Thank you for the Pinterest Love!

Just wanted to post a quick "thank you" to the Pinterest users who took a moment to pin this blog on their member pages. I'm flattered and honored - also happy that you found something useful here on our "frugal NJ bride" blog that you thought others might appreciate, too!

I will continue to peruse Pinterest in the err, interest of finding practical, no-nonsense wedding solutions for savvy yet creative brides on a budget.

See you next time!

Letters to the Bride Book: Wedding-Day Memories to Cherish for Always

Image courtesy of Pinterest

Here's another great (and frugal!) gift idea for the bride from "her ladies": hand-written letters from the heart.

My sister-in-law's mom asked all of us girls in the bridal party to write letters to the bride in anticipation of her special day.

At first, I wasn't sure what to write. But then I started thinking about how I was the only sister of the groom, who would soon be gaining a second sibling – the sister I never had!

It really was kind of cool, and deserving of some official acknowledgement. My brother was marrying a terrific girl who we would soon be joining families with. And both she and her family were pretty darned special!

So the letter came forth from my brain pretty quickly. I sent it off to her mom via email, along with everybody else in the wedding party who had excited feelings and sentimental memories to share on paper.

The bride's mom then printed all of the letters, and added them to a ring binder with a pretty, decorated cover – turning them into a lovely and sentimental wedding keepsake to cherish forever!

What a great idea; and if there's time, you can really get creative about it.

Possibilities...

Keep the letters brief, and hire a calligraphy artist to hand-pen them on parchment paper.

Read the letters out loud at the wedding shower or rehearsal dinner. (If you intend to do this, just let the bridesmaids know in advance that their words will be shared with everyone!)

(Or, read snippets from each letter to the bride out loud, and save the rest for her to read in private.)

Include photos with each letter. If you can make it a throwback moment (think "sisters at Halloween, circa 1984)", all the better!

Ask everyone to hand-write their letters on pretty stationery. There is something really sweet about a hand-written sentiment.

Hand-decorate the cover of your Letters to the Bride book. The photo above shows one that someone on Pinterest shared... really cool!

Don't forget... the mothers of both the bride and groom may have some special thoughts and sage womanly advice to share. Be sure to invite them to write letters as well!

Perfect Wedding Shower Gift: A Personalized Cookbook from Tastebook!

Looking for a special and memorable wedding shower gift for the blushing bride? Tastebook makes it super easy to compile a cookbook full of delicious recipes from family and friends.

We did a Tastebook for my sister-in-law's bridal shower gift, and I offered to manage the project- so I really got to know their online method for adding recipes, uploading photos and selecting print options. 

Basically, you start by creating an account with Tastebook. Log in using your password, and begin to "add recipes" and then save each one to its own page. The recipes will remain there for any time when you have a spare moment to work on the book online at your own pace.

What makes it really special is that each recipe has a space for the creator to personalize a message to the bride (and groom). They can offer a little cooking tip; share special family memories; talk about their mom, grandma or whomever passed the recipe down... basically, this is the really fun and sentimental part that makes it such a meaningful wedding present.

For my sister-in-law, I got her mom and aunt and other family members to email me old family photos which I then uploaded to Tastebook online. So, not every picture was of the actual food, but I think that made it even better. All the old memories to share and savor, all the great old recipes... oh, what a foodie bride's dream come true!

When it comes time to finalize and print, you can edit as needed; move pages around any way you like; add a title to each section of the book; select pre-designed cover art; and write a personalized message to the recipient of the Tastebook gift.

From the Print area, simply select from the recipes you'd like to include (yes, you can even decide that some recipes are not going into the book after all). You can also decide how many copies of the book you'd like printed at one time (I believe they offer a discount if you buy in bulk, and some bridesmaids may decide to pass one out for everyone in the bridal party and/or the moms of the bride and groom).

The cookbook arrives as a hardcover ring binder, and the recipe pages and titled category pages come separately so you can actually move them around wherever you like.

What's even cooler is that even after you've ordered your printed hard cover book, it's simple to keep adding to it. Just log back in, add more recipes and photos, and then order prints of ONLY those new pages that were added. So basically, this is a project that the bride can keep going with long after the wedding celebration is over.

Overall, Tastebook is excellent. Find out for yourself – create an account today! http://tastebook.com.

The Fire Hall Wedding: An Affordable Option, Not to Be Overlooked!

We opted to not do a fire house wedding. We had thought about it, and even priced out a few local fire houses in our area. But, with running two businesses and raising a small child, we just didn't have the time or energy for a total, do-it-yourself wedding.

I remember going to the wedding of some friends who rented out a fire hall space years ago. It was a small gathering – maybe sixty people? They got married right on the premises. Some features which made this kind of neat, special, and one-of-a-kind... not to mention saved the bride and groom a lot of money I'm guessing:

Guests helped decorate, set up and clean up. I am assuming the family pitched in for these activities. They did a nice job. Everything ran smoothly and there were no "mishaps" or wedding-day fumbles as far as I knew!

Guests brought covered dishes. Well, why the heck not? You can think of your wedding as a highbrow event where people expect to be waited on. Or, you can think of it as a fun and humble gathering of family and friends. Why NOT encourage people to bring their signature recipes? All that's required is someone to manage the food setup and takedown (after all, you wouldn't want the bride and groom doing all this work on their special day).

Guests pitched in. I remember helping to fill up water pitchers and replenish the napkin supply at that wedding... it felt nice to be a contributor for our friends' special day! I also remember the smiling bride and groom, the lovely music and dancing... the laid-back feeling of simply enjoying the company of a group of nice people.

Guests took photos and played music. Okay - I'm not sure about the music, exactly. It was a long time ago. But a DJ station is certainly easy enough to set up if you have a bit of computer skill and patience. I DID go to a different wedding where the bride's brother played DJ all night... what a great gift to give!

If you have the time and are lucky enough to be surrounded by giving, helpful individuals... why NOT spend the extra time coordinating a firehouse wedding. Homemade decorations... homemade goodies... a hand selected musical score... what's not to love?

We're interested to hear from brides and grooms who made firehouse wedding a success. How was the planning? What did you have to ask for help on? What would you do differently if you could? Write to info@njweddingonabudget.com or comment below!

$15,000 Wedding Budget in NJ? Tips for Keeping Costs Down

Image courtesy thefoodistreviews.com

For those just finding this blog, here is a recap of some NJ wedding budget-slicers that worked for keeping our costs down, and can work for you, too!

 

Marry in off-peak season. More and more savvy brides are forgoing the June wedding in favor of a beautiful fall or even winter wedding, when the prices come down a bit. Each season offers its own, festive backdrop to set the scene for your day. A friend of mine got married in February, and there was fresh snow on the ground for her photos... absolutely breathtaking!

Buffet dinner instead of tableside service. A buffet dinner really isn't such a bad thing at all! You get multiple dinner selections, so guests can try everything. People can take as little or as much food as they like, and go back for seconds. A buffet dinner is an easy way to feed kids who don't require their own plate. 

Forget the flowers. Unless you know someone who works in the florist business and can snag you some posies at a pretty price, this is probably the first thing to turn down in the interest of staying within budget.

Discount DJ. There are many ways to lower costs on music for your wedding reception. Hire a small, local band instead of an established wedding band. Hire a DJ instead of a band. Take a chance on an amateur DJ instead of a "wedding pro." Trust a friend or family member to hook up an iPod and some speakers.

Skip the favors. We opted to not have wedding favors for our guests, and I don't think anybody seemed to mind. In fact, I think half the time people either don't appreciate, leave behind, or (sad to say), the wedding favor that you invested good money on and carefully selected, ends up in someone else's garage sale bin. Sad, but likely true.

Snag a secondhand wedding dress. The options for a secondhand wedding getup are limitless. You can hit up the local thrift stores like Salvation Army or Goodwill. Or better, go for a dress that hasn't been handled quite as much – find a seller on Ebay, Craigslist, or one of the used wedding dress sites (you can find a list of them here).

Shop an estate sale for your rings. This includes the engagement ring, if you haven't already purchased one. You can find estate rings at your local jeweler; at antique stores; at online shops where people refurbish vintage/antique jewelry; on Ebay, or even in your family. With a bit of creativity, you can even take a family heirloom ring to a jeweler and have it resized, or add your own stone/other creative accents, for less than you'd pay for a new engagement ring or wedding band.

There are many more ways to save money and stick within a $15K NJ wedding budget. Follow along on this blog, and especially check out this post, The Average Cost of a NJ Wedding vs. Budget Wedding and How You Can Save or Cut Corners, for more details!

Affordable Wedding Dress NJ - David's Bridal Online

Image copyright David's Bridal

Not sure how many people know about this, but you can score a pretty affordable wedding dress if you shop David's Bridal's website. Right now, if you visit the site you'll be greeted with a popup inviting you to take $10 off your order of $60 or more (you can easily get a wedding veil, or maybe even 2 for that amount). AND, simply by ordering you'll be entered to win your bridal gown free.

In addition to this and whatever other sweet deals are offered on David's Bridal's website... you can always take advantage of the SALE page when shopping for either your wedding gown or your bridesmaid/mother of the bride dresses.

For example, they have an entire page of bridesmaid dresses under $60 (ooh, there's that $60 price point!). While I admit that I don't have a close-up view of the dresses, they appear nice enough for bridesmaid purposes, and that's a really good deal if you ask me. I wore an Alfred Angelo to the last wedding I was in, and I paid $150 (for a short dress, no less) and thought I had gotten a deal. I'm sure most frugal brides would gladly cut their maids a break by forgoing the designer apparel. Plus, if you have any doubt as to the quality, you can always visit the store, sample/try on the dresses, then go home and shop online.

They also feature a page of bridal gowns under $100. While these are clearly just a few featured bridesmaid dresses shown in white, you may just be that type of no-fuss bride who's hoping to rock an above-the-knee style. In which case, David's Bridal has got you covered.

Over on the Bridal Gown Sale page, you'll find an array of exciting choices - from the plus-size in flattering A-line spaghetti strap for $200, to the deeply discounted Vera Wang bride gown that dropped from $1140 and change to just under $650. (prices not exact, and subject to change - check the David's Bridal site for current accurate pricing and updates!)