i wouldn’t do a potluck, either. the cleanliness factor is big for me, i’m a bit of a germaphobe, and secondly, you just aren’t allowed to ask your entire guest roster to bring ANYTHING–food, presents, etc.
i have had two very good friends get married on extremely tight budgets. it can totally be done! here are some tips:
my first friend, Rachel, had a morning wedding and a breakfast that followed. she had a delivery from a local bakery that included dozens (and dozens) of bagels, a variety of different cream cheeses, pastries and donuts. she ordered several fruit platters from the grocery store, and a friend picked them up for her super-early. she ordered six breakfast casseroles from a local eatery, and another friend picked those up. she had several juice, tea, coffee and hot chocolate selections to choose from. total cost: $250
–she went to a place called “paper warehouse” and bought a bunch of plasticized “party platter” stuff, like a punch bowl and table clothes and goblets and silverware and plates, napkins, etc. very cheap but still with the appearance of class. everyone commented that they had never attended a morning wedding before, but that they thought it was a great idea!
my second friend, Tatum, had a mid-afternoon wedding and reception. she utilized a local grocery store and ordered three “deli party platters” at $30/each. they included meat and cheese selections, as well as rolls and condiments. she also ordered tubs of potato salad and pasta salad (but bought pretty bowls to put them in), bought cut up veggies and pre-arranged fruit platters, all from the grocery store. she chose to serve only beer and wine (along with soft drinks and water), and had a friend be the “bar tender.” it LOOKED catered, but it was all in the presentation. total cost:$500 (due to beer and wine)
*call your local community college or university and ask the music dept if they have any string-instrument students willing to play at a wedding reception for the experience and a small gratuity
*instead of a florist, use either silk flowers or rely on a local flower shop/grocery store to supply you with whatever is in season.
*again, utilize the local community college or university and contact their home ec (or drama/costuming) department. a friend of a friend did this and she basically got her wedding dress at cost–they were willing to take it on as a class project, and she just had to buy the materials. it was a beautiful and simple dress that was long, empire-waisted and strappy.
*consider getting married at Christmas time or just after Easter, when the Church is fully decorated for you!
*ask your Church if they have any “wedding props” available for your use–my parish had one of those arched structures that you can place at the front of the altar–my florist decorated it beautifully with strung roses. if we’d had to buy it, it would have been expensive.
*watch the david’s bridal sales!!! they have seasonal sales where select dresses go down to $99
*get an “autograph frame” (a small picture frame with a huge white space surrounding it for signatures and messages) in lieu of a guestbook–can be bought at target very cheaply, and some guestbooks are expensive
*design your own invitations and/or wedding programs with cheap software or a very creative friend, and have them printed at kinkos (my best friend’s roommate is a graphic designer, and she did a gorgeous job on our wedding programs, taking into account my (name removed by moderator)ut)
*if you can’t afford a professional cake baker, again, use that grocery store! a friend of a friend did it and she got a miniature “wedding cake” and then two sheet cakes that guests were served from–she and her husband froze the mini cake for themselves to keep.
just some ideas off the top of my head that i have seen done at weddings or heard about
