• Ask your florist about what flowers will be in season during the date of your wedding. Buying flowers in season are considerably cheaper than out-of-season purchases.
• Got a friend who’s a graphic designer? Ask her to do the invitations. What about that uncle who’s big into classic cars? Maybe he could act as a chauffer. Little duties that are shared by friends and family can help considerably with the expenses.
• Location, location, location. Trim costs by having the wedding in a place such as your childhood church or synagogue. If your parents are still members, you may even be able to get the use for the ceremony for free. Consider a wedding at home if your guest list is small.
• The biggest single expense that goes into a wedding is food and alcohol. So it goes without saying that limiting the number of guests will go the furthest if you’re looking to save on your budget.
• You can save by having your wedding in the “off season.” The months of May through October see the majority of weddings, up to 70% or so. Since supply and demand apply in all things bought and sold, you may be able to save some money by scheduling your wedding outside the May to October window.
• In medieval
• For the receiving line, the bride and her attendants should either set aside their bouquets or hold their flowers in the left hand in order to shake with the right.
• Help make your guests more comfortable during the reception by placing baskets filled with useful items-such as adhesive bandages, hair spray and mouthwash in the restrooms.
• It is not uncommon for the happy couple to eat very little during the reception. That said, put someone in charge of preparing a plate of food for the two of you to enjoy after the wedding.
• Order extra envelopes (inner or outer) to allow for any addressing mistakes.
• Thank you notes should be sent out no later than one to two months after the wedding.
• Bring pictures of floral arrangements and bouquets that you like to your interviews with florists; it’s much easier to convey your ideas with visual aids, and be sure to pick centerpieces that do not obstruct guest’s view of one another.
• If the vases do not need to go back to the florist, you may way to offer your centerpieces to guests as favors or donate the arrangements to a local hospital or nursing home.
• Before the wedding day, scout out your location (and have your photographer do the same) to determine the best settings for photographs; you don’t want to waste precious time on the day of your big event fretting about where to pose.
• The immediate family members of the people throwing the rehearsal dinner should be spread out among the tables in order to better host the guests.
• Hand engraving makes the deepest cut when having wedding bands engraved, thus results in a longer-lasting inscription than machine engraving.
• Though certainly not a requirement, welcome baskets are a great way to make your out-of-town guests feel at home when they arrive at the hotel. You could include snacks, a map of the area, a schedule of the weekend’s events, and other items that you think might be useful to your guest-perhaps sunscreen for a beachy wedding.
• A casual brunch on the morning after the wedding provides the opportunity to spend some extra time with the out-of-town guests who have come a long way to see you. You and your groom or anyone else who offers can host such a get-together.
• A perhaps morbid, but relevant thing to keep in mind (especially if the groom works around machinery): precious metal like platinum is almost impossible to remove from the ring finger without… well, you get the idea. Gold is a soft metal that’s easily removed, should disaster strike.
• The 10 most-requested reception songs, from discjockeys.com: 1. “You Shook Me All Night Long” 2. “Dancing Queen” 3. “Love Shack” 4. “Brown Eyed Girl” 5. “Hey Ya!” 6. “
