Tips for Planning Your Wedding & Reception

Since I design jewelry for brides and attendants, I’m often asked for suggestions on the wedding and reception. Right now, many brides are interested in more economical wedding arrangements, but they still want to have a lovely special day. Here are a few ideas (I’ll have more tomorrow):

– Rent a gown or wear a pre-owned dress. There are a number of websites that offer good values on gowns and accessories.

– Consider a wedding planner–a good planner might actually save money. Also,having your event in the off-season can save big bucks in both the cost of the venue and associated costs. Hotel accomodations for your guests will cost less, too.Facilities that offer wedding coordinators and other services can save you a lot of money over hiring these services separately.

– Limit the number of guests and attendants

– Prioritize your to-dos and recruit your friends to help you. Do as many things yourself as you can.

– Forget the engraved invitations in favor of less formal notes. Choose a limited color scheme for your invitations, etc. – you’ll save a lot on printing costs. Another way to save – don’t have a program. You can also use the fonts on your computer and design your own invitations, etc., then get them printed at an on-line printer.

– Create your own dot.com – I’m seeing a lot of these and they really make sense. You can post all the details, photos, and more and e-mail to your friends and family.

– Gardens are great places to get married – but have a fall back in case of rain.

– Choose your own spot for the reception. Try a restaurant which already has all the facilities – not a rented hall.

– Forget the limo – it’s an unnecessary added expense