Showing posts with label wedding. Show all posts

7 Tips I've Actually Used to Plan a Beautiful Wedding on a Budget

Wednesday, April 20, 2016

I am a firm believer that you don't have to spend a lot of money to have a beautiful home, and the same principle applies to a wedding.

Especially a wedding! 

Brides have all different budgets but every bride (and groom) deserves to have a day that is lovely, filled with joy, and that feels like her dream come true.

Since wedding season is fast approaching, I wanted to share some of the tips and tricks we used to make my daughter's wedding just what she wanted without going (too much) over budget. First figure out the areas you want to splurge (for us it was the photographer and the dress), and then use these tips to get the wedding of your dreams!
DIY tips for a Beautiful Wedding on a Budget
1. HAVE THE RECEPTION AT HOME - One of the biggest expenses for a wedding reception is the venue. If you can have yours at home you can save a TON of money, and any dollars you spend beautifying the place will stay with you long after the wedding. BONUS! 

 We had about 80 people at our daughter's reception even though we don't have what you might consider a lot of room. It worked well though because having the tables close together and everyone a tiny bit "cozy" made everything feel fun and festive.
The reception was outside but we still splurged on a house cleaner the day before so everything looked nice when people came in to powder their noses and whatnot.

 Even if you aren't able to have the wedding or reception at your own home, you might have family or a friend who is willing to host your party. I've met people with lovely homes who actually dream about hosting a wedding.

 Like Marilla says in Anne's House of Dreams by L.M. Montgomery, "...a house was not a real home until it had been consecrated by a birth, a wedding and a death." Obviously you don't want to give birth at someone else's house, but having your wedding there could be nice.

 2. BUY THE CAKE FROM A GROCERY STORE BAKERY- a wedding cake starts at around $500; if it isn't on your "splurge list" consider ordering one from your grocery store and prettying it up with flowers. My daughter loves pie so she also enlisted her Grammy and a close friend to make pies for the dessert bar.
 3. DIY THE FLOWERS - A talented florist can make arrangements that are almost magical, but if your budget is super tight you can get a beautiful look making your own with flowers from the local flower mart, Costco, or even Trader Joe's. We filled the back of our car with 5 gallon paint buckets and gallon jugs of water and visited the San Francisco flower mart the morning before the wedding. We knew the colors and mood that the bride wanted and had saved pictures on our phones of her inspiration bouquets and boutonnieres. We concentrated on flowers in the same color family and with the same textures as the the ones she loved. Don't forget lots of greenery for adding volume.

 An artistic friend and my artistic daughter (the maid of honor) made the bouquets, corsages and boutonnieres the day before the wedding and we kept them refrigerated overnight.
DIY Bridal Bouquet
Here is the beautiful bride with all of her bridesmaids-and their flowers.
There are lots of tutorials online and on YouTube for making your own bouquets and boutonnieres; in the weeks before the wedding we studied up and even bought flowers and did practice runs.

For the centerpieces we stuck with simple flowers in mason jars and bud vases, and then went for masses of flowers in every vase we could collect on all the other tables.
4. TWINKLE LIGHT THE HECK OUT OF EVERYTHING-candles and twinkle lights make the most humble space seem like a fairy garden when the sun goes down. Use them liberally. There are never too many!
5. DIY THE WEDDING FAVORS-I made jam and my daughter made darling labels for her favors. It was super cheap and everyone loved it. We have bees and also had honey in some of the jam jars. 
Homemade Jam Wedding Favors
Succulents are so on trend right now. If I were planning a wedding today I'd probably do succulent babies for favors. You can order 40 cuttings for $28.95 from this shop, and a set of 12 mini mason jars for $6 here.
Adorbs right?!

6. MAKE YOUR FRIENDS BE THE ENTERTAINMENT-Forget hiring an expensive DJ, make your friends be the entertainment! Chances are there is someone in your circle who is a wanna be musician and would be happy for the exposure that playing at your reception would give them. Ask them if they might play for a little while as your wedding gift.

Don't expect your friend to preform the whole time for free if you want them to still be your friend. Ask what they feel comfortable with and gratefully accept that. 

Live music adds something special to a party so don't give up if you don't have a close friend who can do this. Think outside the box and ask around a little bit, maybe someone has a kid whose done a million years of high school band and would be able to play the guitar, flute or violin in the background for awhile?
My daughter's bridesmaid and my son-in-law's groomsmen played and sang at the beginning of the reception and a friend of ours who is a professional singer sang, "The Way You Look Tonight," while Maddie and Marc had their father daughter dance.
7. DON'T FORGET THE SPECIAL TOUCHES THAT MAKE YOUR WEDDING UNIQUE TO YOU!- Probably the best thing you can do to make your wedding feel custom (code for expensive) is to incorporate the little details that make you smile and make your wedding unique to YOU! After all, if you're having a wonderful time all your guest will too.

Here are a few of the things we did- 
An "EYE-Spy" chalkboard with a list of things for guests to take pictures of on their phones and an Instagram #hashtag for them to share with. We also had a TON of different sodas in glass bottles, because it's fun to drink from a glass bottle :-)
The bride and groom both had comfy shoes for when their fancy kicks started pinching.
Crazy dancing at the end of the reception to a special playlist that the bride and groom had put together of their favorite songs for their special day.

And a sparkler send off so my 15 year old son could burn a hole in his new suit. I am NOT still bitter.
All of the photos in this post were taken by the truly amazing Marielle Hayes of Marielle Hayes Photography. She was on our splurge list and it was so worth it!

 If you are here because you are planning a wedding then I am sending you a big internet-y hug and my congratulations! Love is a many splendid thing for sure and I hope this helps you with your plans for a truly magical day. 

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Mike and Elle's Garden Wedding

Wednesday, July 29, 2015

I love parties and party planning and especially parties that are weddings, so when my friend Elle told me she was getting married and looking for help planning the wedding I may have started squirming in my seat and clapping my hands and gasping, "Me, me, me, Oh Let Me Do It!!!!!" Yeah. Like that. And I am so lucky, she did. 

 Eleanor is an amazing woman with four fabulous kiddos. Her husband, Matt, passed away a few years ago and she has been holding down the fort with grace and humor and basically everyone loves her and is in awe of her. I think everyone who knows her was elated to hear that she met another wonderful man to share her life with, Mike. 

 Between the two of them they have NINE children. Just let that sit for a minute.

 I asked Eleanor what it's like when they all go out and she said in her unflappable way, "It's not as crazy as you're thinking it is."

 But really, you're not here to for me to blah, blah, blah, you're here for the pictures right? I totally understand! Let's go.

Monogrammed Wedding Chalk Board
It may have taken me four tries to get the chalkboard right, but now I'm in love with it!
Wreath with Monogram Chalkboard
 Elle's friend, Karly has a home with an amazing outdoor space that should be in Architectural Digest. She was thrilled to host the wedding and it was so fun working with her to make everything gorgeous.
Kinfolk style Wedding
Kinfolk Wedding Style Table
These picnic benches were set up on the lower level of the yard to serve as kid tables, or "third generation seating" if you prefer. Some people feel very strongly about that :-)

Every wedding should for sure have a great rope swing to keep things interesting.

 Eleanor and Mike looked radiant. They are clearly so in love and thrilled to have found each other.
Is that dress not to die for?

 After the ceremony and pictures there was the dinner. I'm just gonna say it; it was beautiful.
Kinfolk napkin and place card with Rosemary Sprig
Floral table runner with white flowers and succulents
floral table runner with white flowers and succulents
Kinfolk style wedding centerpiece with White flowers and Succulents
Clearly I did not make all this gorgeousness by myself. It was so much fun and a real privilege to work with Dayna, Holly, Emily and Julie, some of the most talented women I know.

 At one point I was up on a ladder placing flowers and succulents in a hanging arrangement. All four of them were on the ground holding the ladder, passing me plants, and telling me where to place each one from their vantage point on the ground. We were cracking up at our own intensity over where each little flower needed to go and Emily pointed out that this moment sums up what we're all about.

 Each of us would do anything-would be anywhere-to help the others have a more beautiful life. I love you ladies.
And this cake. Seriously. I just can't...it tasted ah-mazing too. It was made by Elle's friend, Michelle Christiansen , who only takes clients from referrals, so, if you need her, call me.
And there you go. Here's wishing all the best to this wonderful Bride and Groom!
   

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How I Bit Off More Than I Can Chew and Blog About

Saturday, April 13, 2013

My sweet Aunt Colleen has messaged me a couple of times to let me know that "Cranky Pants" is not such an attractive title to be lingering as my most recent post. I didn't mean to take a blogging break; life just got so busy I couldn't keep up with it an blog at the same time. Which is a silly thing to say since everyone's life is crazy busy. Still, I can only do so much.

 So. Why am I so busy you ask. Well first let us all remember that I have limited capabilities and require lots of down time to read, snuggle children, and watch television. Then there was Christmas, and some major yard renovations, and Katie deciding to drop out of high school (I know, I know...that will need it's own fun and exciting post-plus now she is going to be an au pair in France)and Ellie going through extensive testing for learning disabilities, and Maddie getting engaged.

 YES YOU DID HEAR ME RIGHT! And NO, I am NOT old enough to have a daughter getting married. Obviously. But apparently it is happening anyway. I know, you have questions.

 Yes, we like him.

 August.

 They will both continue at BYU.

 In the Oakland LDS temple.

 Physics. He is majoring in Physics. Like with math and science. But we still like him.

 He served an LDS mission in Florida.

 Kenny.

 And that friends is why I haven't been blogging. Wedding has taken over my brain. I fondly call it "wedding brain."

 Here are photos of the darling couple.

This was when we first met Kenny, last November.
And when we visited after Christmas.

 So there you have it. My fine excuses for not blogging...also including our Easter party, the entryway paint job, and starting a major new eating plan.

 But I miss it so I'ma gonna get back at it. Just imagine all the wedding goodness to come :)

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