOU. GO. Don’t let your debt build. Treat your wedding like a car payment or mortgage and make payments on it up until your wedding. Trust me, our honeymoon in was so much more enjoyable knowing it was paid in full and we weren't paying on the trip when we got home.
Now, LET'S GET TO THE GOOD STUFF!
Save the Date Postcards, Invitations and Wedding Programs
Britny, a friend of mine, donated her design skills to make our custom save the date and invitation. A local vendor I had used through work gave me a discount to print these pieces. By discount I mean the save the dates were free and the invitations were about $60.
I wrapped these in baker's twine and added a vintage tag with our registration information. I stuck them into these well made, but inexpensive teal envelopes and mailed them at a standard stamp rate. I didn't do RSVP's but instead, used the free service through TheKnot. I uploaded an .xls sheet and guests could update their attendance IF their name matched that of my sheet. For those using this option, I would detail how your guests should enter their name to RSVP as some of my guests claimed they couldn't RSVP because they weren't on the list. In reality, they were typing their name differently than I had listed it on my uploaded .xls
I created these wedding programs but didn't tint them to match the other pieces because I printed them on a vintage metallic paper from JoAnn Fabrics. I couldn't find the paper online, but it was about $8-$10 for 250 sheets (don't forget the 40% off one regularly priced item!). The paper was 8.5x11 in size and I printed two programs per one sheet at Staples. I had them cut as well.
Handmade bouquets, boutonnieres and corsages
One trip to Hobby Lobby in the off-season for the flowers I wanted, scored materials bouquets, boutonnieres and corsages. My friend Whitney, helped me with this project - she was married and therefore, knew a thing or two. She suggested buying bundles of greenery, filler flowers and leaves and pulling them apart to reassemble in the bouquets. It was so much cheaper to do this and allowed for the utmost customization... even though my mom said my leaves looked like bugs ate them... they were just what I wanted :) When it was all said and done I spent ~$100 on all of the flowers, filler, leaves, ribbon to wrap, flower tape and keys (from Ebay, used on the men's boutonnieres). That broke down to $5 per person (including parents, grandparents, ring bearers and the bridal party). Yes, really.
The dress, veil and earrings
I didn't want to go to boutiques and try on dresses. I knew what I wanted and I was sure I could find it cheaper online. I'm short, so no matter where I was to buy, I knew alterations would be in order. So, online I went and I bought my dress. It was so comfy, fitting to my personality AND easy to alter. A family member (Suzan, you're the best!) adjusted it to a perfect fit as my wedding gift.
It was $199. Yes, really. Don't believe me? See it here. The belt was my splurge item at $56. Since the dress came with a sash, I had the sash combined with the belt's appliqué to get the look I wanted. My earrings were a Christmas gift from my parents between our engagement and wedding and cost $10. The birdcage veil was $20 and the fascinator came with another veil purchase from Ebay. The veil from Ebay wasn't what I wanted, but the fascinator was spot on and was only $2.
Groom and groomsman attire were rented from Jim's Formal Wear. Our suits were a tad pricey at $150 each, but the groom got his free. Unfortunately we were limited as to where we could rent in the small town near our wedding. Didn't they look dapper?
The Alfred Sung bridesmaid dresses varied by price online, but the girls purchased them at different times of year to obtain higher savings. They wore nude shoes of their choosing and after a full day of shopping, we found their necklaces at Burlington Coat Factory for $7 each.
Gifts
Bridesmaids gift were purchased from the Coach outlet right after Christmas. I was able to get five Coach wristlets less than $30 each. I also made them homemade sugar lip scrub to use before the wedding. The jars were recycled mini-jam jars and looked so cute with the rest of our decor.
Groomsmen gifts were a custom purchase from this Etsy shop. I wanted something the gentlemen could use and not just place on a shelf. The listing I purchased is no longer available, but for comparables, click here.
Mother's gifts were custom engraved spoon bracelets from this Etsy shop. They were affordable, long lasting, and a great way for our mother's to cherish our special day.
Thanks for stopping by the Humble Hammock! What was your favorite idea or craft from this post?
Cara
No comments:
Post a Comment