General Chat

Friend with very little cash is getting married in July. Used this site to get few things + ideas to do ourselves .... http://www.foreverwed.com/

dianne what a great day and super idea to do the wedding and christening on the same day. im sure your family and friends appreciated that as they didint have to buy two outfits or come back another time, marvellous

The reason was that it was to be a private christening ie not during regular service.

A christening was all it was supposed to be as well, until we had a think about it and decided to get married at the same time as a lot of friends and family were travelling hundreds of miles so to save them doing it all again for a later wedding we decided to spring a surprise wedding on them. Very few knew there was going to be a wedding as well.

I just wore the long dress for the christening, then nipped next door to the tea room of the church to pop my veil on and grab the flowers then I came back down the aisle as the bride. People's faces were a picture lol

Dianne xx

Dianne, Im surprised you had to pay for the christening. I had all 3 of mine christened and the vicars at each church said christenings are free. But what a lovely day, you sound very organised, I wouldnt even think of half those ideas lol, the cake idea is great!

My wedding 10 years ago cost about £300-£400 in total for a church wedding and 106 guests. It was also a christening for our son, so a double service.

Church costs including cost of wedding licence £112.00. £10.00 of this was the cost of the christening service, so £102.00 for the wedding.

Dress, ex hire bridesmaids dress from a wedding shop £20.00. Borrowed sister in law's veil. Shoes were a fiver in a sale.

Photos, OH's family paid a photographer to do these as a gift for us.

Car, sister in law's ex husband had a posh car that she borrowed and chauffeured us. She put ribbons on the front.

Buffet we catered ourselves with the help of family and friends lending us freezer and fridge space so that we could do stuff in advance and spread the cost. We could also grab any bogof offers and freeze them in advance.

Wedding/Christening cake 3 different sized celebration cakes from M&S totalling about £75.00, used sherry schooners filled with petals as the supports for the tiers. Also bought ribbons to put around the sides.

We just had an afternoon event so used a hi-fi and CD's for background music.

I told my bridesmaid to wear whatever she wanted. She had recently been a bridesmaid so I half expected her to turn up in the same dress again, but she didn't. She wore a turquoise trouser suit with cropped trousers and she looked wonderful.

A wonderful day was had by all from what we were told and we thoroughly enjoyed it ourselves too.

Dianne xx

:-) Thanks Janet I'll google it now, havent heard of it before. Sounds like you have a very clever daughter!

Dont know if I'd like that Kay to be honest, just my opinion, as I live in jeans every day. In theory I'd love people to come dressed like they were going to Ascot! Fascinators and fake tans!

well last year I went to a civil wedding,,,,,,

bride .groom===teeshirts,and jeans

guests ==teeshirts.and whatever.

it was different and tbh enjoyable...not tie to be seen,,,,,

My daughter, her fiance and their daughter made the wedding cake - lots of cup cakes! they can be made beforehand and frozen

A friend of mine had a picnic and every body brought something to eat ......

Not sure where you would stand on this if they have a venue!! coz of health and safety

But they did bread butter cheese hams and pickles mustards

but as this is a December wedding you could do an indoor picnic

Helen, for some reason I'd thought BHS had stopped their bridal range....dont know why. But now I know, I'll definately look at the dresses. My veil was from there for my original wedding day!

Book three weeks holiday,beg borrow os steal a tent and bugger off to Gretna Green.

Much more romantic and no expense.

I've been married twice,and would do it this way anytime.

Keep an eye on the BHS website, we usually reduce the prices of our bridal range during May and June, you can pick up some of the dresses for half price (down from approx £100 to £50) and if we have a card holder event and you apply for the card on the day you'll get another 20% off. There is a 20% day for cardholders next wednesday. Also look at the special Occasion section in Childrens wear for some lovely dresses that could be used as bridesmaids dresses also the Sophie Gray range for adults, there are some smashing ones there that can be used afterwards.

Good luck

lol Kay!!!

Oh Romany its not mine,;;;;{}}}}}}}}tg.....

I'm just getting the major costs........}}}}}

Go for Bucks Fizz on arrival at the Reception…one ‘free’ glass pp. For your friend on a tight budget, they may be able to pick these up at a Lidls/Aldi, or make their own up. Keep a look out for special offers elsewhere if your friend isn’t tied to a Bar. She may know someone with a warehouse discount card.

Asti instead of Champagne for toasting.
One bottle of wine at the meal = 6 glasses
Tap water, not bottled.
If people want something different, they have to buy it themselves.
You might want to provide cartons/jugs of squash/fruit drinks for the non drinkers and children.
Let it be known in advance that it will be a Cash bar.
As said, make your own invites. If you aren’t ‘crafty’ you could do something on the computer and perhaps use slightly better quality paper than the usual stuff.

Don’t order too much food for the evening…a lot will get uneaten which is a shame. The evening people will have eaten at home, and the Wedding Breakfast people will still be stuffed!

Hope you both have lovely days.

Marion, never thought of garden flowers!! I was going to have tealights on the tables with metallic confetti scattered around. I might still, but add little vases with flowers we can grow in advance in the garden, what a good idea :-) Florence it sounds like you had a lovely day to remember. Too true that its not about the money, nowadays it seems to be about how much everything costs and not about enjoying the day with close ones. I suppose Four Weddings is typical of that, critisizing brides dresses, venues etc. Saying that, Im addicted to that programme!! My daughter is glued to the screen when it comes on and shes only 9! We'll have about 40 to the church (small church with a choir but no bells) and then go to our venue for a meal, then at 7pm having an extra 30-40 people come for the buffet and disco. I cant afford a weding planner like everyone seems to have, so hoping it all works out.

hope you all have a wonderfull time xxxxx

hi there i got married 17 years ago and was less than £2000.00 yet we had a great day. my best friends rented a video recorder for the day as a present which the result was a lovely reminder of the day. other good friends as a present between them provided the evening buffett. i made my own fresh flower table decorations for the reception. i also bought my wine in sainsburys and just had to pay £1.00 corkgage fee to the restaurant/pub owners.

when i bought my wedding dress, i went to debenhams they just so happened to have blue cross day. everything marked with a brown cross was then reduced again for one day only. my wedding dress was ivory dupon silk and at £560.00 was enough, i got it reduced to £140.00.

so you need to have a good shop around. another friend wrote all the name plates out for the reception. fees like the church and vicar etc obviously you have to pay those yourself and can add up, say if you want extras like the bells rung.

i wish you luck with your wedding. its not really what it costs but what you make it and as long as youare happy and enjoy the day thats all that matters.

How many are going?

Could have a meal for close family only then a buffet ltaer on for the rest. gets lots to help out. any good friends and family would understand the cost etc.

Favours...tube of love hearts.
Buy cheap little vases and put garden flowers in them for the tables if allowed.
Buy ready made invites or make them theirself.
Some places will do food cheaper if they know in advance what people want. ie On invitation have them tick what they want and make it the the RSVP slip too. If you know what I mean lol.

Cake..individual small sponge cakes with initials of bride and groom...as the cake on tiered stand.
There was one wedding in Scotland in the paper and they had tunocks tea cakes and wafers set out really nice on stands.

I had two choices at mine steak pie and chicken I think . A frien made the cake as a present. borrowed shoes and veil. Had a small posey of flowers for both myself and my brides maid, who picked her own dress and was able to wear it again.
Favours were all on the cake and not eveyone got one just close family friends.
A friend took the photos with his then good camera.

That was 34 yr ago.