Starting Over

Re: Starting Over

• Amylynn1022

  

  May 2011 edited December 2011

  Welcome to the board!!! It can totally be done! I am on a tight budget too as my FI and I are paying for our wedding ourselves and we have a child so i didnt want to spend too much money on a wedding when we already have a family to support.. That being said..
  
  When are you planning on getting married? Often times getting married in the off-season Nov-March places will give you a discount, for example I am getting married at Crystal Peak which I highly recommend you check out because it will be well within your budget actually well below.. and they will give a discount for off-season as well as a discount if you would get married on a friday night or a sunday.. They have unbelivable packages with open bar and unlimited hand passed appetizers too!
  
  Booking early will also let you lock into this years or even next years rate and vendors havent adjusted their rates up yet..So that is also a way to save money..
  
  DJ Melee is the cheapest DJ I found but by far the most highly recommended DJ on this board but he is booking up sooooo fast for next year already its not even funny!!
  
  Do your own invitations... its not that hard.. I am in the process of doing mine and it cost me $50..
  
  Good Luck.. Hope some of those suggestions help!

  

  Report0 Reply
• k3MySailor

  

  May 2011 edited December 2011

  Thanks for the advice!
  I am planning on a summer wedding because it works the best for my schedule, but I am probably going to do a Friday or Sunday to save money. I will look into Crystal Peak, Thanks again!

  

  Report0 Reply
• jacki8788 member

  

  May 2011 edited December 2011

  Welcome to the board! 
  
  My fiance and I on a budget also, as we're paying for our wedding mostly by ourselves (although our budget's a little higher). Our venue (Mystic Seaport) was a "splurge" for us because I really loved it; but we were able to make it a little cheaper by taking out a soup course (there will already be a salad course before the entree, and plenty of appetizers during the cocktail hour, so I don't think anyone will know the difference). I kept a list of places and their prices while we were searching for the right venue; here are some that may be in your price range, although they weren't the right fit for us:
  
  -Anthony's Lake Club ($69 pp)
  -Manchester Country Club (around the $65-70 pp range; I forget exactly)
  -The Mill on the River (about $65 pp)
  -Tower Ridge Country Club ($69 pp)
  -Glastonbury Hills Country Club (about $65 pp)
  -Grand Oak Villa ($68 pp and up)
  -La Renaissance ($55-65 pp)
  -Tashua Knolls ($78 pp)
  -Crystal Peak ($55-60)
  
  My friend is planning on having her wedding at The Crystal Room in Naugatuck, I think they're in the $70 pp range also.
  
  Hope this helps, good luck and have fun planning!!
  

  

  Report0 Reply
• Vanessa630 member

  

  May 2011 edited December 2011

  In Response to <a href="http://forums.weddings.com/Sites/Weddings/Pages/Main.aspx/local-wedding-boards_connecticut_starting-over?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Local%20Wedding%20BoardsForum:65Discussion:26ad93d1-9166-4868-bafc-1475b2ba2d8ePost:d406ae51-a050-4b3b-ae16-5857c72f5b72">Re: Starting Over</a>:
  [QUOTE]Welcome to the board!  :) My fiance and I on a budget also, as we're paying for our wedding mostly by ourselves (although our budget's a little higher). <strong>Our venue (Mystic Seaport) was a "splurge" for us because I really loved it;</strong> but we were able to make it a little cheaper by taking out a soup course (there will already be a salad course before the entree, and plenty of appetizers during the cocktail hour, so I don't think anyone will know the difference). I kept a list of places and their prices while we were searching for the right venue; here are some that may be in your price range, although they weren't the right fit for us: -Anthony's Lake Club ($69 pp) -Manchester Country Club (around the $65-70 pp range; I forget exactly) -The Mill on the River (about $65 pp) -Tower Ridge Country Club ($69 pp) -Glastonbury Hills Country Club (about $65 pp) -Grand Oak Villa ($68 pp and up) -La Renaissance ($55-65 pp) -Tashua Knolls ($78 pp) -Crystal Peak ($55-60) My friend is planning on having her wedding at The Crystal Room in Naugatuck, I think they're in the $70 pp range also. Hope this helps, good luck and have fun planning!!
  Posted by jacki8788[/QUOTE]
  
  
  Welcome to the boards!!  I'm always one to recommend Latitude 41 at Mystic Seaport.  We're in the River Room because we're having a larger wedding but The Morgan Suites accommodate up to 70 and, like a previous post said, you may be able to negotiate a good price for off season (or Fri/Sun). 
  
  <a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.mysticseaport.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=home.viewPage&page_id=5176174E-65B8-D398-71E4158DB4DF905E">http://www.mysticseaport.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=home.viewPage&page_id=5176174E-65B8-D398-71E4158DB4DF905E</a>

  

  Report0 Reply
• starrbuk13 member

  

  May 2011 edited December 2011

  welcome!  it's definitely do-able.  we had about 50 people and spent around $15k, but $6k of that were 2 of our splurges - our photographer and my wedding ring.  if we had gone with more affordable options, we would have been right around $10k!

  
  

  some of the things we saved on:

  
  

  - DIY invites (cost about $30 + postage...it's not that bad, but it is time consuming)

  - played an ipod instead of a DJ (we had a very casual reception and it worked for us)

  - my dress (purchased at a sample sale for $250)

  - flowers (we didn't decorate with flowers at all...we just did bouquets & boutineers)

  - no limos...we had a towncar for us & the BP drove themselves (and the towncar we hired for us didn't even show up!  we ended up driving ourselves and saved another $180)

  - i did my own makeup

  
  

  we also chose a nontraditional venue that turned out to be incredibly affordable.  we had our ceremony in my parents' backyard (tent/chair rentals were about $400) and our reception at Haight Brown Vineyard in Litchfield.  I know the price has gone up since we were married there, but we only paid about $500 for a site rental fee.  they also hooked us up with a caterer who was able to stay within our budget for food/alcohol/service (all said and done around $75pp).

  
  

  good luck!!

  Report0 Reply