The Bacon Explosion worked, I'm getting married...

[big brown horse]

My first wedding was themed "recession", it was back in the early 90's.

I spent $3000 on it including my dress, which was an antique crocheted table cloth that my mother sewed together with silk ribbons. (The idea was that I would use it as a table cloth after the wedding.) I wore a vintage, silk slip underneath. It was very flapper.

The rules were to find a nice formal dress from goodwill under $5.00. Everyone had fun and it looked like a high dollar event.

A nice, inexpensive wedding is possible with a good imagination.

I just about die when I hear how much people spend on weddings!! I would rather own my own house than spend money on a wedding.

 

[Occamstazer]

Besides, if one were feeling like spending...perhaps all that money you *didn't* spend on a wedding could send you on, say, some kind of Safari...
...or to Brazil, or perhaps the South Pacific islands...

Excuse me, my biologist is showing...

 

[big brown horse]

Now that you mentioned it, screw a wedding (never did me any good anyway, that durn table cloth of mine still hangs as a dress in my mom's closet b/c we were divorced a year later)

GO ON YOUR SAFARI GIRL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[MorelCabin]

We had a small "potluck" wedding in the backyard. It cost us a total of $300.00 No kidding. It was beautiful, full of love amd family and friends. Best day of my life. We didn't tell anyone about it until 3 weeks before the wedding, so no-one had time to nitpick about it. Everyone thought it was awesome! We had a paved basketball court that became the dance floor...mosquito netting and branches were tied and twisted with lights to make arbours. My wedding dress was an off white dress I borrowed, and the photographer was a gift from my inlaws. Friends gave us a limo as another gift...so it all ended up being a pretty great wedding with no cost!

 

[Occamstazer]

Morel, I like the way you think

If I had my way, we'd go to the courthouse. It's not about the ostentatious ordeal, there are much more important things going on.
He's a bit traditional though, and I don't want to rain on his parade, so I suppose I can put on a dress

 

[noobiechickenlady]

Elope! Best decision we ever made. Quick, easy but still can be romantic. Cost less than $100 transportation & all (we had to go over state lines cause I was only 19)

I wore my favorite black velvet dress and carried a big bunch of white, crimson & scarlet clover and more in my hair. We stopped at a rest area on the way and there they were, screaming pick me pick me! Our best friends were our witnesses. My only regret is that the disposable camera we used got destroyed, so I have no pictures

ETA: Well, yeah not if he needs the church wedding. But you can still keep it simple. Good luck!

 

[modern_pioneer]

 

[MorelCabin]

Morel, I like the way you think

If I had my way, we'd go to the courthouse. It's not about the ostentatious ordeal, there are much more important things going on.
He's a bit traditional though, and I don't want to rain on his parade, so I suppose I can put on a dress

Do a traditional church wedding, and a potluck reception in the backyard...backyard weddings/receptions really are the best!

 

[freemotion]

Congrats!

We had a wedding that cost about $300, too. I wore a friend's dress (I made her veil for her, and our body types are so different that no one recognized the dress. She wore it off the shoulder and I didn't) and I wore a pair of cheap white canvas sneakers that I'd hot-glued leftovers from making the veil to, like bits of lace, pearls, etc. They were really cool. The dress covered them, but I lifted it up to show everyone anyways! It was a hoot.

I got my flowers (irises) from Stop&Shop. We got married in the Rose Garden at local park and also got the pavilion, which had a cement floor and a roof and no walls but all was free. Some friends decorated it with found botanicals like grapevines, pine boughs, pampas grass, etc. and balloons.

We served finger foods and punch, soda, coffee, tea, and water. Some people wanted to contribute, so we spread the word and some people brought homemade hors d'ouvres.

No cake. I have nothing against wedding cake, but I was NOT going to spend hundreds of dollars on....cake! I was not into healthy eating then, so that had nothing to do with it.

People still tell us, almost 15 years later, that it was the best wedding they ever attended.

Oh, and friends gave us, as our wedding present, their talents. We had a dj do the sound and announcing and music, and another take wonderful pictures that we developed at Costco. He had taken pictures alongside the professional photographer at my friend's wedding and his pictures came out much better....he'd captured their personalities and not just the pose....so we asked him to do ours, we paid for the film and developing.

We paid for the honeymoon with the gifts in the cards and had no debt from our wedding. We paid for everything, so had no family input to argue about, either!

 

[Occamstazer]

Modern pioneer, I followed the link to your blog. I had no idea you were a coppersmith!
May I ask what part of the country you're in? My dad was a moderately well known blacksmith. One of his friends and former apprentices is a coppersmith too.
I *love* metalwork!