| RE: Ideas for a Frugal Wedding |
Congratulations on a winter wedding and on getting married! These are some ideas as a wedding is intensely personal some of these you may find unusable. Here goes:
Clothes:
buy wedding dress and tux online/thrift store
rent wedding dress and tux at store
if you are handy with the sewing machine buy white dress and embellish/alter yourself
buy a pant or skirt suit that you can wear for other special occasions after the wedding(white suit can be a wardrobe staple)
bridesmaids -pick color/length of dress to coordinate with wedding and let the bridesmaids dress themselves(eliminates expenses for them =better gifts for you:)
bridesmaids/best men: provide same color boutonnieres to further coordinate the look of your wedding party-for pictures and such
boutonnieres/corsages:use carnations they come in all sorts of colors=easy to coordinate and babys breath(bridal white...)OR use fake flowers that color coordinate.
look online for easy instructions on how to make your own boutonnieres if so inclined.
Priest: get married by a justice of the peace(inside- do not have to rent church or hall saves $$$) and just have reception afterward. pass the word around your friends/relatives that you are looking for a minister(we have a friend whose father is a minister and he can marry people)who can marry people
Location: Having wedding in your home can save a lot of money just have the person marrying you come to the house.
To save money on a reception hall just have the wedding and reception in same place have people come in and seat themselves at the already set up tables and get married on the platform by the minister who came to location already.(saves people some travel time etc)Festivities start right after.
Having wedding at your church's hall can save you money or even be free (you can try volunteering for some church activities in exchange for some/all money off the hall rental price).
Have wedding at a friends/relatives whose house is bigger than yours tell him/her that could be his/ her wedding gift to you. (if it is cheaper than a hall pay for a cleaning service to come after the party or have people in your bridal party clean up and let them keep the decorations)
Tables: Rent(borrow from friends) fold out card tables as long as they are trimmed in the same color shape of table will not matter(white is always easy to find and then you can have the trim color be fabric dyed or etc. below)
Buy dollar store tablecloths
rent table cloths
buy lengths of canvas/cotton(sometimes 99cents/yrd or below) in white/ tan(tan and champagne go well together because yellow base). you can also Tea dye white cotton to antique it(awesome for romantic wedding lace)
If the card tables are long and rectangular and same height they can be covered in bedsheets(cheap white bedsheets) and the seams covered with lace
Paper is cheap and can be found in huge rolls at a significant discount(buy tan/white and use red as accent- colored paper is more expensive).
In the case above tables may be made into two big long ones(saves materials).
Chairs can be rented at significant discounts from schools/churches-see above
Table decor: Centerpieces
Use white glass vases from the thrift store(white is not see through and you don't have to put anything in for color-can also be spray painted champagne). With red carnations and baby's breath Ivy is also good trim as it fills space and stays green.(find someone with an overgrown garden and it is free.)
If your heart is set on clear vases(thrift/dollar store) you can use food dye in the water to give color.
For flowers visit a flower shop and ask for day-old flowers/throwaways.=significant discount/free.
Spray painted twigs(free from garden you can also use evergreen) white/ gold with tissue paper flowers(or paper punched ones-real ones) make a nice centerpiece around a mirror tile with a candle on it.-instructions w/pics are online to make all of this.
Glittered candles on top of a mirror (thrift store) also work with a champagne glow.
Pinecones are also free and you can spray paint them to match if a winter decor is desired.
Favors: SHOP after Christmas sales to get all sorts of things for favors(red/white/gold are Christmas/New Year's colors) at significant discounts(including WINE or Champagne)
some ideas
candles(goes with candle centerpieces above)
candy treat bags
see through ornaments with glitter and ground styrofoam inside with your names and the date handwritten with colored/metallic permanent marker on it
paperpunch butterflies/hearts/or favorite shapes out of paper and scatter like confetti between waxed paper sheets with wax sides facing eachother and iron on low over a sheet.=placemats(more details in Martha Stewart)
cupcakes
use favors as place markers write guest name on it
There is a great book called"Trash to Treasures Christmas" ISBN 1574860941 lots of tips on making decos out of cardboard tubes,milk jugs etc.
Dishes: use bulk plastic/paper dishes and cups
If small wedding buy china a thrift store and make sure that it is white or coordinating color.
use paper sheet as place mat(bonus children can draw on it)
Guest book: use several spray painted twigs and provide guests with strips of paper and ornament hooks so they can write write wishes on it and hang on tree. Same as above only a white pillow (other item can be subbed here) people get to sign and then you display.
a pack of note cards blank used for wish lined used for address =instant address book
Invitations: Email invites=free
Postcards (2 invites printed on a piece of cardstock then cut in half w/guillotine) cheap + half the postage
RSVP by phone/email=less paper used cheap+save ti me
regular computer paper printed invites stuffed in envelopes.no extra postage for extra bulk
Print/design your own invites on cardstock(or choice paper)-still cheaper than store bought kits and customized
Food: buffet style is cheap
Snacks: Popcorn-white and can be drizzled for effect with food dyed white choco(easy recp. online)
pretzles with french onion dip
dollar store peanuts
tortilla chips and salsa
cherry tomatoes, green peppers,celery radishes for tray
cheap cheese bought in chuncks cubed by hand
mini microwaveable meatballs w/alfredo and marinara sauces
mini sausages
buy cheap turkey/ham at thanksgiving cook and cube it for meat tray before reception
deviled eggs
Entree:
Chicken tenders
Swiss steak
Pasta
Salad: use boston lettuce instead of romaine- red vinegar and oil can be cheaply bought in bulk and mixed with herbs before for vinaigrette
rolls can be baked a few days before and frozen or bought at significant discount and frozen then refreshed the day of.
chicken/ham/egg salad like someone suggested on here
Soup or anything that can be made in a large crockpot is your friend(saves time)-chili is red and coordinates LOL
Dessert: mini cupcakes
mini anything- cookies,cupcakes, strudels pieces of cake
fruit tray with choco fondue
The Cake: get a small cake decorated with what you want(cake topper, too ). However you want-this is the showpiece
get an iced sheetcake with no decorations in the same flavor/icing as your wedding cake-keep in the back-this is the one distributed to guests after showpiece is cut into(this saves up to 85% off the traditional 3 tiered cake or more if someone makes both at home)
use cupcakes instead of cake
Okay, this is it. Sorry it is so long. Hope it did help. These tips were gathered over a period of time from different sources(Thriftyfun.com, Martha Stewart, Trash to treasure Christmas, self and friends who all had weddings) ... View related article. |
 |
| RE: Treating a Dog's Ear Infection Without Antibiotics |
Oh my gosh! Butch is so cute, you should enter him in the pet photo contest!
However the archived 4/28/2008 has some good advice. I suggest using an eyedropper (or a turkey baster, as it's the same principle. You do not want to pour the mix in, but rather control the flow by drop) to put the mix in the ear.
The archived mentioned above also has quantities you should mix too. I hope the infection clears up! Good Luck!
... View related article. |
|
| RE: Jasmine (Bengal) |
|
Wow! Jasmine is beautiful! ... View related article. |
|
| RE: Triple Coupons |
Thank you all. I am now enlightened!
... View related article. |
|
| RE: Craft: Wallpaper Flower Decor |
|
Awesome idea! Your arrangement looks great! If you're so inclined (and the wallpaper is white on other side) you can use flower paper punches in graduated diameters and then wire a button (scrap buttons and twist-ties) to middle= layered flower. ... View related article. |
|
| RE: Spotted a Rare White Deer |
|
That is awesome! Put some deer food out there and watch, when it comes snap a picture. I would like to see it! ... View related article. |
|
| RE: Tissue Boxes for Plastic Bags |
|
Great idea! If you have lots of bags and just want to store them you can also use the empty 12 can box that pop comes in. They have the hole(you know the one you put your hand thru) or you can just fill from the side.They also stack well. I have lots of bags :). ... View related article. |
|
| RE: My Frugal Life: Eliminating The Grocery Store |
|
YES! Absolutely wonderful article on how to wave big $$$ on groceries. My boyfriend and I recently aquired a house and we know of several different people who own a freezer and do buy grass fed beef.It will probably take a while but I do want to eliminate the grocery store as much as I can. Thank you for the tips! ... View related article. |
|
