NomoreDramaQ1015
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Post by NomoreDramaQ1015 on May 3, 2011 11:48:47 GMT -5
Firebird I'd give the lady a call about the reception contract and see what she says. Depending on her answer you can decide if you want to go with the second venue or not.
Remember that what a venue looks like naked is not the same as it will look decorated. The hall we had our reception in looked totally different when it was all set up and decorated, you wouldn't have believed it was the same hall that we had toured.
So your second choice might not look all that great standing by itself, but once decorated it will look different.
Make sure you call. We almost got screwed because we found out the church we had booked wasn't holding weddings! We didn't know that the person who had booked us WAS NOT supposed to be booking weddings (why would someone do that if it isn't her job?).
We had to scramble three months out to find another church, thank God my great uncle's church was available for that day.
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NomoreDramaQ1015
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Post by NomoreDramaQ1015 on May 3, 2011 11:50:41 GMT -5
I wouldn't do it. There was not a single wedding that I ever went to (and I am old) that I would have wanted this from. All I would see is extra clutter that would be in my house, bc I would feel too guilty for throwing it out, but would have no use for it. One friend had little frames as "favors" and then send pics of her and her DH same size as a frame. I don't even display pics Personalized favors are usually the ones left behind. No one wants a personal history of the couple, a CD with the couple's favorite song or anything with their wedding date on it. Edible or practical is the way to go. Basically something impersonal and can be used/discarded.
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whoisjohngalt
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Post by whoisjohngalt on May 3, 2011 11:50:51 GMT -5
Wedding cake - I never told the baker that it was a "wedding" cake. I bought a 3 Tier plate in Michaels for like $15 and ordered 3 Cakes - two vanilla and one chocolate (I think - wow, I can't even remember anymore) with the design that I wanted. When they delivered it to the reception site, my DH arranged it on the platter.
Lena
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Firebird
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Post by Firebird on May 3, 2011 11:54:26 GMT -5
If I want your pics - I'll ask for them. If I am interested in your story - I'll ask you. Don't give me "things" to take with me. Please!!!
Sounds fair. Anyway, I'm going to be putting pretty much the same stuff on our wedding website if I can ever get motivated to start writing all of our stuff out. So they can always see it there.
Firebird I'd give the lady a call about the reception contract and see what she says. Depending on her answer you can decide if you want to go with the second venue or not.
Lol, why do you think I'm so worried?! I've called, emailed, and repeated. I've been trying to get in touch with her for two weeks - crickets.
It's bizarre because she was Miss Responsiveness at first.
So your second choice might not look all that great standing by itself, but once decorated it will look different.
It's not that it looks bad - it's a beautiful room and we wouldn't need to decorate it much at all. My main problem with it is that it has a very small dance floor, and while it feels roomy and spacious with no one in it, the ceilings are low and I have a feeling it'll be pretty cramped all filled up.
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Firebird
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Post by Firebird on May 3, 2011 11:58:00 GMT -5
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NomoreDramaQ1015
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Post by NomoreDramaQ1015 on May 3, 2011 12:00:09 GMT -5
My main problem with it is that it has a very small dance floor, and while it feels roomy and spacious with no one in it, the ceilings are low and I have a feeling it'll be pretty cramped all filled up.
You need to sit down with whoever organizes things if they have one and discuss the floor plan. If they don't have one you and some family/friends can do it.
I went up with my husband, his cousin and her son to our reception site about a month or so before the wedding.
No one was using the hall so we had permission to set up things however we wanted. We took the opportunity to pull out the tables and set the room up.
We ended up with a pretty decent dance floor, that was one of my concerns too.
We set it up the exact same way come the wedding and had no problems at all.
We ended up with a bit more room actually because we were able to readjust once the final guest list came in.
Never assume that you will have LESS than the people you invited because that's a sure way to get hosed, but your RSVP date should be about 2-3 weeks before the wedding or the date when you need final numbers (gives time for stragglers who RSVP at the last minute) and that leaves room for adjustment in a lot of areas.
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Firebird
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Post by Firebird on May 3, 2011 12:34:22 GMT -5
No one was using the hall so we had permission to set up things however we wanted. We took the opportunity to pull out the tables and set the room up.
Interesting. Did you see the pics of the Crystal Room? Even with rearranging tables, the way they have the room laid out with the pillars and all, I'm not sure we'll wind up with a big dance floor - at least not one that's centrally located where everyone can see you.
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NomoreDramaQ1015
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Post by NomoreDramaQ1015 on May 3, 2011 12:56:12 GMT -5
How many people do you plan on inviting? From the pictures I'll agree it looks daunting but I can't say for sure because none of those pictures show the room as a whole. Do they offer a wedding planner that you could talk to or just someone who usually sets up/takes down the venue?
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Firebird
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Post by Firebird on May 3, 2011 13:07:48 GMT -5
No more than 75.
Annnnnd - result! I finally made contact with the lady at my first choice. She's been moving offices. So hopefully we can make this happen.
Yay. I feel a warm glowy feeling, which probably means I need to definitely go with my first choice. It is my wedding, after all.
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Post by Deleted on May 3, 2011 13:09:58 GMT -5
Love that fieldstone wall.. Wow!
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cael
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Post by cael on May 3, 2011 13:13:27 GMT -5
I'm feeling like a big spender/YM pariah reading this thread and thinking about what we decided to spend on everything. we have paid for everything with cash so far though so that's one upside! Omg. Valhalla grand hall, gorgeous!! Love it!
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Epiphany
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Post by Epiphany on May 3, 2011 13:20:43 GMT -5
just caught this thread and love reading about your planning. My sister is getting married in October as well and we are having a truly YM approved wedding. She is an artist/crafter and I'm an interior designer so needless to say we are having tons of fun making and planning the event. There are some great blogs and sites on the net that have been great inspiration. Our goal will be to not take on too much and to keep it simple and fun. We made lists and started hitting yard sales this weekend for vintage dishes, vases, silverware etc.
Her budget is only 5k but doesn't include honeymoon or rings. Oh and yeah her future MIL gave them tons of flak because she only has a simple band as her ring. Some people don't want a diamond. And her cake is going to be a tiered rice crispy cake with pies along the side. Fun stuff
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Firebird
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Post by Firebird on May 3, 2011 13:40:04 GMT -5
I'm feeling like a big spender/YM pariah reading this thread and thinking about what we decided to spend on everything. we have paid for everything with cash so far though so that's one upside!As long as you can afford it, cael, no judgment from me! Besides, I've been using credit ;D Paying it off every month, but still. I'm trying to rack up mad points so we can get our flights for free even if DF decides he wants to honeymoon out of the country. Right now I have enough for two free domestic round-trip flights OR one international round-trip flight. Omg. Valhalla grand hall, gorgeous!! Love it! I know, isn't it awesome? I have my heart set on it, that's clear to me from the disappointment I felt thinking we might not get to have it.
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Firebird
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Post by Firebird on May 3, 2011 13:40:53 GMT -5
just caught this thread and love reading about your planning. My sister is getting married in October as well and we are having a truly YM approved wedding. She is an artist/crafter and I'm an interior designer so needless to say we are having tons of fun making and planning the event. There are some great blogs and sites on the net that have been great inspiration. Our goal will be to not take on too much and to keep it simple and fun. We made lists and started hitting yard sales this weekend for vintage dishes, vases, silverware etc.
That sounds fun! I have zero artistic talent... well, maybe not zero... but it's a low number.
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Post by Deleted on May 3, 2011 13:41:53 GMT -5
People DO notice if you do not send thank you notes for gifts. Not that we did that, but I've had it done to me and I noticed! Noted ;D Personally I would skip favors. Unless you are doing something edible or useful a lot of them will be left behind. Even cheap favors add up. We went to a wedding where they did seed packets. Even at 99 cents a packet when I added up how many were there (one for each space) and how many were left behind that was a total waste of money.Like Jordan almonds? I hate those. Yuck. Isn't everyone's favorite part of birthday parties the goody bags? ;D I was thinking of putting together a wedding program - kind of a short story about how we met and so on, with pictures and nice binding. One thing I can do is write, so if I put some time and effort into this it will be a nice little book and fairly cheap to print. Perhaps that could serve as the main favor? Thoughts? Ummmmm, no. Like someone else said, something edible or drinkable. I had wine splits with a label of our names and wedding dates. You could do the personalized M&Ms. Sorry, but after your reception nobody really cares about 'memories' of your wedding.
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Firebird
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Post by Firebird on May 3, 2011 13:44:57 GMT -5
Don't worry, I'm not going to do that. Even as I was writing it, I realized that all the same stuff was going on our website. So they can read it there if they want to, no need to print anything.
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shanendoah
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Post by shanendoah on May 3, 2011 14:08:46 GMT -5
If you feel you must do favors, I'd go with the personalized M&Ms - you can put your initials on some and the date on others. You can get them in your wedding colors. People will ooh and ahh and then they will eat them and talk about how cute they were. I think you might even be able to get M&M to send them to you already in individual little packages.
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shanendoah
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Post by shanendoah on May 3, 2011 14:10:35 GMT -5
And ponders, if your wedding reception is in Valhalla, can I get away with wearing one of my Faire costumes to the wedding...I'd even wear the cloak I bought at the Valhalla Faire in Tahoe. (But not the axe. I don't want to have to check any baggage, and the TSA would frown upon my axe...)
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cael
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Post by cael on May 3, 2011 14:33:49 GMT -5
I looked into the personalized M&Ms, but I think they're pricey. We don't know what to do about favors quite yet... one thing we might do is have the kids pass out those little bottles of bubbles, so people can blow bubbles at the end of the ceremony! You can order personalized bubble bottles for really cheap from Oriental Trading. Only problem w/ that is I've been told bubbles can stain wedding dresses... I'm going to get a sample of my dress's fabric to test it out before we order anything. The bubbles would be a cute favor but we might do something small at the tables for people too, don't know what yet though.
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cael
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Post by cael on May 3, 2011 14:35:58 GMT -5
OT a bit here - Shanendoah, are you a regular faire-goer? You might enjoy that I got engaged at our local faire, in costume, on a stage ;D
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Firebird
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Post by Firebird on May 3, 2011 14:37:52 GMT -5
And ponders, if your wedding reception is in Valhalla, can I get away with wearing one of my Faire costumes to the wedding...I'd even wear the cloak I bought at the Valhalla Faire in Tahoe. (But not the axe. I don't want to have to check any baggage, and the TSA would frown upon my axe...)
ROFL!! OH PLEASE DO THIS!!! It would make me so happy.
Oh man... need to text one of my NY guests... she's a HUGE Ren Faire fan. Plus, she's coming without her DH as well, you guys can be each other's dates ;D
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Firebird
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Post by Firebird on May 3, 2011 14:45:29 GMT -5
OT a bit here - Shanendoah, are you a regular faire-goer? You might enjoy that I got engaged at our local faire, in costume, on a stage ;D
YOU ARE JOKING. That is so cool!!!
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shanendoah
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Post by shanendoah on May 3, 2011 15:45:04 GMT -5
Firebird: You asked for it. Now I don't have to think about what to wear to your wedding. I'll just have to make sure I clean the brocade skirt after the Faire here at the end of August so that it's not dust covered. Just so you're aware, it looks pretty much like this cgi.ebay.com/RENAISSANCE-COSTUME-GOWN-DRESS-WEDDING-NOBLE-SCA-LARP-/370238195034?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item5633ea855a except the whole thing is off the shoulder. The bodice and overskirt material is a lovely burgundy brocade. cael: Yes, we're pretty regular goers. We went to Valhalla when we lived in Reno, and now that we're in Seattle, we go to the Ren & Fantasy Faire- usually twice. I've seen numerous weddings at the Faires, and I stood up with one of my BFFs when she got handfasted at a little Faire they did in downtown Reno years ago. If I hadn't fallen in love with my wedding location (Kubota Japanese Gardens) the first time I went there, we very likely would have ended up getting married at a Faire.
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Firebird
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Post by Firebird on May 3, 2011 16:35:40 GMT -5
LOVE IT. I texted my other friend and she likes the idea too but she says those dresses are hard to dance in, so she wasn't sure.
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Firebird
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Post by Firebird on May 3, 2011 16:50:22 GMT -5
I'm looking over the contract now and it's making me feel a little nauseated.
Room Rental: $250 per hour x 6 hours = $1,500 (if we go over that, we incur the daily rate of $3500- but my caterer thinks we can probably do it in 6 hours)
Shuttle Cost: $300
Insurance Cost: $200
Cleanup Deposit: $500
$2,500 and that doesn't even touch food, alcohol, chair/table rentals, decorations, or staff to go with any of it.
The ceremony is costing us $2,000 and my photographer will be another $2-3k. So let's see... $2,000 + 2,500 + 3,000 = $7,500.
That leaves $2.5k out of my original $10k budget for food, booze, cleanup, bartender, invitations, flowers, tuxes, hair/makeup, DJ, and anything else I might have forgotten.
Even with my cushion of $5k from the parental gift money... can we do this? I'm starting to wonder...
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whoisjohngalt
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Post by whoisjohngalt on May 3, 2011 17:01:20 GMT -5
Decorations - I really didn't have any, my friend had glass "cups" with floating candles on each table and window things. Her locations looked similar to yours, she had pics of them on some walls and that was about it. Couldn't have been too expensive, but looked very very classy.
Flowers - I got my bouquet from a grocery store - pre-ordered. Was pennies on the dollar compared to "wedding bouquets" from flower shops. We had a one large bouquet on our table - again pre-ordered from the grocery store - that we took home with us. I just couldn't spend money on flowers that will be thrown out in a few hours. Especially for you guys, being it not at your home town, etc, you won't be able to take any of them home.
Photographer - there is a BIG ($1k to be exact) difference between $2K and $3K. Find out for sure ASAP.
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Firebird
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Post by Firebird on May 3, 2011 17:15:04 GMT -5
Photographer - there is a BIG ($1k to be exact) difference between $2K and $3K. Find out for sure ASAP.
Well, it's my decision. The cost differential is based on the different kinds of photos we can order and whether or not we buy the negatives, that kind of thing.
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Firebird
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Post by Firebird on May 3, 2011 17:15:35 GMT -5
Decorations - I really didn't have any, my friend had glass "cups" with floating candles on each table and window things. Her locations looked similar to yours, she had pics of them on some walls and that was about it. Couldn't have been too expensive, but looked very very classy.
That's the kind of thing I was thinking too.
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cael
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Post by cael on May 3, 2011 17:21:29 GMT -5
Lena (and Firebird) - I'm thinking about doing our flowers at Stop & Shop, I've had friends tell me they do a great job and are pretty cheap. I need to go in & talk to them to get some prices from them & a few other places. I'd like flowers for my centerpieces but I am probably going to get them wholesale somewhere (there's a big flower market of some sort in Boston I've heard about). Firebird, did I miss it or do you know what kind of flowers you want to have? I'm doing wildflowers... should be cheaper than roses or lillies, which I don't care about. I think a nice wildflower bouquet will be beautiful Be careful of food - we've just picked ours & it's definitely the most expensive part of our wedding. It'll probably be around $5k, on top of the venue which is $2900. That doesn't include booze - we want to have open bar for beer & wine only, for cocktail hour. Need to see what that'd run... Our photographer is $1700, our DJ we've just confirmed with and I don't know what the charge will be (he's really cheap though, I have several friends who have used him), invitations we're using Vistaprint which is simple and cheap. Haven't really thought about salon stuff yet but that's next, and we need to settle on favors... ::sigh:: so much to do!! We're 11 weeks out from our wedding
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cael
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Post by cael on May 3, 2011 17:25:39 GMT -5
Decorations - I really didn't have any, my friend had glass "cups" with floating candles on each table and window things. Her locations looked similar to yours, she had pics of them on some walls and that was about it. Couldn't have been too expensive, but looked very very classy.That's the kind of thing I was thinking too. I don't think we're going to decorate our place except for centerpieces, it's beautiful already! Doing wildflowers in mason jars (typical, yeah I know lol, but I like the look) with a few votives scattered around. I'll probably get a bouquet of some sort for the table where folks pick up their escort cards, but other than that, I'm not decorating any further.
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