Capitalizing on Holiday Decorations for Your Wedding
Crowded stores might seem like something to avoid at all costs in the upcoming months, but if you’re planning a wedding you could be looking at a minefield of discount decorations. Between Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas/Hanukah, Black Friday and New Year’s Day, you could seriously score on wedding décor. Just take a look at these suggestions!
– Tableware and glassware: As soon as Christmas is over, all those frosted champagne glasses and embellished white dinnerware plates are going to go on sale (if they aren’t already). And if you aren’t able to afford silver knives and spoons, plastic silver ones abound!
– Candles: Not only are candles everywhere during the holidays, but so are an abundant supply of scents and sizes. Those tiny little tea lights that are impossible to find in large quantities throughout the year? They’re available in every store during December!
– Lights: During no other time of the year will you probably be able to find so many white twinkle lights on sale. These can be hung in the open in trees or arbors, as well as hung underneath tablecloths for a nice, ambient glow. Plus, don’t forget about all those holiday bulbs! If red or green is one of your wedding colors, stock up on colored bulbs to shine light in the corners of your reception hall.
– Knick-knacks: As long as it doesn’t have holiday themed writing on it, all those little knick-knacks don’t need to go to waste. Now is a great time to collect flame retardant leaves to use as table settings or aisle dressings. In addition, all those white and silver branches can be used to decoration as well!
– Fake greenery: Flowers are expensive, and there’s nothing wrong with spending the money for a few beautiful real flowers (say, in your bouquet or to line the aisle) while using fake flowers or fake greenery in the far corners of your reception hall. No one is going to notice it if it’s 14 feet in the air, so save the money and use that leftover garland you picked up for $2!
– Favors: Search your favorite magazines and stores and you’ll find that almost all of them are offering some sort of gift-set for the holidays. Stock up on these little gift-sets for a quarter of the price of a regularly priced item and you’ll save plenty of money for other aspects of your wedding.
– Ornaments: There are countless uses for ornaments; you can stack them in tall vases to be used as centerpieces, or hang them from the ceiling or chairs. Even if they’re as ugly as can be, buying them cheap means you can repaint them in your wedding colors and even monogram them yourself with you and your fiancé’s initials.
Lily’s Bridal – Specializes in wedding dresses found no where else in Maryland. We offer wedding dresses in sizes 4 to 30. Our curvy women selection of wedding dresses is the best in Maryland.
How to Stay Within Your Wedding Budget
You hear it constantly: don’t go over budget! We’re pretty sure we’ve put a little line in almost every article about the importance of staying in budget. After all, if your wedding day is known for the day you blew your kids’ entire college fund on a cake and a dress, it’s going to be a sore subject for the rest of your life.
But exactly how do you stay in your budget, especially while planning an event where it’s generally considered okay to splurge? Your friends are telling you to just get the shoes; they’re gorgeous and you only get married once. Your fiancé is begging you to book the overpriced yet awesome band; name one other time when you’ll be hiring a band for a celebration? With all these pressures, it’s easy to go over. So here are a few tips to make sure you aren’t living in poverty for the next few years all because you decided to “splurge” a little.
1.) Determine your budget. This has to be done first and foremost. Don’t start looking at dresses before figuring out your budget, or you might be setting yourself up for failure before you even start. There is no worse idea than trying on a $4,500 dress right before learning you won’t be able to afford anything over $800. That’s going to be pretty tough to come back from.
2.) Prioritize. And this means both of you! You might think your wedding dress is the most important feature of your wedding, but your fiancé might think differently. And yes, he does get an opinion here, it’s his wedding too. Grab two pieces of paper and both of you create separate and individual lists of where you think your budget priorities lie. Make sure to add a rough estimate of what each thing should cost as well.
3.) Compare and compromise. Next, put your lists together until you reach an agreement. Try to account for everything you can think of, including the venue, flowers, clothing, invitations, favors, food, etc. And don’t be afraid so cross things off the list altogether. Part of living in the real world is realizing that no, you don’t have to have pink orchids as place settings for every guest.
4.) Keep a record. The first rule in maintaining any budget is to write everything down. If you’re spending more money in one area you’re going to have to cut money in another area. Things can spin out of control faster than you realize, and having a clear and current record of where all the money is going will be a lifesaver in the future. It might even be in your best interest to have your budget online. There are many services that allow you to type in the amount spent and it will churn out the amount left in each category.
5.) Start cutting corners. Chances are whatever budget you start out with will not be enough to give you everything you want, so you’d better learn to get creative, and fast. Is there anything you can make on your own instead of buying premade? Is there anything you can do on your own instead of paying someone else to do it? Does your wedding cake need to feed 250 or can you simply have a smaller decorative cake and a sheet cake in the back to feed everyone else? Surely there are some places where you can squeeze out an extra nickel or two.
Lily’s Bridal – Specializes in wedding dresses found no where else in Maryland. We offer wedding dresses in sizes 4 to 30. Our curvy women selection of wedding dresses is the best in Maryland.
How to Choose Your Bridesmaids
Getting married is a huge milestone, and it’s only natural for you to want to be surrounded by your best friends as you walk down the aisle. However, choosing your bridesmaids shouldn’t be left alone as a popularity contest. If you don’t choose wisely, you could end up with quite the fiasco on your wedding day and maybe even for many years to come. Here are a few tips to ensure you end up with the right crew on your big day:
1.) Understand the responsibilities you will be asking of them. If you have a friend that has a knack for making a scene during every big event she’s invited to, putting her in your wedding might not be the best idea. There’s no point in having a bachelorette party if everyone ends up taking turns babysitting your friend the entire night. Make sure to choose people that are not only responsible enough to follow through with your requests, but are also mature enough to push back any feelings of jealously as you walk down the aisle.
2.) Pick people that matter. Everyone tends to cycle through different groups of people as we move throughout life, but that doesn’t mean the ones who have stuck around for years should get left behind. Think about which people have really been there for you through thick and thin. Just because “Becky” is a great drinking buddy doesn’t necessarily mean she deserves a spot in your wedding.
3.) Don’t choose too many. Just as it’s important to limit the number of people that come with you to your first dress fitting, it’s also important to have an appropriate sized bridal party. The more bridesmaids you have the more you leave yourself open for complications. You have to work with varying budgets, styles, tastes, friendships, personalities, travel arrangements, favors and many, many other issues that are much easier to deal with in a small group.
And don’t worry if there are more groomsmen than bridesmaids; the world will not end if one groomsman has to walk two bridesmaids down the aisle.
4.) Consider alternatives. If, for whatever reason, someone can’t be bridesmaid, don’t automatically write them off. They can still be in your wedding, either as an usher or even an officiant (anyone can get certified).
5.) Choose who you want. Just because you were a bridesmaid in someone’s wedding 6 years ago does not mean you have to return the favor. And even though including your new sister-in-law in your wedding might go a long ways toward smoothing things over with your overbearing mother-in-law, if you can’t stand the girl don’t put her in your wedding.
6.) Don’t limit yourself! Guys can be on your side too (typically called bridesmen), so if you have a super close guy friend, don’t feel like you have to leave him out of your wedding. Having said that, if your husband has a super close female friend, she can also be on his side as a groomswoman.
Lily’s Bridal – Specializes in wedding dresses found no where else in Maryland. We offer wedding dresses in sizes 4 to 30. Our curvy women selection of wedding dresses is the best in Maryland.
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