Weddingbee Blog

We initially were set on an outdoor wedding. It was all we looked at. The outdoors is very important to DH, involved with his hobbies and career. And I, well, think they’re pretty! But at least in our area, outdoor venues are SOOOOO expensive. At least twice the cost of an indoor venue of similar quality. We had to go with an indoor wedding.

In the end, it rained the day before our wedding day, so we would have been completely nervous basket-cases. Whew! I was relieved that we didn’t break the bank just to worry and have everyone walking through muddy fields.

I would want a great photographer.. that’s going to be my splurge!

I just booked Lily Pad Florist, based out of Hermosa. Rebecca, the owner, was very open about prices and willing to make any changes necessary to fit my budget.

I feel ya, Miss Glitter! It’s very easy to SAY that you’re a budget bride, and that you’ll be able to make the tough choices, but the reality is, when the quotes start coming in and you actually have to lay out the dough, all those inspiration shots can weight heavily on your mind!

Some advice that I got from other budget brides (and I mean, wedding on $5000 or less type brides) that helped me keep my head was to limit my “wedding porn”….it seems like a sin to say this on weddingbee of all places, but pouring over too many photos of lavish, amazing $30,000 or more weddings can have the negative affect of making you question decisions you’ve already made, or doubting your ability to make the day what it should be, or just generally make you envious!

Having said that, they can also slap you in the face with amazing new ideas that CAN be done in money-saving ways….so I guess we all just have to draw the line for ourselves!

I went with Debbie Fields from Floral Fields. I was planning the wedding from across the country, was only able to meet with her in person once, and on the day of — the flowers absolutely blew my world open! My husband, almost 2 years later, still comments on how they were the most gorgeous flowers he’s ever seen and our guests said the same. Debbie isn’t a “budget” florist, but she’s not celebrity-prices either. She’s worth every single penny we spent! email me if you want photos!

@Miss Glitter: Although I realize this post started out about flowers, I can’t help but respond on the photographer lust issue. I found myself in the same boat, pouring over beautiful shots and wondering whether my photographer’s style was right. When I dropped by her office to giver her our second deposit cheque, she mentioned that when I see particular shots from other people’s work that I really like, I should e-mail them to her, and tell her why I like them so much. She keeps a folder for each couple she’s working with, and stores stuff like this in the folder. A few weeks before the wedding, she goes through everything in the folder to really “study up” on the couple’s needs and wants. I suppose some photographers might take it the wrong way, but she prides herself on working across styles, and giving couples a good mix that is balanced according to their tastes.

Maybe you could try flipping two or three shots you really adore from the $10,000 photographer’s site and just sending a little note about how you appreciate their attention to their couples, and you saw these couple of shots that you’re really drawn to.

@nkc: