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Michele
Savvy October 2022

Possible Change to Wedding Plans

Michele, on December 29, 2021 at 6:43 PM Posted in Planning 0 10
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I'm going to jump right in, and will try to keep this from being a book... My fiancé may be switching jobs which would entail a pay cut, so with that I feel guilty in spending tons of money on a wedding now.


The issue is that we have already put down the deposit on the winery. The total cost for the rental is not terrible, we can still afford that... I guess I'm looking for thoughts about maybe going somewhere else to physically get married earlier in the day (just us and the pastor, maybe a couple other people), then maybe going to the winery and just having that be a party. It would save some money, in that we wouldn't need to pay for additional ceremony chairs, waste time between ceremony to cocktail hour, wouldn't need to spend money on ceremony flowers... It's such a hard decision what to do since we were so set on it, but also I was supposed to order my dress in 2 weeks. If we go the party only route, I would just find something cheaper, no more than $500 or so, and I'd have more time to find something. Can I hear your thoughts? Do you have any other suggestions on some cheaper rustic decorations? What are you doing for catering/food that's cost effective but not "pot luck" (winery set up is outside, and also don't want to worry about potential germs and such...). Thanks for reading my chapter, looking forward to seeing what else you ladies have done or what your ideas are ❤️

10 Comments

Latest activity by Candace, on December 31, 2021 at 4:05 PM
  • Samantha
    Expert December 2021
    Samantha ·
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    Can you get married AT the winery?
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  • Michele
    Savvy October 2022
    Michele ·
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    We could do it with just us, the pastor and photographer... Would it be weird for us to already be there and married then people show up for the party afterwards?
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  • Michele
    Savvy October 2022
    Michele ·
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    I've only ever been to 2 weddings in my life and both were fairly elaborate so I'm not sure how it would look since it definitely wouldn't be traditional. Lol.
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  • Nicole
    Master September 2020
    Nicole ·
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    Can you use the same chairs for the ceremony and reception? Maybe pay slightly more to the venue to move them for you? Florals from ceremony can be reused to decorate the reception space (aisle arrangements into centerpieces, etc). Take as many pictures before the ceremony so you can minimize the cocktail hour time (can be done with/without first look). Beer/wine only (not sure what the winery’s requirements are on this). Grazing tables for cocktail hour, local restaurant catering for reception?
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  • Samantha
    Expert December 2021
    Samantha ·
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    It's your wedding, do what you want. We had everything at our venue. It was cost effective, looked more expensive than it was, and everyone had a good time.
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  • Pirate & 60s Bride
    Legend March 2017
    Pirate & 60s Bride ·
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    I would think doing more at the winery would save money. I’d be open with your venue and ask for their budget-saving ideas. Would you be able (and interested) in doing a Sunday brunch wedding instead of an evening wedding? That should save money on the site fee and food costs! And you could skip providing alcohol or mimosas/sparkling only.
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  • M
    Just Said Yes February 2022
    Michelle ·
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    You could do it a court! Some courts are really nice. Also finding a local church they usually ask for donations so it’s not too expensive!
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  • R
    Dedicated March 2022
    Renee ·
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    Cut guest list or have it at a time of day that you can serve appetizers instead of a full meal

    Use more greenery or other things instead of flowers

    Short ceremony so you only need a few chairs for any elderly people

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  • Elizabeth
    Dedicated November 2021
    Elizabeth ·
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    HIGHLY recommend a courthouse ceremony beforehand, either that day or another day. That's what we did. Google "beautiful courthouses" for ideas - the one in our city (Chicago) is gorgeous and historic, though they take you to an ugly basement room for the actual ceremony, LOL. I also saw pics of a couple who took a road trip to the courthouse in Marquette, MI to get married - gorgeous photos. So you're not even limited to your own city/state, although doing it locally does make it easier to get the marriage license beforehand.

    Then have just a reception at the winery on the day you booked. We did both a ceremony and reception on the "big day," but we didn't have to. Our private ceremony wasn't decorated or fancy, but it was 1000x better and more genuine than the one we did in front of 100 people and also very inexpensive. I had a Lulu's dress and silk bouquet I got off of Etsy and one friend joined us to record the ceremony on her phone. We hadn't done engagement photos yet so our photographer came and counted it as our engagement session, and that way it didn't cost us anything extra. We were even able to make the courthouse appointment for our dating anniversary, so we got a bunch of photos of us walking around "our" city, then did the ceremony and had dinner at the restaurant where we had our first date to celebrate. It was awesome - I enjoyed it way more than the big wedding.

    To limit reception costs, you could consider buffet vs. plated dinner, limiting bar to beer/wine, keeping flowers/decor to a minimum, etc. but the biggest impact would probably be limiting your guest list if possible. We saved a lot of money on people declining over COVID concerns, unfortunately.

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  • Candace
    Super March 2022
    Candace ·
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    I would talk to the winery and see what they can do to cut your costs down, like using the same chairs for ceremony and reception, skipping the cocktail hour, having it on a Friday or Sunday, etc. If they know that you've had a change in income and there's a chance you could cancel they will probably be accommodating.
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