Planning a Wedding with Hundreds ($100s) of Dollars

So, you have hundreds to spend on your Seattle wedding. Let us be the first to congratulate you! You have somehow managed to keep your wits about you and stay down-to-earth about a topic that has many Seattleites' heads spinning with visions of the fortunes they will spend on their big day. By spending only hundreds of dollars, you will make your simple Seattle wedding a memorable experience for all involved.

And how is that? Well, simply put, you will need their help! They will all remember the event well because they will have brought their favorite apple-walnut quiche to your breakfast buffet wedding reception or their Swedish meatballs to your afternoon hors d'oeuvre wedding reception. They will have spent the day before helping string Christmas lights around a homemade arbor and lent you their niece's ring bearer pillow from last spring.

The point is: Simple wedding celebrations that you can pull off for only a few hundred dollars are always reliant on a loving family or community effort. Read on for tips to help you throw a successful Simple Seattle wedding.

Simple Seattle Wedding Planning Tips:

Venue:

In lieu of rental fees, ask a friend if you can hold the ceremony, reception, or both in their beautiful backyard during the months of July, August, or September (when it is least likely to rain). You should buy them a thoughtful gift for their kind gesture, but it will cost a lot less and be a lot more enjoyable than renting a room at a community center.

Food:

Try a potluck! Or, if you are afraid you will get jipped on gifts if you ask all of your guests to bring food as well, go for an early afternoon wedding and serve simple bowls of nuts and candies.

Drinks:

Steer clear of any form of alcohol, which is always expensive. Instead, make a memorable virgin mixed drink and have a sibling's friend serve it glass by glass to your guests.

Cake:

Display a beautifully decorated 8-serving cake from your local grocery store bakery, then serve your guests from tasty sheet cakes hidden in the back.

Flowers:

Three words – Pike Place Market.

Decorations:

Tea lights create a beautiful, romantic atmosphere for pennies. Buy them in bulk bags from Ikea and spend only $6 to light the whole room!

Music:

Save thousands on a DJ by using an iPod instead! Believe it or not, couples are often happiest with reception music played directly from a personally made iPod playlist. This way, all of your favorite songs are sure to be played, and often times, brides and grooms have their fingers on the pulse of what songs their guests will most enjoy anyways.

Bridal Fashions:

"Something borrowed"... borrow a wedding dress! Or look at Nordstrom's Rack, Ross, TJ Maxx, or Marshalls for white dresses in the Special Occasions section. Often, you can find simple wedding gowns for a fraction of the price when the word "wedding" isn't on the tag! Also, look on EBay for flower girl dresses at ridiculous prices and choose tux rentals for your groomsmen at a place that gives the groom his rental for free!

Entertainment:

Ask family and friends if they know of any talented instrumentalists at your local high school. Often, these fantastic musicians will play for pittance compared to the published rates of professionals.

Invitations & Papers:

Don't send E-vites. Please. We know it's tempting because it's free, but simply don't do it. If you have to spend $0, in-person invitations are better than emailed ones. However, you can capitalize on technology by having your guests RSVP via email, or at a personal wedding website (offered free through some large wedding websites, like TheKnot.com).

The Numbers Game:

Wedding costs skyrocket as your number of guests increases. Keep your numbers low to avoid spending more than you have.

Your Simple Seattle Wedding Information

If you are a Seattle bride planning a Simple wedding, we invite you to click through the vendor lists we have created just for you! Warning: Some of the categories represented may be empty in the Simple wedding section. This is because usually, to throw a wedding for only hundreds of dollars, the bride and groom have to cut out entire budgetary sections to stay on track. For example, you will find that the "Wedding Coordinators" section is empty in the Simple wedding section. That is because wedding coordinators cost hundreds of dollars by themselves! You can't throw a Simple Seattle wedding and have a wedding coordinator. Also, the "Invitations & Papers" section is empty in the Simple wedding section as well. That is because homemade invitations printed on simple paper or word-of-mouth invitations cannot be purchased at specialty wedding shops. If any section you are interested in is empty, simply check out the Sweet wedding section for ideas and keep in mind that you will need to order less intricate or a smaller number to keep prices down. Enjoy!

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