1. Bridal Accessories
Bridal accessories are extremely over priced, especially in the small boutiques that we all love.
However, it is possible to stick to your budget without sacrificing style. My bridal veil (which start at $300.00) was $7.00 at Hobby Lobby. I wanted a long and simple veil. The one that we bought had a wavy trim on it, totally not my style. Luckily, we were able to see past it and Georgia knew that tulle could easily be cut, viola! For my belt, I wanted something chic, dainty and antique. I fell in love with a head piece that was almost a third of the price of other similar styles. With some creativity, we were able to sew the piece on the dress and create our own bridal belt.
2. Bridesmaid Robes
The minute you type "bridal" or "bridesmaid" in front of any word, the prices are more than likely to spike. I spent months trying to find nice and affordable robes (less than $40.00 each) for my bridesmaids. I scored these gray robes from Kohl's and they were only $25.00 each after coupons that I had saved. I then paid separately to have them monogrammed. Affordable and cute!
3. Centerpieces
We paid next to nothing for our centerpieces thanks to skilled men and generous friends. Dustin and his dad cut adorable wood rounds that fit with our "rustic chic" wedding vision. Teresa and Tiffany were extremely generous and allowed us to borrow the perfect lanterns to place atop each wood round. We used electric candles (since our venue didn't allow us to have open flames, hello wooden barn) that were collected between my mom's home and Georgia's home. In each dollar store frame sat the perfect table numbers that Morgan and I created using the Rifle Bond Paper Co. floral garland tiles that I used as my inspiration and color palate.
4. Decorations
I found it tough to put a lot of money towards decor that would only suffice for one night, however I wanted the reception to look beautiful and timeless. I found this flash sale site to be helpful and also picked up affordable paper table runners here. My friend Marissa got married two weeks before and we were able to split the cost of string lights that were used at both of our receptions. Borrowing things is a wonderful money saver!
5. Flowers
Your jaw might drop when you hear that we only spent $300.00 on our flowers, total! We used a local flower wear house for our blooms instead of a pricey florist. Making beautiful things affordable is possible!
If you want good food and service it comes with a hefty price, especially since we opted for the preferred caterer of our venue. I always loved the idea of having a family style dinner or a server per table, but simply didn't fit within our budget. When I told my caterer that I did not want people to wait forever to eat (my problem with buffets), she suggested having salad and bread plated before the buffet even opened. This way we did not have to pay extra for a larger catering staff. I also think it is a nice touch to show appreciation for you your guests by having food ready for them to eat as they sit down. It was a great alternative that made our guests happy and our wallets happy.
7. Picking a Venue
The price for our wedding venue was fairly average and it came with a lot. We didn't have to rent tables, chairs, string lights for the patio or even decorate for our ceremony. Everything was already there and beautiful by itself. Consider everything that your venue will offer versus shutting it down for the price tag. Most of the time it will pay out to spend a bit more on your venue versus trying to coordinate and negotiate with rental vendors and buying extra decor.
Most of all, thank you to everyone who poured their hearts and souls into your wedding. We were blessed with an abundance of help. We are especially thankful for Dad and Karen who funded our big day and never complained. We love you all!
xoxo
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