Low budget wedding in two weeks

How to Plan a Wedding in Two Weeks and for Under $500

from wikiHow - The How to Manual That You Can Edit

Whether you're in a hurry, you have a tight budget, or if you simply want to get married without making it a big production, it's still possible to have a real wedding. Instead of spending huge amounts of time and money, use your own creativity and resourcefulness, and that of understanding family members and friends.

Steps

1. Recognize that the soul of a wedding and the marriage it begins is love. It is not money, fanfare, ceremony, or status. Then, aim for sincerity and simplicity.
   
2. Take care of the legal stuff as soon as you decide to get married. Go to the courthouse and get the marriage license. (Note that in some countries you may need to wait a month or more after acquiring a licence to have a legal ceremony.)
   
3. Spread the word. Invite people by email, phone, or (if you trust your delegates) word of mouth. If you have more than two weeks, use a computer to design and print your own invitations, but remember that they'll take time to go through the mail. One couple having an informal wedding in a small town put up flyers around town and let people decide for themselves whether to come!
   
4. Find an officiant, but don't look in the phone book first. If you don't have somebody in mind, ask people you know. Just about anybody can become an officiant, and chances are that word of mouth can put you in touch with somebody who has, or is willing. Choose somebody you are comfortable with.
   
5. Write the ceremony yourselves. This step is not about haste or budget, but about having a ceremony that is meaningful and comfortable for you.
   
6. Obtain rings, if you choose to wear them. Jewelry stores may try to sell you the fanciest, priciest thing, but meaning is far more important here than cost. Choose rings that are to your tastes, or that have special meaning to you. Simplicity never goes out of style. The author had her grandmother's old ring resized.
   
7. Go casual. Let everyone know that your wedding is a barbecue, picnic, beach, or luau theme. It is much easier and less costly to orchestrate these gatherings than something more formal or fancy, and nobody will mind that everything doesn't all match. Tell everybody to wear jeans and sneakers, sandals and shorts, and their favorite Hawaiian shirt. People are a lot more comfortable in casual clothing, anyway, and it will put everybody at ease.
   
8. Wear clothes you already own, or buy something simple that you can wear again.
   
9. Don't have an entourage (bridesmaids and groomsmen), or if you choose to have them, keep it to one or two people and let them wear what they want, so long as it is loosely within your theme.
   
10. Stay local. If you really want to get married on the cheap, don't fly everybody to Hawaii to do it.
    
11. Stay home. Find someplace you can use for free or very low cost. Get married in your home, or your back yard, if you can. If that won't work, find out whether local beaches, parks, or community centers have places you can reserve, or see if you or somebody you know has a clubhouse attached to their apartment complex.
    
12. Have the wedding and the reception in the same place. Your guests won't have to stop everything and get lost going from here to there, and you won't have to prepare and clean up two different venues.
    
13. Keep the guest list small, under about sixty people. A short time frame will work in your favor here, since many people may not choose to attend on such short notice. If you have more than two weeks, you give as much advance notice to your guests as you can, especially those that will want to fly in from someplace distant. With a smaller group, you may be able to visit and talk with everybody, instead of making a token stop at each table to exchange greetings.
    
14. Borrow chairs and tables, if your chosen location does not have enough, from friends and relations, or inquire about renting them. Local schools, churches, or community centers may be able to supply tables and chairs, too. Ask around and get creative. Otherwise, rent from a local party center. In a pinch, ask your guests to bring their own folding lawn and patio chairs. If this is an outdoor event, ask around to see if anybody you know has portable canopies or picnic umbrellas you can borrow for shade, too.
    
15. Keep cleanup simple, since you will be doing it yourselves. See if a party store near you has an inexpensive roll of plastic tablecloth material in the color of your wedding. Cut it to length and don't forget to tape it down, especially if you're outdoors. Use paper plates and plastic utensils.
    
16. Don't assign seating for the ceremony or reception. Yes, this goes against all the big wedding etiquette books, but it will save you time. As an added benefit, your guests will actually mix and get to know each other, instead of feeling pinned to a table or group.
    
17. Don't serve alcohol, or have only enough for the toast, or suggest to people that want it that they bring their own. Alcohol could easily double the cost of your menu, and you won't have a wedding memory of anybody drunk.
    
18. Plan your own do-it-yourself menu. The local big-box warehouse store is your friend. Here is one well-rounded sample:
    
    • Marinate boneless, skinless chicken breasts or tenders in zipper bags in lemon juice, olive oil, garlic, salt, and herbs. Take your choice of herbs (rosemary, oregano and pepper are a good combo). Grill or pan-fry in advance, then refrigerate them in the casserole dish where you'll serve them, covered with foil. The day of the event, re-heat the whole casserole dish.
      
    • Bake one or two of those pre-marinated pork roasts. Remember that you'll have to cut it up to serve it.
      
    • Purchase potato salad. If you'd like to dress it up a bit, serve it in an attractive bowl with a few slices of hard-boiled egg and a dusting of paprika as a garnish.
      
    • Purchase frozen meatballs and put them in a crock pot or slow cooker with enough of your favorite barbecue sauce OR other marinade (try Cattlemen's or Mr.Yoshida's, if you can find them). Turn on the crock pot to low a couple hours before you will eat. Set out a dish of toothpicks.
      
    • Purchase a sack or two of dinner rolls.
      
    • Purchase pre-washed and pre-cut salad greens and a couple of different kinds of salad dressing.
      
    • Purchase a prepared vegetable platter and place it near the salad. People can munch the veggies separately, or add the ones they like to their salad.
      
    • A fruit salad is an easy way to add color to a large-group meal. You may be able to buy pre-cut fruit. If not, go for fruit that's easy to cut up or doesn't need cutting. Strawberries, melons, and grapes are all good choices. Peaches and nectarines will shed their skins effortlessly if dunked briefly in a pot of boiling water. Cool them in a pan of room-temperature water so you can handle them and slip off the skins. Choose freestone peaches if you can. Don't bother to peel apples, if you include them. A bit of lemon juice or Fruit Fresh (ascorbic acid, better known as vitamin C) will help keep everything from turning brown, as will refrigerating and reducing exposure to oxygen.
      
    • Chips and dip or salsa.
      
    
    
19. Buy prepared foods. Many stores offer party platters. They'll cost a bit more, but they'll save you the time of chopping up vegetables and slicing cheese, and if you are doing everything yourselves, that's time well saved.
    
20. Buy a sheet cake or make a cupcake wedding cake. Most stores have a bakery department that can set you up with something appropriate for a fraction of the cost of a wedding cake. The cake is a temporary item. You can also buy any other prepared cake or cakes that look good to you. (The author is extremely partial to chocolate.)
    
21. Prepare as much of the food as possible in advance.
    
22. Ask neighbors for the use of their ovens. You may be heating up a lot of food. If you must transport food, ask friends with station wagons or minivans.
    
23. Alternatively, make it a pot luck, or plan to serve just the main course and cake and invite guests to bring side dishes. Many people enjoy showing off favorite dishes for crowds. This would be a great opportunity to flatter your guests by asking them to share their recipes with you, too.
    
24. Don't forget drinks. Chances are you have friends and neighbors with tubs or coolers you can borrow. Purchase sodas, bottled water, and juice, and plenty of ice. Sparkling cider and its cousins can stand in for the alcohol and lend a little elegance to your gathering, plus it's okay for kids to have it, too.
    
25. Appoint a "stage manager", if possible. A level-headed high school or college student is ideal, particularly anybody who has had experience in band, drama, restaurants, or the like. This person will help you watch timing, direct and assist with setup, run last minute errands, line people up for group photos, and so on. Offer to pay this person, especially if he/she is a "starving student", treat him/her to a nice dinner, or return the favor.
    
26. Keep favors simple, or omit them entirely. Avoid making favors that will require a lot of assembly. For our wedding, we got a selection of attractive dollar-store fans as favors that doubled as colorful centerpieces, plus some pinwheels and bubble juice for the kids who attended. The total preparation was unwrapping them and placing them in a basket by the entrance. The weather was warm the day of the wedding and the fans were very well received.
    
27. Skip the flowers or buy just a few from a supermarket (go for color, not price) or ask a friend who gardens to contribute some. A single open rose or camellia floating in a bowl of water can be very elegant.
    
28. Alternatively, for centerpieces, consider simple candles or enlist any children in attendance to make something truly unique and special.
    
29. Skip the photographer, unless you know an amateur or hobbyist who is eager to try her hand at it. Let your guests know that you'd like copies of their snapshots. You'll probably have dozens of cameras in the crowd, and some of them will get good pictures. It's easier than ever to share photos. You'd have a hard time stopping people from taking hundreds of photos of your wedding. Do take the time to line up different groups of your guests for photos after the ceremony.
    
30. Do your own hair and makeup, or enlist fashion-conscious friends to assist. You already know how to do your hair, and you're not dressing for the Oscars. Use this preparation as an opportunity to spend some time with your friends.
    
31. Place plenty of trash cans and, if possible, well-marked recycle bins in discreet but visible locations. Many guests will naturally clean up after themselves when given the opportunity.
    
32. Consider doing your own DJ booth, ask a friend who is in electronics to help, for under $1,000 you can purchase your own reciever, speakers, and stands. You can borrow, or rent them even cheaper (about $250 to rent) Borrow a laptop, and viola, you have a very cheap DJ booth. Get a friend to play DJ.
    

Tips

• Don't feel guilty or timid asking for help. Most people will understand completely and they'll be delighted to pitch in.
  
• If people offer to help, let them! You might be surprised at how many people volunteer, when given an opportunity to do something besides dress up, show up, and eat. Let your "stage manager" assist you in putting these people to work.
  
• For the people you couldn't invite, or who couldn't come on such short notice, make a point to see them individually, some other time. Send photos to anybody who wants them.
  
• When you're writing thank you notes, don't forget to acknowledge the contributions of all those who pitched in.
  
• Return favors. Let anybody who volunteers their services (your officiant, DJ, stage manager, hairdresser, photographer, florist, etc.) join you for food, and make a point to be the first in line the next time they need help.
  
• Return everything you have borrowed. If several people are lending chairs or other items, masking tape and a marker at the door will help everybody keep straight whose are whose.
  
• If you'd like to get a fresh haircut in preparation for the big day, do it a few days in advance, so you have time for it to settle in. Don't change your style dramatically right now. This is not the time to discover that you don't look good in your favorite celebrity's favorite 'do.
  
• Gifts may be a bit haphazard on short notice. As you open them, ask somebody to help you write down what and who, so you can write thank-you notes accurately. If you have no time to register, expect a high proportion of money and gift cards, and be prepared to advise those who ask that the pleasure of their company (and perhaps their assistance) is gift enough.
  
• Relax and have fun, knowing that by letting this event be informal, you've saved yourself and your guests a lot of stress and hassle!
  

Warnings

• Be aware that things can go wrong during weddings, even ones that are planned over more than two weeks. If something does go wrong, ask your guests' forebearance, improvise as best you can, keep your sense of humor, and, if worse comes to worst, you'll have something to look back on and laugh.
  
• If you're marrying in a public place, find out what their rules and regulations are and comply with them. Above all, leave the place clean and in good condition. If there's a deposit for the facilities, it'll help you keep it. Even if there's not, be a good citizen and encourage your guests to do the same.
  

Things You'll Need

• A willing partner.
  
• An officiant.
  
• A minimal budget. With many weddings costing as much as luxury cars, $500 is a very minimal budget.
  
• Helpful friends and family members.
  
• A location.
  
• A quantity of food.
  
• Imagination.
  

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