Small Wedding Planning(50 Guest and under)

@Dharma81Hello fellow guest list twin(almost) lol! Your wedding sounds fun, I love it. You're the third person mentioning Spotify, I gotta get on this. I like the idea of small wooden vintage games during cocktail hour. Hm, I may incorporate this into my cocktail hour. Great idea Dharma81! The beauty of small weddings is you can do things like this. The donut idea sounds great. It sounds like it fits the fun feel of your wedding I'm glad to hear wedding planning has become stress free and more fun for you!

@Kelli Thanks, yah I thought if we do it at the beginning and then proceed into dinner people will get the message. If we do it after dinner then people would more likely expect the disco lights to come on and the loud music.

@Reggie 35 is a nice number! Glad to hear the DIY music worked out great

We're having about 50 guests. We're having our wedding on Friday which provided a small discount. We were able to cut cost on food by having small plate/appetizer style reception. We are only providing an open beer/wine bar, guests have to pay for their own liquor drinks. We found our DJ using Thumbtack which saved us $150. We're DIY-ing all of our décor and our flowers, bouts included will be DIY from Michael's floral section.

I also asked our vendors if they offered discounts for paying upfront and they all gave us 10-20% additional off of the cost. The only two items that are not paid in full right now are the venue which includes on site cater and cake. The cake is only because we haven't found the bakery we want to use and the venue will be paid in full once we finalize our numbers.

@Jennifer I like how you skipped the bridal party, one less thing to deal with. We decided to just have my bestfriend as the MOH and his brother as the BM. I like how you are incorporating your children and even some of your nieces/nephews as flower girls and ring bearers. We do not have kids and only one nephew who will be very young so we chose not to do this. I like how you are doing your guest book. That will be an amazing keepsake. Small weddings allow for nice touches like that. We also skipped out on the STD's as the guest list was so small and consisted of people who are close to us so we just casual told people as we saw them.

Very small wedding here - it's immediate family only. So, we are going to have 16 guests (14 adults and 2 children under age 5). We are having our reception at a historic hotel and our ceremony at a park nearby. We are doing a ton of things to keep it within our low budget. I am making our cake and cupcakes (with a little help from our mothers). I am DIYing our flowers with paper flowers. I will likely be DIYing any other decor we do as well. Our wedding will be 4 hours or less, so there probably won't be much dancing. Therefore, we are just using an iPod or laptop for music to set the atmosphere. We got our photographer for an amazing price since the wedding is short. Our wedding food is discounted through the venue (they don't allow outside caterers anyway). Got my dress on sale....Goodness! The list really does go on and on!

Anyway, welcome to WW! Happy planning for your intimate wedding.

@Future Mrs. Batog-Huffman We also took advantage of the small discount of not having a wedding on a Saturday. We are having ours on a Sunday. We are doing an open bar with just beer and wine and will be billed per consumption after the wedding. A lot of our guest do not drink so it did not make sense to go with the flat rate of open bar for us. I never even thought to ask about discounts for paying up front. Going forward we will be doing this, thank you! Sounds like your wedding planning is coming along beautifully.

@Kiwi Kawaii Thanks for sharing all the ways you are saving money. I have a question about finding a photographer. I have been scouting hard to find a good price for a professional photographer. We only need 3.5 hours of photography coverage(everything is at one location), one photographer(not two as many wedding have), and we want the digital copies/rights to the photos(of course). The lowest I have been quoted at is $1200.00 which to me is not a low price. Do you have any tips how you found your photographer for a great price for your small intimate wedding?

@Bride2b - Our guests can definitely drink, especially beer, so it only made sense to do open bar but definitely working out the numbers was the best way we figured it out. Also, I've looked for good deals along the way. We didn't need our invitations or STDs but I ordered them almost 3 months in advance because I got a Groupon and coupon that cost us $70 for STDs, invitations, evenlopes, address labels and thank you cards. I got my dress for just under $700 through Brides Against Breast Cancer. I actually got the paying up front tip from another bride on here a few months ago. Paying it forward in action I also never took list price for actual price when talking with vendors, they are usually willing to work with you.

Well, I will say it probably depends on where you are having your wedding at. But I basically scoured the internet for several weeks just looking up "Photographers in [Insert State Here]." Then, I made sure to explain to every photographer that we only need 2-4 hours with one photographer to see if they would work with us. There were several that were willing to lower their rate for the shorter time. Some weren't flexible at all. The average I found for shorter weddings in my search was between $500-1000.

BUT we ended up finding a photographer who takes amazing photos, but had only a few weddings under her belt at the time we booked (which looked really great, and she'd done a lot of engagement photo sessions as well). I believe this is why her rate is lower than others. Her normal 8 hour package was only $750, and she was willing to halve that for our 4 hour wedding. The only additional payment I am making is for her travel fees. She isn't in the exact area of our wedding, but even with her travel fees we are right around $400 total for her services.

Anyway, I guess my best tips would be:

1. Be up front about your needs and also you ideal budget range. Most people will tell you right away if they can barter or if they can't do anything for you.

2. Try to find wedding photographers who might have just a little less experience. You might find a gem that you didn't expect to find.

3. Use all the resources you have at your disposal. Google was my main source. But there is also the WW search functions. I would also suggest talking to friends, family, acquaintances to see if they know anyone.

In the end, I guess it comes down to being diligent. Like I said before, it took me several weeks of very dedicated searching to accidentally find our photographer. I will also say, I know the price we are paying is not typical. But I do think you could likely get better than $1200 (I assume. Maybe that is a low rate for your location?)

I'm excited to see this thread, I'm also planning a small wedding We're inviting 35 to 40 guests

@Future Mrs. Batog-Huffman - Yes, when it comes to alcohol working out the numbers and knowing your crowd is important to make the best decision.

Good call on Groupon! I will be keeping my eye out on the Groupon App.

Thats a good tip to not take vendors list price for what they are. It does not hurt to contact them and see if they do custom packages.

@Asena O. Glad you were excited to see this thread! Let's keep the conversation going! Where are you in your planning process?

For your question about finding a photographer- I couldnt find a photographer in budget no matter how much I searched Google, wedding wire, the knot, etc. I started asking around on Facebook and eventually, I found a group called Bride to Bride (Houston area brides, this is a great group to join for finding vendors), and I found my photographer. i told him my budget and he offered to do photography and videography for 8 hours for $1850.

@Kiwi Kawaii - Thank you for taking the time to write that. Those tips are great and I think many brides who check out this forum will utilize them.

Yes, in my area (Toronto,Canada) $1200 is the lowest price point I have gotten and that was with some negotiation. Typical packages around here appear to start around $**** that I have seen. I will keep on with my search. I have emailed a few more today and was straight to the point with what we need. Utilizing your tips and some serious time spent scouting I am determined to get a lower quote.

If it makes you feel better: Typical price ranges in my area for a normal length of wedding usually start around that price range too. Good luck in getting a lower rate! One other thing you could do is talk to your other vendors. Since they work in the industry themselves, maybe they might have suggestions for you?

@Asena O. - Glad to hear you have found a photographer/videographer within your price range. Thanks for referring Houston brides to that group. This is what these forums are all about, helping and sharing

@Kiwi Kawaii Thanks! Yes we will check out who are vendors know. Fingers crossed!

I was thinking for photography.... would you be able to somehow approach a local post secondary institution with a photography program and speak with the head of the department about being allowed to advertise your looking for a wedding photographer? You may find a gem, save money and provide a young and upcoming photography with the opportunity to put themselves out there and build their confidence. Is this unheard of? Just a thought.

I am in Kansas City and that would be about right for photography here too. We paid $1500 (for 5 hours at $300 an hour) for single photographer and assistant (to handle lighting, etc.) We have rights to all the pictures. She posted them online in 3 weeks and we are choosing the 100 that she will enhance. Then she will give us the enhanced pictures and all the rest on CD. So $1200 for 3.5 hours is a good price. Photography was our 2nd biggest expense (venue was #1). Wedding photography is too important to go too cheap. When it's all said and done, all you have are the pictures.