DISQUS

Davin Greenwell · 5 months ago

Buzz..

Thanks for the hot tips. I am getting married next summer and we're just starting to go through the motions for planning. I especially like the invitation idea.

Nicola W · 5 months ago

Thank you for sharing these tips, I've passed them on to a number of friends. I especially like the one about not having a wedding party. Matching dresses from a wedding shop just send costs upward !

~ N

Cheryl · 5 months ago

Hi Buzz,

I LOVED your article - especially tips #9, 10 and 11. Making a wedding "adults only" is a great idea - I just wonder how it can be done without offending anyone.

In any events, thank you for the great article Buzz, and congratulations!

buzz · 5 months ago

It was a tough call for us, since all our friends have kids. We did have some there, but they were family or out of towners. Locals were asked to not bring them, and all the parents heartily agreed - they liked having some grown up time.

The best way to tackle the subject is to talk with each couple individually to gauge response. Had we had local kids at our wedding, we would have had upwards of 20 under the age of 5 vs 50 adults. That's what I mean by "it's a wedding, not a birthday party."

Mina · 5 months ago

Great tips Buzz. So on the subject of party favors; you mean to say, MOST people get them MADE? Damn, I got suckered into making them for 3 of my friends parties! Damn. It looks like you had a marvelous day with wonderful memories. Shows that you dont have to spend $$$$$$ to have a "perfect" wedding. If ever I should wed, I will do it as inexpensively as possible! :D

Kat · 5 months ago

Fantastic post Buzz!

I was in a friends wedding 2 years ago - they were both in their mid-late 20s - both just finishing school and starting new careers...and the wedding bill was OVER $20,000 (her dress alone was $6000 on sale)...Both sets of parents did chip in, but the majority of it came out of their pockets...

Um hello *waving* DOWN PAYMENT on a HOUSE maybe? Or travel the way you keep saying want to travel but now can't afford b/c you're paying off your 6 hour wedding?

I couldn't believe it...just stunned...even more so when she said that the 2 bridesmaids (myself included) had to pay for our own dresses/hair/makeup b/c they were overbudget on flowers...yeah...that was great!

And, your wedding looked like it was much more fun and relaxed that hers was ;)

Congrats again!

lisa@manticoremedia.com · 5 months ago

Congrats Buzz and Jen - Jen you look gorgeous! I agree completely, it's not about how much money you spend, but about creating the perfect day for you, the couple, without the stress of getting in over your head financially!

yalda · 5 months ago

I do agree with some of your tips like the no kid policy and having it in a park or restaurant sure why not , no need to spend tons of money for the venue whoever some of your tips just surprised me how unnecessary cheap your wedding ceremony must have been! while i dont believe in wasting money for one big ceremony but i do feel bad for your bride if your wedding was really this cheap. no DJ? are you serious? GET THE FLOWERS AT A GROCERY? oh my goodness i feel really bad for a bride that get her flowers from safeway ! or maybe you picked them up from your garden! no photographer? why not just a cheap photography instead of none. your iphone or normal camera can never capture the moment as beautiful as professional camera. There is no need to spend so much money for the wedding day however some expense is necessary to make your bride feel like the most special girl on the planet. afterall this is her day so by spending just tiny bit of money like getting a cheap dj, photographer, florist, and smaller guest list you could have had a small yet beautiful and not so cheap and tacky wedding .
just sayin!

buzz · 5 months ago

do I *really* need to tell you how ridiculously shallow and judgemental you sound in this comment?

Jennifer and I planned the day TOGETHER. We chose everything TOGETHER. Have a look at the wedding photos - we got a brilliant photographer to do them and our ceremony was anything but tacky.

Have a look at the flowers, they were BEYOND gorgeous.

In the end, this is our day, not yours, ours. We loved it. It was perfect, it was beautiful and we're happy.

Had we decided to wear cut offs and serve Kraft dinner at the reception should be of no concern to you. We're happy and that's all that matters.

I hope you enjoy your wedding day, and paying it off for the months to follow. If that's what you want, then that's what you should have.

Davin Greenwell · 5 months ago

I agree with Buzz.. yalda, what you said sounds very shallow indeed. Not every girl in the world feels that being spent on is equal to happiness. Nor is every girl in the world as narcissistic as to need to feel as if they're the most "special girl on the planet." And not every wedding is just about the girl, nor should it be. It's about two people, not one.

Jennifer · 5 months ago

Hi I'm the Bride, Jennifer

I'm very surprised by the negative comments from Yalda. In no way was our wedding 'unnecessarily cheap' or 'tacky'. It was very elegant, tasteful and to our budget. Which we both agreed on.

I sourced the florist, and found that Whole Foods in W.Van was amazing. The service of the ladies in the floral department was beyond what I found at local floral shops. They bent over backwards to get Peonies for me, since that was my flower of choice. I would highly recommend them over any floral shop in the city. To me service is what counts, and what people talk about, and tell their friends about. I found Whole Foods had all of that, and the best prices which were an added bonus. If I decided to pick flowers from our garden, and used those flowers. That would be extra special to me as well, since they grew from OUR garden. Flowers have to have meaning to you, not where you buy them. Enough said to this..

As for a DJ, it didn't fit to our wedding, since we had a lunch service. Nor did we want one. We wanted our guest to enjoy an elegant tasteful lunch service, and I think the Teahouse did just that. More than half our friends have children, so we decided to do a lunch instead of a dinner, so people could have their evening free to spend with their family. As well, we had plans that evening to fly to Victoria so it just worked out.

As for the photographer. We had a brilliant and energetic photographer named Carolyn, she captured and created moments, that I'll have for the rest of my days. Thanks Carolyn!!

As to feeling like the most special bride on the planet, if you could have seen the way my husband looked at me that day, and everyday. That made me feel like the most beautiful person in the world. I couldn't care less where or how we got married. I'm just happy we chose each other and spent a great afternoon with friends and family. We could have gotten married anywhere and spent a ton of money but it wouldn't have made the day any better by spending more money.

I was just so happy to marry Buzz the way we wanted to do it.

Chaline · 2 months ago

Thanks for the great tips! Our wedding is in Tofino next September and we invited 50 people to share our special day. Buying your bouquet and centerpieces at a grocery store is an excellent idea. I was thinking of going to the VCC bakery shop to see if their students could make my cake but I like the Whole Foods idea as well.