BUY LESS CRAP!

Or specifically, crap you can’t find a home for after the wedding. Before you buy something, assess where the item will go after the honeymoon. The landfills and dumpsters don’t need my wedding decorations, they’re already full, thank you.

All the photos in this post (unless otherwise noted) were taken by the talented and gifted photographers Chris Hinkle and Anthony French of Mira Weddings.

Our cowboy bunny, cowboy hats and dollar store plastic cowboy dudes who invaded every surface of the room and filled our ball jar centerpieces were handed off to a children’s cowboy birthday party.

The awesome cat painting and cowboy room decorations adorn the walls of our house, as well as the cardboard JUBBY letters (Julia + Bobby= Jubby)

The six flag banners I lovingly sewed over my furlough last year were bought by our venue, the Hotel Congress.

The tissue paper balls were reused at a craft fair in December, then destroyed (also lovingly) by toddlers at our Indiana reception. Put to good use, indeed. (Toddler photos by Amy Wilson)

We sold some platters, gave some to friends, donated some to my hair salon (they use them to display hair product) and brought a few back to Goodwill.

If your wedding is truly a reflection of you as a couple, it is easy to get away with cheap options and just shop within your current belongings. The toys for our seating card table were from our house or borrowed from family. The squirrel is mine, it’s a long story.

Buttons appeared everywhere, as our seating cards (each table was a different cowboy and the buttons told guests where to sit), as extra goodies in our welcome bags, as presents in our invitations, not because we saw them used in another wedding, but because we already had the equipment and supplies. Look around your house and find things before you buy new machines, gadgets and materials. It will be greener and less expensive.

When something doesn’t work out, but you have the supplies already, just use them. NO ONE will know your original plan! We were going to have a DIY photobooth, but realized the logistics were a headache. My mom had already purchased mustaches, so instead of tossing them, we had a friend pass them out. No one realized their original purpose and they were a huge hit.

A lot of times, I wanted to buy something I thought would be good for our aesthetics. From dance floor decals to vintage table decorations to photo printers, if I didn’t have a home for it after the wedding, it wasn’t worth it, which saved our budget in the end. Even if something’s on sale, is it really worth tossing it in the trash?

Going through the photos, so much of our wedding was old/used/vintage/borrowed, you’d think it would smell musty! Jaykay, it smelled like dreams and rainbows.

Read about more vintage finds over at my post about etsy. All photos (unless otherwise noted) are by the fabulous Chris Hinkle and Anthony French of Mira Weddings.

We made our cupcake platters for $1-$5 each. All of the plates, vases and candlesticks for the platters were collected over a series of half-price Saturday Goodwill days, and then epoxied together.

Also at Goodwill, I bought one of my favorite finds, a big ol’ bag of twine (about $3). Because we had a more “rustic” theme, I used the twine EVERYWHERE. From hanging the response cards, to bows around centerpieces (The ball jars holding cowboys cost 50 cents used vs. more than $1 new), and a bunch of other details like holding colored pencils in bundles and attaching tags to welcome bags, I didn’t even make a dent in our twine supply. Why spend all that money on color-matching ribbon? TWINE IS MIGHTY FINE! (centerpiece photo by Sabrina Kordys)

Most of the fabric for our DIY fabric banners was from Goodwill, too and some of the cowboy prints were vintage bought from ebay. Fabric at Goodwill is CHEAP and plentiful. (photo by Sabrina Kordys)

A couple more goodwill items: we bought hats for those cowboys who left theirs’ behind at the ranch, and misc. toys placed around the room, like this Derringer cap gun. If you’re getting married, start going to half-price Saturdays NOW. You WILL find something for your wedding, but not if you expect to a few weeks before the date. (Cowboy hat photo by Tod Zolondz)

We didn’t hit up too many garage sales, but a local church rummage sale yielded two great finds. For $1 each, we bought a GIANT roll of ribbon (used on our lollipop arrangements and to wrap the bottom of my bouquet) and this lovely cowboy bunny. Did we need a cowboy bunny? Ehhh that’s a matter of opinion!

And now for what we got for FREE

oh yes. FREE…

My glasses cost around $20 at an antique store (and the prescription lenses were covered by insurance) but that’s where my accessory budget ends. My pearl necklace, earrings and bracelet were all high school graduation presents and my headband from my erm… ever-growing stash of headbands.

My veil was made by a family friend by sewing lace from my mother’s wedding dress onto her old veil. It may have fit my dress better to have something shorter or birdcage-style, but free and family heirloom just seemed so much more appealing.

Likewise with my ring pillow. We could have had something made for us fitting with our theme, but the ring pillow from my sister’s wedding, made by my grandmothers 15 years ago felt more “us” than anything custom.

Our bride and groom were a very late addition to the mix. Our officiant handed us some used figurines (they looked really ’80s) that did not resemble us… AT ALL. The bride was wearing a long Navy dress, the groom was blond, etc. We splashed some spraypaint left from our cat frame, and PRESTO! Pop art wedding topper!