10 Ways to Save Big on Your Wedding

I totally understand what it's like to be a bride who wants a beautiful wedding that is also affordable! When planning my own wedding, I received some great advice. I was told to pick 2-3 things that I want to prioritize and to spend money in those areas, and to try to cut costs as much as possible in all of the other areas. So I picked my most important priorities: Photographer, catering, and venue. Then I made a budget with those three thing being the priority and then limiting my costs elsewhere. It's really important that you make and budget and that you stick to it! 

1. Order local, in season flowers

You can save a lot of money by ordering flowers that are in season. Look for a farm or a florist who buys seasonal flowers from local famers. For my wedding, I purchased flowers from a farm and my original plan was to arrange them all myself. That got a little too overwhelming and so I ended up paying a little more to have the farm owner put them together for me. If you plan to order local, in season flowers, it is important that you remain somewhat flexible with your colors and types of flowers. Local farms only have so many flowers available and they may not have the exact colors you imagined. However, I always prefer the natural, somewhat wildflower look anyway! Two great options for people in the Raleigh-Durham area are Spring Forth Farm and Pine State Flowers.

2. Rent furniture and decorations

Instead of buying 200 candle holders or multiples of decorations you'll probably never use again, why not rent them? I recommend searching for a vintage rental company. A great option for Raleigh-Durham area weddings is Plume Events!

3. DIY decorations

There are so many great decorations that you can make yourself! I made almost all the decorations for my wedding and I kept things really basic. Pinterest has a lot of great ideas for DIY wedding decorations! You can also find great ideas on Something Turquoise. 

4. Serve a Smaller Cake

Wedding cakes can get really expensive! One way to save a lot of money on your cake is to display a smaller cake and then to have sheet cake in the kitchen that your caterer can cut up and serve to guests. That way, you still have a pretty cake display and your guests will probably never know that the cake they're eating isn't actually part of that display!

5. Buy a sample or secondhand dress

There are a lot of great wedding dress consignments stores out there these days! You can also find many wedding dress options on sites like Tradsey and Preowned Wedding Dresses. Also, you can ask bridal boutiques if they have any sample dresses for sale. Keep in mind that the average wedding dress sample size is a 10 so you may need to be a size 10 or less (if you are a smaller size, you can always get the dress altered).

6. Have a smaller bridal party

This was one that I really had no clue about when I got married! I never thought about the connection between bridal party size and cost and so I had a bridal party with 18 people! Now, I don't regret that at all and I'm so thankful for each person who was in our bridal party. However, if you're trying to cut costs, consider having a smaller party. The reason bigger bridal parties cost more money is because you have to pay for each bridesmaids bouquet (typically $50+/person!), boutonnières, and bridal party gifts. 

7. Invite less guests

When planning my own wedding, I was also pretty unaware of how much each wedding guests costs. If you are serving a full dinner, you're most likely going to spend at least $35/person just on food! One of the things that can most significantly reduce the cost of your wedding is inviting less guests.

8. Borrow or make a veil

I saved $200+ by simply borrowing a veil from a friend. The bride in the picture below on the left had a friend make her veil with tulle and a brooch! You could also consider not having a veil at all.

9. Get married on a Friday/Sunday or during the Off Season

Choosing to have my wedding on a Friday evening was one of the best decisions I made! When you get married on a Friday or Sunday, venues are often less expensive and you typically have a much larger selection of vendors available to you.

10. Skip the favors

Don't get me wrong, I enjoy wedding favors and they're fun to photograph. But if you're trying to cut costs, wedding favors are something you can easily skip and I guarantee that people will not notice. At most weddings I've been to, I've found that over 50% of the guests don't even remember to pick up favors anyway! Hmm...maybe that's why I still have a huge basket of pink matches in my closet 1.5 years after my own wedding?!

I hope you found this post helpful! What are some ways you've found to save money on weddings? 

For Brides: 6 Steps to Successful Family Formals

This post is part of a series for brides (and grooms!) or for those who are helping someone plan a wedding. My goal for this series is to help you make informed and educated decisions about your wedding day so that it will be as beautiful as possible! If you're joining me for the first time, you can catch up here:

1. Should I Do an Engagement Session?
2. What Should I Wear for My Engagement Session?
3. Should I Do Bridal Portraits?
4. Making a Wedding Day Photography Timeline
5. How to Get Great Getting Ready Pictures
6. 6 Things Every Bride Should Get Ready for Her Photographer
7. Should We Do a First Look?
8. 5 Steps to Great Bride & Groom Portraits
9. How to Get Beautiful Ceremony Pictures
10. 6 Steps to Successful Family Formals

Let's face it, taking family formals on your wedding day is usually stressful. There's a lot of people to manage and organize in a short period of time. Sometimes there's difficult family relationships or drama to think about and people are always ready to get to the reception. Family formals don't have to be stressful though! Here's 6 steps to successful family formals:

1. Send Your Photographer An Organized List with First Names
I usually try to accomplish all family formals after the ceremony in 20-30 minutes. 20-30 minutes should be enough time if you are organized! Sending your photographer an organized list of family portraits is essential to successful family formals. I always have my couples send me a list of all the family pictures they want before the wedding with first names. The reason why listing first names is important is because it's much easier and more personal to call out someone's first name than to say "grandparents of the bride on mothers side" and other complicated combinations. So, for example, on your list you would write: Bride and Groom with Brides Parents (Kevin and Brenda).

2. Simplify Your List as Much as Possible
Try and narrow your list down to as few groupings as possible. An example of a "grouping" is: Bride and Groom with Brides Parents (Kevin and Brenda). Within this grouping you can have more than one shot (e.g. Bride and Groom with Grooms parents, Bride and Groom with Brides Parents, etc.)  If you have a large extended family you want in your pictures and more than ten groupings, I recommend simplifying your list or taking some of the larger group shots during the reception to save more time for your romantic portraits.

3. Tell Your Family About Pictures Beforehand
Make sure your family is aware that you will be taking pictures directly after the ceremony. Often this is assumed but after the ceremony people get caught up in the excitement and forget to stick around for pictures! I would also consider having the wedding officiant announce that the family needs to stay after the ceremony for family formals. Also, make sure that you begin taking your family formals immediately after the ceremony if possible. Once time goes by, people will begin to go their separate ways and they will be much harder to locate.

4. Make Your Photographer Aware of  Sensitive Family Situations
Make sure your photographer is aware of any sensitive family situations. I always ask my couples about this so I can be as aware as possible of any family issues that could arise. Make things as easy as you can on everyone by avoiding an awkward situation or embarrassing your photographer or family members.

5. Take Your Pictures at the Ceremony Venue
As we've discussed, you'll have very limited time to get your family formals. It is most ideal to take your family formals at or outside of your ceremony venue. One other important thing to consider is the lighting for your pictures. Your pictures will look best if you either take them outside or take them in a room with a lot of windows and natural light.

6. Designate a Person to Help the Photographer
I have found it helpful when my couples designate someone to help me locate everyone for family formals. Ideally, this would be a person that knows many of the family members and can easily find people. It is difficult to play the role of photographer and coordinator and so it's very helpful to have someone gathering people as the photographer takes the pictures. 

If you found this post helpful or interesting please share it and/or leave your thoughts or feedback in the comments section below! Check back next Wednesday and I'll be sharing my next post in the "For Brides" series on how to get beautiful reception pictures!

For Brides: How to Get Beautiful Ceremony Pictures

This post is part of a series for brides (and grooms!) or for those who are helping someone plan a wedding. My goal for this series is to help you make informed and educated decisions about your wedding day so that it will be as beautiful as possible! If you're joining me for the first time, you can catch up here:

1. Should I Do an Engagement Session?
2. What Should I Wear for My Engagement Session?
3. Should I Do Bridal Portraits?
4. Making a Wedding Day Photography Timeline
5. How to Get Great Getting Ready Pictures
6. 6 Things Every Bride Should Get Ready for Her Photographer
7. Should We Do a First Look?
8. 5 Steps to Great Bride & Groom Portraits
9. How to Get Beautiful Ceremony Pictures

Your ceremony is one of the most important parts of your day but it can also be one of the most difficult to photograph! Ceremonies are often in dimly lit churches or outside during the harshest sunlight of the day. Here's a few tips on how to get beautiful pictures of your ceremony:

1. Consider the Lighting
If you've been following along, you've probably noticed a theme in my blog posts by now: lighting is key!! When you're considering venues for your ceremony, think about the lighting. If you're planning an indoor ceremony try and find somewhere that has a lot of windows and natural light. If your ceremony location doesn't have windows, consider leaving all the lights on. I know that may not be the "look" you're going for, but I promise you'll be happy you did it. I've shot in an auditorium before with all of the lights off except for harsh spotlights hitting the couple on stage and it is not a flattering look! It would have been much better, and the lighting would have been more even if all the lights in the auditorium were on.

2. Consider the Time of Day
This tip is especially important if you're planning an outdoor ceremony.  I absolutely LOVE shooting outdoor ceremonies! However, if you plan your outdoor ceremony at noon, you're going to have very harsh lighting that will not be flattering in your pictures (unless you luck out with an overcast, non-rainy day!). Consider having your ceremony as close to the golden hour as possible (the golden hour is one hour before the sun sets). If it's not possible to have your ceremony during the golden hour, the later in the afternoon you can have it, the better. However, make sure you steer away from having your ceremony after the sun goes down if you want the best lighting possible!

3. Consider the Rules of the Location
Some locations (usually churches) have very particular rules about what the photographer can and can't do during the reception. Sometimes the photographer must remain in the back of the church and cannot use flash. I can work with these requirements because I have the equipment I need to have to perform under those conditions. However, it is always helpful to be able to get closer in order get more intimate shots and creative angles. 

If you found this post helpful or interesting please share it and/or leave your thoughts or feedback in the comments section below! Check back next Wednesday and I'll be sharing my next post in the "For Brides" series one part of the wedding day that can sometimes be the most difficult...family formals!