Champage taste on a beer budget wedding... any advice??

Alright so I have an extremely low budget for my June 2009 wedding. I found my dress for $179 at davids bridal online, and I am very crafty so I am doing mostly a diy thing. I want everything to look classy but I am having a hard time finding things with my budget. The good news is that I am having at most 50 guests... and my parents and future in laws are making all of the food, my dad is making the cakes, and my mom is doing my flowers. has anyone ever looked into hiring a string quartet of like seniors in high school? I read on many websites that that is a cheap way to go when you can't shell out the big bucks... the ceremony is going to be outside at a park and the reception is inside the community center room. I appreciate any advice you can give... Thanks

Champage taste on a beer budget wedding... any advice??
I've played violin since I was 8 years old. You do not want to hire a high school quartet. You will not be too happy. They just do not have the skills you would look for to play in a wedding.





For about $100-$150, you can hire a profession freelance soloist for your ceremony, and that is my recommendation for a beer budget. Don't get someone through an agency, it will double the price.





Also, you may be able to find a high school soloist or duet (there are some really talented high school students), but you would have to audition them. It is unlikely that you will find 4 high school students that are talented enough to play in a wedding. Another issue is that you will likely have to provide the music, since they will not have a wedding music library. Sheet music can be expensive and may not save you any money.





College student won't really be much cheaper than professionals.





Just as a side note, when I was in high school, I played in a duet at some dinner parties for a friend's parents. We each got about $40 for an hour. You are also paying for their practice time, so keep that in mind.
Reply:I have the same problem for my Sept 2009 wedding. Visit HGTV or one of those crafty deisgn websites to get ideas on cheap decorations. You can then buy the supplies at the dollar tree.
Reply:My sister had flutes, there were three, it was the band teacher and her best students. They were great. I would also suggest a single instrument/one person, like a flut or harp or violin. that would keep cost down.





I am doing most of my things DIY too, I am really creative and frankly its way more satisfying knowing you did it yourself!!





I found a great book at Borders, its called simple wedding, and a book called DIY wedding. They have great ideas! And it doesnt cost anything to sit in the book store and look through!! Martha Stewarts website has thousands of great ideas under "wedding" too and how to videos.


More power sister!!!!
Reply:You are off to a good start!There are many local bands that are very good. My daughter had her brother in law play with his band on a friends beach for the reception and ceremony, it was great. You can search on u tube for them in your area. To save more money and keep it personal, we also bought the flowers on line from Sams Club, and arranged them ourselves and placed them on the tables in glass (cheap) vases and put floating candles in vases in water around them on the tables and lit them at night it looked really awsome. Good luck.
Reply:some of the students at your local high school may be State ranked musicians. I have some in my classes at the high school I teach at. I was going to hire them completely without fear. One of them chose 4 pieces for me to choose from and put together a trio of top quality musicians in the school. I was going to pay them each $50. They were very happy with that.





Contact the locatl Band teacher. You may be surprised, and proud of your community teens.
Reply:The school-band thing is a great idea. The musicians will be very excited, and I'm sure they'll be wonderful! As long as you give them enough notice to pracitce the music together, etc, it shouldn't be a problem. Good thinking!
Reply:I went to a wedding once where a high school students played violins and such at the reception. It was very classy. You should check into it.





I think to have a classy wedding you just want everything to look sleek and nice. You don't want to go overboard with all the fu-fu stuff.





Good luck!
Reply:Personally I would find a college age player....but there are definately talented HS kids. You just have to make sure that you do an audition of the song YOU WANT played to check for any screeches.





You are on the right track honey. DIY, DIY, DIY.





Another suggestion if you are marrying in a church is to see if you can get in contact with other brides who are using it with a similar theme/look. If so split the cost of the decorations there.
Reply:It sounds like a great deal on the dress! Also all the help you are getting is wonderful!





If the ceremony is outside and will not last long, you could save a bit on chair rental by ordering only chairs for the family and elderly. Everyone else can stand if the ceremony will be short.





Also, don't try to over-decorate the ceremony site. Outdoor sites are beautiful as-is, so keep that in mind.





For your reception, a great way to save is to do mainly candle related centerpieces with just a few floral ones. The candles are gorgeous day or night!





Hope these ideas help!