Wedding Wednesday - being cost efficient, the upside and downside of a year plus engagement

I cannot believe our wedding is a little more than 7 months away. When Gabe proposed on my birthday (June 17), we decided on a fall wedding in New Orleans. My friend Darlynn got married last May and had a very short engagement (6 months to be exact). She stressed her concerns about me making impulse purchases and spending more money than I need to. She knows me very well.....but while I am absolutely buying stuff I do not need, I am making smart purchases while keeping track of my spending.

Although I will be a first time bride at 35 years old when I say "I do", my Mom is still graciously providing a large chunk towards the wedding. At first the amount was $10k, then it went up to $12k - to cover the reception costs and a few odds and ends. This is one of the reasons I bought my own wedding gown and have been scouring the internet for best possible pricing on every possible item.

While I am big about saving money, I buy stuff I will never use just because it is 90% off. It gives me a shoppers high unlike any other because I saved so much money (yet I have to spend to buy). This wedding has turned into a Megan bargin shopping extravaganza. I have spent more money in the past few months impulse buying for the big day.

For instance:
Swarvorski Crystalline Toasting Flutes (set of 2)

Le-Sigh.....So I have always dreamed of having these champagne flutes on my wedding day. Yet spending $400 on two glasses was not happening. Ever. Lenox had a similar set out a few years back but were sued by Swarvorski. I ventured off to eBay last week to see if any of the Lenox were available only to find said Swarvorski $400 glasses in it's original box and packaging with no reserve. On eBay, if it is a bid vs. buy it now, you can usually save a great deal of money. I set my final price for these glasses, which was still WAY higher than I normally would have spent at $175. I ended up winning them for $155 and I couldn't be happier. Although I do want to drink out of them every night.
Thoughts: This is an item that I absolutely did not need but have dreamed about since I first saw them in person. I couldn't walk away from the price.

Centerpieces

A major plus about having a long engagement is being able to get a true vision of what you want for your big day and then patiently waiting to find it at the right cost. I was very fortunate with our centerpieces and found someone selling exactly what I was looking for in South Florida. The photo above was from her wedding and the difference will be, my flowers are red roses and my chargers are silver. I got 15 candelabras, 32 rhinestone square candle holders and a few other items for $250. If I were to purchase these items alone, I would have spent well over $500.
Thoughts: I found out after the purchase that my hotel offers centerpieces but they did not fit my concept. For $250, I am happy with the purchase but as a lesson to other brides to be - find out if your reception venue offers centerpieces. Apparently, this is quite common.

Wedding Shoes, Tory Burch Chelsea Flats:

No, I did not need Tory Burch wedding flats but I really wanted them and my Mom very happily bought them for me. These match the bridesmaid dresses and are amazing in person. Not to mention, Tory Burch is my favorite designer. We got them on sale after Christmas when Tory was having an additional 20% off already marked down items. The shoes were originally $275 and we got them for $150.
Thoughts: Again, these were shoes I did not need. Yes, we could have gone cheaper but I would never wear them again. These shoes, I will wear time and time again.

The dress(es):

Bead work on the long dress

I bought both of my dresses online. The formal one is a Maggie Sottero purchased via Wedding Bee classifieds for $250 (orig $1600) and the shorter one is a Allure purchased via eBay for $320 (orig $999). I bought both without trying them on and prayed they would work for me. All along, I knew worst case scenario was they would look awful and I could easily resell them on eBay. I got very fortunate with both and have two dresses for less than $600.
Thoughts: Still my best purchase to date. I don't think anything will top these two purchases. This is one of the very fortunate things about having an extended engagement. You can take chances with dresses and other big ticketed items.

To date, everything purchased and contracted for our wedding has been done online. We went into contract for our ceremony via email. Our reception was located via the internet (we did see it in person before signing contract). Bridesmaid dresses, my dresses, shoes, centerpieces, flowers, etc. was all decided upon online. Thanks to the powers of pinterest for keeping me organized, I will have the wedding of my dreams at a fraction of the price (and stress!).

The downside to extended engagements are watching people who have been engaged shorter than you are getting married. I went from always being the bridesmaid to always being the bride to be. How long were you engaged before you said I do?

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Wedding Wednesday - Bridal Flats Purchased

My Mom and I made another large purchase online for the wedding - my wedding shoes. While my shoes are not the most expensive out there, they cost a pretty penny and here is why.....

I am the first to admit that I'm a label girl - it's probably my biggest downfall. 10 years ago at the peak of the Real Estate Market, I had no financial worries and was making more money than most 24 year old's could even fathom. Then 5 years and multiple designer handbags later, the real estate market crashed and my lush lifestyle came to a screeching halt. 5 additional years later while living in today's reality, I still carry the same designer handbags and would rather spend a little more on a pair of shoes which I can keep for 3 years vs. ones that last one season.

This is why we decided to get a designer wedding flats. My Mom saw it as spending a little extra on my shoes, knowing I would wear them many times post wedding vs. a pair I would wear once at half the cost. I've been searching high and low for the perfect pair, only to receive an email the day after Christmas from Tory Burch (a/k/a my favorite designer ever) announcing 25% off their already marked down merchandise. Low and behold, they had a pair of sparkle flats in the same color as the Bridesmaid Dresses.

The Tory Burch Crystal Chelsea Flats seemed too perfect to be true. I did not want neutral colored shoes and I wanted something that would pop, especially being I have to wear flats. The Chelsea's were originally $275, marked down to $190 with an additional 25% off, making them $150-ish and the "Boysenberry" color seemed to match the swatch from the Bridesmaid dresses. Upon receiving them in the mail, they were a little brighter than the color swatch due to the sparkles but are perfect (and super comfortable).

This is one of the benefits of having an extended engagement - most of the large purchases are already bought and paid for (this is a cash wedding - no credit!), allowing splurges for dream wedding shoes. It is also the downfall -these purchases will overextend the budget if we aren't careful. 

I know those out there who aren't label snobs probably think I am nuts for getting such expensive wedding shoes. I look at it as saving nearly 50% on a pair of shoes I will wear again and again. Unfortunately, my Mother has insisted I turn the shoes over to her, as she fears I will break down and wear them pre-wedding day. She knows me too well......

Did you re-wear your wedding shoes after the big day? 

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The budgeting bride - Buying wedding dresses online

I am not one of those girls who dreamed of trying on wedding dresses. It was the one part of bring engaged I looked least forward to. One day after a few too many mimosas, my Mom and 2 maids got me to do it. I was miserable. I do not like being put on the spot to make decisions and I cannot stand someone trying to "sell me a car". That is what I felt like the day I tried on dresses. While I love to buy things, I cannot stand shopping. It's why 99% of my Christmas shopping is done online. By the 10th dress, I was broken out in hives and having a minor panic attack. At least I knew what style of dress looked best on me at the end of the day - a one shoulder or strapless gown that was either mermaid or trumpet. I wanted lace, my Mom wanted me in satin.

Two weeks ago, I posted about purchasing my short wedding dress online. This is the dress I will wear in our engagement photos and post reception when we go down Bourbon St. I found the Allure 940 dress on eBay and it came to me in almost perfect condition, missing a button on the back which my seamstress can easily fix. The dress cost me $320 and retails at $999, saving nearly 70%. In case you missed the post, here is the dress:

After receiving the Allure dress, I did the unthinkable. I took a leap of faith, one many brides couldn't imagine doing. Every night, I stalk the weddingbee.com classifieds, not looking for anything particular. Last Tuesday at 11:30pm, I saw a listing "Guaranteed Authentic Designer Gown Liquidation, Watters, Maggie Sottero, Casablanca $249". The Maggie Sottero listed was one size too large for me and without consulting with my Mother or any of my bridesmaids, I purchased it, sight unseen without trying this particular style on. I woke up on Wednesday freaking out. Dang you wine!!!!!!

I love Maggie Sottero dresses but never thought to look at them since I knew it was out of my budget. When our wedding day arrives, I will be a 35 year old first time bride and the last thing I want to do is drain my parents retirement for my wedding. While they are being very generous with giving me $10k towards the wedding, anything above and beyond is out of my pocket. I took a chance with ordering this dress but for $249, the worst that could happen is me hating it and reselling on eBay.

On Friday afternoon, the dress arrived in perfect condition. I cried when I saw it. This dress is 100% authentic, never worn, all tags intact and words cannot express how beautiful it is. I cannot show you the entire dress today since Gabe sometimes reads my blog but what I can do is show you some of the amazing bead work and lace on this dress.

And the lace back and crystal work on the back. My Matron of Honor is going to have a field day with those crystal buttons (pay back is a beotch).

The dress is a little large on me and will need some alterations but that is perfectly fine with me. This Maggie Sottero dress retails at $1120 and I spent $270 after shipping, saving more than 80%!!!

I successfully purchased two authentic designer gowns online for less than $600 total. The two dresses together would have cost more than $2000 combined. I am living proof that you can absolutely get beautiful wedding dresses without breaking the bank. You just have to make sure you do your research and know what style of dress to look for.

My advice to those brides looking to purchase dresses online:

• Do not purchase your dress from China. I have heard countless horror stories and the stress you will put yourself in while waiting the 20-30 days to receive the dress is not worth it. I stressed over the 2-3 days each of these dresses took!
• Check weddingbee.com daily. I purchased my dress from Ruby, who has a website but all of her gowns are not listed on there: http://foundthegown.com
• There are plenty of pre-owned wedding dress websites. Many of which, I have seen people list gowns that have never been worn.
• Check eBay - save a search with the dress you are looking for. Make sure you filter out dresses from overseas.
• Ask for photos of every detail to make sure it is authentic prior to purchasing. You want to see the tag, the stitching, a closeup of all the detail work. 

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