Photo By Foster Cryer Photography

I wish I would have used Reception Lighting. It would have given the bland banquet hall more pizzaz. I also wish I would have had a photo booth. I would have gotten more pictures of my guests and their personalities. A couple of things I’m glad I did was to have a live band instead of a dj. It’s more energetic and fun. Several of the guests were musical and they all got up and played/sang. Made for great entertainment. Also, I got my cake at a local grocery store. It wasn’t extravagant, but it was pretty and tasted good. I also highly recommend getting a good photographer

-Valerie, Oklahoma (wedding photographer)

Small wedding, huge reception helped me out a lot with nerves! Also I loved having the wedding video, but I should of paid for them to do the reception also. The photographer is worth the money, wish I would of gotten someone else but went cheaper. Don’t stress about the small stuff that is what the maid of honor and your personal assistant is there for, I loved my girls for dealing with issues. I also made a lot of my own things and that actually was fun because I saved money and it looked nice. Most importantly, do what you want and you make decisions and don’t let others make them for you.

-Katie, Iowa

My wedding was decades ago…I would not have done an ice sculpture I ordered a swan and it looked like a dragon. It was just another way for the hotel catering to charge daddy more! That “wow” moment we thought was going to be delivered when we saw it…. turned into a “WTF” moment!

-Tami, Florida

I thought doing a bucket of flip flops in the bathroom for the ladies was well worth it. You can get them at the dollar store. My aunt arranged the flowers that we bought wholesale and of course they looked great. We engraved bottles of wine from the vineyard we were married at for gifts for the parents. Bridesmaid dresses were regular dresses from Macy’s because I only had two people.

-Amy, Texas

I’d say, of course use your contacts to your advantage. I found a friend who was good at taking charge to lead the rehearsal. After the rehearsal we had pizza waiting for everyone in the church basement. I borrowed the warmers from the pizza place to keep the pizza warm till we were ready. I had gone to a yard sale and the girl was selling her centerpieces which were red and white. I snatched them up. After the reception, the reception hall wanted to buy them for their collection. Awesome for me! For the dinner I ordered half cornish hens for the main dish. If you know someone in the restaurant industry, they usually will help you out and order from their food truck for cost!

-Nanette, Missouri

My wedding cost a total of $3200 (including the dress & everything) Here’s what I did to save money:  1) I did the food myself (with the help of friends & family) Buffet-style with BBQ  and sides.  2) I bought my cake from Walmart & it turned out AWESOME! (I was shocked too!) The reason I used Walmart was because I forgot to order the cake in time, and Walmart only needed 2 weeks (the wedding cake & groom’s cake both only cost me $105 TOTAL)! Everyone thought it was delicious & no one knew it was from Wally-World.

-Sarah, Tennessee

Don’t get uptight over the “little” things…..the important thing is that you are getting married…something may go wrong—-don’t let it bother you..just smile and move ahead. DON’T go in debt for the wedding either—it’s just one day—you don’t want to start out on the “short end.”

-Angie, Iowa (I was her flower girl at the tender age of 9)

I stressed about nothing and stayed extremely organized. I had a Wedding Notebook to use to compare prices on stuff and keep up with business cards. Fortunately we knew so many people we didn’t have to pay much for labor….as in for flowers, our cake, our caterer, the band, and the DJ. I got a beautiful dress but did not go overboard. I do suggest printing out the order of your wedding and take it with you to the rehearsal. Also have somebody who can take charge and direct and knows your vision so you don’t have to worry about it. But I would have a sheet that makes completely clear what you want. We bought decor from Hobby Lobby and even Party City. It was a beautiful wedding and reception, looked expensive because I decorated it well….but it was not

-Juliana, Tennessee

We had a sand ceremony in the park with our six children. It was the best and everyone commented on how cool it was!

-Sandee, Iowa

I didn’t want to waste money on favors, so we took about half of the money that would have been spent and donated it to the colon cancer society in honor of my aunt. On the tables we put little notes that stated what we did instead of favors. We saved money and it was better then spending money on favors that people don’t really care about.  We did serve a meal but we bought lasagnas on sale and baked them the day of the wedding, added a salad and green beans and no one had a clue we did the food! It looked like it was all catered

-Amy, West Virginia

I felt bad about asking my bridesmaids to spend hundreds of dollars on a dress they’ll never wear again so I just told them all to pick out their own. I just asked they all be the same color. Something they liked that they could wear again. Some people may not like not having all the bridesmaids match, but I loved it. Each bridesmaid is a different person and so was her dress!! They all wore black cocktail dresses.

-Tina, Virginia

It seems like as soon as you announce an engagement, you’re instantly flooded with questions and unsolicited advise, as well as opnions that you may or may not want.  I thought it would be a fun project to reach out to family and friends for thoughts on things that they would have done differently with their own weddings.  I’ve gotten some good food for thought.  I ended up getting several responses and wanted to share them with the BSB World!

I’m happy Nick and I opted to do things our own way and not to feel obligated to do things the ‘traditional’ way. Instead of a DJ and the dance, we had a charter bus and went to a bar and then picked up the tab. We had visited the bar prior and agreed w/ the bar to flag us when the tab got to a certain amount so we would be surprised We also didn’t have a wedding cake because we both hate cake. But, we did have a dessert bar and then our own personal cheese cake.  We got a lot of flack before the wedding because of some of the things we cut out but afterwards received so many compliments on how nice it was because it was obvious it was about us and what was important to us. We also got the idea from ‘Friends’ to have our friend, Peter, get ordained to marry us. I think more people do this now,but 7 years ago it was a bit usual.  Oh, and I had Taylor (my daughter) AND my dad give me away. With so many second marriages or children born first, it was something nice and I know she remember is vividly even though she was 5.

-Jessica, Iowa

I definitely have one thing that has bothered me ever since my wedding almost five years ago that I wish I could go back and do over. We decided to skip the receiving line after the ceremony (for the sake of taking pictures/saving time), and greet the guests at our reception instead. However, our wedding was in our local town, and the reception was about 20 minutes away, downtown. Some of our older relatives decided not to make the drive on the interstate downtown, so we missed even being about to thank them for coming. I really regret that.

-Lindsay, Indiana

We didn’t have a helpful wedding party. My wedding party was more concerned about themselves than helping me – so be careful who you pick!

– Janet, Ohio

I would have NEVER have picked the colors I ended up with – it was a bad compromise & a long story but I hated them (sage & butter).  Something I DID do that was super cheap & effective was look at dresses in stores, write down the designers & styles and then ordered mine online (so naughty!).

-Jennifer, Missouri

I would have had a larger wedding.  We were given a generous budget by my parents, and chose to use part on a smaller wedding, and the other part to buy a new car.  I don’t remember a thing about the car now, but wish we would have had a larger wedding.

    -My Mother, Iowa

I would not have had my sister-in-law stand up with me.  She was a pain, hated the yellow dress, and complained the whole day. 

-”Don’t put my name on this”, Illinois

Photo By Image Trick Photography

I wish I would have taken more time making some decisions. We got engaged on April 17th and got married on August 15th, so that literally left me with 4 months to plan a wedding!  A short engagement is definitely do-able but I wish I would have thought a little more about what I wanted certain things to look like. Don’t get me wrong, I am very happy with the way everything turned out, but if I would have had a little more time I would have probably chosen a few different things: I would have discussed (in details) with the florist what my bouquet was going to look like.  I would have gone over the final look of the cake before the wedding. It had too much ribbon and stuff on it, I would have liked it a little more simple (but it was delicious!) I would have liked more pictures done outside too.

    -Stefanie, Tennessee

If getting married in a facility where you have to use their food and beverage (unless you are tied to a sit-down meal), offering buffet style heavy hor’devours or food stations in a reception style, can many times be more economical than a plated meal.  If your reception time is “between meal times” –plan on approx. 4-6 pieces of food per person.  And…if you are tied to a plated meal….negotiate serving a lunch portion rather than dinner.  For hotels, the per person cost can be as much as half the cost for a lunch portion meal.

-Jill, Tennessee (also works in event planning)

No moonshine!

-Lisa, West Virginia

Things I wish I had done differently are researching/asking around more about my photographer and caterer. Wish I would have gotten a bigger venue. Wish I would’ve waited a couple more months to get married to we could have a little bit nicer wedding. Things I’m glad I did are starting and maintaining a binder with pictures of things I liked and ideas I got about decor, etc. Glad I stuck with the vision I had for the actual ceremony even though some people seemed to think it wouldn’t work. (It did work!) Wedding was January 2006.

          -Lauren, Kentucky

I would have never had an open bar.  The cost ended up being a LOT more than we had anticipated because we paid on a per-drink basis.  I felt like we were secretly looking around to see who was drinking a $15 glass of champagne.  We also had a few people “overindulge” and cause drama, which may have been avoided.

    -Nicole, Tennessee

Keep things about the two of you– My wedding was more my Mother’s than mine.

-Annonymous, Ohio

Photo By Henderson Photography

I would have asked my bridesmaids in a more creative way.  I would also recommend a venue that does not make you cater from them alone, but allows outside catering.  They get you with that!

-Lindsey, Tennessee

It’s been a while since we shared a budget savvy wedding with our readers!! We know you will love this one! The bride and groom got creative and joined their reception with a free concert– that is the ultimate in budget savvyness! I love the bride’s style and the custom bridesmaid dresses from Kerried Away Couture! Hope you enjoy this installment of the BSWOW!

Allison & RJ

August 6, 2011
Nashville, TN

Ceremony: The Sunken Garden at Centennial Park
Reception: The Big Band Dance at Centennial Park

What was your budget? 

Less Than $10,000

How many guests did you have?

# of Guests  25 at ceremony (plus many passersby that stopped to watch!) and 50 at reception following

What creative or personal aspects did you include in your wedding?

We had a 1930’s southern theme.  We kept our ceremony low key with only immediate family and the wedding party present.  We then used our grandparents’ milk glass serving dishes at the reception and had old black and white photos of them sitting around on the tables for décor.  It was very important to us to have them be a part of our special day even though they could only be there in spirit. We expressed our easy going side by having a public park venue where we knew many passersby would stop and watch from afar if they felt so inclined (and believe me they did!) and then utilizing the FREE Big Band Dance they have in Centennial Park on Saturday nights as our reception venue/entertainment.  Everyone had a great time dancing, sitting in their lawn chairs, or relaxing watching others dance!

What was the biggest thing you did to save money?

We did everything ourselves but make the dresses and the cupcakes!  I bought my dresses online (from other individuals, not vendors) and got them for half the price of retail!  We made all of the food.

What’s the best advice you have for planning your wedding now that you’re on the other side?

We should have assigned duties to our wedding party for setting up the reception.  Our friends and family worked so hard, but we could have had more time to visit with them if it would have been more organized.

What was your biggest splurge?

Photography, but it was worth every penny!  Alex is an awesome photographer and VERY reasonable compared to others that we received quotes from.  She will be our photographer for years to come!

What was your favorite detail?

Oh my, we loved it all!!  I guess if I had to pick one thing it would be Halfbrass playing “In the Mood” marching us, the wedding party, and all ceremony guests out of the ceremony site and through the street to the reception site.  The guests seemed to thoroughly enjoy the peanut butter cup cupcakes from Gigi’s, the Mexican glass bottled cokes (out of my grandfather’s original Coca-Cola ice chest), and most of all the handmade lips, mustaches, and other dress up items w/ instant photos for the guestbook.

VENDORS

Planner: Bride and Groom (We did it all ourselves!!)
Photographer: Alex Embry from “Photos by Alex”
Gown: White One by Pronovias (bought online)
Bridal Sash and Hair Pin: Custom made by Kerried Away Couture
Accessories: Steve Madden shoes (I’ve had them forever! They are my favorite!) and Earrings from Charming Charlies;
Reception dress: Sue Wong Ivory Ostrich Feather Flapper dress (bought on E-bay)
Groom’s attire / groomsmen attire: Groom’s Seersucker suit from Jos. A Bank and Groomsmen suits from Overstock.com
Bridesmaid’s attire and Brooches : Custom made by Kerried Away Couture
Hair & Makeup: Natalie Armstrong, Bride’s sister
Stationery (Invitations, programs, menu cards etc): Designed by bride/groom at Mixbook.com (We had a Groupon!!)
Ceremony musicians: Halfbrass
Reception Musicians (band/dj): Big Band Dance at Centennial Park (FREE Event)
Transportation (Limo, shuttle etc): Black 1939 Packard   NashvilleWeddingCars.com
Caterer: Allison Armstrong (bride), Nina Armstrong (bride’s mother), and Betty Malone (bride’s aunt)
Cake Artist: Gigi’s Cupcakes
Floral Designer: Melanie at A Village of Flowers 
Guest Accommodations: Holiday Inn Vanderbilt

Insurance is an expensive part of life– Can’t live with it, can’t live without it.   Weddings are no different, for both rings and the event itself.  In our case, our venue requires a Certificate of Insurance covering for up to $1,000,000.  For many brides, this may be something that isn’t always figured into a preliminary budget but should be, depending on which route you take.

I’ve dealt with event insurance a little bit in the past, but not directly.  I’ve worked for bands and now a booking agency, and as expected, concerts and shows require a hefty amount of insurance.  Just as with a wedding, if something happens to the building, guests, etc., you need to be covered, even if it’s a backyard wedding at your family’s house.  While $1,000,000 worth of coverage sounds intimidating, if something serious happens things add up quickly.

Websites like WedSafe.com and TheEventHelper.com are both common choices for many brides.  Quick online quotes can easily be gathered with no commitment as well.  Most will ask for the level of coverage that you need (which is oftentimes given to you by your venue), and an estimated number of guests.  WedSafe quoted me $175, and TheEventHelper quoted me $134.  Not too excited to have this expense cutting into my decorating budget, I set out for some more suggestions and discovered that through our homeowner’s insurance we are able to add on a rider to cover the event for a mere $20 (this isn’t a typo, I didn’t forget a digit)!

In conclusion, I definitely recommend first approaching your homeowner’s or renter’s insurance agent with your needs before splurging on a more expensive “wedding insurance” option.  As you’re probably finding with several other things in your planning, tacking the word “wedding” on to just about anything will automatically raise the price!