I just thought I would let you all know a bout an interesting article published today on The Money Hospital website, about brides and how their wedding planning went in the 1940′s, along with some tips on how you can incorporate this into your wedding planning today, to help cut those bills!  Take a look  at The Money Hospital website for the full article

Pop into your local news agents or WHsmith and pick up a Wedding Invites magazine, this comes with a helpful CD which helps you to easily make your own wedding invitations, save the date cards, place cards even your table plan.

Another Idea is to choose a stationary kit, that may cost a bit more but you can get some lovely designer looking stationary,  your guests will never know that you put them together yourself! You can find some great kits online many suppliers will even let you use their printers or have templates for you to download  and  print out your own inserts.  Take a look at Confetti or Pure Invitation for some great collections.

Other ideas for place names, could include writing guests names on pebbles, Icing guests names on to cookies, or cupcakes, pin a name tag off of a piece of fruit, these edible ideas could also double up as a wedding favour.

Hows that for DIY wedding stationary. Enjoy!

• Hang lanterns from the ceiling, choose colours matching your wedding theme, for an effortlessly chick look.
• Create a pretty wedding venue by hanging drapes of fabric from the walls, this will really transform your whole venue.
• Wrap Ivy around any pillars for a simple yet elegant look
• Candelabras in each corner with large church candles; depending on your budget drape with flowers.
• Scattered candles in areas of the venue; candles can really create that romantic venue.
• Fairy lights hanging across the ceiling or over the doorways.
• Topiary trees in each corner are another simple idea.

• Buy shoes that you will actually where again – your shoes don’t have to be the same colour as your dress, as long as they match your theme, so why not buy a pair that you can actually wear again…and to be honest with the majority of wedding dresses you cant even see your shoes anyway!
• Super size your flowers – choose bigger flowers so that you use less stems and fill it out with foliage, this should save you a lot, it will also be easier to make your own flower arrangements as there will be less detail to worry about.
• Source your flowers yourself, instead of buying them through a florist – this can save you a substantial amount of money.  Even consider planting your own seeds, a few months in advance so that they are ready for your big day.
• Decorate your cake yourself – Buy a plain simple cake from a supermarket and decorate it yourself.  Use icing that takes your fancy and decorate with  flowers
• Have your ceremony and reception in the same place – if your
• Buy your own alcohol – if your venue allows you to bring your own drinks instead of buying theirs, then this a  great idea, as anything that isn’t used can be returned to the store.  And if you shop around are likely to find special offers.
• Use small retailers rather than big ones to buy your wedding rings.
• Use the same venue for your ceremony and your reception – this is mainly for civil ceremonies, not only will it save you money on venues but also on transport, there will be no need for a hire car between venues.
• Buy your wedding dress off the rails instead of having it made , look at stores like Monsoon or Debenhams, they have some beautiful wedding dresses.

• Not traveling too far will save on flying costs, so maybe going for places that have beautiful scenery and great places to visit, book a cottage or log cabin to stay in, very romantic and gives you the chance to get away from the busy lifestyle.  Although be careful when working out prices, as you may find it cheaper to go abroad at the moment, you may be saving on travel everything else may cost you a lot more.
• Have a honeymoon registry – Everyone has a different opinion about honeymoon registries, as a lot of people think it is tacky.  I however don’t see the problem with giving guests the option of buying a wedding present or contributing towards your honeymoon, especially if you already have most of your household stuff.  So give your guests the option you could find yourself having a nice contribution to your excursions.
• Put your honeymoon off for a year, and go away on your first anniversary , this allows you time to save.  In the meantime go away somewhere quiet and romantic for a long weekend.
• Book a last minute holiday – There are some great offers out there if you are willing to wait at least a week or two before you fly.
• Choose the time of year carefully – If you plan on heading off on your honeymoon straight after your wedding, you should think carefully about the time of year of your wedding, you don’t want to book in the school holidays, as prices increase dramatically.
• Go all inclusive – if you are able to go all inclusive then do, you will save a fortune even  if it does seem more expensive to begin with.

1.  Instead of flowers, use church candles to decorate the venue, they are great to use as decoration around the venue as well as centre piece     ideas.  Use a range of different sized candles scattered around the venue or centre in the middle of each table surrounded my flower petals.  Or perhaps tea light candles floating in a bowl of water.  Candles are a great substitute and can really add romance to any theme.

2. DIY flower arrangements – If you really want flowers to decorate your wedding venue, then try making your own flower arrangements,  but keep it simple!  To keep costs down even more choose flowers that are in season and that are UK grown.

3.  Make your own cupcake tower – get one of your brides maids to help you with this, and use icing and food colourings to match your theme.  Or if you have a relative that is great at baking and making cakes then ask them if they wouldn’t mind lending a hand.

4.  Ask friends and family  – do you have any friends or family members with any special talents? Such as dress making, caking making, singing,  entertaining etc .  Any of these would save a a lot of money, a friend of mine had her mum make her brides maid dresses and they turned out beautifully.

5.  Is there anyone you know that can do your hair and make-up or at least one?

6.  Get a Wedding Planner – It may sound as if this will cost you more money and is an expense that you don’t need.   However a good wedding planner will work to your budget, and help you stay within your budget!  Wedding Planners are also in contact with different vendors, that they may be able to get discounts with.

7.  At you wedding breakfast, choose to have your wedding cake as a dessert instead of spending more by adding a third course.

8.  Make your own invitations – pop down to hobby craft and get all your materials.  There are a wide range of card and papers available, as well any extras you would like as decorations like ribbon and card toppers.  Or if you don’t feel confident enough to do this, then why not send out card invitations with a photo of the two of you on it.

9.  Keep your guest list short – think before inviting partners of work work colleagues, and try and only invite close friends and family to the ceremony and wedding breakfast, you don’t want to be paying for the dinner of people that you barely know!  Invite extras to the evening reception only.

10.  Decide on a budget and stick to it, plan for a wedding you can afford,  if there is something that you really want, and have thought it through, maybe cut back on something else, so that you are not over spending.