Beach Wedding Ideas??

I too have made my own invitations it is pretty easy. there are many different was to do it. I would be willing to help. Just let me know if you would like it. I am pretty new here with a very small support group as well. I am pretty good with parites on a budget. So again let me know if you would kike some help. My email address is ____@____.com.

heya C. ~ I got married on the beach too w/ little funding :c) ~ we used flowers laid out on the sand as an isle way ~ along with a few shells & it was soooooooo pretty!! ~ good luck......

When i got married ebay was my best friend.

I am helping my girlfriend who is getting married on the beach in May, she is using a lady to set up & decorate the actual wedding part. www.beachweddingsbyjoanie.com and there are pics of how she decorates it, no chairs, people will stand, there will be a basket for shoes and a "shoes optional" sign. Also, check out the cute ceremonies she does on that site...Instead of a unity candle, you each have a vile of different colored sand that you pour together into a heart shaped vase to symbolize the uniting of the 2 seperate lives...stuff like that...

Congratulations, C.!!! How exciting! A wedding & a new son(6 mos is still a sweet baby boy!)!
We were married on a wharf & had a super wedding!!! We also payed for ours. I'd love to assist you with any questions you may have. I have to admit that I had friends & family's opinions to help me with mine, & that wasn't always a good thing, LOL! Best piece of advice; try to keep your sense of humor & DO NOT skimp on the photographer!!!

I did alot of inexpensive things for my wedding... i hope i can remember alot of them... lets see for my table centerpieces, i went to the Home Depot and got Flower arrangments, then i put a card under one chair at each table and someone at each table got to take it home, for the little gift to everyone, some people do mints, or candies.. i did Jelly Belly's, I love them so it was a little of my personality going home with them... i had a photographer do the ceremony and beginning of the reception, but then i had Disposable cameras at each table, with a littl note for hte geuests to snap away. At the end of the weddding, we collected them all and i developed them. Great pics and hardly any duplicates! and fun for the guests.
a beach wedding sounds great!

I got married on the beach and it was just a simple yet beautiful wedding. We got married at sunset and all the beauty of nature is all we needed... we did have some torches lit to walk through.. but other than that, I created my own bouquet. The pictures were worth a thousands words..since the sky was lit up in purples and pinks... Sunsets are just a spectacular time to use the outdoors...
Hope that helps..

Hi C.,

What is the budget your playing with. I do weddings and events so if you can give me an idea of what your looking for I might be able to give you some really cost effective ideas. Where are you located?

Z.

I planned my daughter's wedding for about $3,000. All of her decorations came from Oriental Trading. We asked a friend do the photographery as a wedding gift. We also asked someone else to video tape it as a gift. Plus, we set out disposable camera's for guests to use for the reception. I told the brides maids that I would pay up to $100.oo for their dresses, anything over that, they would have to pay for.
You can also go to walmart or someplace that has artifical flowers and design your own bouquet, bootniers (sp), etc.
In fact, Walmart and craft stores has a whole section of supplies for weddings.
As for the food, have you thought about maybe of finger food type of buffet?
Another friend offered to do the cake as a gift.

A wedding does not need to cost an arm and leg. A little creativity goes a long way.

BTW, after my daughters wedding, she came up to me and said that she felt like a Princess.
All of this took place 3-1/2 yrs ago and I still have people telling me what a beautiful wedding it was at how cheaply it was done.

disposable cameras are great! make a few baskets & lable them w/ (pretty) signs that say to place the used cameras in them- that way you don't necessarily have to collect them at the end & your guests will know you are wanting to collect them- the other person posted to get people to help you- make a list of tasks & get people to help with each one- for instance, being 'in charge' of the cameras & baskets is a good task...

we had fortune cookies as a wedding favor- very inexpensive, something a little different & inside the fortune can read what you want it to- a little saying or quote and your names & the date or just your names and the date & location- whatever you want- we also did wooden matches with a little saying on them- again inexpensive and 'personal' - like a song quote or something that is 'you'- we did just that for the matches- no names or date, just a quote...this way people will remember and have the matches for lighting candles (who lights candles now that we have kids, LOL, but you know what I mean)

Music is very important so add that into your budget...Also alcohol- personally I don't like a cash bar- if you can't afford an open bar then choose wine and/or beer that you [i]can [/i] afford...

Don't go crazy on your dress- yes this is your special day & of course you should look stunning & feel amazing, but don't spend your whole budget on your dress...

HTH :)

congrats on your wedding, i hope you have a very happy long life together and hope you all enjoy being together with your son, always make time for each other like a date night now and then and get a baby sitter, keeps things good in the relationship. ;-)) J. t

Dear C.,

Which Treasure Island? The one at Disney World? How many people are you having? Are you having a theme to go with your wedding? What colors are you bridemaid dresses? Do you have gift ideas for your wedding court?

If you need some help with ideas or gifts let me know.

I have a gift business and I have worked with putting together weddings for people, since I had a Party Store many years ago.

Contact me at ____@____.com.

Sincerely,

G. H.

Hi C.,
Congrats- so does this mean all of us are invited? (just kidding!)
Anyways- for the "stuff" that you need check out www.Etsy.com (yes, I have a shop there but I was a buyer before I started making and selling my goods...)
It's all handmade stuff and some stuff has amazing pricing- better quality, unique, and some cheaper in cost than the mass produced stuff....
As far as the other things if you send me a message with what exactly you need I can make some suggestions...I used to work in film production (where everyone wants something for no money....) so am pretty resourceful...
Do you know anyone who would be willing to do the photography for you? I used an old friend who "dabbled" in photography (this was up north) and was thrilled with the results and the pricing....
As far as dress- check etsy.com, ebay...even goodwill...
too bad we don't have a filene's basement down here- the bridal event used to be insane...
Anyways- let me know if I can help!
Best wishes and congrats again!
B.
ps. if you do head over to www.etsy.com click buy for different searching options or just enter "bride" or "wedding" in the search spot at the top of the etsy front page...

Hi there!
I saw your message posted and I thought i might be able to help you on a few things, for your special day, when is the date of this glorious event? Let me know...

I have a few items at goodprices throug my Giftshop that just might hel you.. Im sure they will fit your budget so just lookthrough here and i can also send you a catalog with allitems in the wedding section. Just lets start with tellin me the date, and i can make alot of suggestions,do you have a fax#? i can fax over some suggestions and prices too.
http://store.prostores.com/TheExpoGiftshop
Email: ____@____.com
###-###-####
Fax:###-###-####
Sincerely,
K.

Have someone you really trust handle the details starting the day before the wedding so you are not left to deal with the leason when you should be cherishing the moments... wish i had let go and done that!

Best wishes on a wonderful day and your new life together!
W.

Congratulations !! Sounds like you have your hands full!! I don't have experience with weddings but I do make a good friend (you said you need a support system) and I live in Jupiter. I'm 28 and my son Matteo is 7 weeks old. Email me at
____@____.com and I'll share my experience in the flower business with you!

S.

my mom is a seamstress for about 30 years. If you need anything and your near Cape Coral give her a call. She has worked on Vera Wang gowns, and handled thousands of clients. Some local celebs, and lots of rich folks from Sanibel. Very professional. Her number is ###-###-####, or email me at ____@____.com for info.

Hey C.!

How fun the beach! You could rent chairs and put them nearest a walkway down to the beach so that you can "make an entrance". I'm sorry I'm not familiar with Treasure Island beaches so I don't know how you get to the beach from your car. Are there any gazebos nearby? (My cousin was married right next to the beach in a cute little gazebo on Hutchinson Island and then they took pics on the beach.) You could tell everyone to dress casual (but no swimsuits/board shorts) and flip-flops and sandals and have them just sit (in an organized manner) on the beach. That would save tons on chair rentals. You definitely need to get a girlfriend or sister if you have one to help you so that she can take over the day before and the day of as another mommy stated. Is your reception then inside? If so, how about getting hurricane lamps from Wal-Mart (pretty inexpensive -and I know this will sound horrible-but you can return them when you are done if you will never use them again.) and filling the bottom with beach sand and setting a pretty white (or whatever your theme color is) candle in the middle of the sand. Not a thick pillar but a medium size pillar candle. Ebay is definitely a WooHoo! in my book too! (Thanks to the other mommy who mentioned it!) You could either start trolling the beaches now and look for natural shells, starfish or other pretty things you might find on the beach. Or, try online or go to any souvenir gift shop for inexpensive sand dollars, sea shells, conch shells, star fish, etc. to spread around the base of the hurricane lamps on the tables. Oh! Whatever your theme color is, if you cover the tables, use SHEETS from walmart, (they are about 2-3 dollars) they are CHEAPER than actual table cloths and you can either use them later or donate them to a homeless shelter etc. That is what we did for our wedding! It was so much cheaper, and nobody knew they were sheets! I would also put some sort of greenery around the lamps like maybe moss or something algae-ish looking and then put down the shells, starfish, sand dollars etc. Costco has silverware that is actually PLASTIC but looks like it is REAL SILVERWARE!! It is so nice! It is relatively inexpensive and completely DISPOSABLE but looks like the real thing! We just used it this past weekend at our Ladies' Day for church. Also clear plates (that are also plastic) are still elegant looking and inexpensive. Get some tiki torches maybe and spread them around the room. Put them on either end of the food table if you are having a buffet or somehow strategically place them. Almost like a luau (which always makes me think of beach anyway!) Are you doing invitations? Are you crafty? DO NOT PAY for store bought invitations!!! Make your own!! I did and we saved sooooo much money! Besides how many of your girlfriends/sisters/friends invitations do you still have? I have maybe two or three and have thrown away the rest. You should NOT be spending any chunk of money on invitations! If you want to know how to make it or want to know how I did mine, just email me! Make your own bouquet! I used silk flowers from Michael's Craft store and now I still have my wedding bouquet because it wasn't real. I wouldn't waste money on printed napkins because what do people do with them? Use them and then throw them away! You can get something in your color and that will be just as nice. I hope you're not planning on wearing shoes! I got married in a church and didn't wear my $100 shoes! They got lost before the wedding and we just said "Oh well!" and went with it! I was never happier! (We did find them later and they are to this day still sitting in the box NEVER WORN!) I am a strong advocate of a "No Shoes" wedding! LOL! Paying along the way definitely helped my husband and me. So you're doing a smart thing. We also had to pay for everything. Are you having flower girl(s)? Are you having bridesmaids? Is he having groomsmen? What other info would you like advice on? Oh! If you have your heart set on real flowers, there is a place in Palm Beach Gardens off of Northlake Blvd. called Jerry and Joe's Marketplace. They sell TWO DOZEN LONG STEM ROSES in LOTS of colors for only $12.00!!! It's been a few years since I've been back there, but the roses were stunning! Tight buds and they come packaged together in a large bundle. For my bridesmaids we took about 6 roses and tied them together with a really pretty ribbon and they carried them down the aisle. We also made boutinneres(?) for the moms, aunts, and groomsmen from them as well. For $12!!! (Very EASY to make) Let's see: flowers, invitations, centerpieces..... I have LOTS of ideas and I love doing this kind of thing! Please don't hesitate to contact me about any of this in more detail especially the invitations if you are doing them. Let me know if you have any other questions or were thinking of another area you need advice in for the wedding! I can't think of anything at the moment! I would love to hear from you, hope this helped!!

J. (sorry I wrote so much, but I love theme weddings!)

Hi C., great name. I also am having a beach wedding, my wedding date is at the end of March and it is at Lovers Key. They also have the package deal where food,music and photographer, ect. are included. I don't know if they gave you a written proposal, but there are a lot of things you can do to make it cheaper, whereas skip the alcohol or just make it beer and wine, opt for no chairs for the actual wedding. I don't know if there is a monopoly on who you can choose for your florist or cake, so you might be locked in there, but as far as your invitations, there are create your own invitation kits, and you can print them out on your own computer. Dresses, get them at Davids bridal they always have a sale. I hope I helped a little bit if you have any more questions let me know

check out the Chapel by the Sea in Sanibel!!!! My mom remarried there and it was wonderful there!!!

Hi

I don't know what you have planned for your reception, but my husband is a DJ, if you are looking to add some entertainment, I could give you the phone number for the office if you like.

Simple is better! My husband and I got married in NewSmyrna beach on the beach in front of Chase's. We spent about 2-3 grand for the entire event. The only thing we had for on the beach was an arch decorated with fake green ivy and toule. Pictures were awesome! We made the ceremony short and intimate(only about 30 people),so we did not use chairs-standing room only. If you have a certain amount of people though,you have to get a permit from the county or city for a public gathering. Don't overdo the decorations,you will have the background of the beach, and much else would be too much. Even better if you do it at around the time of sunset!(that's what we did!)