WOW... what a variety of experiences... I will definitely be keeping some of these ideas in mind if DP and I ever get married.
All DP wants is to go to the registry office, which I might agree too. Otherwise it will be tiny affair with just family as guests, and I will probably just buy a nice dress - maybe one of those medieval style ones from a gothic shop, or Tree of Life etc... and I am pretty happy with that. However afterwards I would like to have some sort of reception celebration, maybe at someone's house, with lots of family and friends.
The first one was with all the bells and whistles including 130 guests,in the church where my parents and grandparents were married, the big white dress, honeymoon in Hawaii, 3 brides maids 2 flowergirls the whole shebang! It lasted 2 years.
My second wedding was in Scotland on the edge of a Loch overlooking a ruined castle, I arrived in an Austin Martin (my Husbands favourite car from the Bond movies),I arrived to be greeted by a lone piper, we had just 20 guests including family,the wedding "reception" was held in a 15th century pub on the banks of the Spey River in Aviemore, we had a celtic band danced till dawn and had the time of our lives! We've been married 9 years have a precious son and a little princess on the way. Our wedding and it was the best party ever and I am lucky to say I married my best friend and a man who is the most wonderful father I could have asked for.
Lots of money spent and a big fancy wedding doesn't make a marriage...
As a little girl I always wanted "The Big Wedding", as I got older I wanted something small. When DH proposed we decided we wanted to elope (even planned how to get our best friends to the venue without telling them why ). Unfortunately our families had other ideas. Both sets of parents threatened to disown us should we elope. My Father because he wanted to share my day. IL's because of their religion. So, we organised a wedding back home which was small and intimate with about 20 or so people. Total cost was less than $5k including travelling from Vic to SA and back - but no honeymoon as MIL was having major surgery the following day and we needed "to be available". Still haven't been on that honeymoon . Even though I had a great day - I wish we had eloped. I'm not one for fuss over me (but love to fuss over everyone else) and hated being the centre of attention.
I'm not sure what was spent on our wedding, my parents paid for just about all of it, the IL's paid the tab on the bar, which would've been quite a bit considering who we had there drinking LOL!
We got my dress on sale, so we saved quite a few hundred there.
Our photo and video package we also got a few hundred off as it was a family member, but still paid somewhere around 2-3000 for them, and worth every penny too!
The stretch limo was a friend of my dad's so we got that for next to nothing, and if fitted all our bridal party in it after DH and groomsmen arrived on the back of Harley's.
We got the invitations printed up, but we put them all together and the chocolates for the guests we did ourselves as well.
Part of our photo/video package was free music for the night as well.
For our flowers we went to the best shop in town, only to be told they weren't doing wedding's anymore, but they referred us onto someone who had just opened up. I had a bourquet of gerbera's and something really simple for my bridesmaids, as they aren't really girly.
We didn't have a honeymoon, we couldn't afford to at the time. DH says we will have one for our 10th wedding anniversary, which is only 3 years away. I found a place up in north Qld, but can't find it now when I go searching for it. It was kind of like the Treehouse's, but it was on an island, had to take a plane and boat to get to it, no more than 24 people at a time, sounded perfect, but I can't find any info on it anymore!
I am one who just wants a simple small wedding, maybe on the beach with a big reception/party afterwards, but since all of my family live in the uk, dp thinks it would be a great idea to get married there, he has already spoken to my dad about it, and dad and stepmum have said they will look after the boys so we can have a 2 week honeymoon (dp wants to go to Italy for that) but being realistic, that is going to cost an absolute fortune, so my sister and i are seeing how we can make it relatively affordable, and then have a party for friends here when we get back if they are unable to come
We spent around $6000 for ours. But my dad paid for the reception.
I had my dress made as i was 34 weeks pregnant. It was about $850. That was the most expensive thing we paid for i think.
We had a celebrant and had the wedding in a park under a gazebo.
We had about 40 guests all up. Just family and close friends. i had 1 bridesmaid and DH just had his best man. Lily was also our flowergirl.
We didn't get professional photos as we couldn't afford it, but i had my cousin take most of them because he was doing a photographty course at the time.
We haven't had our honeymoon yet as i didnt want to go away being so heavily pregnant. We're thinking of having it at Norfolk Island sometime this year.
It was the best day of my life and i wouldn't of done it any other way. Our 1st anniversary will be in 3 weeks!
Ours cost close around $25k.
My wedding band was $5k and DH's was $1500... so there is a fair amount just there.
We had a small wedding... 50 guests... and all family.
We married on the beach, and had our reception at a waterfront resort... we spent the night before there in separate rooms and then the night of our wedding we spent there in their honeymoon suite type room.
We bought our bridesmaids their dresses, and the groomsmen their suits as a gift ($200 each)
We didn't have a honeymoon as we both couldn't get the time off work
We had the best time... and we would do it again in a heartbeat!!!
ours cost us about $5-6k including dress. We got married in my brother's back yard & had the reception upstairs in the house.
One of my girlfriends has a Rolls so I arrived in that (my brother filled her tank as a thank you).
Dress $2000 (including waistcoat for DH) - I've worn the dress a few times since - it was never designed as a wedding dress
Cake $350 - individual mud cakes
Catering & Hire - about $2500
Photographer - $750
Bonbonoiere (sp?) $650 - these were the budget killers - individual hand-made glass african animals - 1 per person from Zimbabwe
I did my own invitations.
I wish I had done things differently, but I was still very much grieving for my mother who had died 9 months before, so I just wanted something positive to happen in my life before her first anniversary.
DH & I are going to do the wedding reception we always wanted on our 5th anniversary.
Last edited by AngelPunks; August 11th, 2007 at 03:26 PM.
We spent about $22K give or take a bit prices beloe are approx
Was the dream day!!!
Dress was about $3000
reception $8500
alchol $800
horse and carriage $850 (had to have the fairy tale arrival as wedding in the forest)
favours (guest gifts) $500 (loillies in jars with our namnes on it)
rings $800
honeymoon $3000 (long island in whitsundays and gold coast)
suit $200
celeberent $600
photographer $2000
flowers $600
cake $400
cant remmeber what else
invites made myself
place cards made myself
bridal party bought owin dresses and suits and paid for own hair and makeup
We spent about $5k on our wedding, about 50 people at a vineyard in Marlborough Sounds in NZ. That included dress,rings, reception, photos, and our airfares and accommodation. It was a perfect day, we went off for family photos, then went out to a winery for the ceremony, followed by drinks and a fantastic dinner.
approx $2k..
We got our clothes for X-mas presents, a friend did my hair, makeup & a bunch of flowers, friends took photo's, We got finger food & DH & I made heaps of finger foods too, wqe gota white mud cake from a wholesale cake shop, bought grog in bulk from a liquor warehouse.
That was it!
We had a celebrant arrive at Mum & Dads where infront of about 80 friends & family we married in the garden at my parents old house!
I got married 4 and a bit years ago... It was the best day of my life!!
We did it on a major budget, i didn't ask for any financial help from my dad, coz then he would have to have a say in what i did, so we did it all ourselves.
We got married in a local park - i arranged to have it mowed and looking nice the weekend before, we did nothing else to it, it was pretty enough, flowers were on the trees....
I hired my dress- i got to wear a very expensive dress for a cheap price,
the boys hired suits, my bridesmaids bought their own from a regular shop, they just all got the same one, only like $50 which they all paid as they got to keep it,
my sisters friend (a hair dresser) did our hair, not for free, but pretty cheap. Same with the make up lady. they all came to my house for us
One of my hubby's groomsmen is a gardener at the local university, so they day before the wedding they all went there and picked our native bouquets, arranged them and presented them to us the next day.....
We arrived in my dads car, and one we borrowed from a friend of my brothers who had the same exact statesmen as my dad, so we matched.....
We hired a celebrant (who used to live up the road from me when i was a kid- mates rates on what we could)
Once the short and sweet ceremony was done, my friend from high school (an award winning photographer) took all our photos at the park while the guests made there way to the pub where shane and i met. They stayed in the front bar until the bridal party arrived to greet them at the night club area which we had booked out for the day.
I had spent the day before with my bridesmaids organising platters of finger food and nibblies, and we had a banquet of sandwiches as well. Then as the night club was open that night, and i was a bit busy, the publican (who is a party planning fanatic) had set up the nite club with balloons and our table decos and put on champagne and strawberries
My step MIL made our wedding cake- a yummy chocolate mud cake and my guests paid their own alcohol tab (i had only one friend who came to the wedding but not the reception as i wasn't putting anything on the bar- and she could have had champagne)
The DJ pumped out the tunes, we danced the afternoon away and all the official stuff finished at about 5pm- we had to be out so it could become the night club again that night.
Reception only cost us $500- that was for the room for 5 hours, DJ, bar staff, decorations and a room for shane and i for two nights up stairs.
We had met at the pub and the publican liked us alot!!!!
After all the official family stuff ended, and they all headed home, Shane and i and our true party going friends headed around the corner for our "Rightoff Reception" a lot of our "not so upper class family friendly friends" had all planned a second reception for us at another pub. We got trashed and partied very hard until the wee hours of the next day.
I can still remember one friends quote "I cant beleive its 4am and i am still drinking with the bride and groom!! Usually at weddings they are long gone by now. This is the best wedding i have ever been to!!!!"
I thought so to!! We had the best day we could have hoped for and managed to keep all of our respective friends and family happy. And most importantly ourselves.
Quick run down
dress- 150
suit -200
hair/makeup 100
celebrant 250
food 350
reception 500
photos- cost of printing 100
total 1650
Very cheap, very fun, everything we wanted. wouldn't change any of it for a second. Each to their own though, alot of other people would not have been as happy with the amount of work i had to put in (with help from friends), but for me it was worth it to have everything how we wanted it. I could have asked my dad for thousands of dollars like my sisters did, but then he would have a right to tell me that it is tacky to have a reception in a night club.
We had 35 people (including us and the girls) on a Sunday lunch time. I think all up it cost us about $5000. We didn't have professional photo's, just the pics our friends took, which ended up being beautiful, we didn't have a DJ or anything like that and I asked everyone to bring a flower to make up my bouquet (my sister quickly put it together before I arrrives. My dress was on sale (half price), and I spent about $200 having it altered to fit my 26 week pregnant tummy! My mum made the cake, and we had lunch in a resturant at a winery.
It was a perfect day and I wouldn't have had it any other way. All our friends and family said it was a great day, very intimate and relaxed. I would not have felt comfortable spending a lot of money on one day, and instead would prefer to spend money on our mortgage, or our childrens' education.
We spent about $8 - $10000 it was exactly what we/i always wanted. I just chose the most important things and spent big on those.
instead of a DJ we had a duke box- loved this one everyone got to choose songs!
Picked up my dress on special for $550 originally $1500
Only had one limo the boys drove to the church and my brother drove that car to the reception and the entire bridal party fit in one limo.
Made all my own table cards invitations etc
My Dads partner owns a unit in a high rise on the gold coast so they gave us a week there for our honeymoon which was the best present ever.
My mum and my dad gave us money towards the wedding and mil paid for the bar tab.
My sister used to work at a florist and her old boss did my flowers at my house the day before i got to see they were right before the day which was great i only paid for the flowers themselfs.great savings.
Hired a photographer and videographer for the day the best thing i ever did.
We also got married on a friday worked out heaps cheaper and everyone came cause its a special day and a great excuse to have a long weekend.
My mum got the cake from a french baker she works for great cake and she paid for that too.
Shopped around to get the best price.
We were very lucky to have such great family and friends although the wedding did not go exactly to plan bloody inlaws have to ruin somethings don't they.
I think that we need a wedding strory thread so we can tell all our stories on how the weddings actually turned out good and bad.
Ours was small. (would have been smaller if things hadn't happened the way they did - but we wont go into that). It was perfect. I had it the way I wanted it, in a small window to get it all done and dusted I was 18wks pg on the day. It was at the place I wanted, with the ppl I wanted at the time I wanted. Couldn't have had it better.... SHould have a had a professional photographer, but eh - what can you do about it now?
All up, it cost under $5000 and if you include the honeymoon - it came to about $8000. One of the best days of my life, however it was over too quickly!
i just cannot fathom spending anything on one day, when we are at the beginning of our "lives together" and any amount that would be spend on a wedding would save at least that in mortgage repayments, IYKWIM??
Cailin, i LOVE your idea - that scene from labyrinth is so beautiful - and i think if Df and i hit the mortgage hard we can have our place paid off in 10 years - then i would love to do soemthing like that for our 10 year anniversary!! (copy cat here, so totally going to suggest that to DF)
We had a "Destination Wedding" in the Greek Islands. Guests paid their own way - except for family and the bridal party which my parents paid for.
Including flights, accommodation (4 weeks), the actual wedding day and reception, dress/suit and hiring a wedding planner over there the total came to just over $50K.
My parents don't regret a second of it - it was the best family holiday any of us had ever had - amazing memories and completely worth paying $50K for!!!
The actual wedding day would have only cost around $25K for 30 guests - mum and I went a little nuts!! I still don't think my Dad knows exactly how much was spent! It was a ball to plan and we had the most amazing trip. The wedding was just a great party to have at the end of the holiday!
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). Unfortunately our families had other ideas. Both sets of parents threatened to disown us should we elope. My Father because he wanted to share my day. IL's because of their religion. So, we organised a wedding back home which was small and intimate with about 20 or so people. Total cost was less than $5k including travelling from Vic to SA and back - but no honeymoon as MIL was having major surgery the following day and we needed "to be available". Still haven't been on that honeymoon 
. Even though I had a great day - I wish we had eloped. I'm not one for fuss over me (but love to fuss over everyone else) and hated being the centre of attention.
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