New York Just Got A Whole Lot More Fun!

The law allowing same-sex marriages in New York went into effect on July 24th, which is awesome. What an incredible step forward for one of our most populated states to take. That being said, the legalization of same sex marriages in in New York might not be nearly as good for your pocket book. According to this article in the Baltimore Sun, the legalization of same sex marriages has created a huge demand for weddings. And you know how good ole’ “supply and demand” works, right? The more demand, the less supply, and the more expensive. So what’s a New Yorker planning her (or his) wedding to do?

Good thing you’ve come to the rejuvenated wedding blog that’s all about wedding savings advice. If you’re in the Empire State and noticing a rising cost in weddings, let PEA.com offer a good solution: Wait to book. Yup… you read that right. PEA.com loves a wedding just as much as anyone else (OK… a lot more than everyone else) but if you’ve got time to wait, hold off. That includes holding off on booking everything from venues and wedding transportation, to florists, caterers, and even plane tickets. Why? Because the wedding rush is going to lead to an inevitable wedding bust. Right now wedding planners and wedding industries are getting hit with hundreds of extra requests, but in a few months, New York weddings will normalize again, and all those extra service providers will be desperate for more business, meaning you’ll be back in the driver’s seat.

So if you can afford the time to wait on your wedding purchases, know that you’ll be able to afford a lot more of them in a few months when wedding vendors in New York are desperate for more clients.

I remember a dollar tree at some event growing up.  I can’t remember if it was at a wedding or an anniversary celebration.  It must have been for an anniversary because my family is a very big fan of the money dance.  I suppose they are both ways to re-coop some of your wending spending but I wouldn’t make them a budget line item.

But, this isn’t about that type of dollar tree.  This post is about THE Dollar Tree.  Did you know the Dollar Tree has a wedding website or section?  Check it out here. I’m not quite sure how I feel about it.  Yes, I might scope out the Dollar Tree for some wedding items; however, it saddens to know that even the Dollar Tree is trying to exploit the wedding industry.

Mr. soon-t0-be-Heather and I decided to host our wedding at a hotel where all vendor contracts were coordinated through a wedding package.  This process is really helpful for us because we’re planning the wedding a 10 hour drive from where we will actually be getting married.  Our only contract therefore is with our hotel.  Through work I am constantly hosting meetings and sessions through hotels, so I’m comfortable with our hotel contract.  For those of you who are working on contracts with multiple vendors, I thought this article from the DIY Bride and this article from Martha Stewart Weddings might be helpful.

I recently posted about using office supplies in your wedding preparations, when you could, to cut costs.  This is a creative way to use paperclips and binder clips which I hadn’t thought of.

Never-the-less, wedding flowers can take a big bite out of your budget.  Now, you certainly don’t have to use flowers- you can use produce, fish bowls, candles, or any number of items for your centerpieces.  And, there is no rule that the bridal party has to be adorned with fresh flowers, fabric flowers or no flowers are a friendly alternative.

But, if you do want to use flowers, here are some ways to save on flowers without guests thinking to themselves “where are the flowers?”:

1.  Use in-season and locally grown flowers.

2.  Host your event in a natural environment where there is vegetation already.

3.  Use potted plants or flowers that you can buy from a home goods store or supermarket.

4.  Buy your flowers from a wholesale market and put your own flowers together.

5.  Reduce your numbers, make your wedding party smaller or have less tables at your reception.

Hey Everyone!  I recently read this narrative from a mother of the bride (MoB) which I thought I would pass along.  She’s describing how she saved money by making vendors compete.  I hope it gives you some wedding savings ideas!

Wedding dresses, wedding decorations, and wedding flowers can all be very expensive but the heartbreak is that most wedding items will only be used on your actual wedding day.  There are a lot of opportunities out there to share, borrow, or purchase already used wedding items beyond using the family wedding dress.

I was recently contemplating place cards and whether I wanted folded stand alone place cards or if I wanted single flat cards that would need a place card holder.  My first thought was to just google “place card holders”, well actually my very first thought was to google “black river rock place card holders” but those don’t exist.  I didn’t like the prices of the other place card holders which I found, so I then jumped over to the classified section of Weddingbee.  No one on Weddingbee was selling what I wanted, so I hit Ebay and then finally Craigslist.  While I didn’t necessarily find exactly what I was looking for, I know that new items will be posted regularly and the good stuff can get picked up really quickly.

Another option is to talk to your venue.  Your church, hotel, or catering company probably have event items that they would happily let you use.  Or, they can put you in touch with other people hosting events that might be willing to share or sell you decorations or flowers.

After my quest for place card holders, I’m excited and re-rejuvenated to purchase used wedding items.  No one will know that they were used before AND they will cost considerably less money.  Good  luck with your searching!

A few days ago I wrote a blog post with wedding registry advice. My basic premise was “register at places where you can get cash back, this way you can actually buy things you need — like a house or a car — instead of things you don’t, like new towels to replace ones that are working just fine.” I still think that’s not bad wedding advice (and practical life advice), but I also recognize that this kind of wedding registry practice might be a bit, for lack of a better word, deceitful…

As it turns out, there’s another option that one of you fine readers told me about. She was nice enough to include that wedding registry option in a comment, but I wanted to highlight it on the homepage just so everyone could be sure to see it. Here’s what she wrote:

Jessie- Your article touches on something that I think a lot of engaged couples struggle with. And I think you’re right, that your friends and family would be happier knowing that they helped you buy the house of your dreams — it makes a lot of sense that a wedding gift should be an investment in your future. I guess the part I’m having a hard time with is the sneaky registry part. I know a lot of people do it (ie. register at BBB because they’re the only store that will hand you the cold, hard cash, no questions asked), BUT, if you do it that way, your guests never really get to know what they’ve helped you achieve, plus all the money they’ve spent on shipping has gone completely to waste, as does your time, going back and forth to the store.

Why not just register for the house of your dreams or to remodel your fixer-upper, or anything, for that matter, that would be more meaningful to you than a bunch of stuff? Our site, http://www.depositagift.com is a cash gift registry that’s perfect for this, plus we include a free wedding website, so everything’s in one place. It’s a classy way to ‘register’ for what you really want and avoid the hassle of returns and waste. Plus, our users find that their guests really enjoy being included in the process.

Cheers!

-Dana

Thanks for the wedding advice, Dana! Her note pretty much speaks for itself in terms of what’s probably a better way to register for those bigger gifts that you’d like help paying for, and I agree, it’s probably a more “kosher” wedding registry option. So there you have it… avoid the hassles (and hush-hush-ness) of returning gifts for cash, and register at depositagift.com!

Our biggest wedding expense is turning out to be food and beverage.  As Tennessean.com explains, this bride cut these expenses my having her wedding at White Castle, take a look here.

If you’re getting married, then you have probably heard about Etsy, and you really do not need to read this post.  If you have not heard about Etsy, then please go check it out- it’s a “handmade” marketplace.  I don’t know about you, but to me, marketplace is one of those words which always excites me…

Through Etsy you can search and check out thousands of designers/creators, read feedback from previous customers, and request samples.  I probably ordered fifteen different invitation samples and drove Mr. soon-to-be-Heather crazy.  I did have to pay for said invitation samples, but it’s normally the cost of just one invitation.  Everyone I reached out to was very friendly but not intrusive, and they all seemed very open to customizations.

In the end, I ordered my invitations from Green Been Designs.  Jenn has been fabulous, but unfortunately for you, she’s now on maternity leave.  Not only are they perfect for our event, but they were also less expensive then any of the major online invitation boutiques, and much less expensive then any local designers that I spoke to.

Yes, printing your own invitations is the least expensive option, but using Etsy will increase your wedding savings!

Hi Everyone!  Now I have my wedding insurance purchased, I am ready to start paying some deposits.  I say ready, but not prepared- why are weddings so expensive?  I’ve been looking for some advice about how to handle wedding deposits.  So far, this dated article is the best synopsis I’ve found.  In the mean time, as you are all familiar, if I don’t put down a deposit soon, someone could steal my vendors!  Dear Credit Card, please get ready for some heavy spending…