My Speedy, Little Budget Wedding

ok, so here's a quick overview of my efforts so far.

I bought my dress the day after we arranged the weing with the hotel.
the hotel btw is http://www.lordhaldonhotel.co.uk/ and we have booked a ceremony for 16:00, for 20 people, with meal to follow and relaxed evening.

so my dress. I bought it from a second hand wedding items shop. i'd tried 2 very pretty dresses on in a wedding shop an hour before, and felt like a plum. so trying this shop i tried on half a dozen with my sister, and found mine. Yes ot's not new, but with our tiny budget, which i will reveal our total spend after, i thought i'd try.
So my dress is from Ellis Bridal, by Christine Elizabeth. (I can't find any pics, but will post you some) it was £30,(well £40 but i haggled, as it needs some beads replacing)
so dress done on day one.
I also have my shoes, which are rainbow clubs


I've bought LO's bridesmaids dress from demenhams, and a tiara. and saved £5 with a voucher, so cost £26 in total

sister to go.

I bought the wedding cake with vouchers for M&S so that was free.
Mum found someone to decorate of with icing flowers. thery look very real, but as they are not freshly made, will be free to us for a bottle of wine.
Photo's will hopefully be a friend of my sister, in return for beer.
OH will go in Bestmans lambourgini
OH has blagged a wedding car for me and day from a friend at work for £100, posh jag for me.
Flowers. are being done by a lady at my work. my bouquet, 2 bridesmaids, 6 buttonholes, and table decorations for £100
bought my ring. Palladium court for £150
OH's for £80, titanium.
stationary, from shiths and used a £5 off voucher.
and that's it so far
Parents are arranging all their bits.
invites went in the post last night.


so that's my so far in about a week, with a tiny budget.
very happy and excited, but bricking it!
after a dress wobble yesterday and a panic over my sisters bridesmaid dress and that things depend on the colour of that, i was reassured by my old neighbour. she loved my dress. and said it would have been just the dress she would have chosen.

shopping with sister tomorrow.
I will of course let you know how i get on. x

 

Sounds amazing. Love your hotel, what a lovely setting. Sounds like you're going about it all the right way and getting people to help out. Most people really like being asked to help out. Show us your dress when you find a picture, looking forward to seeing it all come together xx

 

You are so organised. I'm dead impressed. You'll have a wonderful time at the hotel, it's lovely there. Your dress is a bargain. Mine is the same make but came from ebay.

 

Amazing! Just shows what you can achieve! Well done you!

Lovely shoes, mine were very similar. Good luck with bridesmaid tomorrow... cant wait to see what you get!

 

Aw well done you ........... you should remember its not about cost its about whats important ............. you and hubby to be having a lovely day and getting married some of the best weddings ive been to have been 'no frills' just lots of love ............ enjoy the planning keep the photos coming

 

You've done so well, amazing! £30 wedding dress bet no-one can beat that! Looking forward to pic. Good effort x

 

Wow! I am so impressed - it will be so lovely too.... the best wedding I ever attended was on a tiny budget but what a beautiful, happy day it was! As Muckypaws has already said, it's all about what's important - you and h2b. The important bit is not the wedding but the marriage. I wish you all the very best. Cannot wait to see the photos! x

 

ooh brilliant bargin hunting! well done you! its so nice that people are helping out! I'm sure your day will be so lovely and personal!

 

Ok so since i posted a few more things have happened. My bargain florist has said she can't do my flowers, and so far all other bargain options have been a no no. So having to go to a flower shop for the expensive option, which is really pushing our budget.

also out bargain photographer, we've found out has no experience at weddings, so we dont want to risk out photo's being pants. so another expensive option needs to be chosen.

I've found my BM dress for my sister and her shoes. so have my colour which is light sky blue.
thinking of white gerbera's and blue decorations like ribbin for the cake.

I picked my my wedding ring, amd we're waiting for OH's to arrive.
I've got a tiara to borrow, and possibly jewellary too.

not sure what else right now, so will post again later.

 

Call the hotel, they may have flowers already xxx

 

might do, i'm propper stressing out about my dress.
I really dont want to go and start ooking for another one now. i have another thread going in the fashion section. grr

 

Why dont you try and do the flowers yourself?

 

i dont think i could, or that OH would go for it.

I keep suggesting a lot of things to save money and he just says no.
i know though that he wants to make sure the day is special for me, and doesn;t ant to cut back on too much and take that away

 

Photographer wise have you asked around people you know to see if they know anyone affordable, or have you considered looking for new to the business wedding photographers?
My photographer - admittedly I know him through snow sports training - onyl set up his wedding photography business last October so his rates are still affordable.
Failing that you can contact a local uni or college and see if they have any photography students who are would want to be wedding photographers - it may be that a lot of them already do some wedding photography so have a small amount of experience of how to do a wedding shoot.

 

thanks, we have 2 photographers in the pipeline, it just means, adding a few 100 to our budget, same with the flowers. we have the money, but didn't want to spend it as it's designated for doing up the house. but hey ho.

just stressed at the mo. though enjoying the challange of it all
OH's mum's unwell, so OH is worried.
LO is with us at the mo, so doing the school run lots, and lots of childcare.
behind by nearly a week with my uni work. got 2 weeks left, with an assignment, and a final test in a month. so worried about that
stressing about the odd wedding bits
as usual feeling the pressure and get a little every now and again


Great big sigh! and mooooovin on.........
just needed a little grumble

 

what about foam flowers? There are loads of pretty bouquets on ebay and then you would get to keep it afterwards.

 

update again. things are going better. we have been to the registrar's and sorted that, we are legally allowed to get married 4 days before we actually do, (could i cut it any finer!)

i've just dropped the wedding cake off at the decorators. should have it back in a week. 

OH's ring came, but doesn't fit, we've sent it back, but they dont have any in stock, said it could take 45 days. WTF!  instead they said that it probably will be in sooner, if not they will ring around the other stores to get us one. 

OH couldn't find a suit. so ordered one online, though not the one he wanted. 

what else...

oh sorted my dress. mum came up wiht the very clever sollution of getting a dress from the charity shop and using the lining to line my dress, has worked a treat, so with some very fetching granny pants i will be sorted, get it!

booked the florist today, £207 all in, for mine, 2 bridesmaids, 6 button holes, 3 centre peices, and 2 thank you bouquets. not bad me thinks!

back to the registrar tomorrow, for the outline of the day and stuff.

super stressed, who would have thought organising a wedding in a month would be stressfull!

 

Sounds like you got a bargain with the flowers! Keep up the hard work hon, it'll all be worth it

 

thanks, today, bought LO's shoes and spoke to the registrar, picked our music choices. I think photo's will have to wait for the big reveal afterwards. 

cant wait to get my dress back from the seamstress  




18 days to go

 

You have got some great bargains there, well done you!

Keep calm and try not to stress too much, big hugs