Re: What are you cutting out of your wedding to save money?

We are having a inordinarily lavish wedding. But we did cut some stuff out:

-no wedding planner
-no limos b/c I am getting married at Oheka
-no permits for photos b/c I am taking pics there too.
-no vendor meals-oheka gives them for free

Re: What are you cutting out of your wedding to save money?

We are printing our own invites, we are making our own candle Cp's vs. Flowers...no extras at hall like ice sculptures, or viennese, and went to Aruba vs say Tahiti on HM...I also scoured E-bay...I saved aver $150 on Tiara and jewelry, bought cheap guest book etc from there!

Re: What are you cutting out of your wedding to save money?

No limos because we are getting married at reception site.

No extra frilly stuff that I really don't care for anyway (guest book or frame matte, mailbox or bird cage. I don't need champagne flutes or cake cutting set - I can use what the club provides) All of these things are small items but totally unnecessary and to be honest - they don't enhance a wedding for the guests (or for me) They are nice to haves if you really want them. Not buying a frilly unity candle. just using a regular candle.

Buying BM a gift they will like and use instead of inexpensive bridal jewelry. They can wear their own pearls. I'm a big believer that a $10 necklace looks like a $10 necklace so why pair that with expensive dresses?

Skipped calligrapher and had invite company do it for me.

Shower is at my mom's house and so is rehearsal dinner (she spends a lot of time and money maintaining her garden. She should be able to show it off and enjoy it) I also prefer gatherings at a home vs a restaurant where I'm stuck with the people at my table.

No seafood at cocktail hour. I like shrimp, most people like shrimp and most people eat it at weddings. Not this one. They'll have to try something else for a change (plenty of other options)

Re: What are you cutting out of your wedding to save money?

DJ instead of band

No programs, bathroom baskets, unity candle

My hall is printing menu at no charge or I'd be doing without those too. They will also pipe music in to our CH (we were going to get live entertainment).

E-Bay!! Tiara, shoes and veil (but I may have to buy new shoes because I don't think these are going to match my dress - I'll see Friday at my first fitting)

Wrapping favors ourselves

No placecard table arrangement (going to do a rose petal carpet instead) and no arrangement for the ladies' room

Using cake from the hall with no extras (was planning on fresh flowers)

Had afternoon reception instead of evening

Moving flowers from church to hall

No bubbles or wands or rose petal cones

Love my dress but it was not very expensive

Photographer provides proofs and negatives - we will make albums and enlargements ourselves

Re: What are you cutting out of your wedding to save money?

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Posted by Rae912

Bridal bargins is a great book, I just got it, and I cant put it down. Its work the $15 at Borders. It tells you where to get cheaper wedding dresses, ribbon for favors that is dirt cheap, great HM's, etc...good luck!

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Anyone who wants this book, let me know. I actually have two of them (I velieve the 4th & 6th editions). I will mail to you if you let me know today or tomorrow (otherwise it will have to wait until I get back from my HM).

FM me if interested.


ETA: I orderedmy dress from Bridesave.com to save $$.

Re: What are you cutting out of your wedding to save money?

We selected a not overly expensive place and booked it on a holiday weekend so that we wouldn't have to skimp on any aspects of our wedding. I am just trying not to go over the top on any of my choices, otherwise things could really get out of hand.

Re: What are you cutting out of your wedding to save money?

Well here are a few..

Using places like ebay & lillian veron for BM's gifts.. nice doesn't have to be expensive. I found my favors (cookies that are shaped like wedding cakes or hearts, can't decide they are both soooo pretty..lol) I found my cake topper and headpiece on Ebay.. what can I say.. ya gotta love ebay..lol

Using the internet... to do price comparisons, if you look hard enough you can find some really good deals.

No professional video, I'm having a good friend use my sister's video camera.

I asked my father's best friend, to be a soloist at our ceremony.

Using seasonal flowers.

Buying invites online. My mom will do the calligra.. (sp?) she's really good, we keep telling her to do it as a side gig. lol

Doing my own programs & menus

Early on I decided to only look at places that would fall on or below budget. ie, photos.. I didn't want to compromise the look of my pictures, but I also wasn't willing to pay $3000 for pic, so I called around and got all that I wanted for the budget I set for myself.

Use this board to ask, ask, ask away...

ETA: My FBIL's best friend is a dj, and he is only charging us 1/2 price.. which kept us way under budget in that department..

I'm planning on ordering my dress from bridesave.com and that will probably save me $500 bucks on my dress...

Re: What are you cutting out of your wedding to save money?

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Posted by am470

We are having a inordinarily lavish wedding. But we did cut some stuff out:

-no wedding planner
-no limos b/c I am getting married at Oheka
-no permits for photos b/c I am taking pics there too.
-no vendor meals-oheka gives them for free

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why would you need permits to take photes... never heard of that

i learn something new everyday

Re: What are you cutting out of your wedding to save money?

ok well first we decided to pick february... it being off season we knew we would have more bargining power... and it HAS worked every single vendor Not just the hall has given us a discount b/c of ' off season'
We picked the sunday before a holiday so that we could have a 'saturday' night wedding at a sunday night price.

I also fought with my hall to add in every extra I could and got the minimum lowerd 2 times.

* Even though my mom paid for my dress I got it at commack wedding center b/c they honor other prices. I showed them the ad for my dress that was $250 cheaper then what I had paid - and even though I couldnt find a single store that carried it at that price they honored it.

Booked the same company for photo and video to cut back on videograhper costs. ( where else was I going to get a nice video for 1k?)

Skipped the intelligent lights and smoke and the fancy extras the dj offered.... this is my wedding not a club. This allowed us to add a percusionist... and it was still cheaper.

Got my $350 swarovski tiara on ebay for $170
got my $150 swarovski bracelet on ebay for $50
Got all my bridesmaids swarovski bracelets at bloomingdales during the 50% off sale. Paid $25 for each bracelet instead of $50

Borrowing my sisters wedding shoes * also my something borrowed!

Re: What are you cutting out of your wedding to save money?

so far...nothing! but we need to...just haven't yet! We aren't too far into the planning process yet...we need to cut on something soon! It is soo hard...i want everything!!!

Re: What are you cutting out of your wedding to save money?

Chose to have wedding on Sunday afternoon and that saved me a TON!!

Ceremony will be at the Watermill, and they do the rehearsal an hour before the actual wedding, so I omitted the RD altogether.

Watermill also provides placecards - theirs will be fine.

We will chose a great but cheaper honeymoon. ($4,000 is my goal)

I will not spend over $700 on a dress.

Less expensive invitations and centerpieces. (They get discarded after the party)

No:
bathroom basket, crypacks, unity candle, menus, toasting flutes, cake cutting set (these were all things I had never heard of before I got on these boards, and I had never included them in my original plan!!)

Everyone has their own priorities. Just figure out what those are and STICK TO IT!

I am choosing to omit the things that I never notice when I attend someone else's wedding. I don't think anyone will miss them at mine.

Re: What are you cutting out of your wedding to save money?

as far as the reception goes, we are splurging on the food and band.

we are attempting to save by:

• keeping the target guest list ~100
• keeping the BP to 4 guys, 3 girls
• mom is making all dresses that will be part gift
• mom is making all flowerless centerpieces
• i will create all paper items - save-the-dates, invites, programs, menus, place settings, etc.
• using freelance and small business vendors
• no limos (transportation TBD)
• no video
• no professional make-up person
• no photo 'album packages' (i will take care of albums myself, after the fact)
• no favors (FMIL will make bags with jordan almonds, but nothing extra)
• low-key honeymoon

Re: What are you cutting out of your wedding to save money?

our wedding is a sunday
we were going to not have a video but it will be a gift.
we were going to do a justice of the peace, but the officiants are a gift.
my dress was not expensive
i'm making the invitations
i'm making favors
flowers are not a high priority for me, so just the basics.
dj, not a band

Re: What are you cutting out of your wedding to save money?

skipped church flowers, picked low centerpieces instead of high ones....went with the lowest price(jack and rose) also beautiful work

skipped dj extras, only paying $1050 for 5 hours 1dj & 1mc(high voltage dj) *saved $600 off the budgeted amoung

skipped the *$400 rolls royce, got one big limo to share with the bridal party($600 for 5 hours in a 14 pass)... went with the lowest price*

making my own programs,
searching on the internet for cheapest prices on the favor i want

picking the hall that we loved(and was* $1500 less than our other option)

finding sales on some of the bridal party gifts...$$

Re: What are you cutting out of your wedding to save money?

Hmm let's see:

RD at my mom's house (we're having a BBQ)
skipped programs
addressing my own invites
skipping hotel for wedding night, going home instead (we're leaving for hm the very next day anyway)

Unfortunately none of this matters because whatever I saved doing these I've spent too much in other areas. Oh well..........

Re: What are you cutting out of your wedding to save money?

No favors - I think they're a waste - just dust collectors. We will probably use lots of candles instead of flowers on the tables.

Re: What are you cutting out of your wedding to save money?

We are not having limos
My dress was less than $500
My invites were less than $160 and NICE!
Found RB pillow ON SALE for 50cents!
Made my own STDs for a total of $23

Borrowing toasting glasses and cake knife and server from SIL

Borrowing wedding earrings from SIL

No video (but I want it)

Our honeymoon is our time share in Cabo

And HE thinks we are spending ALOT, HA...if he only knew!!!

RD at home--a bbq

Officiant is a family friend!

Re: What are you cutting out of your wedding to save money?

Probably no rehersal dinner - if we do it will be just pizza

Making my own programs

Going simple & cheap on the invites

town car for us to ride in instead of fancy rolls or bently

making my own favors

DJ is a friend

Re: What are you cutting out of your wedding to save money?

We saved on our band - we didnt get the one of our dreams but that saved us a good $1500.

We are not getting a cake from and outside baker even though the cake our hall offers is questionable.

Our biggest savings is that we are getting married in Jan - so we have a nice hall and the add ons without the insane prices of the summer.

Re: What are you cutting out of your wedding to save money?

We are having a Sunday wedding, which was a bit cheaper than saturday (our first preference). Booked our hall early in January and got the winter 2003 rates for our July 2004 wedding (lucked out!)

HM was booked and paid for before the wedding planning began (10 day caribbean cruise, FH's aunt is a travel agent)

Limos are your basic run of the mill.. we didn't want anything special, since distance between hotel/church and church/recep is SO small

Got great deals on both photog/video, DJ and flowers.. much less than originally budgeted

aren't going crazy on favors (picture frames for place card holder that i got rather inexpensive, jordan almonds .. ) to save

bought my Maggie dress thru Netbride and saved at least $300

FH made our STDs!

ordered invites online and spent a ridiculously low amount

bought my tiara(s) and veil on eBay . Also some extra decoratve things on ebay, ribbon, etc. to 'dress' things up .

FH got tux from Men's Wearhouse (free!) since he had 7 other people ordering rentals

Most of the BM/GMs/FG/RB gifts from Things remembered on sale, and/or 20% off. Bought some pretty scented candles and pic frames at Annie Sez on sale for extra BM's gifts!