My husband and I tied the knot in Washington, D.C., just weeks after the 2001 attacks. Many of our guests canceled because they were afraid to travel, and a few of our vendors even lowered their rates because we didn’t back out of our reservations. As a result, we were able to throw a much more extravagant celebration than what we had initially planned. And, honestly, we needed a big party. There were tanks on the streets, people rarely went outside, and everyone was afraid. We were all longing for a celebration focused on life, love, family, and friendship.
I mention this back story because I felt it would be hypocritical not to. I’m about to dispense advice for how to plan a simple wedding when ours wasn’t. Most of the advice listed below we followed (1, 2, 5, 8, 9, 10), but not all of it. I loved our wedding day and don’t regret the choices we made at that time, but if we were getting married now, we would certainly do some things differently. For starters, I would ditch my 12′ veil and the heavy, wet, velvet rose, flower-ball bouquet nightmare our flower girl carried.
Ten tips for planning a simple wedding:
- Set your budget with money that you already have in a bank account. No one, under any circumstance, should go into debt for a wedding. If you only have $500 to spend on a wedding, then plan a $500 wedding. If your parents are paying for the wedding and say that they have $5,000 for your wedding, then plan a $5,000 wedding. Best case scenario, spend less than you have budgeted.
- When choosing bridesmaids dresses, remember that the dresses will only be worn the day of the wedding. (No matter how many times a bride tries to convince her bridesmaids otherwise.) Asking your bridesmaids to spend hundreds of dollars on a dress and matching shoes might not be the best way to treat your friends. Consider letting them choose their own dresses, or buy them matching floor length skirts and ask them to buy coordinating tops in any style they want.
- When hiring a photographer, work with someone who will shoot your wedding digitally. You won’t have to pay for printing proofs.
- When choosing groomsmen tuxedos, consider letting them wear their own if they have them instead of forcing them to rent.
- Be sure to ask your wedding venue their policy on flowers and musicians. Many churches require that you leave altar flowers after your ceremony and pay for their staff musicians even if you don’t use them. We coordinated with the other couples who were getting married on the same day at our venue and the three of us split the costs of two large arrangements that worked with all of our flowers.
- Be willing to think outside the box. You and your future spouse are unique individuals and your wedding should reflect that. Just because everyone else has their wedding a certain way, doesn’t mean that you have to. Be sure to manage guest expectations, however. If you’re getting married on the side of a mountain in ski gear, your guests won’t appreciate it if you forget to provide this information. No one likes to ride a ski lift in a dress.
- Consider having flowers that are locally grown and in season — you’ll save a lot of money if they don’t have to be flown in from the tropics.
- Remember that your marriage is what is most important, not your wedding day. Keeping this in perspective will save you time and stress when it comes to making decisions about minute details.
- If you choose to have party favors, consider something edible or consumable.
- Keep in mind that even if your cake is destroyed or your friends start a fight or your organist doesn’t show up and everyone has to sing a cappella that at the end of the day, you’re still married.
The points I’ve made barely cover the tip of the iceberg on the topic of planning a simple wedding. I’d like to open up the comments to everyone to share your tips on how to plan a simple celebration!
译文:
婚礼从简之十大策略
2001年恐怖袭击之后仅仅几周,我和丈夫在华盛顿结婚了.因为害怕长途旅行,我们邀请的客人中很多都谢绝前来赴宴,甚至有些卖家由于我们仍然保留预订,而为我们开出了低价.结果,相较于原来的计划,我们得以舍弃更多奢华的庆典方式.坦白说,我们需要一个盛大的派对.街上停着坦克,每个人都心惊胆战,极少有人敢走上街头.我们都渴望庆典能使大家的目光集中到生活,爱情,家庭和友谊上.
我说起这一往事,是因为觉得如果不提就会显得不真诚.这就如同我就如何策划一个简单的婚礼在向别人提供建议,而我自己的却并非如此.我们遵循了以下列出的大多数建议(1,2,5,8,9,10),当然并不是全部.我热爱我们的结婚日,而且对我们当时作出的各种选择并不后悔,不过,如果我们现在才结婚,一定会做出一些改变.首先,我会舍弃头戴婚纱,抛弃繁重,潮湿的天鹅绒玫瑰,以及给花童带来噩梦的花球型花束.
婚礼从简的十大策略:
- 把预算设定在银行账户已有存款的范围之内.在任何情况下,都没有人该为婚礼而欠下一屁股债.如果你只有500美元来筹备婚礼,那么就策划一个只需花费500美元的婚礼.假设你的父母会为婚礼买单,而且他们为此准备了5000美元,那就策划一个5000美元的婚礼.最好的方案就是花费比预算少.
- 选择伴娘礼服时,要记得这些服装只会在婚礼当天穿一次.(无论新娘试图使伴娘相信还另有多少机会穿上它,事实依旧如此.)要求你的伴娘在礼服上花掉好几百美元,再配上一双鞋子,恐怕对你的朋友不是最好.考虑一下让她们在自己的礼服中挑选一款,或者为其买好合适的及地长裙,再让她们购买自己喜欢的与之相配的上装.
- 聘用摄影师时,找一个用数码设备拍摄婚礼的人.这样你可以省去打印照片的钱.
- 选择伴郎礼服时,如果他们有的话,考虑让他们穿戴自己的礼服,不要强迫其在再去租借.
- 务必向婚礼举办场地咨询婚庆所用鲜花和乐师的事宜.许多教堂都要求你在婚礼结束后留下圣坛的鲜花,即使没有用到乐师,也要支付钱款.当时,我们与在同一场地举行婚礼的其他夫妇协商,将两份鲜花装饰的花费一分为三,各自支付三分之一.
- 愿意独辟蹊径.你和你未来的另一半是独一无二的组合,你们的婚礼也应证明这一点.因为每个人都按某种方式举办他们的婚礼,并不意味着你也要随波逐流.相反,你要应对宾客们的期望.如果你要穿着滑雪装备在山脚下举行婚礼却忘了通知宾客们这一计划,他们一定不会对此表示欣赏.没有人想在脚踩滑雪板的同时身穿礼服.
- 考虑选择在本地生长又符合当时时令的鲜花--如果不必从热带空运来那些鲜花,你将省下一大笔钱.
- 要记住,最重要的是你的婚后生活,而不是婚礼当天.铭记这一观点将会在你定夺分分秒秒的细节时,为你节省时间,减轻压力.
- 如果你选择分发派对小礼物,考虑一些吃的东西或者可消耗的东西.
- .要记得,即使你的婚礼蛋糕被损坏了,或者你的朋友们在庆典上起了纷争,再或者你的风琴手没有露面,以至于在场所有人不得不进行合唱,最终,你还是结婚了.
关于筹备一个简单的婚礼,我所提到的这几点,还难以覆盖冰山一角.我很愿意听听每个人的评论,欢迎大家分享关于如何策划建议庆典的建议!