DIY or Get it done?

Re: DIY or Get it done?

• nerdwife member

  

  January 2016

  Knottie1435240479 said:

  Huge Dilemma- we are on a a budget of $4,000 for the remainder of our wedding expenses! We still need to pay for photography, flowers, stationary (invites, RVSPs, programs, place cards and Thank You cards) and probably some other things that I'm forgetting because I have no clue what I am doing. 
  
  Heres the Floral Situation: Our Venue (ceremony & reception are at the same venue) provides silks to use for the table arrangements, gazebo, and aisle SO I don't need those. I only need a Bridal Bouquet, Toss Bouquet, 4 Bridesmaids Bouquets, Grooms Boutonniere, 4 Groomsmen Boutonnieres, 4 or 5 corsages, and 5 or 6 Boutonnieres for the Fathers and Grandfathers etc. 
  
  I am not against DIY, but I know it can be a lot of hassle before the wedding with everything else that needs to be done, BUT if I can save the money by buying the flowers in bulk and DIY is it worth it?
  
  Just wondering if anyone else can help or provide their experiences on a similar situation. 

  You might get more help if you post on your local board. I was really worried about how much flowers would cost and I got a great recommendation from my local board. Same could go for photography. 

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• labro member

  

  January 2016

  You still have a bunch of big items on your list....mainly the photographer. I don't know what area you live in, but I feel like the average in Atlanta is $2000.
  
  I think what you need to do first is figure out your photographer since that's probably going to be the most significant expense with your remaining budget, and also check out the checklist on TK to make sure you aren't missing anything. There's a ton of extraneous stuff on there but at least it's a good place to go and make sure you aren't missing something MAJOR.
  
  Once you've done that, I'd allocate...at least a few hundred dollars for stationary depending on how much you'll need and how fancy you want to go (don't forget stamps).
  
  I think you could easily cover what you need for floral with definitely less than $1000, but you really won't know without consulting with some local florists. I just think it's easier to go in with a number and see what they can do with that rather than say "This is what I need, what is the cost", because that cost can vary widely depending on complexity and the flowers used.

  
  

  
  

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• jacques27 member

  

  January 2016

  In addition to the good advice above (particularly the bit about the photographer) - I would take a good long look at your list and determine needs vs. wants and prioritize it.  You say you still need the programs and the specialized thank you cards and two bouquets for you and bouquets for the bridesmaids, etc.
  
  Take a good long look at need.  Do your thank you notes need to match or can you just buy boxes of cards when you see a sale at Target or Hallmark?  Most people don't care or notice what the card looks like, only that they are being thanked in a timely manner and your words are heartfelt.  Is your wedding that complicated that you need to explain it to people with a program?  Do you really need two bouquets?  What are you planning to do with yours?  Remember preserving bouquets also costs money so will just making sure you get nice close-up pictures of it suffice.  Do your bridesmaids really need full bouquets or could they get away with holding a single stem, something other than flowers, or nothing at all?  Instead of looking at it as "OMG I STILL NEED EVERYTHING ON THIS LIST," break the list into "Must Have"/"Would Be Nice"/"Not Important Unless We Have Money Leftover". 
  

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• MesmrEwe member

  

  February 2016

  Yes, do your photographer first - that's the ONE thing you have left at the end of the day to look back on your wedding and an area on the budget boards we suggest NOT skimping on (that doesn't mean a $3000 package, it means, have a good photographer so the pictures you do take are quality!).. 

  Instead of DIY, consider purchasing a pre-made pack from Sam's, Costco, FTD, etc. that you just cut off the bases and let them soak up some water the night before your wedding.  But really, set a budget you're comfortable with, say $600, be flexible, and let your florist take care of the details to achieve those needs with your budget.  Yes, you really can have nice flowers for all of you delivered by the florist without having to lift a finger!  Florists are used to working with budgets, don't jump to conclusions with DIY, just call up your local florist and set up a meeting, be firm about where your budget is, and go with the florist whose vision most aligns with yours and your budget.

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• poodledoodleooo member

  

  February 2016

  I love @jaques27 advice. I super wanted the whole stationary suite, but that would have been way out of my budget. My programs ended up being printed on office paper… from my husband’s office (shout out to his boss for being cool with it!) It wasn’t fancy, but it served the purpose of letting people know who was who and the parts of the ceremony. They all got tossed afterwards, so I was pretty pleased that I spent exactly $0 on them. And my Thank You cards ended up being gorgeous ones I found on sale at Target. I got around 100 for $40, whereas it would have been close to $150 had I purchased the matching ones from my invitation suite.  My place cards were from Michaels for about $10 and I jazzed them up with little snowflake appliques, about $5. I don’t regret dropping serious money on my actual invites/rsvp suite, but those little bits of paper throughout the reception get looked at and then tossed pretty quickly so if money is tight, it is certainly something to think about going DIY with!

  My florist actually offered to make a free toss bouquet (usually using slightly-not-as-bouquet-perfect flowers), but I didn’t do a bouquet toss – as its tradition that is now considered very antiquated in my circle and I don’t think anyone missed it.

  I actually found most bulk stores to be only marginally cheaper than my florist (I paid about $650 for exactly what you want + two vased bouquets at the altar, but obviously, I don’t know where you live…). Start with the photographer, that is incredibly important, and work backwards and be flexible on some of your “must haves” that aren’t really musts.

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