There are several ways to procure wedding invitations on a budget. With a little careful thought you can take advantage of several newer technologies available today that were not even in place as little as five years ago.

If you know someone who has the ability to produce a single calligraphic piece, it is possible to then take the calligraphic invitation to a copy producing store like Kinko’s where copies on a high quality paper stock can be made. The cost of photocopied reproductions is usually less than printed invitations done through a printer. You have the added advantage of not having to have a set number of invitations printed, and can always have additional ones made should the need arise, no matter what the number (i.e. 181 vs. 200 from a required figure from a printer).

In a similar manner, an invitation can be produced on the printer of a home computer using any number of programs set up to do greeting cards and taken to a copy shop for duplication. Unless you are running off 25 invitations or less, it is not recommended to run the batch by yourself on a home printer. The cost of printer cartridges could be significantly higher than what it would cost to run the invitations on a per cost basis, when the cost of a special stock for the prints is figured in.

An additional source of savings available creating your own wedding invitations is the savings you can make by folding your own cards to be mailed out. Any specialized operation like folding the cards that you can perform at home will result in additional savings off the price of the printing. Additional savings can be obtained by having the response cards created in the same way. Instead of having a return address printed on the envelopes of the response cards which can require special handling to make sure they feed correctly through a printing press or copier, you can use address labels instead.

There are a few online places that you can go to in order to order printed invitations. While these companies are often cheaper than comparable traditional printers, be aware, that like the traditional printers, you may find it necessary to order in quantities that increase by 25 to 50 invitations at a time. Like traditional printers, you are likely to be charged a “set up” fee which is a cost that goes to set up the format of the invitation for printing. Another consideration is that like traditional invitation printers, you will have to factor in what kind of lead time they need in order to insure that the invitations and response cards are ready so that you have appropriate time to get them sent out and receive replies back to account for how many will be attending.

When using a photocopied invitation, there is no need to pay for this “set up” fee, since you will most likely be bringing in your copy in a “camera ready” form, meaning that it is ready to be duplicated as it stands. By producing your invitations on your own, it is possible to also include extras like driving directions or a map to help your guests in their navigation to the ceremony and reception locations.

You can also account for the use of any kind of specialized font your computer or the artist can produce.

You are also able to include full color pictures or maps, which, if even possible, would add a significant cost to your order for wedding invitations.

To your beautiful wedding!

Coming up with a wedding ceremony on a budget is actually one of the easiest element of a wedding there is. With a little legwork and research on your part, you should be able to find almost anything you want.

Many times a couple want a traditional type of wedding ceremony that includes officiating by some sort of recognized authority like the justice of the peace on the civil side, or a minister or other clerical figure on the religious side. One of the first steps you need to decide is whether or not the religious component is a necessity for you. There is a certain set of paperwork that must be completed no matter where the marriage occurs, usually there are no specifications as to whether the one officiating the ceremony as civil or religious qualification to do so.

If the participation a religious official is not a necessity, it is possible to be married legally by a judge, justice of the peace, or even a ship’s captain when a couple is in international waters. In most of these cases, the fee for the ceremony is minimal ($50 or less) if not simply a gratuity to whomever is officiating. The actual words of the ceremony, itself, are fairly common ones that are contained in books are used by this sort of official.

If you desire to have the participation of a more traditional religious authority, you don’t necessarily have to use them at the place of worship they are normally connected with. If you’re having your wedding ceremony an alternate location, it is possible to negotiate with them for a cost that may be lower than what you would pay for services at the church or synagogue. The key here is to find someone who’s willing to travel, and if possible, invite them to the reception afterwards. By offering to serve them food, you may be able to negotiate for a lower price than what you might normally get otherwise.

By having a ceremony at a location other than a traditional church or synagogue venue, you may also be able to control the ceremony more than you might otherwise. You will have complete control over the music played, and you will be able to specify what kind of elements you want in the ceremony, such as reading your own vows, or planning on elements which may be out of the ordinary, like a hand fasting, or other nontraditional parts such as the jumping over a broom to signify that the union is complete. You may also be able to incorporate traditions which are no longer observed, such as the Scottish tradition wherein an element declared three times before witnesses that they are man and wife. Just be sure that whoever is officiating has the legal authority in the area where you’re to complete the marriage in the area or territory where you reside. If the marriage is recognized by your local authorities, it will be honored anywhere else you go.

A final consideration to make in planning your wedding ceremony on a budget is whether or not you even want the marriage to be legal under the laws where you are located. There have been cases where for reasons of financial stability (like Richard Social Security pensioners do not want their incomes combined due to a legal union), the couple will choose to declare that they are “married in the sight of God” even though not so in any legal sense. In this case, it is not necessary to engage the services of a duly authorized official. In such a ceremony is possible to have anyone you choose officiate whatever 0tradition you wish to engage in.

To your beautiful wedding ceremony!

When planning a wedding reception, there is nothing that says a couple MUST just have a sit-down dinner at a reception hall. This is a good time for the creativity of the couple to come shining through, especially if your friends and relations share some kind of special interest.

One fun idea for your budget wedding reception is to plan to have a family-style picnic, either in your back yard or at a local park like a town or state park where you can rent a picnic shelter. This allows you to take advantage of anything special available at the site like a swimming pool or barbecue pits that may be available. You can also allow the people attending to provide their own foods for the day, and be responsible only for providing the wedding cake as dessert, and beverages like lemonade for the group.

By selecting this type of event, you provide fun activities as well as allowing the guests to change out of any formalized dress they might have worn for the actual ceremony. This will allow your guests to more fully relax and can help to take some of the burden off you in the form of reduced costs for the reception. Often the cost of the rental of a picnic pavilion will be far below that of a reception hall with catering.

Other activities available at this kind of site can include volleyball games, football games, baseball games and the space necessary to conduct races or activities for the kids in who might be in attendance to keep them less bored and more engaged to keep them out of mischief. Depending on the rules of the site chosen, cleanup can be as simple as policing the area you are utilizing (easier with the participation of other guests) and seeing that the garbage is contained appropriately for pick up.

Another fun idea for your budget wedding reception is to schedule it in conjunction with some sort of event put on by a group that caters to a shared interest like a medieval faire or sci-fi or comic convention. If the bride and groom are members of the group sponsoring the event, they can usually work with the sponsoring group to make appropriate accommodations for the reception. By sharing in some of the costs of the event, the bridal couple can find exceptional savings over what it would cost to rent a hall.

Members of the bridal party and any interested guests could put on appropriate costumes to attend the event, and chances are they couple could enlist other members of the group to help find costumes or other appropriate clothing for anyone who didn’t have any but were interested in having some to better participate.

One final fun idea for your budget wedding reception is to have the option of hiring live music for the reception that more accurately reflects your personal tastes in music and that of the majority of your guests. If you prefer country or Celtic music, for example, how much more preferable would that be over a DJ who offers only canned music via CDs? If chosen carefully, the cost of live music could be equal to or even less than the cost of a DJ, and often a live group can go farther in engaging the guests who attend your reception.

Participation from the audience in singing with the band would be encouraged, whereas this might not be possible with a DJ. Dancing as a participatory exercise for more ages might be possible for guests at a reception where there is an abundance of songs familiar to a greater population of your guests.

To your beautiful wedding reception!

Planning the meal for your wedding reception can be one of the greatest expenses you are likely to encounter. With the following tips for your reception meal for your wedding on a budget, you should be able to significantly reduce the cost of the food budget.

To plan for your reception meal for a wedding on a budget, try to keep your guest list to a reasonable number. You’ll need to keep this optimal number (assuming that EVERYONE you invite will be in attendance) in mind as you look for a venue for the food for your wedding reception meal. Make sure you have a definite attended count at least 2 weeks before the reception so you can negotiate price if you have less attending than you thought.

First, shop around to see what kinds of services are offered based on the type of place you choose to hold your reception. Halls which offer individual service by a wait staff will always prove to be higher in cost than a family-style buffet line offered by other venues. The additional money goes to pay the salaries of anyone else who is necessary to provide service.

There is the possibility that the cost of less expensive food includes the pay for a few people who will stand with the food offered on the buffet line and serve it as your guests go by with plates in hand to get their meals. In some rare instances, the only server who will actually stand with the food will be someone who will dispense measured portions of whatever meat may be offered to insure that everyone there gets a serving.

Get an estimation of what the cost would be per person, depending on what fare is offered. Be aware that the more exotic the fare, the higher the cost will be, especially if there is a choice of two or three meats offered. At a family-style affair, you are likely to get one meat choice, some sort of starch, either in the form of a pasta dish or mashed potatoes and gravy, rolls or other bread, green salad with a simple dressing, and a choice of water, coffee or tea to drink. In some instances, the pasta dish (usually shells or ziti with some sort of marinara sauce) will contain meat as a component.

Dessert will more than likely be the wedding cake, although in some instances ice cream or sorbet can be included. If an alcoholic beverage like champagne for toasts allowed and offered, there is the possibility that it will have to be provided by the bridal party.

Some venues not only allow alcoholic beverages, but will offer bartending services. In this case, you need to try and determine whether it is worth the expense to offer open bar services (usually including some sort of soft drinks for non-drinkers) or whether you should make it the type of service where guests have to pay for any drink they want. Be aware that open bars can run upwards of $500 and could go as high as $2500 depending on the number of guests you expect to have served.

As a final tip for your wedding reception meal for a wedding on a budget, consider having finger foods, especially if your wedding is scheduled for the morning or early afternoon. The choice of small sandwiches and items like cookies or pastries is a much lighter fare that will sit better, especially if guests have already had breakfast or lunch.

This sort of item will cost far less than a traditional reception sit-down meal. You may also find that if you have family or friends can help provide the lighter foods, you will need minimal staff at the hall. In this instance you can also serve the wedding cake at the end, and can bring in a punch or other assorted beverages (be they alcoholic or non-alcoholic) that can go in and on paper dishes and cups that you provide.

To your beautiful wedding reception!