I Am Planning My Wedding By My Self For About 100 People..........?

I NEED HELP!!!! :-) My Fiance and I are planning on getting married this year (Maby next year depending on how these plans go!) I am the only one who is planning this whole thing. All of my Family and Friends who are going to be there live at least 150 miles away. And His mom doesnt want to get involved because she thinks she is going to be to pushy and make me think that I have to do things that I dont want to do. I appriciate her wanting to avoid being pushy but I NEED HELP!!!





Alright so here are the plans so far!





- I am starting to buy things NOW that way we dont ahve the DEBT of the whole thing at one time





- I am buying alot of the stuff we need from Ebay to save $$





- One of his Aunts used to make wedding cakes so we are going to have her do that for us.





- His other Aunt used to be a Florist so we just have to give her the $$ and she will buy and arrange the flowers for us

I Am Planning My Wedding By My Self For About 100 People..........?
First of all... Congratulations! Don't worry so much, I too had 100 people at my wedding and I planned (and paid for ) the whole thing by myself. And, it already seems like you have a lot of your ducks in a row...





Ebay is key! I got a ton of stuff from ebay too. Just shop around and you can find a lot of good stuff there.





Keep your "favors" to a minimum. No one cares if you give them a picture frame, or other stuff. I actually made my own by hand. I got some black card stock, and made paper cones with red ribbons and white martha stewart "rub off decals" I put white cotton candy in it and it was a huge success. Everyone was amazed that I had made them myself.





I think if you really need someone to help you do things, you should ask your bridesmaids, or friends who are local. Get a bottle of wine, and all your crafting stuff out, and make a girls night of it. I had many of these nights.





Don't forget, your fiance can help too! Not just his mom. It's his wedding also. Put him to work! My husband had to make the calls about the cake, and I put him to work on cutting ribbon one night. He was actually really great about helping. I think guys only say they don't want to get involved because they dont' want to step on our toes. But they want to be a part of the planning too.





Martha Stewart wedding magazines have a TON of do it yourself ideas. I got my place card idea from one issue. And I figured out how to make it, and they turned out great, but most importantly, cheap.
Reply:probably should be thinking about a photographer, and a pastor if you are doing a church wedding. I am getting married at the end of August and we are just now getting our photographer, cake, pastor, cater arranged and or invitations ordered next week.
Reply:Sign up with theknot.com. It'll give you all the schedules and planning stuff and budget sheets that you need.
Reply:what i did was i made all my decorations for the hall and made all the flowers for the hole wedding party and the church and i made all the gifts by hand my self and i made all dresses and vail and place setting and music and photo album and candel holders and center pieces and i only spent 2 thousand and i had 200 people
Reply:you're doing great. make a checklist that you revise as you add things to keep track of who's doing what and what you're spending. be sure to get the invitations out in time. you don't say whether you're getting married in a church or where the reception will be. It's the reception that will eat up the big bucks: hall, catered meal, etc, etc.





It's very good that his mom acknowledges that she can be pushy, but if you want her to help, ask her to do so under your guidance. It is your wedding, after all.





Good luck.
Reply:congradzs!since your getting married!I think you should plan the way you dream of personally I would h ave pink,red,and purple flowers every where for decoration and on tables. Also I Wedding cake.Balloons,and white chairs and with purple ribbion tied to each. With fancy cups,and white plates...





and yes i know that costs ALOT,but weddings only happen once and i would want mine special.





to save money you should spend less money on stuff like extra clothing,junkfood,expensive stuff.





hope this is the forever marriage!





p.s. oh and i forgot a wedding dress too. pure white kinda tank top ,but like shirt really the (where u put your arms!) and then white gloves ,with on the head white headband that goes stright down in kind of netting exept it's for marriage ,its white, and wearable!.....





Oh and I would want a little cousin or niece to be the flower girl and ring boy and 2 girls to hold my long dress and i want white or glass shoes and a red cloth going all the way from the beginning of where i step to where i will get married.





YES and i do know that all that is alot ,but I belive a forever marriage can only happen once not twice or ...... and sounds to me you guys are very close and won't be seperated and you would probley want a forever marriage so make it special so if your child or grandchild ever asks you have a story to tell of your wedding.





Hope you don't boo me or give me a thumbs down because it took me some time to type this.





and i know you need to orginize so you should make a planner or go on google calenders.
Reply:What exactly is your problem? I planned a wedding for over 100 people with just my husband's help. It's not hard to do. Get a wedding planning book or use theknot.com to keep track of everything. All of the bridal magazines have planning guides. You know who is doing the cake and flowers that's a big part. Get a hall, a caterer, a dj, a photographer and you're good to go.
Reply:Brides.com should also be helpful. Look on the bright side, it sounds like you are getting a wonderful MIL.


Congrats
Reply:tell your fiances mother that it doesnt matter if shes going to be pushy or not shes going to be your mother inlaw so you should bothe get used to it now and tell her that u rwally need the help and you should tell your fiance to get off his *** and help because its his wedding to and he should be there to help





good luck with the wedding and congragulations!!!!





p.s. use craigs list to they have alot of stuff that would be useful and cheap
Reply:theknot.com has checklists, ideas, pictures, budget planners, links, etc, etc. It's a great wealth of information.
Reply:Hi and congratulations!





You are well underway with your plans. Good for you! It's sounds like you will be having an outdoor, casual reception? I am assuming this because of the BBQ and the uncle doing the cooking. That sounds fun!





Invites, RSVP's, programs - check


Flowers - check


Cake - check


Photography - check???


~ You MAY want to check into hiring a professional for a few hours. I LOVE to help people organize their wedding on a budget, but this is one area where I say not to scrimp. You will never be able to capture those memories again, if you don't get them on that day! All photographers have different packages. If you can't afford one of the packages, just hire him/her for a few hours. Don't leave it to amateurs OR kids.





~ Dress: David's Bridal, JCPenney and Alfred Angelo all have inexpensive gowns. Of course, this is a personal choice. Also....EBAY! There are many, many NEW gowns on Ebay.





~ Centerpieces: If this is outside then you have a number of inexpensive options.


~ Vases of wildflowers?


~ Small potted plants (available at home center stores, Walmart, etc.) Wrap them in colorful paper.


~ Float 1 (one) fresh rose in a small "ivy bowl" - available at Michael's, Walmart and Dollar Stores. This is very inexpensive and looks really nice.





~ Another way to save is to have a small bridal party (1 or 2 attendants each). This saves on gifts for the attendants and also on the rehearsal dinner.





~ If you are having kids at your reception...make up a kids table. Cover it with a paper (or plastic) tablecloth and put out crayons, coloring books, etc. Buy some small toys (everything from a dollar store)....hoola hoops, bubbles, etc.





Good luck!
Reply:relax! you sound as though you have everything under control. just remember this sweetie, all you truly need is the bride and groom, the preacher, a couple of wedding bands and a marriage licence.. everything else is just icing on the cake!


instead of passing your camera around, [its probably quite a good one], what about picking up some of those disposable cameras and put one on every table, you would get lots of really great shots from all angles.


or, what we did for one daughter's wedding was hire the photographer to come and do the church shots, and then he went with the bridal party to the park and took their posed photographs there. and left. that gave us approximately a dozen lovely portraits to choose from and cost us under $200. we had the disposables on the reception tables and had lots of good photos from those.


don't forget big box stores like costco for bulk goods like good quality paper tablecloths, napkins, disposable glasses etc. they are quite reasonably priced and the quality is very good! don't worry about favors, they really are a waste of money and time, just another gimmick dreamt up by the wedding retailers of the world. put your money towards something useful for your home!


whatever you do, however you choose to do it, i wish you a happy wedding and a good strong marriage!
Reply:you are going to need a dress. you can look for a 2nd had one on ebay that is close to your size and have it altered to fit. much cheaper than new.
Reply:hit bridal shows they will give you a ton of ideas. even if your friends are far away i bet they will love to help you over the phone or on the net. try to do as much as you can on your own and it sounds like you have a lot of help form your aunt. remember have fun with it.
Reply:Limit your menu, people are coming for the wedding not a buffet. You can limit drinks to just a few choices like lemonade tea and water. Buying a huge variety adds up. Do you have any friends in a band? If so, they probably have access to a PA system, and you might be able to avoid paying a DJ. You'll need to find a friend that doesn't mind the spotlight to act as "master of ceremonies" so to speak, that is the most valuable thing a DJ will do for you. If you are doing wedding favors, make them yourself or skip them all together. A wedding photographer is an area I wouldn't skimp on, but if you are getting a basic package you can supplement his pictures by getting disposable camera's and leaving one on each table. You will get some stuff that way that the photographer will miss, especially candid photos. Someone else mentioned Craigslist, and I agree completely. I bought a lot of wedding stuff from Craigslist and after the wedding sold it on Craigslist and got almost all of my money back for it.
Reply:i have to tell you i am proud that you want to do this yourself but you do need help. the ones who live far away can help by finding websites for you so that you can give each other ideas . maybe they can order things for you if you tell them what you like and how much. see if the can order your wedding book, pen and maybe your wedding favors for you. and some decorations. ask his mom to call places for you even if it to get prices for things. sometimes those small things help too. ask your friends to do your hair, take oics. do crafts and such. my sister has a two weddings this yr. first her daughter in June and than my sister herself on July 4th my sisters second wedding but the guy she is marrying was never married before they are also having around 40 for my niece and 100 for her. the cake is being made by someone she knows and people are bring food to the picnic type reception so that helps. anything anyone does is fine as long as they help. also ask Friends or even his mom to write the address for the invites for you. all small things add up.
Reply:www.houseofbrides.com





www.davidsbridal.com





they have some cheep stuff there, you can also go to michaels craft stores to make your own things for the wedding, or joann fabrics, any kind of craft stores have a lot you can put teogther for a wedding ...
Reply:theknot.com has alot of budgeting tips.


i work in a restaurant and bridal shop and weddings are cheaper on fri and sun than on sat!(almost half the price)


and


if you are an"average size girl you can get a good deal on a sample or discontinued gown.


and then have it taylored to fit you perfect!


most bridal shops get all dresses in 10s or 12s so unfortunalty if you are any size bigger this is not a bargining tool.


dont be afraid to get a couple estimates for everything. and ask for throw ins . mention that a couple of your girls or guests are engaged or might be getting engaged soon!


sounds tacky but saves money and buisness like the referals


happy planning
Reply:I'm doing the same thing. Planning the whole thing. My soon to be husband and I are the ones paying for the major part of it so I feel for you. I went to a book store and bought a wedding planner/checklist. I got my invites from Micheals craft store. Register at all the craft stores you can, they send you coupons all the time for fabric, and craft supplies when you do that. I hit all the stores the day after Christmas and bought all our lights when they were 50%-75% off. Borrow, Borrow, Borrow from anyone you know that has gotten married recently. I've gotten two arches that way. You are definetly doing the right thing by buying stuff now. But most importantly set a budget and try to stick to it. Once you have your budget set, see how much from each pay check you can buy stuff with and save. You sound like you have the bases covered for the most part. Just make checklists and use your friends and wedding party as much as possible if the family doesn't want to help much that's what they are there for. My family is all 200-300 miles away and I told them which towns are the best to fly into and to stay in and have someone do some calling around and spread the word to others, cause they might want to travel together or stay at the same hotel for group rate discounts.