One of our loyal SMP readers, Annette, recently emailed me images from her gorgeous New York City wedding…and I was floored. Annette designed a wedding that could easily be featured in a magazine, all while sticking to an under $20,000 budget…a feat nearly impossible for a New York City affair!
Photographs by Envi Photo and Kate Leigh.
Here are some of the cost saving tips that Annette discovered…
-First, I used Target.com to find my bridesmaids dresses. They were $50 each and free shipping. I couldn’t believe how pretty they were and how well they worked within my vision. I brought my dress at David’s Bridal, always thinking I would wear a Kleinfeld gown, I chose a Oleg Cassini for under $1500. My guy’s tuxedo was rented and because 5 of them had to rent tuxedo at Men’s warehouse, his tuxedo was free.
-As luck would have it, I woke up on the day of my wedding to a monsoon. After a glorious week in NY, I was completely disappointed. But, I ended up finding these great pink and blue umbrellas at CVS that made our pictures so incredibly fabulous…the rain turned out to be a blessing!
-I didn’t decorate my ceremony at all, I kept the entire area bare. I walked down the aisle with a lily of the valley bouquet, a homage to my mom (she walked down the aisle with the same one) and a surprise! She had no idea until she saw them and then tearfully she began to say how this was the happiest day of her life. I also carried my grandmother’s rosary. My bridesmaids had hot pink bouquets with rosaries that I gave them at the bridal shower.
-Our reception was at Arthur’s Landing in Weehawken, NJ. I chose the site for it’s view of the NYC skyline and for it’s amazing, catering manager, Jody Reynolds. I wanted a NYC feel through the entire wedding and looking endlessly in Manhattan, we just couldn’t afford it. Jody bent over forward and backwards to accommodate our needs within my budget.
-The first month of wedding planning, when I started looking for decor, I saw something on SMP that I loved, terrarium centerpieces. I went to about 6 florists and no one really understood my vision. Seeing how frustrated I was becoming, my mom’s friend, who is a “florist” volunteered to do them. We ended up with these gorgeous, glass apothecary jars filled with moss we brought at a floral wholesaler, butterflies, bees and one hot pink orchid for the wow factor. They were about 15 dollars each and I had about 20 of them, not bad at all. She also did our bouquets for about $20 each.
-I had a local designer, Jennifer Palacio from Laura Clare decorate my reception site. She hung hot pink lanterns in various shapes and sizes across the length of the skyline and we hung a chandelier over the dance floor to separate the dance area. The look and feel was magical. She also hung tons of ivy w/ pink ribbons and more lanterns were used over the bar area.
-One of my husband’s friends volunteered to use his iPod & equipment (he is a musician) to host the wedding. I gave him free range and he and my hubby arranged the night’s music. They surprised me at the end with a small serenade that they both sang to me as I danced & cried. One of my most touching moments of my life.
If it wasn’t for the tireless help of our friends and family, this day wouldn’t have happened.
Comment by Amanda Harris on 20 June 2008:
Love the colors in this wedding and the story behind it. And the shoes are priceless
Comment by holly hatam on 20 June 2008:
I love the pink umbrellas!
Comment by Megan B on 20 June 2008:
See, you really can put on a beautiful, classy, chic wedding on a budget! I would never have known that she had to cut corners. Fantastic!
Comment by j. on 20 June 2008:
OMG….this is just divine, and on such a tight budget you managed to have one of the most gorgeous weddings I have ever seen!!!
Comment by a on 20 June 2008:
What a gorgeous wedding and it sounds like a heartfelt day filled with love. I don’t know why people get so amazed about weddings that cost under $20K or $15K (or any wedding that falls under the national avg. for most weddings). With creativity, DIY projects, negotiating vendors and keeping things simple, a beautiful AND affordable wedding is possible.
Comment by carib on 20 June 2008:
j.
I don’t think so much that it’s hard to have a wedding on a budget but to do it in the New York City area is very very hard. Many people spend what she spent just on food, etc.
Either way, this is a gorgeous real wedding. I love the hot pink (and I am definitely not a pink girl).
Congratulations to Annette!
C
Comment by reader on 20 June 2008:
2OK is great but how many guests are talking about ?
I am also about to become part of Yankees-Red Sox couple.
Comment by Annette on 20 June 2008:
Hi everybody, OH MY GOD someone from etsy.com just told me I made the blog and I completely lost it at work, they think I am crazy here! Tears, tissues…the works.
Thank you for your amazing comments. I am such a huge fan of SMP and Abby! I cannot believe my wedding is up on the blog right now.
I loved, loved, loved my day. I love my wedding! I love everything about brides and how great SMP has been to me. I had under 100 guests at our wedding by the way.
Abby, you rock, thank you so much!
Comment by Vanessa Velez on 20 June 2008:
Congratulations Annette! I’m so happy for you. It truly was a great wedding and everything looked amazing. I’m so happy I got to be your photographer. Many Good Wishes!!
Comment by Robin on 21 June 2008:
Any way to see a close up photograph of the apothecary centerpieces? I’d love to see the detail if possible. Beautiful job on the wedding!
Comment by Nikki on 24 June 2008:
Annette…absolutely stunning images! Inspiring and breath-taking!
Comment by Soon2Wedd on 15 July 2008:
annette congratulations on your gorgeous wedding! I am doing retro black dresses with tiffany blue belt-waisted broach fastened belts in a tiffany blue. I love the ranuculus flowers against the black beautiful! Is there a link where we can see more pictures of your wedding?
Comment by Nataly on 18 July 2008:
Can you please tell me who was your photographer? Nice pictures and beautiful wedding !!!
Comment by Abby Larson on 18 July 2008:
Hey Nataly…all photos were taken by by Envi Photo and Kate Leigh. Hope that helps!
Comment by Annette on 30 July 2008:
Thanks for the beautiful support!
Just want to tell Soon2Wedd that you can see more photos at flickr:
here is the link: http://www.flickr.com/photos/12861426@N08/
I hope you can view them. They have other great photos for inspiration BTW.
Comment by ANTHONY on 16 October 2008:
Wow the bride is beautiful