How do I do a really small inexpensive wedding the RIGHT way...a NICE way in NY?

Question

Helpp!

Answer 1

This is my idea if you guys arent necessarily set on a church wedding:

Know anyone with a spacious backyard with a beautiful view? Have in the back yard, for free. Rent chairs. Another option is to rent a hall, maybe a clubhouse (use it as a wedding/reception venue), Set it up like a reception hall similar to this:



http://www.thriftyfun.com/images/feedback_image.lasso?id=37532219/.. (this isnt a beautiful set up, but i think you can get an understanding of the look)



That way everything is in one place. People all already seated. Just Bring the food and the cake out after the wedding. A friend of mine rented a hall fro 750 and did this with it. Also for favors serving trays utensils, ballons, flowers, etc. go to http://www.dollartreedirect.com/ or http://www.orientaltrading.com/ui/shared...



For your invites-http://www.formal-invitations.com/ or Target http://www.target.com/gp/search/182-5500376-2029555?field-keywords=wedding+invitations&url=index%3Dtarget&ref=sr_bx_1_1- have kinkos print them for you after you make a template. Should run about 15.00 you can also so that with the programs.



For food- 2 options ask friends or family to cook- lasagne or spaghetti will give you more bang for your buck, a nice salad and french or garlic bread.

Or for a small wedding- catering might not be to expensive

Party punch- 1/2 gallon fruit punch, 1 pint raspberry sherbert, 1/2 liter lemon lime pop ( 7up Sprite or an off Brand) Also since there arent that many people catering for them might not be that expensive.



For a cake Costco or Sams club: They both make something similar to this, with out all of the frilly stuff at 12.00 a cake so about 36 and the stand is about 15. You can use some flowers to decorate it and cover the stand any way you want.

http://pullmansunrental.com/sun_food_service_supplies/Floating%20Cake%20Stand%20and%20Fountain.jpg



Another option is order a smaller cake for you 2 to cut, mount it on a nice stand

fhttp://www.cakeabakin.com/images/special...

and serve from a larger sheet cake.



Don't be afraid to do the wedding bouquets yourself, theyre easy once you get a book from like hobby lobby and alot of the tools can be found at your local dollar store.



Do all of this and I swear you will come in at your goal amount or less. You just gotta be willing to put in a little leg work.



Dress...try Davidsbridal- buy a birdesmaid dress in white or ivory- youll save tons on money.



Also with makeing favors and bouquets- ask your mother and bridal party to come over and help make a girls night of it. Maybe cook a meal for them, nothing to fancy or order some pizza.



Ipod for a DJ...maybe rent some great speakers.



Forego the liquor all together except for a champagne toast



Centerpieces- hurricanes and pillar candels are always something cheaper. sprinkle petals around or you can get roses at costco and sams at about 15.00 for 2 dozen

Answer 2

The easiest way to lessen the expense of a wedding without sacrificing the quality is to keep the guest list very small. You can do a really nice 30-guest wedding, complete with sit-down dinner, dancing, and alcohol for the same amount it would cost to do just appetizers and a limited or cash bar for 200 guests.



Instead of going to a hotel or well-known reception hall, think outside the box for your ceremony and reception venue. NY is loaded with gorgeous city parks, and it costs so much less to reserve a park location through the city Parks and Rec. department than to go through a privately-owned botanical garden or other venue. I went through the Parks department for my wedding ceremony venue and am getting married at a darling little lake-front, Italian-looking park venue for only $75!! All the privately-owned places I looked into were $600 and up!



Also, consider using your iPod as a DJ. It is really easy to create a good playlist of dance music for the reception and then just enlist the help of a tech-savvy friend to hook it up to a speaker system, push play, and check on it periodically to make sure it's running smoothly.



Also, I recommend seeing if there is a local restaurant that will allow you to hold your reception there. Some restaurants, particularly the family-owned ones, will allow you to have a reception there for just the cost of the catering, with no additional rental fees or deposits. Also, since restaurants come equipped with tablecloths, plates, silverware and wait staff, you won't have to pay extra for any of that, as you would have to do with a reception hall or ballroom. And most restaurants already have really beautiful decor and elegant centerpieces or pretty candles, so you wouldn't have to pay for floral centerpieces or additional decor. You could save a bundle there!!



One more suggestion: it is getting quite trendy to do a cupcake tower in lieu of a traditional tiered wedding cake. It still looks awesome, but costs a fraction of the price- AND you don't have to pay a cake-cutting fee, which most reception places charge if you need help cutting the cake.

Answer 3

I agree with fizzy... She's doing everything I am doing, except I found a great inexpensive dress $300 and I rented a private vacation home for our grandmothers and aunts to stay in while they are here. It will cost me $600 for the weekend. We are ordering food from our 2 favorite restaurants and we might hire servers or just have it buffet style. The food total is an estimated $380, and I haven't figured out what we'll do about drinks yet. I think my mom's going to pay the servers.

Answer 4

Well, What I did on my wedding is I did some investigating around. My mother was a professional florist, so she did the flowers up. My dad makes wine up, so he bought the wine kits and made wine for the wedding. That saved a lot of money right there. To save even more money, get silk flowers, they look just as good and believe it or not you can rent them and have a florist or relative who is a florist make them up. Try and use your family and the talents they have available to you. Hope this helps.





The Pauper.

Answer 5

do everything yourself...make you flowers,centerpieces,food, and favors ect. you can get books or instructions online. do a back yard wedding at a nice home...or in a park under some trees or were flowers are already blooming and you wouldnt need many decorations.

if you have the wedding early in the day you can do a few finger foods and punch instead of a big meal. have one maid of honor and one bestman and thats it...you wont have to buy so many gifts..etc.