MY WEDDING JOURNEY
I got married in 2009. At that time, the only reason I wanted to get married was so that my boyfriend and I could finally live together. We are not a strictly conservative family, it’s actually my fear of disappointing my mom that I chose to think like that. Anyway, my husband’s family is not in the country at that time so we decided, OK, let’s do a civil wedding for now, and then when his parents come or if and when we go back home to the Philippines, we’ll do a real church wedding or a ceremony with a pastor.
First thing I googled was FINDING CHEAP WEDDING VENUES NEAR ME. The results were overwhelming because there were so many. I don’t know where to start looking, and I certainly cannot afford a wedding planner. Luckily, I have a best friend who is so good at planning and organizing things, that he was the one who helped me though it all
THE PLANNING
Venue - I did everything online. I started writing down a list of the places I that I consider good enough, and my plan was to schedule a visit, so I can narrow down the choices based on my feelings. I didn’t stick with just hotels, I SEARCHED everything. It went from “popular wedding venues”, to “unconventional wedding venues around Edmonton” to “hidden gems around Edmonton”. I wrote in my other post about our Final Destination (Read HERE) on how we came across the final location that me my husband both loved.
Guests - after we decided on the venue, everything from our original plan changed. From 10 guests, it went to 30 guests, because the maximum amount of people allowed at that venue was 30. So now the civil wedding that we were planning on, became a full on Christian wedding, with a small wedding reception.
When you are planning a wedding, the first thing you usually do is create a guest list, right? And from that list, you’ll start looking at venues that can accommodate that number on your list. What happened with me was the opposite. I had the number in mind, but when we saw the location, we had to adjust because it was just so beautiful and perfect.. It worked out amazingly for us.
Menu - once everything was in place (after we booked the venue), we had to find a caterer. We were so lucky that the venue allowed for an outside caterer. In all the other places we looked at, you had to use their in-house caterer, which is, so much more expensive. I had to, again, google everything. Finally, I came across this small bistro around Downtown, it’s called Kids in the Hall Bistro. I loved the prices. I loved the menu they offered. But the best thing about them is that they are community/volunteer powered. They hire high risk and at risk youth, in their bistro and catering, and they help them get back on their feet and the have programs that help with education and rehab. For me, that was the deciding factor because not only am I getting a caterer that offers good food for a good price, but I am also able to be a part of their cause for these youth.
Invitations - of course I had to do them myself, because of budgetary concerns, But I enjoyed doing it. I downloaded a free template, I forgot now where, but on my other posts, posted some links where you can download templates for free (Read HERE). So I downloaded the template, I bought some cardstock and pre made envelopes and inserts and started printing an cutting stuff. Yes I couldn’t do all of it! I had a lot of fun doing it. It didn’t really stress me out because I only have 30 guests, they know what’s going on, where it will be and the other details. SO really, the invitation was just a formality at that point.
Décor and Flowers - my best friend hooked me up with a florist that gave me a really nice and cheap bouquet. Since I had a limited budget, I was the only no who the bouquet. Anyway I didn’t bridesmaids. But I Had flower girls, and my best friend decided to just give them a stem of a flower each. He also arranged for me to have a single stem of an orchid for each of the tall glass that I have (as centerpieces).
OK, so for the décor, we weren’t allowed to have candles in the venue because the mansion was really old, and it’s a historical landmark, so we can’t really afford to have any burn marks or anything at al that changes the look of the place. We put a few tea light candles around the wooden staircase. My motif was purple, so I ordered purple tea light candles, that I submerged in water beads inside a tall glass. that’s where my best friend put the orchid stem in. I was thinking of renting light purple table cloths, but my bestfriend said no, just keep it simple, let the venue shine, because it deserves to be showcased. SO we just used white table cloths. The whole was amazing. Everyone was saying, that it was a nice, refreshing change from the weddings they’ve attended, not only because of the venue but because of the intimacy of the vibe in there.
Giveaways - I really don’t see the point of a giveaway, and I know I didn’t have the budget for it, but I only had 30 guests, so I said “what the heck, let’s do this”. I ordered shot glasses for our wedding favors. Almost all of our guests drink, so it was perfect. We had our wedding date printed on the glass. UP to now when I go to their houses, I still see those shot glasses displayed on their wine rack. It’s nice to know that it wasn’t thrown out. Haha
Thank you cards - we went for our honeymoon in Toronto and Niagara Falls, (courtesy of my mom and step dad). We were shopping in this small store in Niagara and came upon these small bottles of home made strawberry jams. It wasn’t expensive, I think it was like $3 each at that time. SO My husband and I bought a whole bunch. When we printed the wedding pictures, I printed extra copies for the guests with their best pictures during the wedding, and I put it in a thank you card that I just bought from the dollar store. We wrote our personal thank yous on it, and gave it to them together with the home made strawberry jam from Niagara. I know it’s to much work and effort, but we were really appreciative of everyone who came. There were only 30 of us, I think it’ll be a different story if we had to buy jams from over a hundred people, right?
So there you have it. That’s our wedding journey. I hoped you liked our story and what we did. For your own wedding, you have unlimited choices depending on your budget. But keep in mind, bigger is not always better. Sometimes san intimate affair can also elevate the whole event.
