Good gravy, did I ever learn a lot today!
I feel much more confident in the direction I need to go for planning the wedding, though.
Again, it won't be exactly what I'd dreamed up in the days of yore (having no concept of a budget...), but it will be intimate, fun, and incredibly "us".
I met with a local photographer today, and while I can't afford her, she gave me invaluable information and helped me to sketch out the rough details of what the ceremony and reception will look like. We ended up talking for an hour and a half!
For instance, now I know that a typical ceremony will take 20 minutes if you're not rushing it. The ceremony and reception will probably last 2 hours, all in all. I wanted an afternoon wedding and an evening reception, so in order to work the time frame I had in mind, we'll start the ceremony at either 4:30 or 5 (depending on whether or not I want it to run into "dark time").
She had the brilliant idea of hitting up the photography club at the high school, too. Aaaaand, get this: although I can't afford any of her packages, she wants me to use her name as an influencer (like name dropping) if I need to, and she's willing to walk through the shots we'll want with the photographers that I find, free of charge. Basically, she'll teach them some of what she knows. Her knowledge combined with their talent will be phenomenal! (Aaaaaaaand, even better... she can't "book" with me, because she needs to leave that day open in case a $4,000 bride comes along, but if she has the spot open, she'll come out and shoot the wedding for me for way cheap, because it's only a couple of hours. She'd treat it like a family event or something along those lines.)
She was impressed by how much I've sorted through already, how much I've got planned, and the way I'm working within my budget. She says I'll have no problem sticking to my budget. What she did was grill me on all the details, to see if I really meant it when I said "I'm on a budget", because she gets brides in there who want big discounts, but in reality are throwing money around. So once we established that I'm anything but a mainstream bride and that I am, indeed, sticking to $1,200 or less, she's totally willing to help me out how she can.
I'm so excited! I feel like I got a lot accomplished today. Now... for HJ work and homework. Never ending. *eye roll* Plus I need to whip up a couple of meals for this week's lunches... I'm thinking lentil soup and veggie lasagna in a jar. I have onions, walnuts, and cauliflower, so I can make that yummy "ricotta" filling, and even freeze some for later use! (The great thing is that I can study A&P slideshows while I'm working the kitchen, so that'll be two birds with one stone. Go me.)
Next things on my list for the wedding:
-Swing by the Parks and Rec office to see how much it is to reserve ramadas, and if we're allowed to have open flames (candles, grills, etc.)
-Price cakes and flowers at Albertson's
-Pay a visit to the Photography Club at the high school, see if they have any talent that wants to make some money (high schoolers would be even more willing to spring for experience + $100, I think).
-Check with Father B and see chapel size, or if he's willing to marry us in the park, and officiant prices.
-Decide when to send invitations, start picking them out and crafting wording.
-Alert J and K as to my song selections so they can start practicing.
Whoa. This is really happening. Like, for real for real.
Huh.
I feel much more confident in the direction I need to go for planning the wedding, though.
Again, it won't be exactly what I'd dreamed up in the days of yore (having no concept of a budget...), but it will be intimate, fun, and incredibly "us".
I met with a local photographer today, and while I can't afford her, she gave me invaluable information and helped me to sketch out the rough details of what the ceremony and reception will look like. We ended up talking for an hour and a half!
For instance, now I know that a typical ceremony will take 20 minutes if you're not rushing it. The ceremony and reception will probably last 2 hours, all in all. I wanted an afternoon wedding and an evening reception, so in order to work the time frame I had in mind, we'll start the ceremony at either 4:30 or 5 (depending on whether or not I want it to run into "dark time").
She had the brilliant idea of hitting up the photography club at the high school, too. Aaaaand, get this: although I can't afford any of her packages, she wants me to use her name as an influencer (like name dropping) if I need to, and she's willing to walk through the shots we'll want with the photographers that I find, free of charge. Basically, she'll teach them some of what she knows. Her knowledge combined with their talent will be phenomenal! (Aaaaaaaand, even better... she can't "book" with me, because she needs to leave that day open in case a $4,000 bride comes along, but if she has the spot open, she'll come out and shoot the wedding for me for way cheap, because it's only a couple of hours. She'd treat it like a family event or something along those lines.)
She was impressed by how much I've sorted through already, how much I've got planned, and the way I'm working within my budget. She says I'll have no problem sticking to my budget. What she did was grill me on all the details, to see if I really meant it when I said "I'm on a budget", because she gets brides in there who want big discounts, but in reality are throwing money around. So once we established that I'm anything but a mainstream bride and that I am, indeed, sticking to $1,200 or less, she's totally willing to help me out how she can.
I'm so excited! I feel like I got a lot accomplished today. Now... for HJ work and homework. Never ending. *eye roll* Plus I need to whip up a couple of meals for this week's lunches... I'm thinking lentil soup and veggie lasagna in a jar. I have onions, walnuts, and cauliflower, so I can make that yummy "ricotta" filling, and even freeze some for later use! (The great thing is that I can study A&P slideshows while I'm working the kitchen, so that'll be two birds with one stone. Go me.)
Next things on my list for the wedding:
-Swing by the Parks and Rec office to see how much it is to reserve ramadas, and if we're allowed to have open flames (candles, grills, etc.)
-Price cakes and flowers at Albertson's
-Pay a visit to the Photography Club at the high school, see if they have any talent that wants to make some money (high schoolers would be even more willing to spring for experience + $100, I think).
-Check with Father B and see chapel size, or if he's willing to marry us in the park, and officiant prices.
-Decide when to send invitations, start picking them out and crafting wording.
-Alert J and K as to my song selections so they can start practicing.
Whoa. This is really happening. Like, for real for real.
Huh.
0 thoughts: