Turning wedding dreams into reality
By Marsha Pruitt
Women dream of their wedding day. We dream of a
white dress, flowers everywhere, fluffy white decor, or a horse drawn
carriage and the perfect man to ride off into the sunset. What we don't
dream of are those unforeseen cost involved in most weddings. While
every woman should know her dreams of a perfect wedding, I would never
recommend draining your finances to accomplish this goal. I’ve
discovered some simple yet effective measures to create a truly elegant
affair without breaking the bank. Let’s look at the basics.
Focus:
For an elegant wedding that doesn't cost a fortune, pick a focus that
is most important to you. Spend wisely in your focus area and save a
fortune on lavish accessories. For example, if the dress is the most
important element of the wedding for you, then make that your big
ticket budget item. If the wedding or reception venue is most prominent
on your list, then spend the money there. Focus your wedding budget on
your key area first. Other elements can be skipped or simply handled
with fewer budget dollars.
Know How to Cut Corners while focusing:
If there is a reception venue that you've always dreamed of you can
still plan your wedding there but have your wedding on a Friday night
or Sunday morning instead of Saturday night. If you can be flexible and
hold your wedding in a less popular month, you will also save.
Remember focus and ask questions, i.e. do you really need to have chair
covers? If you want elegant but cheap is it necessary to have a
premium stocked bar for reception? Or could you offer a signature
drink. The point is to cut corners without compromising elegance.
Less is More
Simple is often elegant - and can speak volumes. As The Event Host I
have seen people spend money without any focus – and it shows. Less
really is more when it comes to true elegance and for the budget
conscious, you should consider:
• Rather than a big ornate bouquet at each guest table for reception, consider a candle with beads at the base
Consider reusing ceremony flowers at your reception for color/theme
and affordable elegance. Have vases for your brides' maids to put their
flowers in to use as a centerpiece.
• If you want a wedding cake (but don't want to spend a fortune), go
with small, simple and elegant. Don’t forget you can supplement from
the kitchen with a sheet cake for guests
If you are on a budget yet still want an elegant wedding remember to
first focus on a few nice things and cut corners other places. People
remember nice things so make what you have nice and skip the rest.
Marsha Pruitt, the founder of The Event Host,
is a custom event planning and design specialist who delights in
fabulous weddings large and small. She is the First Vice President of
the National Association of Wedding Professional.
EDITOR'S NOTE: Share your engagement or wedding stories with our readers. Email editor@qcitybride.com