DIY – Weddings by Wendy Rose

A Thrifty Wedding

Courtney Dietz — Fri, 30 Aug 2024 05:00:00 +0000

A Thrifty Wedding

Coco Dietz

As of a 2023 statistic the American Wedding industry makes around 2.24 million dollars annually. While the average cost of a wedding depends on the state that you live in, here in Texas the average cost of a wedding is $30,200 whereas the most costly state to be married in is New Jersey with $53,400.

Although a wedding is a, typically, once in a lifetime event that most brides hold very dear in the planning because they have dreamed of what this momentous event would look like. Planning a wedding on a budget can be stressful with the overwhelming costs piling up higher and higher. Here are some ideas to help cut some costs for your big day.

Fake Flowers:

Having artificial flowers for your wedding day has had a negative connotation associated with it for many years now, but flax flowers have come a long way in the last decade. Flowers are used everywhere in a wedding. Not only do all of the bridal party members need either bouquets or boutonnieres, but they are also used in the decoration all around the reception and the ceremony space as well. Having artificial flowers can cut down on the cost significantly. In 2023 the average number that was spent on flowers for a wedding was $2,300. Whereas the cost of artificial flowers is between $500-$1,000, which is a significant decrease in cost.

No Reception Dinner:

One of the higher costs for a wedding is the cost of catering. Depending on the catering company as well as the number of attendants to the reception dinner will alter the end cost of a reception dinner. However, some brides choose to forego the reception dinner in a way to cut some of the costs of the wedding as a whole. Setting the wedding in the early afternoon and then serving snacks and refreshments at the reception instead of the big dinner.

Venue:

It is generally suggested when making a wedding budget that you should set aside around 30% of your allotted money just for the venue. Your venue will most likely be the most costly expense that you will encounter during your wedding planning. Consider wedding planning having your venue in a local outdoor venue such as a park or in nature, generally the costs are lower than having your wedding in a major venue. Having weddings in churches or other religious organizations buildings has lessened in popularity in the last few years; however, having your wedding in a religious building is much less expensive than choosing a wedding venue.

Cutting costs in the wedding can be stressful and as well as be embarrassing for some brides who might not have their dream wedding budget and having to face those dreaded cuts. But the important thing to remember when planning and cutting as you count down the days till your “I do” is to enjoy this time and find whatever works for you and your fiance and know that at the end of that very planned out day, you will be getting to marry your fiance, and that’s all that really matters.

Alternative Theme Ideas

Courtney Dietz — Thu, 23 May 2024 23:01:00 +0000

Having Your Dream Wedding

Ajna Hacker

Many Brides get so wrapped up in planning their wedding that they have a tendency to forget to consider having a theme. A theme can help to guide the look and feeling of your wedding that you want to convey. Here are three ideas for you to think about when planning your wedding!

Holiday:

A common thought process when planning a wedding is picking your date before planning your theme. Instead consider planning your wedding around a Holiday and let the date inspire what your decoration style will look like. If you choose to have your wedding close to Christmas, you could add a deep red, dark green, and gold in your wedding colors while adding subtle additions to your decor to add to the theme such as evergreen and pine as greenery. Or for our more alternative brides, you could plan your wedding around Friday the 13th. Some venues might offer discounts for the date due to the lack of popularity on those days. Leaning into the spookier side of things you might wear black and other dark colors. For decor you could add Victorian looking items to add a haunted yet classy look to it.

Regency Era:

For every Jane Austin fan out there, consider having your wedding themed after the Regency Era. This time period, although short, has the underlying connotation of romance due to the many love stories that have been set during this period. Choose a dress that has an Empire waist line, having pastel colors added in your wedding colors, and adding regal feeling decor items. If you want to go with the classic wedding cake, consider also having delicate desserts as well such as scones, petit fours, or even Turkish delight to add that feeling of delicacy.

Celestial:

Themes can be anything that you and your finance have an interest or enjoy. Adding subtle stars and moons into small details of your wedding can add to the celestial theme. Such as into your jewelry, or designs into your wedding dress, ties, pocket squires, veil, etc. There are even matching rings that fit into the theme. Hanging stars from the ceiling with fairy lights will give your guests the feeling that they are under the stars even while they are tucked away in the warmth of indoors. For this theme there are many options for you to choose from in terms of wedding colors. These colors are going to be darker in nature, such as purple, black, navy blue, and pink. Or if you would like to mirror the colors after the northern lights you could choose green, blue, a light purple, and pink.

Other than a Guest Book

Courtney Dietz — Fri, 10 Nov 2023 22:27:19 +0000

Other than a Guest Book

Coco Dietz

One of the most common themes throughout many new brides is the want to take traditions that are more old-fashioned and give them a fresh new life. One of these is the idea of a guest book. It’s not that the idea of having memorabilia to encapsulate who was there to celebrate your big day is the issue. No, it is more about giving the idea of a stall guest book a new and fresh take that brides can see in their day-to-day life or when looking back.

The Painting/Artwork:

Probably the most popular and most adaptable to fit into any taste or style that the couple may have, is the signing or addition to artwork or some item of decoration. These are meant to be hung up in the couple’s home to commemorate the festivities of the day as well as the well wishes of the guests who celebrated with them. This can be as simple as a sign cut into the shape of the bride’s new last name or as elaborate as everyone adding an element to a painting that was created by the guests as a whole. Whatever your idea is, it can add a unique and sentimental addition to your future household.

The Video Diary:

The most modern take on the traditional guest book is the video diary. Many couples choose to have a videographer in addition to the photographer so that they can have a well put together and clearly shot video of the well wishes of all of their loved ones. This can be a special way to commemorate moments at your wedding that just a picture might not be able to capture as well.

Leaving a Note for the Couple:

They have gone as far as to have writing prompts for the guests to fill out for the bride and groom to read later. Some might include, “Give some advice to the bride and groom for when they have their first fight.” or “What are your words of wisdom for the couple’s first year together?” There are limitless opportunities for your creativity to flow and let your guests have fun giving advice or even funny responses!

The most important part of the guest book is to, yes, to immortalize who was in attendance at your wedding but also to have fun and let who you and your future spouse are shine through tradition and into today.

Thank-You Notes

Courtney Dietz — Sun, 02 Jul 2023 17:00:00 +0000

Thank-You Notes

Coco Dietz

What some might consider an outdated tradition is that of writing thank-you a note to the people that give you something to help start your new married life and celebrate your nuptials. Although you might feel this is one extra step in between your marriage and enjoying married life, this is still something people appreciate and a special way to show your appreciation to those involved with your big day.

Homemade:

If you enjoy crafting and would like to add a more personal touch to your thank-you notes, you can choose to make the cards yourself. Something to consider is how many attendees you had at your wedding. Depending on the number, making every one by hand may not be possible. There is certainly no shame in bulk ordering your cards. But if you had a more intimate wedding, then making the cards might go perfectly with the more personal wedding vibe.

Photos:

If you either have too many guests and the thought of adding one more thing to your to do list is causing panic or if you are not crafty and would prefer to outsource, here is an idea for you. Once you have at least one wedding picture back, print one for each thank-you note. You can type up and print out a generalized thank you note, or write one on the back of each photo and send them on their way! This is a fun way to share the memories that you made on your big day. If you would like to spend the time to find a personalized photo for each person, that would add a nice touch.

DIY Flowers – Growing in Creativity

Courtney Dietz — Tue, 31 Jan 2023 06:00:00 +0000

DIY Flowers - Growing in Creativity

Coco Dietz

Every year the wedding industry grows and grows and as it increases the cost of the weddings follows close behind it. Once something has the label, “Wedding” on it they can automatically raise the price because of the importance that a wedding holds.

While some brides have the luxury of having a seemingly endless budget, others have to hold tight to each penny to make their dream wedding a reality. Much of the cost of that factors into the price in a lot of categories in the wedding needs is the cost of labor. One of the most effective ways to cut down costs in a wedding is learning how to make some things at home so that you can save that money for other expenses. One of the larger expenses that generally takes up 8-10% of your budget are flowers.

Flowers have been an integral part of weddings for centuries. Even when you are a child and playing wedding with your friends they generally include something to represent the flowers either when they are walking down the aisle or throwing them at the end. So, imagining a wedding without flowers is nearly impossible for most brides. With the hard rule not to cut the desire for flowers in place, that requires a more creative solution to the issue of how to bring the cost of flowers down so that it is much more manageable for the average household to handle.

During the week of your wedding, go to different super markets that have a good flower selection or local flower shops where you can buy the flowers by the stem, if you are able to buy them in bulk to save a little extra. Make sure you have enough buckets and flower food so that they will last until your wedding and then store them until the wedding. Next, go to your local craft store and pick up some floral tape, ribbon that matches your wedding color scheme, and floral pins. Select which flowers you would like to use for your different bouquets for the bride as well as the bridesmaids.

Once you have an arrangement that you like, take the floral tape and tightly wrap the bouquet starting from the top of the flowers working downward, make sure to leave room for the stems to be placed in water. Once it is all securely taped up, wrap the ribbon on top of it and then pin it down with the floral pins. You can add decorations and other embellishments on top of the ribbon, but the ribbon offers a prettier background to work upon.

You can use the same process but smaller for the bountanier or corsages if you choose to incorporate those as well.

DIY Decor – A Thrifty Wedding

Courtney Dietz — Tue, 31 Jan 2023 06:00:00 +0000

A Thrifty Wedding

Coco Dietz

With the pressure of a recession beating down on the already intense pressure of building a wedding from the ground up, the dollars (that aren’t already victims of the cost of living) attributed for your wedding could be dwindling. Finding creative solutions to the problems that might be facing the wedding planning process is going to be helpful in saving you some money.

Benefits of DIY Decor:

If you are following the trends you might have noticed the sudden upturn in the desire to thrift. People of all ages are flocking to the thrift store to find creative and unique items not only for their everyday life but for special occasions as well. Apart from saving yourself a great deal of money, thrifting your wedding decor can offer a fun and unique wedding feel that will leave your guests in awe of the cozy environment that you created for your special day.

Prepping for your Days of Thrifting:

There is some preparation that will be beneficial before walking into your local thrift and second hand stores. Create a vision board or a collection board of the general theme and look that you are hoping to achieve. One of the keys to your success in this area will be to keep an open mind and keep the guidelines for your decor loose so that you can find many things that can fit into the categories that you are hoping for. One of the things you need to think about before deciding to thrift your decor is if you are wanting uniformity in your wedding or more of a collection of different pieces. If you are wanting everything to look the same, thrifting may not be for you, due to the difficulty you might face in getting 20 centerpieces that are identical.

Downsides:

There is a downside, however, to thrifting your wedding items from the thrift store. Since there is a constant recycling of the items that are found at the thrift store as well as no guarantee that they will have anything that fits your style and wedding theme, you will need to dedicate more time to finding those items as opposed to finding exactly what you need on the first trip to your local wedding supply store. So if you are planning on having your wedding within a short time frame take that into account when planning on how many items you will try to find second hand.