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$4,000 budget!

jesslywhitejesslywhite
in California-Orange County
Yup, you read it right.  My fiance and I are planning our wedding, (reception and ceremony), AND honeymoon, for $4000.  At least, that's the goal.  :)We were wanting to get married in an alley/parking lot/square area behind my apartment at the Orange Circle.  Surrounded by brick buildings, yellow light, and hang up some lanterns -- we're looking for a "block party" style wedding.  The only problem is my landlord (who owns the parking lot) isn't returning our phone calls, and we're having to look at other places.  If you've seen any cool areas like that, please let us know!!  Going to venues is an automatic huge expense, so we're trying to be creative.  We're open to anything!
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Re: $4,000 budget!

  • dawnbeattydawnbeatty
    First Comment
    edited December 2011
    I know I'm no help but I wanted to say good luck - that sounds really cool.
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  • thepixiewitchthepixiewitch
    First Comment
    edited December 2011
    Look into public parks. Lots of them have cool areas and they don't all look like typical grassy areas with playgrounds
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  • lala90lala90 member
    First Comment
    edited December 2011
    How many people will attend?
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  • genna.westgenna.west member
    First Comment
    edited December 2011
    i dont know what time you want to get married- but if i were you, I would have an evening time wedding (around 7) and just have a cake reception.  If you have it at 7, people will have already ate dinner.  That will cut the cost by a lot.  I am getting married Nov. 28- and if I knew then what I know now, I would have to heed to my own advice.  Weddings are too expensive and they involve a lot of hype.  Do yourself that favor and dont go all out.  Stick to your guns with your budget.  The only thing that matters is the union that is created on that day anyways.
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  • MorrigoonMorrigoon member
    First Comment
    edited December 2011
    We also have a very low budget.  Just don't believe the industry BS about having to spend $20K or some other ridiculous amount.  You can totally do it on less!I found a local historical site that is part of the County Park system.  SUPER cheap.  I'm having both the ceremony and reception there, but it could be cheaper if I was only doing the ceremony.  Or if I was only having 50 people.I decided on a "tea party" style reception, to keep the food costs under control (dude, you feed your guests sandwiches and it's still considered elegant!).  Also, we're self-catering.  I asked my brother to coordinate the foodI found some 2-tiered plate stands on sale the last couple weeks at Wal-Mart.  They were part of the "Fall" decor, so now they're on clearance for like a couple bucks each.  I'm going to put out pastries on the tables on these (use it like a 2-tiered server).  By the way, Trader Joe's has some good holiday bread mixes right now, like pumpkin and apple spice.  Get those and one of those cute shaped muffin pans for tea breads.Cut the alcohol.  If you have a mid-day wedding this is easier to do (not sure you can get away with that for an evening wedding, but you can totally do it during the day).  The cost of the actual alcohol aside, the "other" costs of serving alcohol were killing me: the alcohol permit, the required security guards if you have alcohol, a licensed bartender.... forget it!  We'll toast with Martinellis and call it good.  My fiance doesn't drink anyway and I'm not passionate about it myself so we cut it.Beverage wise it's probably going to be tea, bottled water, and some kind of punch.  I'm thinking of using the boysenberry punch that they sell at Knott's - in the store next to the restaurant you can buy the punch concentrate.  But you could also check Smart & Final, they have concentrated beverages in different flavors.I hope this gives you a few ideas for your own wedding!
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