Snarky Brides

DIY Snark

I'm posting this to see if anyone feels the same as me.  

When I started planning my wedding I wanted to do some DIY.  I bought an arch to decorate, looked at loads of printables online, browsed Pintrest etc.  I generally had high hopes that my skills would give me awesome results that would be..

1. So original and "reflect us as a couple."
2. Cheap, leaving more money for important things like sh** loads of alcohol.
3. Very professional looking, you would never be able to tell it was DIY!

So after actually zero attempts of anything due to being a lazy b**ch, I have given up.  
I have no idea where that wedding arch is, our garage??  
Why do I have 200 vintage look mini keys?  
Why does my ceremony program look like it was completed by a 12 year old after taking a Microsoft Word on-line tutorial?
And most importantly why do I have 3 wicker baskets?  What are they for???

Anyway, safe to say I'm having to sort things out with actual vendors, but I don't know why I didn't listen to Step Mum in the first place.  1000 paper cranes?  I can barely manage to stuff my save the dates envelopes.

And I still haven't sent my signed contract to the venue even though we have paid them in full.

Hanging my head in shame.  Anyone else a failed DIY Bride?
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Re: DIY Snark

  • I wasn't a failed DIY bride but your post gave me a giggle. Hey, no shame! 
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  • julieanne912julieanne912 member
    First Anniversary First Comment First Answer 5 Love Its
    edited October 2015
    I am.  I ended up just buying the good DIYers stuff off of Facebook classified pages.  Some women out there are amazing crafters, so I took advantage of their skills and bought their used wedding stuff for cheap.  I also, thankfully, have a mother who sews and a BFF (my MOH) who LOVES to do paper crafting, so they were all over doing stuff for the wedding, voluntarily.  

    My only DIY skill is that I have pretty handwriting, so I hand addressed my invites and escort cards.  
    Married 9.12.15
    image
  • I'm posting this to see if anyone feels the same as me.  

    When I started planning my wedding I wanted to do some DIY.  I bought an arch to decorate, looked at loads of printables online, browsed Pintrest etc.  I generally had high hopes that my skills would give me awesome results that would be..

    1. So original and "reflect us as a couple."
    2. Cheap, leaving more money for important things like sh** loads of alcohol.
    3. Very professional looking, you would never be able to tell it was DIY!

    So after actually zero attempts of anything due to being a lazy b**ch, I have given up.  
    I have no idea where that wedding arch is, our garage??  
    Why do I have 200 vintage look mini keys?  
    Why does my ceremony program look like it was completed by a 12 year old after taking a Microsoft Word on-line tutorial?
    And most importantly why do I have 3 wicker baskets?  What are they for???

    Anyway, safe to say I'm having to sort things out with actual vendors, but I don't know why I didn't listen to Step Mum in the first place.  1000 paper cranes?  I can barely manage to stuff my save the dates envelopes.

    And I still haven't sent my signed contract to the venue even though we have paid them in full.

    Hanging my head in shame.  Anyone else a failed DIY Bride?
    I DIY'd a ton of stuff for my wedding and ended up doing a ton for other weddings. For a wedding I was in last year, I actually folded 1000 paper cranes for the couple. It only took me a few weeks. BUT... I live for DIY.
    ~*~*~*~*~

  • I am not to the point of DIY yet but I have a couple ideas for centerpieces and escort cards... and back up plans for when I get there and am like 'Fuck It.'
  • Just had my florist quote so need to lie down in a dark room for a bit.  

    Thanks girls, just needed a snark.  Now I need to ask FI to do that cool vintage frame table plan I wanted, heres hoping!!

    xxxx
  • ScottishSarahScottishSarah member
    First Anniversary First Answer 5 Love Its First Comment
    edited October 2015
    I am.  I ended up just buying the good DIYers stuff off of Facebook classified pages.  Some women out there are amazing crafters, so I took advantage of their skills and bought their used wedding stuff for cheap.  I also, thankfully, have a mother who sews and a BFF (my MOH) who LOVES to do paper crafting, so they were all over doing stuff for the wedding, voluntarily.  

    My only DIY skill is that I have pretty handwriting, so I hand addressed my invites and escort cards.  
    That's awesome.  Our handwriting (me and FI) looks like a 5 year old's, but hopefully it will be a personal touch!
  • Some of our DIY stuff ended up costing MORE than it would have to buy already made. :/ A lot of stuff like the programs ended up just getting tossed and we spent SO much time on them it's ridiculous. Wish I wouldn't have! Like @julianne912 did, we got our wedding invites handmade by someone from Etsy and they turned out great. We got an image file from her and then waited for a sale on Vistaprint to get them all printed out.

    Some stuff I bought things for like the OP did... and they're still sitting around somewhere! I had good intentions?? haha
  • I hear you! I did some DIY things:

    - Made my own invitations (I have the Adobe Suite and then pasted everything together, added bows, blah blah)

    - Learned calligraphy to address the invitations

    - Made my own/used calligraphy for place cards

    - Made my own simple centerpieces (glass vasey thing with an ivory candle surrounded by mini pinecones or acorns)

    - Designed my own ceremony programs

    Most of it I kind of regretted. I was EXHAUSTED and had no time or desire to do any of it. I'm sure later on I'll be glad I did it - some of it did save me money (centerpieces and invites) but my learning calligraphy? So unnecessary and ended up being worse than I thought. I also bought a lot of stuff I ended up changing my mind on and returning, etc.

    image

    image

    Wedding Countdown Ticker
  • Some of our DIY stuff ended up costing MORE than it would have to buy already made. :/ A lot of stuff like the programs ended up just getting tossed and we spent SO much time on them it's ridiculous. Wish I wouldn't have! Like @julianne912 did, we got our wedding invites handmade by someone from Etsy and they turned out great. We got an image file from her and then waited for a sale on Vistaprint to get them all printed out.

    Some stuff I bought things for like the OP did... and they're still sitting around somewhere! I had good intentions?? haha

    Wait, was there an agreement there that Etsyseller was gonna just design one invite or did she expect that you were gonna order them all from her and just sent you a preview? Cause if she was just sending you a preview and you took that shit and ran that would be sooooo messed up.

    I helped my friend do her bouquets and boutonnieres, and we did her invites on one of those printing sites with a coupon we got for signing up for their newsletter. We payed like $1 for a stock photo to use and they turned out great. I also made her bridesmaid dresses and flower girl dress.

    I'm not sure how much I'll actually DIY for my wedding tho. I got enough second hand stress from her and her MIL lol.

  • Some of our DIY stuff ended up costing MORE than it would have to buy already made. :/ A lot of stuff like the programs ended up just getting tossed and we spent SO much time on them it's ridiculous. Wish I wouldn't have! Like @julianne912 did, we got our wedding invites handmade by someone from Etsy and they turned out great. We got an image file from her and then waited for a sale on Vistaprint to get them all printed out.

    Some stuff I bought things for like the OP did... and they're still sitting around somewhere! I had good intentions?? haha
    Wait, was there an agreement there that Etsyseller was gonna just design one invite or did she expect that you were gonna order them all from her and just sent you a preview? Cause if she was just sending you a preview and you took that shit and ran that would be sooooo messed up. I helped my friend do her bouquets and boutonnieres, and we did her invites on one of those printing sites with a coupon we got for signing up for their newsletter. We payed like $1 for a stock photo to use and they turned out great. I also made her bridesmaid dresses and flower girl dress. I'm not sure how much I'll actually DIY for my wedding tho. I got enough second hand stress from her and her MIL lol.
    There's lots of designers on Etsy that you can purchase the template from, it's usually around $20-30.  They usually have the templates already done before you purchase, so they're not specifically custom.   I was going to do that til my MOH volunteered to just do them herself as her gift to me.  
    Married 9.12.15
    image


  • Some of our DIY stuff ended up costing MORE than it would have to buy already made. :/ A lot of stuff like the programs ended up just getting tossed and we spent SO much time on them it's ridiculous. Wish I wouldn't have! Like @julianne912 did, we got our wedding invites handmade by someone from Etsy and they turned out great. We got an image file from her and then waited for a sale on Vistaprint to get them all printed out.

    Some stuff I bought things for like the OP did... and they're still sitting around somewhere! I had good intentions?? haha

    Wait, was there an agreement there that Etsyseller was gonna just design one invite or did she expect that you were gonna order them all from her and just sent you a preview? Cause if she was just sending you a preview and you took that shit and ran that would be sooooo messed up.

    I helped my friend do her bouquets and boutonnieres, and we did her invites on one of those printing sites with a coupon we got for signing up for their newsletter. We payed like $1 for a stock photo to use and they turned out great. I also made her bridesmaid dresses and flower girl dress.

    I'm not sure how much I'll actually DIY for my wedding tho. I got enough second hand stress from her and her MIL lol.


    There's lots of designers on Etsy that you can purchase the template from, it's usually around $20-30.  They usually have the templates already done before you purchase, so they're not specifically custom.   I was going to do that til my MOH volunteered to just do them herself as her gift to me.  

    Oh okay. When she said handmade and then image file i was like whaaaat. I just havent heard of doing it that way. Good to know, really. :)
  • I love crafting and DIY so I am doing almost all of it myself. Everything seems to be blossoming into something more intense because I come up with more ideas... I have not folded over 100 paper flowers, made all of the bouquets, hand painted metal flowers, stuffed fake snow into 200 clear glass ornaments and hot glued bows on them, painted an old window and put fabric on the back of it, spray painted all the table numbers and cut out bases for them to be painted.

    Still to do: line the card box inside.

    Wedding Countdown Ticker
  • I love diy but I know where to draw my line so I don't get overwhelmed.
    I designed my stationary, programs and etc. need to print them up.
    We are making cookie favors.
    And cupcake stands.
    I will be diying my own flowers but haven't decided if I am doing paper, real or fake.

    I chose a venue that would do a lot for me so I can focus on those things hard core.

    I want to do an arch but that might be something I have to let go
  • I DIY'd a little.  I made the programs and the bouquets (with fresh flowers bought online), but oddly enough, H did more DIY stuff than me.  He sewed table runners for our tables, made little wooden easels to put our table numbers on, and painted a cool design and the guest names on all of these little canvases that were our escort cards.  Of course, it was all my idea, but he's a much better craftsman than me.  If I'd made those things, they would've looked terrible.  Oh yeah, he also sculpted our cake topper.  DIY groom win, I guess, lol.

    SaveSave
  • Ugh, DIY.

    Ladies. Let. It. Go. We all want to be Martha Stewart but none of us ever will be. Let's face it; all we really want is her hyper-organized house and meticulous nature. Not happening.

    I feel like DIY is so overrated. Oh, congratulations! You made some crap that you saw on Pinterest and tried to pass it of as "unique" or "special" at your reception. I see you girl, I see you. And it looks cheap.

    Ladies, spend the money. Please. Or don't spend the money and live without having some stupid, unnecessary item. PEOPLE WON'T MISS WHATS NEVER THERE.

    "Serve memorable food, cold drinks, and show us a smile dammit!"
  • Oh god, the only things I DIY'd were really to save money or just it seemed like the best way. Like I made a seating chart poster and the wedding programs and table card numbers. But that was more because I wanted the freedom to change up the seating chart the week of the wedding if necessary and it was basically just fancy paper attached to a fabric covered foam board! 
  • ScottishSarahScottishSarah member
    First Anniversary First Answer 5 Love Its First Comment
    edited October 2015
    Ed - posted on wrong board oops!

  • Ugh, DIY.

    Ladies. Let. It. Go. We all want to be Martha Stewart but none of us ever will be. Let's face it; all we really want is her hyper-organized house and meticulous nature. Not happening.

    I feel like DIY is so overrated. Oh, congratulations! You made some crap that you saw on Pinterest and tried to pass it of as "unique" or "special" at your reception. I see you girl, I see you. And it looks cheap.

    Ladies, spend the money. Please. Or don't spend the money and live without having some stupid, unnecessary item. PEOPLE WON'T MISS WHATS NEVER THERE.

    "Serve memorable food, cold drinks, and show us a smile dammit!"
    Wow, excellent display of overgeneralization and judgment! 

    I, and many women I know, have no interest in being Martha Stewart. As a wise man once said, Martha's polishing the brass on the Titanic; it's all going down, man.

    DIY also doesn't mean pinteresty shit. We are DIY-ing flowers because they aren't important enough to us to spend money for a florist. We are DIY-ing invitations because my budget for all stationery is $100 plus postage. We are DIY-ing decor because my wedding is at my parents' house and we'd like it to be gussied up for the special occasion. I don't care if my wedding is unique--and it won't be because we got free mason jars with burlap/lace from another bride--and that's not the rationale for doing DIY.

    Also... some people just like crafts. I like to make seasonal wreaths from Dollar Store flowers because they're $8-15 instead of $40 from Pier 1. I wouldn't do excessive crafty stuff for my wedding, but some people enjoy it. Who cares?
    ummm QFT:

    I am allergic to flowers so real ones were out, nor did i care about paying a premium for something that lasted a few hours DIY time.. saved over $1000.. the only only one that looked fake was mine because of the unnatural blue I wanted..

    made all my stationary only had the invites printed from staples on their nicer card-stock. again saved over $500 and still looked like we spent that much..

    we also got the centerpieces for free, and spent $60 for water beads and LED lights to put in them.. I found a lot of ideas on pintrest but it was because I genially have never planned a wedding or had seen weddings without flowers as a centerpiece..

    I fell in love with $100 tutu's on Etsy, priced everything found out I could make 3 for $80 spent a weekend making 3 beautiful tutu's it was fun and I learned a lot about my abilities.

    Also I made a menu sign, welcome sign, and my uncle made us a large letter for our guests to sign because we want it hung in our house. it all turned out great, and didn't look cheap..

    Have you looked at ETSY at all? most of that stuff is someone making it and selling it, so saying that all DIY is cheap is saying that everything made by hand is cheap and crappy looking? personally I love things that are made by hand..
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  • DIY if you want to. But I do think the wedding "style" right now is all in the vein of mason jars, lace and DIY. I have nothing against that style but I truly doubt that all the brides who do it are doing it because it is THEIR style, they are doing it because it is THE style. I also think it is dangerous to assume that DIY is always a money saver. For example, I have friends who DIY'd their flowers and designed their own centerpieces all to save money. I bought orchid plants and stuck them in nicer pots for centerpieces, had Whole Foods do all the bouquets, bouts and arrangements for the ceremony and reception spaces, and spent the same amount of money as my friends did. 

    I am biased, but I will say we got tons of compliments on all of our flowers and centerpieces, whereas they did not, AND I did not have to do all that work right before my wedding. Not only that, they basically used their BMs and female family members as indentured labor to get all that DIY shit done. It is DO IT YOURSELF not DO IT FOR ME. When I am in the basement with the mother of the bride on the morning of the wedding frantically finishing up all the bouquets, that is not cool guys. Not cool. 

    To be clear I am not saying you all are making folks do stuff for you, just that brides should think carefully about the cost/benefit of DIY. 
    image
  • DIY if you want to. But I do think the wedding "style" right now is all in the vein of mason jars, lace and DIY. I have nothing against that style but I truly doubt that all the brides who do it are doing it because it is THEIR style, they are doing it because it is THE style. I also think it is dangerous to assume that DIY is always a money saver. For example, I have friends who DIY'd their flowers and designed their own centerpieces all to save money. I bought orchid plants and stuck them in nicer pots for centerpieces, had Whole Foods do all the bouquets, bouts and arrangements for the ceremony and reception spaces, and spent the same amount of money as my friends did. 

    I am biased, but I will say we got tons of compliments on all of our flowers and centerpieces, whereas they did not, AND I did not have to do all that work right before my wedding. Not only that, they basically used their BMs and female family members as indentured labor to get all that DIY shit done. It is DO IT YOURSELF not DO IT FOR ME. When I am in the basement with the mother of the bride on the morning of the wedding frantically finishing up all the bouquets, that is not cool guys. Not cool. 

    To be clear I am not saying you all are making folks do stuff for you, just that brides should think carefully about the cost/benefit of DIY. 
    First bold: The difference is your a bargain shopper, and maybe she enjoyed taking the time to make the flowers.. most people think you have to do to a florist to get wedding flowers you were smart enough to know you didn't have to.. there are many ways to save money other than DIY and being a GOOD DIY'er is one of them. I saved a ton of money on my wedding by making a lot of things we used, but I also knew my abilities so when I needed sleeves added to my dress that I could remove, I ordered a lace bolero and attached hooks to the dress. Part of DIY is that you save $ if you didn't then your not a good DIY'er IMO..

    Second bold: This is your opinion, I was done with all my DIY a month before the wedding, and didn't need help but when others asked if they could I accepted help if I wanted or needed it. If you want a DIY wedding then you for sure need to be proactive in the planning of DIY and have it done. Also knew your skills if you don't think you can put together a fake flower arrangement and have it look good then the Sams/whole food or other store route is for you... I had tons of complements on my flowers and had them done 7-6 months in advance. the tutu's were the last thing I did since the kids were growing I wanted to wait until a few months out to measure them but I had that planned the whole time it took me a weekend.

     
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  • DIY if you want to. But I do think the wedding "style" right now is all in the vein of mason jars, lace and DIY. I have nothing against that style but I truly doubt that all the brides who do it are doing it because it is THEIR style, they are doing it because it is THE style. I also think it is dangerous to assume that DIY is always a money saver. For example, I have friends who DIY'd their flowers and designed their own centerpieces all to save money. I bought orchid plants and stuck them in nicer pots for centerpieces, had Whole Foods do all the bouquets, bouts and arrangements for the ceremony and reception spaces, and spent the same amount of money as my friends did. 

    I am biased, but I will say we got tons of compliments on all of our flowers and centerpieces, whereas they did not, AND I did not have to do all that work right before my wedding. Not only that, they basically used their BMs and female family members as indentured labor to get all that DIY shit done. It is DO IT YOURSELF not DO IT FOR ME. When I am in the basement with the mother of the bride on the morning of the wedding frantically finishing up all the bouquets, that is not cool guys. Not cool. 

    To be clear I am not saying you all are making folks do stuff for you, just that brides should think carefully about the cost/benefit of DIY. 
    First bold: The difference is your a bargain shopper, and maybe she enjoyed taking the time to make the flowers.. most people think you have to do to a florist to get wedding flowers you were smart enough to know you didn't have to.. there are many ways to save money other than DIY and being a GOOD DIY'er is one of them. I saved a ton of money on my wedding by making a lot of things we used, but I also knew my abilities so when I needed sleeves added to my dress that I could remove, I ordered a lace bolero and attached hooks to the dress. Part of DIY is that you save $ if you didn't then your not a good DIY'er IMO..

    Second bold: This is your opinion, I was done with all my DIY a month before the wedding, and didn't need help but when others asked if they could I accepted help if I wanted or needed it. If you want a DIY wedding then you for sure need to be proactive in the planning of DIY and have it done. Also knew your skills if you don't think you can put together a fake flower arrangement and have it look good then the Sams/whole food or other store route is for you... I had tons of complements on my flowers and had them done 7-6 months in advance. the tutu's were the last thing I did since the kids were growing I wanted to wait until a few months out to measure them but I had that planned the whole time it took me a weekend.

     
    I mean, fair enough, but my point is that it is possible to be thrifty without doing DIY. You are clearly a DIY exception if you got everything done on budget without forcing labor out of friends/family. My experiences have been the opposite - for example, the girls whose weddings I have been in who "did their own flowers" NEVER TOUCHED THE FLOWERS THEMSELVES until it was time to walk down the aisle. Instead friends and family did it for them because they were told to. So no, they did not "enjoy" doing their own flowers because they didn't care much about the flowers in the first place and foisted it off to others. In my experience this has been the rule and not the exception - DIY ends up being a burden on others but not the bride. That's just not the right way to save money, IMO. 

    I have always said on these boards that doing your own (fresh) flowers is tricky because of the timing involved - flowers have to be done in the 24 hours or so before the wedding and that is a very busy time already. If you are doing silk or some other synthetic obviously that is a different story. 
    image
  • First bold: The difference is your a bargain shopper, and maybe she enjoyed taking the time to make the flowers.. most people think you have to do to a florist to get wedding flowers you were smart enough to know you didn't have to.. there are many ways to save money other than DIY and being a GOOD DIY'er is one of them. I saved a ton of money on my wedding by making a lot of things we used, but I also knew my abilities so when I needed sleeves added to my dress that I could remove, I ordered a lace bolero and attached hooks to the dress. Part of DIY is that you save $ if you didn't then your not a good DIY'er IMO..

    Second bold: This is your opinion, I was done with all my DIY a month before the wedding, and didn't need help but when others asked if they could I accepted help if I wanted or needed it. If you want a DIY wedding then you for sure need to be proactive in the planning of DIY and have it done. Also knew your skills if you don't think you can put together a fake flower arrangement and have it look good then the Sams/whole food or other store route is for you... I had tons of complements on my flowers and had them done 7-6 months in advance. the tutu's were the last thing I did since the kids were growing I wanted to wait until a few months out to measure them but I had that planned the whole time it took me a weekend.

     
    I completely disagree with the bolded statement.  Handmade things are not always about money.  Sometimes it is about designing and producing something yourself for a personalized touch or because what you want isn't available commercially or just because you enjoy doing that kind of thing.  I plan on making DIY centerpieces, for example, not because it is the cheapest option but because crafts are fun and what I want is not sold in any stores.  I could rent cheap polyester tablecloths for $15 each, but I would rather spend a bit more to make my own completely custom linens that perfectly match the look I am going for (not to mention the fact that I get to keep or sell them when I'm done!)  Does that mean I am "not a good DIY'er"?  I certainly don't think so!
  • I DIYd the bouquets and centerpieces and definitely saved a lot over any florist, including a grocery store florist.  It's because I did REALLY simple centerpieces.  Just single stems of stock and hydrangeas.  I did those by myself.  Easy peasy.  My sister helped me make the 4 bouquets, but she WANTED to (I never would've forced her into it).  We made the bouquets in probably an hour.  It really wasn't THAT hard... DIY doesn't have to be expensive, really difficult, or involve your family/friends as slave labor.

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  • DIY if you want to. But I do think the wedding "style" right now is all in the vein of mason jars, lace and DIY. I have nothing against that style but I truly doubt that all the brides who do it are doing it because it is THEIR style, they are doing it because it is THE style. I also think it is dangerous to assume that DIY is always a money saver. For example, I have friends who DIY'd their flowers and designed their own centerpieces all to save money. I bought orchid plants and stuck them in nicer pots for centerpieces, had Whole Foods do all the bouquets, bouts and arrangements for the ceremony and reception spaces, and spent the same amount of money as my friends did. 

    I am biased, but I will say we got tons of compliments on all of our flowers and centerpieces, whereas they did not, AND I did not have to do all that work right before my wedding. Not only that, they basically used their BMs and female family members as indentured labor to get all that DIY shit done. It is DO IT YOURSELF not DO IT FOR ME. When I am in the basement with the mother of the bride on the morning of the wedding frantically finishing up all the bouquets, that is not cool guys. Not cool. 

    To be clear I am not saying you all are making folks do stuff for you, just that brides should think carefully about the cost/benefit of DIY. 
    First bold: The difference is your a bargain shopper, and maybe she enjoyed taking the time to make the flowers.. most people think you have to do to a florist to get wedding flowers you were smart enough to know you didn't have to.. there are many ways to save money other than DIY and being a GOOD DIY'er is one of them. I saved a ton of money on my wedding by making a lot of things we used, but I also knew my abilities so when I needed sleeves added to my dress that I could remove, I ordered a lace bolero and attached hooks to the dress. Part of DIY is that you save $ if you didn't then your not a good DIY'er IMO..

    Second bold: This is your opinion, I was done with all my DIY a month before the wedding, and didn't need help but when others asked if they could I accepted help if I wanted or needed it. If you want a DIY wedding then you for sure need to be proactive in the planning of DIY and have it done. Also knew your skills if you don't think you can put together a fake flower arrangement and have it look good then the Sams/whole food or other store route is for you... I had tons of complements on my flowers and had them done 7-6 months in advance. the tutu's were the last thing I did since the kids were growing I wanted to wait until a few months out to measure them but I had that planned the whole time it took me a weekend.

     
    I mean, fair enough, but my point is that it is possible to be thrifty without doing DIY. You are clearly a DIY exception if you got everything done on budget without forcing labor out of friends/family. My experiences have been the opposite - for example, the girls whose weddings I have been in who "did their own flowers" NEVER TOUCHED THE FLOWERS THEMSELVES until it was time to walk down the aisle. Instead friends and family did it for them because they were told to. So no, they did not "enjoy" doing their own flowers because they didn't care much about the flowers in the first place and foisted it off to others. In my experience this has been the rule and not the exception - DIY ends up being a burden on others but not the bride. That's just not the right way to save money, IMO. 

    I have always said on these boards that doing your own (fresh) flowers is tricky because of the timing involved - flowers have to be done in the 24 hours or so before the wedding and that is a very busy time already. If you are doing silk or some other synthetic obviously that is a different story. 
    this is not a DIY then. this is being a slave driver.. someone should have said fuck you and your flowers.. this is the point where I would sat DIY is "do it your damn self!!"

    And with the second yes, real flowers are tricky, and extra work I would consider this a DIY project as well, but something that is a lot more stressful than the silf/fake flowers.. if all you have to do is pick up a bunch of flowers or per-arranged flowers it is a lot less stressful. 


    First bold: The difference is your a bargain shopper, and maybe she enjoyed taking the time to make the flowers.. most people think you have to do to a florist to get wedding flowers you were smart enough to know you didn't have to.. there are many ways to save money other than DIY and being a GOOD DIY'er is one of them. I saved a ton of money on my wedding by making a lot of things we used, but I also knew my abilities so when I needed sleeves added to my dress that I could remove, I ordered a lace bolero and attached hooks to the dress. Part of DIY is that you save $ if you didn't then your not a good DIY'er IMO..

    Second bold: This is your opinion, I was done with all my DIY a month before the wedding, and didn't need help but when others asked if they could I accepted help if I wanted or needed it. If you want a DIY wedding then you for sure need to be proactive in the planning of DIY and have it done. Also knew your skills if you don't think you can put together a fake flower arrangement and have it look good then the Sams/whole food or other store route is for you... I had tons of complements on my flowers and had them done 7-6 months in advance. the tutu's were the last thing I did since the kids were growing I wanted to wait until a few months out to measure them but I had that planned the whole time it took me a weekend.

     
    I completely disagree with the bolded statement.  Handmade things are not always about money.  Sometimes it is about designing and producing something yourself for a personalized touch or because what you want isn't available commercially or just because you enjoy doing that kind of thing.  I plan on making DIY centerpieces, for example, not because it is the cheapest option but because crafts are fun and what I want is not sold in any stores.  I could rent cheap polyester tablecloths for $15 each, but I would rather spend a bit more to make my own completely custom linens that perfectly match the look I am going for (not to mention the fact that I get to keep or sell them when I'm done!)  Does that mean I am "not a good DIY'er"?  I certainly don't think so!
    This is why I said IMO (in my opinion).. When you buy something that is handcrafted or made you are buying not only the materials but the time and energy that someone put into it. typically I shop around and if I can not find exactly what I am looking for < or = to what I can make if for then I will make it if i can. It looks like you can buy polyester table cloths for ~$7-$10 in any color, I am not sure about "the look you are going for" but IMO you could spend your money better..
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  • My sister in law was in a wedding where the bride made her pick apart all the wired bouquets after the ceremony and repurpose them in the centrepieces. She said she missed the champagne and canepes and her hands were red raw. When I asked why the fuck she was asked to do that she said the flowers were "really expensive". Seriously! This bride should have got cheaper grocery store flowers or had less expensive bouquets, not made her bridesmaid miss the drinks reception, cheap bitch!
  • Regarding DIY flowers (only because I feel that comment was directed toward me)... it just depends on what YOU want for your wedding. 

    Flowers... mean almost nothing to me, except for my flower crown. I don't care what kind they are, what they smell like, what color they are, (I'd like a nice assortment of all flowery colors rather than fitting a color scheme), and I am not making elaborate centerpieces. We are actually growing wildflowers ourselves for most of the decor. We are having banquet tables as opposed to round tables, so rather than a "center" piece we'll do beer bottles with a handful of wildflowers in each one all down the tables. If the wildflowers don't grow we'll buy some extra grocery store flowers, or bulk order some baby's breath. 

    I couldn't give a shit what the tables look like, to be honest. I also REALLY don't care if we get compliments on the flowers, LOL! That's hilarious. Anyway, flowers are gonna be dead in 3 days. That's why I'm not digging up $500, $800, $1200, $2000 out of the budget for flowers. However, some people really enjoy flowers, have specific flowers or colors they want, have a specific vision for what they should look like, want full and luscious arrangements, etc. Or, apparently, want compliments on the flowers. That's awesome. And they are digging up the money out of their budget for it. Wonderful!

    The most important parts of my wedding to me are the ceremony, having our families and loved ones with us, having lots of great food, and having a fun, relaxing, casual atmosphere. Everything else is either there for guests' comfort or because it looks cute/was cheap/was free/was easy. 

    It's the same thing with regular budgeting. Some people really enjoy seeing movies, so they budget for entertainment to go spend $10 a ticket several times a month. Some people hate movies and they think that's a waste and they choose to spend their money on nice wine. Who cares? It's all good.
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  • The other thing about DIY that I had is what the heck do I do with all this nonsense after the wedding? It's kind of silly, but I ended up making my guest room "wedding themed." Hung the wreath above the bed, put the table numbers on the dresser, repurposed the card box as a place to stick guest toiletries... Lol. At least all of it was pretty stuff. I think also our entire Christmas tree is going to be covered with leftover DIY ornaments I made for favors- because what else are you going to do with 20 ornaments that have "wegl ❤️ Husband 12-6-14" on them?
  • Wegl13 said:

    The other thing about DIY that I had is what the heck do I do with all this nonsense after the wedding? It's kind of silly, but I ended up making my guest room "wedding themed." Hung the wreath above the bed, put the table numbers on the dresser, repurposed the card box as a place to stick guest toiletries... Lol. At least all of it was pretty stuff. I think also our entire Christmas tree is going to be covered with leftover DIY ornaments I made for favors- because what else are you going to do with 20 ornaments that have "wegl ❤️ Husband 12-6-14" on them?

    I am at this point as well.. I have tubs of wedding stuff to figure out what to do with..
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