Your Best Frugal Wedding Tips!

**mnmarty03** · 10-11-2008, 08:18 PM

Okay girls and guys - hit me with your best frugal wedding tips!!!

I am getting married in March and our budget is already pretty tiny for the wedding. But I thought I'd post here and see if you guys can give us some good cheap tips!

I do ask that no one suggest, "just eloping" or "go to the courthouse" or "don't buy a wedding dress" type tips... we are having a small wedding (25-30 people tops will be attending) in my home church (rental fee max $250 but probably cheaper) on a Friday in March (so off seasons savings!).

I already have lots of thoughts and ideas, but am interested to hear yours!!!

Ready...set... hit me with your tips!

**Buc-O-Mama** · 10-11-2008, 11:42 PM

A little more info about what type of wedding/reception you are planning would be helpful for specific hints. Here are a few:

Borrow framed wedding photos from both sides of the family to display at the reception. Print labels that say "Bride's Aunt Polly and Uncle Bob" so that everyone knows who they are. They can be arranged quite simply but have huge impact, and it is a nice way to involve both families.

Consider ordering fresh flowers from you grocery store and making your own bouquets and table arrangements. Buy a few flowers and get some ribbon and see if you like what you end up with.

Make your own food for your reception. Enlist our family's help, but it wouldn't take much to make your own. We made salad, lasagna and bread for 250 people when we were married. We made the lasagna in trays 2 days before the wedding, didn't even boil the noodles and baked them the day of. It was back before you could buy salad in a bag, so the day before we prepped all the veggies. We bought big bags of rolls at Costco (or whatever it was called back then) and had butter on the tables. It sounds like way more of a big deal than it was. It was way cost effective and everyone loved it because they ate a real meal instead of just finger food. We just had someone turn on the oven as the ceremony began and kept an eye on the kitchen and kept the food moving.

My best advice is to pay a pro to take your photos. That will always be my one regret. Scrimp and cut corners anywhere else, but not on your pictures. Best wishes as you plan your wedding!

**Thrifty Mom** · 10-12-2008, 12:31 AM

My two daughters had nice weddings, but we did not spend a ton of money. Wedding in church was pretty basic. Used unity candle holder at church. A friend made the coupIe's candle, I made a flower arrangement.We borrowed pew bows from somebody who had a recent wedding. Ditto with the runner. ( Look around at your church, someone may have left stuff behind that you can use) Bridesmaids carried a single rose with ribbons. DD # 1 carried two dozen white roses gathered into an informal bouquet, with babys breath for filller, lots of streaming ribbons. DD#2 had more structured bouquet, used a form from the craft shop, used both white and coral roses . We also made all the corsages & boutineers. All the flowers were fresh & purchased at Sam's Club for $50.00 each wedding. One daughter had bride's maids get dresses off the internet for $70.00 each.
Both weddings were in the same hall which we decorated ourself. Hooked lots of white Christmas lights to the ceiling over dance floor & hung lengths of silver curling ribbon. Is was very sharp looking & very cheap. We borrowed most of the Christmas lights. We decorated the tables with borrowed glass fish bowls. We tied new ribbons to fit color scheme & filled with clear marbles & a candle. We used plain tapers on tables with borrowed glass candle holders. Used Grandma's candelabra on head table. Draped tulle & more lights & plastic vines in swags across head table. More Christmas lights in fake Fiscus trees we found in the store room at the hall. Head table had champane flutes from dollar store for attendants. Bride & groom had beautiful, expensive flutes, bought on close out sale for $3.00 each. Decorated glasses with silk flowers & ribbon. DD# 1 had DJ from local radio station. DD# 2 had a band. We knew the band & the DJ & they gave us a good price. Cake # 1 made by my friend @ $1.00 per slice.decorated with fresh flowers. Cake # 2 made by groom's mother. I made mints to match wedding colors. We had the food catered. The lady charged $7.00 for entree. salad, veg, relish tray & cheese & crackers, rolls. For additional $1.00 we got an additional entree & for one more $1.00 we got appetizers. The appeziters were a mix of stuff. There was nacho dip & chips, pretzels, cheese tray, cookies... The food we ordered was roast beef, mashed potatoes & gravy, green beans, salad, lasagna, along with the rolls, relish tray & cheese tray. I thought is was quite a bargain. All the tableware went with it, plates, napkins, plastic utensils.Also there was punch & coffee & all the cups. Anyway, I guess my tip is to borrow everything you can & just buy what you have to. Focus on what you want the most & that's where most of the money should go. My girls wanted big parties with lots of friends, so we spent on food & entertainment. One daughter spent more on her dress, the other daughter had a simple dress & I gave her the difference in $$.

**frooz** · 10-12-2008, 01:04 AM

We had a very frugal wedding. We bought and made our own decorations and centrepieces, we were decorating the morning of the wedding. We could't find any flowers at a reasonable price during the public holiday (Easter) so we went without (nobody noticed). I bought a lot of things on ebay such as my jewellery and some lighting etc. We made mix CD's instead of a band.
A friend of my dads took our photos in exchange for beer. That worked out well, he was a good photographer who did it for a hobby and was honoured someone would trust him with their wedding, he was really sweet.

**Laura2** · 10-12-2008, 02:10 AM

A friend of mine who got married on a tight budget bought all the meat for dinner herself at Costco. Then she gave it to the caterers to cook. She saved lots of money there.

You can also buy a very small wedding cake for you and your husband to cut then buy an inexpensive sheet cake to serve to everyone.

Flowers that are in season are usually cheapest.

**Araceli** · 10-12-2008, 02:59 AM

Hi hi,

Hey, I'm getting married as well

so I've been planning this to be a nice moment and quite cheap at the same time.

I'd say if you can skip the reception part, then do. Even if you invite as few as 25-30 people .. .it's still food, cake, decoration, etc .. . you know, the usual stuff. I agree that the wedding occasion should be unforgettable, but with imagination you can try something very romantic without having to spend a large check.

A friend of mine who happens to be a wiccan will be holding the wedding for me, so if you know someone who can hold it (maybe a pastor, or priest could do the same for you) you can have the idea. As for the place, I'm getting married in the forest that surrounds the lake where I took my fiancee's proposal. Natural environment, no extra decoration needed, just nature, the moon, lake and stars. And really meaningful, private and romantic!! (to me, at least). Of course, no reception will be held, just families reunited in this magical moment.

Regarding the dress, you can also minimize the expenses here if you follow the tradition: something old, something new, something borrowed. .. I made the 'something old' become my mother's dress. I still have to shed a few pounds to be able to fit in it nicely, and I will do some changes myself, but that's a large saving.

**Tiajean** · 10-12-2008, 03:02 AM

Now, we did go to Vegas last year to get married, but we did not elope. We spent 8 months planning everything. And it's not as cheap as some think to get married over there when the wedding is planned. We had a reception before we left (30 people) and invitations were sent out to attend the wedding via the computer because there were a lot of people that would have never been able to afford to go. Vegas was our Wedding and Honeymoon in one.

I got my dress off houseofbrides.com last year for my wedding. The dress I wanted was $1,000.00 in the store and on other online stores. I paid under $200.00 for the dress and my garter and that included shipping and handling. I'm plus size so I did have to pay $30.00 extra so if you're small you may be able to get it for even cheaper. BUT you still have to order 4 months in advance to make sure you get it on time and then you do have to find someone to alter it for you in your town. It cost me $40.00 to have mine done by the seamstress at our local drycleaners. Also, make sure you check out the bridesmaid dresses as well for a potential wedding dress. Some come with trains, you can get an attachable train, and it will specify what colors you can get it in. Most of them you can get white. Other than that, I've heard David's Bridal has pretty good deals and treat you great, but I have not had personal experience with them.
I got my invitations from Office Max and printed them out myself. The invitations I got came with an online program to use with very nice fonts and they were just as professional looking as my cousins who were done professional for a professional price. Cost for Invitations, note cards, envelopes with silver inside, thank you cards and envelopes, and matching envelope seals cost me $30.00 for 50 count of everything. I'm not sure what my cousin's invitations cost, but we also had to order graduation cards last year for my step-daughter who insisted on professional ones and for the invitations and envelopes with color inside it was $300.00 for 50, plus we had to buy the party invites to go in them, thank you cards, and envelope seals. I think you can get very creative without spending a ton of money to have someone else make your invites. I have seen that they even have some (although a limited variety) at Walmart.
I won't have any advise on flowers as I only had my bouquet that was made by the place we got married at and my reception was made up like a Halloween/Harvest party (we were married on Halloween actually) so we used fake flowers and Fall decorations.
I did have the reception catered and that's completely choice if you want that. If you have a lot of family that's willing to help, it's a great money saver. You could have a potluck or do the bulk cooking. We had it catered because my DH insisted on it and I was exstatic that he did! I did not have a cake (my choice) because it didn't really go with the theme. I made pies instead. For the season I made Apple, Pumpkin, Pecan, and Cheesecake. For Spring/March suggested pies would be like Lemon Merengue, Cherry, Apple, Peach, etc...
My favors were actually a wedding present done by DH's aunt. They were very nice votive candles on a few silk leaves with ribbon and twine wrapped around them with a loving message on them. I will say this though as a warning if you get it done as a gift... They are still your favors and you should have the deciding factor in them so let them know right away that you want to give them ideas of what you want for the favors!!!! I loved my favors BUT she went and bought everything, made them ALL up and then asked if I liked them. I personally wanted some type of food that people could take home, like caramel and candied apples, but she bought and made everything before I even got the chance to call her to set up a time to talk.
I did also see something about saving on center pieces for the reception tables (you really didn't specify where it will be or what kind you are wanting) where you use short cheap plastic vases instead of buying a ton of expensive glass/crystal vases, and then you take oranges and stick them together with toothpicks making a ring to go around the cheap vase. Until I saw the end result I thought it would be horrid, but it really was so beautiful...

My step daughter also was our DJ for the reception. She just happens to have a free Napster type program that's offered through her university. She couldn't burn the music onto discs, she did have to bring her laptop and work the music from there, but with some really awesome speakers she had for it, it sounded as good as a regular DJ and she had everything from current r&b to viva las vegas by Elvis LOL!

OH AND DO NOT SKIMP ON THE PHOTOGRAPHER!!!! I agree with that. I wish I had hired a photographer instead of using just the one at the place we got married. We have nice pictures, but only got a certain number and couldn't choose our poses. We did take our own pictures before and after the wedding, but there's only so much you can do when it's just the two of you LOL

Also, something we decided on was to buy cheap wedding bands to start off with. We decided that we would ideally like platinum or white gold, so I went for cheaper... Silver. I found a place online (I really love online!) that sold sterling silver comfort fit bands in various sizes. My DH also has pretty large fingers (size 13) and this caused a problem at first, but I found a site that could accomodate. I ordered both of our rings and it actually cost me less than $25.00 including shipping and handling. We are going to get really nice bands later on, when we can afford them, but for now no one even knows they aren't extremely expensive bands, and that's okay. I know there are places that you can get whole sets (bands and engagement ring) for really cheap. A lot of them are either lower quality diamonds or Cubic Ziconia, but seriously, no one is ever going to be able to tell UNLESS you tell them or they have a magnifier looking at it and then that's gettin a little too close LOL I seriously wish I had known about the cheaper sites to get an engagement ring before DH went out and spent way too much on my ring. DH has also already broken his ring (at his job) and I think about how bad that would have been had it been a really expensive ring and if he wrecked it like that. I have to order him a new one to give to him for our anniversary actually.

I guess I've rambled on for quite a bit. I did my whole wedding very frugally. I was able to have a beautiful wedding, a wonderful reception and an 8 day honeymoon in Vegas for a lot less than most can imagine.
Unfortunately, I didn't find frugal village until after I got married or else I bet I could have cut my budget in half!

I hope at least some of this helped

**Pemberleyan** · 10-12-2008, 08:39 AM

You have to pay to rent your own church? I've never heard of that. I guess it varies from church to church.

You've already gotten some great advice. Cheese straws make a great, easy to make ahead and freeze item.

**McD** · 10-12-2008, 09:10 AM

-Do NOT get your dress altered at the bridal shoppe!! WAY OVERPRICED (and was done wrong in my case!)
-Make your own veil! The veil they tried to sell us was 700$. We bought a pre-made plain veil at Joanns, bought some pretties--total cost 40$ and I have a one of a kind heirloom to pass on.
-Not sure what is available there, but we have a grocery store here with a bakery, kitchen, floral all in one. B/c we ordered the cake/food/flowers from them, we got a 10% discount.

**larabelle** · 10-12-2008, 09:19 AM

My sister went frugal on several items for her wedding.
1.) She had the wedding at our church so there was no charge for the wedding and the reception area.
2.) She decorated the reception area herself (bows and candies on the tables)and only served snack foods at the reception (nuts, fruit and vegetable trays and of course the cake). She had a small wedding cake and then sheet cakes for everyone.
3.) She got her wedding dress off the sale rack at a bridal store for $99.00 and used my mother's wedding veil. She was to large to fit into my mother's wedding dress. Now she wishes she could have found a cheaper dress since it was only worn once.
4.) Bridesmaids carried a nice candle decorated with ribbons versus flowers.
5.) My sister is highly allergic to flowers so she carried a fake bouquet. It was really pretty.
6.) The church was decorated with bows and ribbons which was done the night before the wedding.(dollar store) The church does not believe in dancing but I think it would have been really nice if she would have had some nice music during the reception.
By the way thanks for posing this question as I can use the many tips for my wedding.

**ahmom** · 10-12-2008, 09:38 AM

Don't buy those bridal magazines. They will get you thinking you need XYZ!
Most little touches won't be recognized by guests.

**PrairieRose** · 10-12-2008, 10:57 AM

Well my dd did the courthouse, only parents route, she had a lovely dress bought on sale and her bouquet was donated by a florist friend. It was needless to say an uber frugal wedding. BUT there are a few things you can do other than those already mentioned (which are some great tips b.t.w.) to cut the costs of a small wedding. In our small town there is a lady who makes the most delicious and beautiful wedding cakes. Everyone in town uses her vs. the bakeries in the town next to us. She is really reasonable and you can't buy a nicer cake anywhere. So you might ask/check around....you might be able to find someone like that near you. I'd suggest having a small decorated cake and then having sheet cake to serve. Much less expensive, tastes the same. Make your punch ahead of time if you're serving it. You can freeze it. For bridesmaid dresses pick a color and let everyone buy a dress they love (or if you're paying for the dresses....set a limit) and will wear again. Don't worry about doing things a certain way. Do what's important to you, don't over think it. It's gonna be over in about 3 hours if you have a sit down reception. Keep it simple and enjoy the day. Oh and I don't know what you've done about rings. My dd's fiance's mother gave him a wedding set with nice diamonds and he took it and designed a new ring (3 stone) for dd's engagement ring. They ordered their bands online and saved a bundle on it all by doing this. Also the engagement ring has special sentiment b/c of it.

Have fun planning, it really is 1/2 the fun.

**Jessesbride** · 10-12-2008, 11:07 AM

Originally Posted by mnmarty03

Okay girls and guys - hit me with your best frugal wedding tips!!!

I am getting married in March and our budget is already pretty tiny for the wedding. But I thought I'd post here and see if you guys can give us some good cheap tips!

I do ask that no one suggest, "just eloping" or "go to the courthouse" or "don't buy a wedding dress" type tips... we are having a small wedding (25-30 people tops will be attending) in my home church (rental fee max $250 but probably cheaper) on a Friday in March (so off seasons savings!).

I already have lots of thoughts and ideas, but am interested to hear yours!!!

Ready...set... hit me with your tips!

OK, haven't read all the advise here, but will give ya what I got!

DO NOT SKIMP ON PHOTOS!!!

While our wedding overall was not entirely cheap it was "cheaper" by far in certain areas. We had my dh's great Aunt Betty who is very talented in the decorating area to decorate for our wedding. Dh's Mom, Renee' helped us with getting everything done (no she didn't take over, but she sure got us on track when we were way overwhelmed!). We also wanted a Christmas time theme to our wedding ... which we did... in August! lol! was great!

We looked at Consignment stores, as well as spanish botiques (you know the ones that look like a cheap kmart before you enter the store, but when you walk into them the gorgeous dresses take your breathe away... & they have really awesome prices!!!! as in waaaaaay cheap! usually you find these in the "poorer sides of town" ~ I got all FOUR (yes 4) of my flowergirl dresses at one of them! Also, if you find something that you love at one store but can make it match something that you love & have gotten at another store... go for it! I wore a tiara, that I found at a diff. bridal shoppe than where I found my dress... unfortunately, I didn't realize that the spanish botique had the same thing that I had bought for $79 for about $25 until after my wedding! Go figure!

We also printed our own invitations that we got at Michael's & had found some awesome templates to use for those invites. fraction of the cost of the "real" invites that cost easily $300 to over $1000! Did I mention that we had between 200 & 300 people at our wedding? We also did get a professional cake but also got sheet cake to go with it ~ much cheaper! My dh's cake was a chocolate rum cake that his family made that was his fave! so his Aunt (or mom?) made about 9 of those cakes for his groomscake! what's your hubby's fave cake & can anyone make it in the family? YOu could do the same with the bridescake if you wanted!

Our DJ (Jonathon) was a friend of ours that we met thru my bestfriend Wendy (he's also her fiance' now! lol). & he let us set the price... I think it was settled on for $200 but b/c he was so great & we just really wanted to bless him (& b/c I had come into some $$$ right before the wedding) we ended up giving him about $4-600! it was great to see the shock on his face! lol!

Another friend of ours also used Jonathon for DJing her wedding as well as being the caterer (yes he's also a caterer... but this time with a twist... her family cooked the food etc, & we all it up & got everything ready (Wendy, my dh, & I & a few other friends of hers). we all helped to get it set up & broke down & all in between! Best 9 hours of being on my feet & getting exercise I can ever remember! So if you have responsible friends... grab em & let them know that you need help to get your special day done!

That's all I can think of for now! good luck!!!

Oh one more... if you get a church in the country it's usually way cheaper, or if you attend church your church may do it for free (depending on the church)!

Kim

**LexTysMommy** · 10-12-2008, 11:16 AM

A few things popped into my head.

Look on craigslist for things being sold from someone elses wedding, or post ad for things you are looking for.

I think buying or making a small elegant cake to display and keep plain sheet cakes in back for guests is great idea!

If you are going to do favors, go simple. MOST people dont really do much with the favors from weddings. I have been to weddings who put candy in little containers with ribbon by each plate with a printed paper saying date/names of bride and groom, those were cute!

DO NOT go over board on flowers. They are so pretty but SO expensive. See if there is a wedding before or after you at church and maybe talk to other couple about sharing costs there.

Candles arranged in middle of table is great centerpeice at reception. With all food and people purses cameras etc on table its better not to crowd it up too much.

Good luck! and CONGRATS!

**cab54** · 10-12-2008, 12:06 PM

I can only tell you what we did 30 years ago---these things may not 'float' nowadays..........

Made my dress and veil
Sis (seamstress) and I made the bridesmaid dresses
Mom and an aunt made the food
Another aunt who does cakes made the cake
Only had beer, no hard liquor, and our teenage brothers tended bar (and were drunk by the end of the evening

--make sure they have a ride home)
Reception was in the basement (rented) of the church
No DJ/band. We just played tapes and our fams helped with that(told you this was 30 years ago)
Got a nice neighbor who had a printing business to give me a deal on invites, napkins etc
Paid for the whole thing myself!

The flowers were the most expensive for me. I was DUMB and ordered white roses in February. Ridiculous. There were no flowers in grocery stores back then, that I remember--that would be a good deal.

But I really have to say--if I had to do it all over again---I'd elope! LOL!