Did you do any DIY Projects or create any handmade items for your wedding?
I (the bride) made all of the wedding signage using my Cricut Maker & the gold foiling tool. I purchased wooden frames from Hobby Lobby for all of the signs and spray-painted the frames gold.
All of the cylinder glass candle holders were thrifted over several months from numerous Goodwill stores and the floating candles were bought in bulk at wholesale prices.
The biggest DIY project was all of the floral arrangements, bouquets, and boutonnieres – my sisters and I made all of the arrangements from flowers purchased from Hobby Lobby. Since the wedding was on New Year’s Eve, I wanted to incorporate some fun NYE decor – so my mom and I made the disco ball centerpiece bases out of styrofoam balls and “mirror tiles” that were actually a silver mirror reflective contact paper we hand cut it to small squares and stuck on to the styrofoam. The 10 centerpieces were time-consuming – but turned out amazing!
All of the place setting names were cut out of gold glitter scrapbook paper using the Cricut maker – I originally wanted to do the 3D acrylic names, but the added expense for the acrylic was not worth it!
I also DIY “bedazzled” my white heels for the ceremony/reception.
What creative or personal aspects did you include in your wedding?
Since we are both relatively private people, we read our vows to each other privately, before the ceremony during our first look. The only people who were there for this intimate moment were the videographer and photographer.
We also had to find a wedding venue that was pet friendly since our 11 yr old dog was one of our ring bearers.
What is the most memoriable moment of your day?
The most memorable moment of the day was our first dance. My husband and I are not great dancers and we tried to learn how to do a basic waltz but I’m glad we just kept it simple so we could enjoy the time together talking and laughing rather than trying to remember the dance steps.
What was the biggest thing you did to save money?
The biggest money-saver was doing all of the research, wedding planning, floral, decor, and set-up/tear-down ourselves. We were also able to provide the beer & wine to the venue and pay corkage fees and then we had a cash bar available for cocktails.
What was your biggest splurge?
Our biggest splurge was our photographer. Josh from Joshua Kane Photography is based in Florida and earlier in 2021, I saw a Facebook post of his that opened with “A Wedding in Every State?!” I commented on his post since I was in the beginning stages of planning our wedding and my husband and I have fun travel goals similar to Josh’s goal! My husband is trying to golf in all 50 states and we enjoy traveling together to golf! After a couple of emails back and forth with Josh, and a long phone conversation where we all just clicked, we knew he was our photographer.
Josh took care of his own travel expenses and we covered his accommodations at the resort venue. One thing I loved about Josh’s style is that he is focused on telling a story with the photos & moments he captures. I also liked that he did not have a maximum number of hours that were included – he was with us for the whole weekend and he covered every major moment – from the rehearsal & rehearsal dinner… to the set-up/decorating and getting ready… through the entire reception, countdown to 2022 and to the final send-off at 1 am!
What was your favorite details?
The ceremony decor! I am obsessed with how the mantle decor, our huge (plastic) hanging clock, and the aisle lined with floating candles turned out! My dark & moody NYE Wedding vision came to life perfectly!
What’s the best advice you have for planning your wedding now that you’re on the other side?
The biggest advice I can give another bride is to have a clear vision for your decor & overall theme and then see how much of that you can do yourself! You’d be surprised how quickly decor rentals can add up and I saved a lot of money finding decor at Hobby Lobby, Amazon, and Goodwill!
Our venue included basic banquet tables & chairs and I was able to get their “farmhouse tables” thrown in for no added expense because I simply asked when we were on our venue tour. Venues want to book your wedding and if you’re willing to ask, you might be able to get their “additional cost” items thrown in for free – just be sure it’s listed in the contract before you sign 🙂
Share any additional details you’d like us to know about your event:
A New Year’s Eve wedding was an absolute blast! All of our guests had a wonderful time and were so excited for an adults-only celebration. Planning a wedding on a “holiday” and with a reception that ended at 1 am was definitely a challenge! But it was so worth it! The wedding was an absolute dream!
