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I disagree on hors d'oeuvres. You may be thinking hors d'oeuvres, your guests are thinking dinner. Result - the first 50% of people who get to the food eat it all.
It works if you get the quantity right and there are enough substantial types (ones with meat and cheese, for example). DH and I had 50 guests after an evening wedding (so clearly it was time for dinner) and we had leftovers.
My cousin had a potluck wedding reception in the church hall. I disagree on hors d'oeuvres. You may be thinking hors d'oeuvres, your guests are thinking dinner. Result - the first 50% of people who get to the food eat it all.
But I'm not a wedding expert, we eloped and then when the weather got better, my dad threw us a backyard BBQ at my uncle's place.
The first good idea for a budget wedding yet.
As for the food, you do not let the guests "think" anything. It is made clear small buffet....and you put out small dishes for the herd.
The most beautiful wedding I ever went to was a super low-budget wedding. It was held in a small country church and it was pot-luck. The church hall was ready in case it rained, but it didn't and the tables and food were moved outside in the grass behind the church with flowering apple trees in bloom.
It was a such a warm, happy little occasion with that atmosphere. Thoroughly "old fashion," yes, right out of the 19th century, including the simple but lovely bridal gown.
Good suggestions so far about paring down the guest list and looking for a cheaper venue.
When DH and I got married 28 years ago, we were broke and a spendy wedding was out of the question.
We cut our list down to 41 people and had the wedding at an inexpensive venue. We made our own cakes which were not fancy ones from the bakery but we are both artsy so did some great work with the decorating and we did buy the little traditional couple to put on one of the cakes
We also made some of the food ourselves beforehand to have for the reception (salad, bread, appetizers) and went non-traditional with the meal by ordering pizza.
I got out of the dress cheap by finding a prom dress on the clearance rack that looked like a wedding gown and DH found a nice suit at a consignment shop.
We didn't have flowers at the wedding but did have a few baskets of flowers (artificial) that we had made and set on the benches for the guests and the ringbearer carried a pillow I had made. I made my own bouquet of artificial flowers I got from a craft store that had them marked down.
We spent a total of around $450 on it. Obviously it would cost more now but the more that can be done by the bride and/or groom then the less spendy it's gonna be.
I am sorry about the title. But my sister and soon to be brother in law own lots of student loans so they need something in their price range for their wedding. Their guest list is about 100-200 people.
I have considered an outdoor wedding for a summer/fall wedding, but it may rain, so I have also thought of renting a tent. When I added up everything (from tent, table rental, table cloth, chair, chair cloth), it added up to about $5,000+ or more. Space is not included because this will be in the back yard.
Adding food to it is probably $10,000.
Is there a way to make it cheaper without cutting the guest list? I am okay with the food.
I am trying to find a better rental place.
If the bride and groom and willing to forgo alcohol and are affiliated with a mainline religion, having a simple buffet luncheon or supper in a church hall/basement would work beautifully. Until recently, it's what pretty much everyone who wasn't particular well-off did (and they were just as married as those who had the fancier receptions). Dishes and flatware are generally provided, so all that would be needed would be either rented glassware or plastic alternatives, tablecloths, and decorations.
If they are not religious or wish to have alcoholic beverages, renting the local VFW or firehall might be another alternative. It's quite affordable and the kitchen and bathroom facilities are usually more than adequate. (Bathroom facilities for a backyard wedding for 200 people something that must be taken into consideration! If you feed and water people, it has to come out again. )
If there's someone who bakes within their circle of family and friends, it's likely that someone would love to make a cake and/or cupcakes as their wedding gift to the couple. Another alternative is that they could get a simple bakery cake for cutting and have a family-provided cookie table (a Pittsburgh/western Pennsylvania tradition). It would really keep the costs down--and people love a good cookie table! A gorgeous display of them could be made by using borrowed cake stands and platters.
It goes without saying that this is going to have to be a buffet rather than a sit-down or passed hors d'ouevres reception. No "stations" that need to be staffed. Also, if the bride and groom end up serving alcohol at a backyard wedding, make sure that whoever is hosting the reception has their home-owners insurance up-to-date and check what they would be liable for should something occur either at the reception (falls, etc.) or afterwards (car accidents after being over served, etc.).
P.S. I liked another poster's idea of a brunch wedding reception. I've attended a few of those as a guest and found them to be quite lovely and elegant in an understated way.
A very small town I used to live in saw many "cheap" weddings. A friend usually officiated. Close family-friends invited via email and a general invitation to local friends went up on bulletin boards both physical and electronic. Pot lucks at someone's home or the local park that had a roofed area for portable grills. People brought personally-owned tables, folding chairs, or free standing awnings in case of rain. The bride-groom wore favorite party clothes they already owned. Friends played their own instruments for a few simple dances. "Decorations" consisted of local garden flowers or plant cuttings. If someone wanted alcohol for a toast they brought it themselves. Everyone had a great time and hardly anyone arrived anxious or stressed out over money. No earthly reason to make a wedding into such a huge ordeal. It should be about the ceremony, not the show.
When one of my sisters married the biggest expense was the cab fare or possibly the cake; hand baked from a favorite bakery, one "tier", carried by the bride in its box to a favorite park. Folding table and chairs rented from a local church and schlepped by family. Again, a friend officiated. About 15 people stood around for the ceremony, had a glass of wine and slice of cake, we all schlepped the chairs and table back to the church in a taxi van and met for dinner. That was it. Simple.
Last edited by Parnassia; 12-27-2018 at 09:19 PM..
I'm not sure how people are defining cheap, but ours was, all in, about $3500. The invitations were printed, not embossed, I bought and arranged ALL the flowers, including the buttoniers, corsages, flowers for the tables and my bouquet.
We got married in a bar, above a restaurant, on a barge, on the Mississippi. The dinner was catered by the restaurant down stairs. We provided beer, soda, water and coffee, and there was the cash bar, if anyone wanted anything different.
I had ONE attendant, and she picked out her dress. I just told her I preferred it to be long. All the guys wore matching ties. To ME it was a lovely and fun wedding.
If the bride and groom and willing to forgo alcohol and are affiliated with a mainline religion, having a simple buffet luncheon or supper in a church hall/basement would work beautifully.
My church let us bring our own booze. We bought wine from a local winery and beer at the grocery store. It is good to be Episcopalian.
ive been to pigroast wedding receptions and it was reasonable...
We had a catered pig roast for my sons graduation, with lots of side dishes and rented tent (from the high school band, cheap) and tables and chairs. A local Blue Grass band played for 2 hours for $200. The local Isaac Newton Lodge had a blue grass jam every Friday night, and those guys loved any excuse to play. The whole thing cost about $2000. and I think there were about 125-150 people. That was a few years ago, in rural Ohio, so a lot depends upon your location.
Will the wedding be in a church? Does the church have a hall?
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