|
Bread Set Jettison posted:What camera? This one I originally bought it for nail pictures but then upgraded my phone and it's just easier to use my phone, but it's a great little on-the-go camera, especially when you're somewhere that you'll have to worry about damage and don't want to risk your phone.
|
#
?
Apr 1, 2015 19:52
|
|
|
|
| # ? May 9, 2024 21:16 |
|
|
iPhone print quality is fine for prints up to 8x10 and your eye might be fine with somewhat larger formats. I find it to be way more of a hassle to haul around even a small camera than my phone, so it's usually either phone or DSLR for me... but if having a distinct camera sounds like a good idea to you, then at least you get SD storage, adjustable settings, and a better flash out of it.
|
|
#
?
Apr 2, 2015 18:33
|
|
|
My fiancee is trying to tell me that we have to "block off" hotels for our out-of-town guests for our wedding. Is this something we really NEED to do? It seems like if we're not obligated to pay for hotels for our out-of-towners then we don't need to make sure they have hotel rooms. Also this isn't exactly a destination wedding and the majority of our guests are within an hour's drive anyway. Did any of you have to do this? I just don't want to spend money on anything we don't have to, and I see them wanting to charge us to reserve rooms.
|
|
#
?
Apr 3, 2015 04:08
|
|
|
Most hotels should set up a block for you free of charge and sometimes they will throw in a small discount for guests on those rooms. There isn't much of a reason not to do it. Even local guests might want a hotel room, I know I've gotten a room for a local wedding before.
|
|
#
?
Apr 3, 2015 05:44
|
|
|
C-Euro posted:My fiancee is trying to tell me that we have to "block off" hotels for our out-of-town guests for our wedding. Is this something we really NEED to do? It seems like if we're not obligated to pay for hotels for our out-of-towners then we don't need to make sure they have hotel rooms. Also this isn't exactly a destination wedding and the majority of our guests are within an hour's drive anyway. Did any of you have to do this? I just don't want to spend money on anything we don't have to, and I see them wanting to charge us to reserve rooms. Its usually a nice thing to do and as couldcareless said its often free or pretty cheap.
|
|
#
?
Apr 3, 2015 11:00
|
|
|
Yeah, most hotels will do that free of charge. You can often get a group rate. The caveat is that people need to book by like a month before the wedding or they open the remaining rooms back up to general booking and the group rate ends. If you "block off" 20 rooms you're not on the hook for 20 rooms.
|
|
#
?
Apr 3, 2015 11:15
|
|
|
Counterpoint: I tried to do that and the hotel wanted a $1500 deposit that they'd only refund if we filled a certain number of rooms. This was a Holiday Inn in a rural town, not some swanky hotel either. I didn't have an extra $1500 in the budget by that point so guests were on their own for rooms and no one had any issues finding lodging. I'd only block off rooms if you think hotels are going to sell out, like my friend who very dumbly scheduled their wedding in a college town on graduation weekend.
|
|
#
?
Apr 3, 2015 11:46
|
|
|
C-Euro posted:My fiancee is trying to tell me that we have to "block off" hotels for our out-of-town guests for our wedding. Is this something we really NEED to do? It seems like if we're not obligated to pay for hotels for our out-of-towners then we don't need to make sure they have hotel rooms. Also this isn't exactly a destination wedding and the majority of our guests are within an hour's drive anyway. Did any of you have to do this? I just don't want to spend money on anything we don't have to, and I see them wanting to charge us to reserve rooms. On the one hand if they will provisionally book them for free or a cheap and refundable deposit then I'd go for it. Often they will just release any unbooked rooms a certain time before the wedding, and this can be a good option if your wedding is somewhere that has limited accommodation nearby. On the other hand (particularly if you have to pay out in advance) your guests are adults and can sort themselves out. Particularly if there is lots of accommodation nearby and you aren't getting married while there's a convention or huge event or something nearby, there really is no need for it. You can always make sure you send out invites in plenty of time and/or give an informal heads up to out of town guests if you are worried about them finding a place to stay.
|
|
#
?
Apr 3, 2015 12:13
|
|
|
It's nice to have everyone stay in the same hotel. And if you are providing a shuttle it makes things much easier. Along those lines, I would advise anyone to only suggest one hotel, not to give a lot of options. We went to a wedding last year and there was a B&B option, and a midrange option, and a cheap option, and it just made it confusing. People will figure it out if they don't like the hotel you suggest. smackfu fucked around with this message at 13:04 on Apr 3, 2015 |
|
#
?
Apr 3, 2015 13:02
|
|
|
smackfu posted:It's nice to have everyone stay in the same hotel. And if you are providing a shuttle it makes things much easier. We listed a hotel, mentioned we blocked it off and was at a discounted rate and then said "but if you would like other options please check out" blah blah blah
|
|
#
?
Apr 3, 2015 13:25
|
|
|
smackfu posted:It's nice to have everyone stay in the same hotel. And if you are providing a shuttle it makes things much easier. That right there. If you don't block off some rooms in advance they don't give you a shuttle near me. My fiancé and I KNOW that a good chunk of even in town guests won't want to drink and then drive 30 minutes home, so we blocked off rooms at a local hotel. We went and checked them out to see which one we liked, who offered a free shuttle, and if they had a bar and entertainment in the hotel. Most people want to keep the party going after the reception so we chose a hotel that has a bar and live music with a dance floor. I've drank there and danced before so I know it is a nicer place since it is near the airport. There is no charge or penalty to block off rooms at any hotel near me.
|
|
#
?
Apr 3, 2015 16:18
|
|
|
The hotel we're getting married at said they would block off "10 rooms" for us. But turns out that actually means 5 rooms for 2 nights. It's a touristy town so there's lots of places to stay, but i thought that was odd.
|
|
#
?
Apr 3, 2015 16:34
|
|
|
I'm nowhere near the point in planning where I need to decide this, but how crazy is it to ditch seating charts and let people just sit where they want?
|
|
#
?
Apr 10, 2015 08:09
|
|
|
22 Eargesplitten posted:I'm nowhere near the point in planning where I need to decide this, but how crazy is it to ditch seating charts and let people just sit where they want? It depends on the style of your wedding - if its relaxed and casual buffet or BBQ style then it'll probably be fine. If it's a seated 3+ course meal then it could get difficult as people will be sitting together for a couple of hours maybe. The main downsides are that there can often be unequal numbers of friends/groups/family attending together, so for example you may be left with one spare seat each at two tables and a couple who don't know anyone else have to split up if they arrive last. If all your guests know each other well it could be fine but I'd still not enjoy a wedding as much if I had to sit away from my partner or closest friends/family. I think if you are going for no seating plan it's advised to have more seating than you actually need.
|
|
#
?
Apr 10, 2015 10:27
|
|
|
gently caress yeah. Venue for ceremony and reception, sorted.
|
|
#
?
Apr 10, 2015 10:28
|
|
|
Still need to figure out a good extra-gift for my brother and the Father of the bride. I guess Ill get something comicsy for my brother and father of the bride something uhhhh sportsy? 8 Days, getting antsy!
|
|
#
?
Apr 10, 2015 10:38
|
|
|
My wedding was a very casual buffet dinner. We had no seating chart and my grandmother was CONVINCED it was going to be a disaster of people sitting with strangers or people they don't like. But of course if given the choice of sitting with friends people will take it. We DID have an extra empty table so people would have space to spread out and sit wherever they wanted. It worked out great and no enemies had to sit at the same table. It also frees people up to sit with the opposite family and get to maybe meet new people if they want to. But doesn't force new people on them. But I agree that if you are having some fancy 3 course plated dinner it is different and you should consider assigning seats.
|
|
#
?
Apr 10, 2015 13:37
|
|
|
I agree that people will pretty much work themselves out. Maybe a few people will be less happy than if you had spent hours planning the seating chart, but your carefully planned seating chart might have had issues too, like two people not liking each other that you didn't even know about. It certainly leads to much more mixing across groups (like the two families), which can be a good thing. OTOH, if you want specific tables to be for specific people, than a seating chart is pretty important. For instance, if you want to put your immediate family closer to the head table, or if you want to put the old folks away from the DJ speakers. Or have a singles table.
|
|
#
?
Apr 10, 2015 13:53
|
|
|
smackfu posted:Or have a singles table. Which is the one closest to the bar, right?  Plans are still nebulous,but it's likely to be buffet style, in either her parent's half acre or a clear part of my dad's six acres. I figure a tent rental as rain insurance will be a hell of a lot cheaper than any venue, and we'll use compostable plates, utensils, and cups. Citronella candles as centerpieces, DIY some more up on wires as lighting surrounding the dance area. We'll need to do something to have a safe spot for dancing, I don't trust the ground to be flat enough. I'm not sure whether we'll be getting it catered or not. I would like to rope some of the better cooks into volunteering to help cook. Let's be honest, most wedding catering is the kind of food where if a restaurant served it, you would never go back. And that's not considering I'm seeing a ballpark of $50/head without liquor. I'm definitely going to look into it further in the next year to make sure I'm not breaking the law, but it looks like if we have it at a private residence, we wouldn't have to pay for someone with a liquor license to come in and charge us $6 a drink either. Which will also make everything much cheaper. And since this is beer central, I don't think anyone is going to be mad about limited liquor choices. Yes, I'm excited to talk about my wedding.
|
|
#
?
Apr 10, 2015 19:26
|
|
|
You should price out tents before assuming they are cheap. Tent + chairs + tables + dance floor + lighting, it adds up fast. Especially when a venue might rent for only $1500, with tables and chairs and a floor and ceiling.
|
|
#
?
Apr 10, 2015 19:38
|
|
|
I do need to get a tent estimate. The tent would do double duty for ceremony and reception, though. The tables, I've been hearing under $7/table, though, so with extras for food and guests to gather more flexibly, I'm barely looking at over $100. Not sure how much for chairs. Lighting I could borrow. I have no idea how much for a dance floor. I hadn't thought about that before I made that post. The liquor cost savings pretty much depend on a backyard reception, though. I'm looking at 3 drinks per guest, one per hour. Without looking into the savings from growlers or small kegs, I'm seeing about 450. With catering, that's a minimum of 1200, probably more like 1500.
|
|
#
?
Apr 10, 2015 21:14
|
|
|
Fun fact: it costs more to rent the tablecloths than it does to rent the tables.
|
|
#
?
Apr 10, 2015 22:13
|
|
|
^^^ Having worked in catering, it totally makes sense. The rented tables are ugly as poo poo plywood or durable but drab plastic. You can beat them up, dump wine on them, nobody cares. The table cloths have a much shorter lifespan and much more "upkeep". Regarding the tent, I'm not sure about Colorado but in PA party tents were like $850 and on up. Remember you're usually paying for the tent rental itself, plus the delivery and staff to set it up. How big is the guest list again? LogisticEarth fucked around with this message at 22:16 on Apr 10, 2015 |
|
#
?
Apr 10, 2015 22:14
|
|
|
I'm meeting with the jeweler tomorrow to talk about/possibly order our wedding bands, are there any questions I should ask that I'm going to overlook? We are just doing plain gold bands engraved on the inside, nothing really special, but I am sure I'll forget something so figured I'd ask you lovely people.
|
|
#
?
Apr 10, 2015 22:22
|
|
|
~100, there are a few we aren't sure if we are inviting, we don't know about +1s, that sort of thing. We also haven't sent out the invitations, so who knows how many of the distant people will actually RSVP? If it's really like a thousand dollars, I'm going to look into alternatives to renting. It definitely wouldn't need to be one of those gigantic 100x100 tents. Edit: Jesus gently caress, 1800 for a 27x36 dance floor? Dad's farm is looking better and better. One of his barns should cover a dance floor and shelter, knock on wood. $700 is the best price for a tent, too. I mean, the tent is definitely doable. More than expected, but doable. The dance floor is just insane. 22 Eargesplitten fucked around with this message at 23:30 on Apr 10, 2015 |
|
#
?
Apr 10, 2015 22:36
|
|
|
27' x 36' is a huge rear end dance floor. We had a wedding for ~115 guests and I think we had an 18' x 18'. Was around $500 for a faux marble or something. Wood was more expensive, again probably due to less durability and "nicer" appearance. The rental stuff will get expensive if you look for all the bells and whistles. Also have you actually priced out catering yet? For 100 guests your "high" budget of $1500 for catering is very tight. $15/person for a catered meal is not going to go very far. Also factor in a tip for any service staff you're hiring. $450 for alcohol is doable IF you stick to a 2-4 kegs (depending on size) and some mass-produced mixed drinks, with maybe a bit more thrown in for a couple cases of wine and champagne for a toast.
|
|
#
?
Apr 11, 2015 11:00
|
|
|
We had some pretty tasty wedding food at $60/head. Not all wedding food is terrible. We did a seating chart because our venue was fairly small and there wasn't space for people to clump up and block paths. A seating chart kept everyone evenly distributed throughout the room. Our venue coordinator wouldn't let us simply number the tables because she'd seen way too much stupid drama start over people being offended over being sat at higher numbered tables (it's so dumb but apparently is very common) so we labeled them with colors instead. 22 Eargesplitten is $1500 your total budget for food AND booze? For 100 people that's super super tight. Minus your $450 estimate for alcohol that leaves you with a smidge over $10/head for food. Unless you're planning on getting everyone a Big Mac combo from McDonalds with no catering staff you might want to re-evaluate your food budget. Problem! fucked around with this message at 12:32 on Apr 11, 2015 |
|
#
?
Apr 11, 2015 12:26
|
|
|
Sorry, I guess I'm being unclear. I meant that liquor alone would be around 1500 if we got a bartender and planned for 3 drinks per person. Whereas if I bought some craft 12-packs, made limmers club punch (think Tom Collins with orange blossom), got some ~$10 bottles of wine, and bought some cider, that would be $450. I haven't even begun to figure out what I'm looking at for the actual meal. I am thinking of asking my really good cook of an aunt to make the cake(s). No multi-tiered thing with bride and groom statues, just something tasty and simple enough to make 100 servings of. I thought we would need a pretty big dance floor, but I guess I was over-estimating
|
|
#
?
Apr 11, 2015 16:20
|
|
|
22 Eargesplitten posted:Sorry, I guess I'm being unclear. I meant that liquor alone would be around 1500 if we got a bartender and planned for 3 drinks per person. Whereas if I bought some craft 12-packs, made limmers club punch (think Tom Collins with orange blossom), got some ~$10 bottles of wine, and bought some cider, that would be $450. Oh ok, that makes more sense. We paid around $1000 for our liquor all said and done and had plenty left over. We had a 100 person wedding as well. As for cakes, a real good way to save a poo poo ton of money is to bake a bunch of sheet cakes, then just have a small fancy cake for the official cake cutting. We had a small three tier cake for the official cutting and to have out on display but had a stash of sheet cakes in the kitchen to serve. Some people even have their display cakes made out of styrofoam covered in fondant with only one layer of actual cake to cut.
|
|
#
?
Apr 11, 2015 17:11
|
|
|
How important do you all think it is to have a second shooter with your photographer? Trying to decide if we should pay extra for our preferred photographer to bring along someone else, or go with a cheaper options that already include two shooters.
|
|
#
?
Apr 12, 2015 03:16
|
|
|
boquiabierta posted:How important do you all think it is to have a second shooter with your photographer? Trying to decide if we should pay extra for our preferred photographer to bring along someone else, or go with a cheaper options that already include two shooters. We didn't have one, but it depends on how important ceremony and candid shots are to you. Church weddings in particular have strict limitations to where the photographer can be and their movements so a second shooter could be helpful there if you want multiple points of view of your ceremony. IMO one shooter is fine for standard wedding photography though.
|
|
#
?
Apr 12, 2015 03:21
|
|
|
My first wedding of the season takes place this coming Saturday. Will be a good run-up into the summer season. Gotta clean up my track selections to make sure everything is not club-explicit. My new QSC K12 speakers are ungodly sounding for how big they are (12" drivers) and my uplighting is pretty hilarious. Going to be a whole new ball game setting up an entire Yukon's-worth of gear this summer. Regarding seating charts I tend to lean toward them, because I've never done a wedding without them. Someone already mentioned above that you should keep grandma and grandpa away from the speakers. They will always want the music turned down even when it's mellow, normalized dinner music. For that matter, if you need any opinions on floorplanning I am always happy to help. I've seen some great layouts and some that are not-so-great. This stuff matters (at least to me). If you are getting married in Colorado and need help with a tent, I work closely with a company up in Summit County if that's near where you are getting hitched. I can always push for a discount with them as we have a good working relationship and I am tight friends with the managers. Don't get too hung up on your timelines, allow about 30/45 minutes of slop going into dinner, and remember to try and have fun! If you aren't using a wedding planner then try and designate day-of duties to members of your bridal party. Let them know what you expect to people you trust to do these things. Your day is going to be hectic and busy even when you delegate out responsibilities. If you are running behind try and communicate this information to your caterer so that they don't prepare food and have it sit for 45 minutes.
|
|
#
?
Apr 12, 2015 21:55
|
|
|
So I have a bit of a two-part question here, and didn't see anywhere else to go with this. 1. I'm the MoH for my best friend since the 5th grade. She is super low-key (think: ideal vacation is camping and smoking weed), and I'm trying to keep things from getting totally out of hand. She's already having a much fancier wedding than anyone would have thought she'd go for (her fiancee had a hook-up at a pretty nice venue), and now her pain-in-the rear end mother is horning in on Bridal Shower Party Planning. I need help sure, but as The Moms (as I have collectively been referring to her and her groom's mothers) decided a few weeks back - they'll choose the venue and date, cover food costs and leave the rest up to the bridal party. So I don't know why she's suddenly turned into the planning Nazi. Now she's texting me and the other girls, organizing a big Bridal Shower Planning Commission or some poo poo for next week. I just want her to chill. The drat wedding is in October, the shower date they chose is in August, and there is no need to go all anal on this right this second. Venting done: The shower is being held in a restaurant, I've only ever attended ones in dedicated locations, like a rented fire hall or somebody's home. The bride doesn't like 'stupid games' like Points in Your Purse, and wants music. How realistic is music in a restaurant? What else do I need aside from favors? I feel like there isn't much we need to do in the realm of decoration or centerpieces since the venue pretty much provides the ambiance. I've been reading through Offbeat Bride and The Knot but I don't feel like it's helping much. I know I'm missing pieces but her mom is so in my face I feel like I can hardly breathe. And I am NOT going to go bitching to her about it either. 2. She and I got engaged within a few weeks of each other this past summer, and I'm in the early stages of planning my own wedding. I'm currently trying to win a facebook contest for a free wedding venue in a county park (so so so broke, and being MoH this year, my sister's baby last year, and her wedding the year before certainly haven't helped). So far my fiancee and I are CRUSHING the competition. If things start getting hairy, would it be totally tacky to ask the goons for help? Blah blah blah. I'm a whiney brat.
|
|
#
?
Apr 17, 2015 01:36
|
|
|
Hopes Fall posted:So I have a bit of a two-part question here, and didn't see anywhere else to go with this. That could go either way depending on the request. Some goons will get all high and mighty about it. Some of us will help you out. I think the majority of us don't mind helping as long as it isn't a hindrance upon us. I know nothing of Bridal Showers...so...good luck.
|
|
#
?
Apr 17, 2015 16:05
|
|
|
Tomorrows the big day! The week before the wedding is so stressful but it seems to be less and less stressful the closer we get to the rehearsal dinner because everything is officially out of our hands now so im just gonna ride the wave and have fun.
|
|
#
?
Apr 17, 2015 16:32
|
|
|
Bread Set Jettison posted:Tomorrows the big day! The week before the wedding is so stressful but it seems to be less and less stressful the closer we get to the rehearsal dinner because everything is officially out of our hands now so im just gonna ride the wave and have fun. Enjoy the ride! It's amazing! Don't let little details take you out of your joy. We had a couple hang ups but I wouldn't change a thing! Here's a few completely un-asked-for pics from my own wedding because I don't think I ever posted any and I want to show off     
|
|
#
?
Apr 17, 2015 19:25
|
|
|
Buggiezor posted:Enjoy the ride! It's amazing! Don't let little details take you out of your joy. We had a couple hang ups but I wouldn't change a thing! My fiancé gets to where the Chuck Taylors at our wedding. All the ladies get to wear low top orange Chucks with their dresses. I have to wear the ugly rental dress shoes from my tux...
|
|
#
?
Apr 17, 2015 20:37
|
|
|
I love your nails (assuming you're the bride, sorry if I'm wrong!) ! I'm having a goon make me a custom polish set in purple and I'm super excited to see what she comes up with. Glad to see other non-pink/neutral/French nails.
|
|
#
?
Apr 17, 2015 20:52
|
|
|
ilysespieces posted:I love your nails (assuming you're the bride, sorry if I'm wrong!) ! I'm having a goon make me a custom polish set in purple and I'm super excited to see what she comes up with. Glad to see other non-pink/neutral/French nails. Thanks for noticing!! I painted them myself, I used an ELF brand purple with a silver glitter (don't remember the brand) on the tips for a subtle but blingy look. I'm happy to hear you're going with purple too! You'll have to post a picture for me once you get your polish! OssiansFolly posted:My fiancé gets to where the Chuck Taylors at our wedding. All the ladies get to wear low top orange Chucks with their dresses. I have to wear the ugly rental dress shoes from my tux... Funny story about the shoes. My husband and I are high school sweethearts and for our senior prom he showed up to pick me up in chucks. He's just not a very formal kind of guy. I thought it was awesome and so for the wedding it was important to me that he have that same look. He was all for it and as you can see, he bought the groomsmen matching chucks as wedding gifts. I wanted to match him but with a little more girlish flair so I managed to find some Converse flats. I ordered them straight away.  My mom had a cow and said there was no way I was wearing BLACK shoes with my white dress. I told her to shove it, because that's exactly what I wanted to wear. It was a fight but she got over it and after the fact even admitted she thought it was cute.   It was an amazing night. And I think the shoes were definitely one of my favorite things.
|
|
#
?
Apr 17, 2015 22:53
|
|
|
|
| # ? May 9, 2024 21:16 |
|
|
Buggiezor posted:It was an amazing night. And I think the shoes were definitely one of my favorite things. Gotta do what you gotta do. My wife wore these bad boys:  Protip: If you can find a bunch of cheap ballet flats for the ladies, do it. We put a basket of roll-up flats out for people and they were hugely popular when gals wanted to kick off the heels and dance. Cost us about $50 from memory.
|
|
#
?
Apr 18, 2015 01:56
|
|
