Getting Married in "April of 2007" - Bethlehem,GA

We didn't do the traditional reception food. We got BBQ and a keg of beer and some soda. We got so many compliments about how much fun everyone had. If you have a Sam's/Costco membership or know someone that has one it can come in handy. We got a lot of things from there, cokes, forks, plates, napkins, ect. I even got my flowers there. I had a family friend that used to be a florist and she put all the flowers together for us. We got a friend of my brothers to serve the drinks and we paid him like 80 bucks but people kept tipping him so he walked out with more than that. I hope this helps. Good luck and congrats.

I had a book, "Weddings on a budget" or something like it. Go to a used book store a find a similar book. It was very helpful for me and had ideas I never would have thought of but ended up using!

B. A.

My husband and I had 13 people at our wedding and it was wonderful! I would not change the day for anything. A month later we had a big reception for all of our friends and family to come to.
You can find tons of stuff on E-bay, cheap. Things that can be repainted, etc. There are also sites on the internet where you can order wholesale flowers. We bought 200 white roses for $200! Not bad! We also purchased an ice sculpture form for $10 and made our own ice sculpture (fill it, freeze it, pop it out) and it was beautiful.
One other thing - if you want strings, my husband is a cellist and does a lot of weddings. Check out his website at paulnelsonmusic.com
Have fun!

I'm not sure where you live, but I got married in Newnan, GA at an old annabellum (spelling?) home and it was absolutely beautiful! The price was also great. It think we paid $5000.00 and it was all inclusive: pictures, wedding coordinator, cakes, flowers, food, all I had to do was show up with my dress!

1. CONGRATULATIONS!

2. Under no circumstances should you try to do everything all by yourself. If you have control issues (as I did), this wedding is a good opportunity to LET your friends and family HELP YOU (not take over).

3. Silk flowers, silk plants and a creative family member or friend. My husband and I purchased my bouquet and the bride's maid bouquets (all silk) from (believe it or not) the Food City Floral Department and we probably spent $130.00. I imagine the cost would have been almost triple that had we used fresh flowers. My Mother-in-Law made the Flower Girl's basket from silk flowers she and I chose together at Wal-Mart.

4. Do A LOT of web research for other things you may need or want, such as:
~ a knife and server for cakes
~ a ring-bearer pillow (we found a ring-bearer box on eBay for $12.00 and it was unusual and perfect!)
~ a cake topper
~ wedding favors (try something like: http://www.favorfavor.com/page/FF/PROD/New/23008KA)
~ guest book & quill
~ all kinds of other stuff...

5. Make your own wedding invitations or find someone with a creative flair to make them for you. You can go to any Hallmark Store and look at their loose, wedding-themed stationery and then have someone print what you want on them (using their computer and printer), or have Hallmark print them for you for a fee.

I have all kinds of ideas...and could go on forever, but I'll stop here. Just be creative, allow people to help you, and be constantly in control of your budget - how much you CAN spend, how much you HAVE spent, and how much you have LEFT after each purchase.

Also - it's a bit on the expensive side, but as you're in the process of planning your wedding, schedule some you time with a massage therapist, or treat yourself to manicure/pedicure, maybe a facial... Trust me, it will be worth the extra $$ and relaxation if you splurge on this BEFORE the wedding!

Good luck and let me know if I can help at all: ____@____.com.

J. S

I just got married June of this year, and while I didn't get married around here there are some things you can do. First if you don't mind not having a traditional church wedding you can find somewhere smaller to have it. My husband and I decided to get married in a park in a gazebo and it was absolutely beautiful. It also only cost $100 to rent the area for a day. My reception cost about $3600, but it included everything. Buffet dinner, cake, limo service, and dj. If you can find somewhere that'll do that around here most of your worries will be gone. All you'll have to do is find a dress and location for the wedding. And don't let anybody else tell you how your wedding should be. Remember it's yours and your husbands, nobody else's. Good luck.

Start planning now!!! Even if it someone in your family pick a "aperson" to make sure everything is getting done. And that everything will get done on that day. Have you got your dress yet? Put it in layway or something. Have the rehearsel to. this ensures everyone is on the same page. I got married in July 05 and we had about 75 people there. We went with a predecorated chapel. It was alot cheaper than buying all the deocrations. Good luck....

I got married last June and had a budget of $3,000. It was beautfil and the best day of my life. I ordered my flowers wholesale and did the arrangements myself. My mom and her friends did the food herself and it was an outdoor wedding so we didn't have to rent a church or building. We didn't do the gifts for guests, we had a tent and band for the reception, we did wine and champagne instead of having a bar, we did plastic dishes instead of crystal. It was very nice, and I bet no one would have known how much it costed!

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