In my research, I've found that buying tablecloths is actually cheaper than renting them either directly with the rental company or through your caterer. Tablecloths cost $10-$12/each to rent and on ebay they are $7-$8. I purchased 20 tablecloths (any color) for $155. And after you use them you can wash them and then sell them on craigslist and get your $$ back!
Hey - $200 really helps these days!
So don't rent your tablecloths, BUY THEM!
EBAY! EBAY! EBAY!
How About a Red Wedding
Dress?
In the United States, many
brides feel like they need to have a white wedding dress, even if they don’t
really want to. I say wear what you’d like to wear – whatever color you want!
Wedding dresses don’t have to be white!
In China and India, for example, the traditional wedding dress is red. Yes, red. A red dress is considered to bring good luck in both the Indian and Chinese traditions. Check out this awesome site, Red Hot Brides. They have a ton of red wedding dress options that will blow your mind!
Be
bold, Rebel Brides. Have fun! Try on dresses that aren’t white – see how you feel in
them. You may be pleasantly surprised!
More to come on this topic
with awesome examples soon!
Calling all DIY Brides! Check
out these awesome stamp return addresses from Paperwink! You can customize them
and use them for your wedding invitations. They will definitely bring a sweet, personalized touch to your invites!
The first time that little
birdie in my head told me to write a blog was after about 6 hours of
researching what to do about dinnerware and silverware for my wedding. It was
the ultimate battle between renting china and disposable plates. What would be
the most cost-effective, which option is more green, will disposable plates
look super cheesy and cheap? All these dumb questions running through my mind…
We wanted a DIY,
affordable wedding, but we don’t want anything to look like it is a bargain
basement, trashy alternative. Disposable plates were not looking too good and
then,
Voila! Found it! The
perfect plate! Disposable easily won the epic battle with Bambu Veneerware.
Get this?! They are
completely organic, free of bleaches or dyes, biodegrade completely in 4-6
months, perfect for single use, cost MUCH less than renting china, and look
beautiful. Also, since we are bringing our own dinnerware, our catering
company took $0.20/per person off of our final bill, which saves us another $40
(DEFINITELY ask your caterer this). Also, don’t forget! With Disposable plates,
you don’t need to pay for a service to bus plates, which ended up saving us an
additional $500! We are going to have information about the plates and their
environmental-friendliness out on the tables as conversations starters. AND we
get extra points for going green. WOOT!
If you want to learn more
about Bambu Veneerware, go to http://bambuhome.com/products/.
If you want to BUY them,
go to Joanne Hudson. They
are BY FAR the most affordable (especially for bulk purchases) and they are
always on sale and they usually have a deal on shipping which effin’ ROCKS!
Here is a cost breakdown
so you can see for yourself!
General Cost Breakdown for 200-Person Wedding:
Renting China &
Silverware:
Bambu Veneerware:
Total: $459 - $40
saved for bringing our own stuff = $419
I was given some great
advice from my dear friend, Ryane, who is also engaged and working with a very
strict budget! I told her my budget woes and she said pick 3 things that are
most important to you for that day: Food, Photos, Dress, Venue, Booze, Etc… and
make those 3 things a priority. Spend the most money in your budget on the 3
and do the minimal for the rest. Your guests will remember the 3.
I have to say, it has been
great advice! Here’s our list:
1.
Kick Ass Photographer
2.
Great Venue/Location
3.
Good Food/Beer
Done and Done!
When I started planning my
wedding back in July, I did what I expect most engaged women do… make a list of
everything that I needed to do in the coming months. I used the wedding
checklists of the knot and checked out pictures from general wedding sites and
then I got to thinking…
Why?
Why do I have to have a
receiving line, why do I have to pick $200 bridesmaid dresses, why do I have to
get married in a church, why do I have to register for stuff when I already
have enough stuff, why do we need to have programs, awkward first dances,
expensive white china, a huge white poofy dress, chicken or fish, a traditional
ceremony if neither of us are religious, and the list goes on and on… Why?
The reason is because our
society has created an insane wedding industry that pushes tradition and $25K+
weddings.
So my wonderful fiancé and
I decided to break the mold and have a wedding that reflected US. We are having
a 60s & 70s theme DIY wedding with classic rock & fake mustaches. It’s
going to be a big party and a ton of fun. It’s going to be affordable and
memorable. It’s going to have fake mustaches and tattoos as table gifts and
Diana Ross wigs for after the ceremony. It might even have karaoke.
My tip: Don’t be afraid to
have the wedding YOU want. If you’re doing traditional stuff just because it is
what is deemed ‘normal.’ STOP. Do yourself a favor, ask yourself ‘WHY’, cut out
the weird stuff, and plan a wedding about YOU.
YAY! Go for it!
Keep it real. There's no future in frontin'.
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