Aisle Decoration Idea

I saw this picture earlier while I was browsing for inspiration for church decorations. I had an idea of what I wanted for the aisle in my mind and this is what I found.

Of course I have some modifications. I would have a runner and I want some blue flowers inside the draped fabric and maybe some type of flower along with the ribbon. But for the most part this is the look I am going for as far as aisle decorations. Its simple and sophisticated. 

By the way how much are runners anyway? Any of my frugal bride friends doing runners and where are the best prices? Have a wonderful night and save those pennies. 

Flowers for a Self Professed NON Bridezilla

So a year from now I will be reflecting on the fact that the next day will be my last day as an unmarried woman. It seems like just yesterday when John "put a ring on it". I cannot wait to be married. I am getting really excited and sometimes when I think about it, a little scared because I have never been married before.

But anyway to the heart of the matter of this post. The flowers for this wedding, I have no clue what I want for the ceremony. All I know is that I do NOT want real flowers. Why? Well I have never been big on flowers anyway so why start now? I mean don't get me wrong they are pretty and everything and when John gives them to me "just because" they are nice. But, I just don't want to be bothered with real flowers on my wedding day.

So, with that said, what exactly do I want the bridesmaids to walk down the aisle with? And more importantly, what do I want to walk down the aisle with? My aunt did the centerpieces for my uncle and aunt's 20 wedding anniversary party and she did a GREAT job. But, here is my dilemma, I don't want to be a bridezilla and have my family do everything for the wedding. I am picking out enough as it is and John has already given up on doing anything. They are calling me "Dawnzilla" :-( I am not a bridezilla, I just want to have a beautiful wedding on a budget. Flowers can easily blow your budget out of the water. So what is this frugal bride to do? Be a bridezilla and have my family do everything or share the responsibilities and give up some of the control? Sounds like an easy decision, but I my pennies are precious and I don't want to spend more than I have to.

For the record, I really am not a Bridezilla, I just know what I want. Is that the catch phrase for bridezillas? LOL Anyway...enjoy your day and save those pennies :-)

Wedding Things That Don't Cost Money

All this wedding planning has got me thinking. The whole point of a wedding is to unite two families together and celebrate the love and the new life 2 people are going to step into. So it got me thinking. The most important parts of the wedding really don't cost any money.

1. Hugs and Kisses: Sounds cheesy I know, but I was reading one of those articles about what everyone in the wedding party is supposed to do. I really liked it when they pointed out that the groom should make it a point to just hug or kiss their fiance during things like the rehearsal dinner. This can apply to anyone involved in the wedding. Just a little hug from one of your closest friends or a kiss for the hubby to be can make the stress level ease up a little bit.


2. Words of Encouragement: This is a big step for the future couple. Although I haven't yet experience this stress that everyone tells me will come because I am still a year away from my wedding day, I am sure there will be times when it seems like nothing is going right. That is the perfect time to give the free gift of words of encouragement. Just a little pep talk from a bridesmaid or close friend can help to make that stressful day a little easier.


3. Helpful Hands: Now, I remember being a bridesmaid in my cousin's wedding and the night before there were a bunch of leftover DIY projects she wanted to complete. I am going to be a DIY bride all the way. I feel like if I can do it myself, why pay someone else, especially if they are gonna charge me an arm and a leg. I will admit, I am not the one who will ask for a bunch of help, but trust me, I am going to need it. Helping hands are priceless in more ways than one.

I was in a sentimental mood today, and the title popped into my head, so I started writing. If you have more things that don't cost money you would like to share go for it. I am sure you know a bride or groom who would love to get one of these gifts. Helping others is what life is all about. You don't always need money to make the most impact. Have a great day, and Save Those Pennies.

Savings Thanks To My Fellow Brides

I know quite a few people who are getting married within the next year. And of course we talk about wedding ideas and what methods we are using to save money. My childhood friend who was one of my inspirations for doing this blog has been giving me some really great ideas for penny saving ideas. The latest idea she had on her blog was decorating your own unity candle. Love It. She found a Word template, some vellum paper, a hot glue gun and some leftover ribbon and went for it. Here was her inspiration:

And here is what her candle turned out like:

I love this idea. It gives a wonderful personal touch to your wedding and also something beautiful to display after you get married. Ray I hope you don't mind that I took some of your pictures. But this is definitely something that I can do. Get the candles from the dollar store and go for it. Talk about saving money. These things can run you $30-$40 for personalized ones. Hey every little penny counts.

Now another one of my fellow brides showed me her hairpiece for her wedding at work the other day. Then she told me how much she paid for it. I think she said she paid like $20 for 2 hair decorations. From eBay. So i decided to take a little visit to eBay and see what I could find. Oh yea. plenty of tiaras for like $10. Do you know how much these things cost at bridal stores? At least $100.00. Way too much for this penny pinching bride. Now the trick will be finding a reliable seller who has one that I like for a low price. But, good thing I have another year to keep a look out for one that I really like. Yup this week has been full of great money saving ideas. I hope everyone enjoys your weekend and save those pennies.  

Peddling My Pennies Idea

Hey everyone. I hope you all had a good week. Mine was a little rough. I didn't get a job that I really wanted, had a little discouraging conversation with an old professor and got very little sleep. But, enough complaining. I am really enjoying telling everyone who asks about my pennies blog and the fact that I am collecting change. Its just one of those things that people just look into their change purses and give me whats there. I know a LOT of people getting married either this year or next and almost everyone has told me that this pennies thing is a great idea.

To all my friends, family or even people I don't know, my best tip for saving money for a wedding is to get creative. This pennies idea came from a conversation with a few people and it has grown into something really fun and rather rewarding. Don't be afraid to break the "wedding rules". Some people may look down on the fact that I am asking people to donate change to my cause, but who cares. People genuinely want to help you. Friends and family genuinely want to help you, but if you don't ask for help you won't get any help. Don't be afraid to break a few rules. Tap into your creative part and as my godmother would say "let those creative juices flow" and see what you can do to get your friends and family or even perfect strangers involved in your wedding process.

Ok, on to wedding plans. Everything is going pretty smoothly. The next thing I want to start and plan and get ideas for is my rehearsal dinner. This can sometimes be an afterthought if you aren't really careful. I've been to several kinds of rehearsal dinners. The big fancy kind and the chill laid back kind. Mine may be a little on the in between side. My MOH gave me the idea to use a little creativity and ask some friends and family to cook a dish and have the dinner in the church fellowship hall. Since I already have the hall booked for the day before anyway, I wanted to use it for the rehearsal dinner. But, catering can be a little expensive. We could decorate the hall really pretty and have a couple friends and family members cook some good food and voila, a rehearsal dinner. I really liked the idea, I just hope my honey will.

Well thats in for now. Enjoy your Saturday evening. Remember to be creative and save those pennies.

Photography & Videography

So I have been really blessed to know someone who has a photography and videography company. I was looking online at prices of different companies and for a wedding package they run about $2,000.00 or more. Yea that is way too much in my opinion. I know their time and expertise on giving you  beautiful pictures is what you are paying for, but geez I cant afford that. One of my friends volunteered to do my videography and photography for me. YAY. She is excellent and she is going to bring one of her up and coming photographers up with her and I am coming out really good.

In my opinion, if you want nice pictures and don't want to pay a lot of money like me, the best advice I would have is to find an up and coming photographer who has done some weddings, but still needs to gain a reputation in the industry. They will charge you way less and you will still get amazing pictures. Also, since this is the age of internet albums and not hard copy pictures, ask for the cd and pick a few pictures to hang in your house to print and leave it at that. If you really want a book or something, there are so many websites that you can do a DIY book and it can look really nice. I have been reading a lot of wedding stuff, obviously, and it seem like all the "tips" on having an inexpensive wedding are still expensive or not practical. Like I read somewhere that in order to save money on photography at the reception, put cameras at every table and let your guests be the photographers. Um...good idea in theory, but who knows what the pictures will turn out like. LOL.

Maybe I am a bridezilla, and apparently I am according to this knot.com quiz I took last night. I still don't believe it because the choices they gave me were so unrealistic. But anyway I digress. One of my bridesmaids told me when I first got engaged, to find out what the "must have" things are at your wedding and splurge a little on those and then find ways to cut back in other areas. Great advice. For me its kinda the whole reception LOL since my family could populate a small island. So everything else is going from there. Well people, have a wonderful Saturday and Save Those Pennies.