Un-Bridaled: shoes

Have you found your shoes?

When I married a bazilion years ago I wanted a pair of off white ballet flats.  After months of searching I found a pair and had to have them dyed off white.  I got them back 2 days before my wedding.  At the time brides wore nondescript white pumps that matched the nondescript dyed-to-match pumps her bridesmaids were wearing.  Thank God those days are past us.  Now bridal shoes come in every shape and size, which is great, but they are still bridal shoes.  Why not have some fun and pick out a pair that will shock people when your new hubby grabs that garter?

I cruised around Zappos today and here's what I came up with.

I am a big fan of the Doc Marten's and the Converse.  The great thing about Chuck Taylor's is that you can find them in your basic white, or any other color.  Match you wedding colors or choose a complimentary color.  Don't settle for boring uncomfortable shoes that you will never WANT to wear again.

12 Green wedding tips

Celebrate your efficient choice (marriage) in an eco-friendly way.

http://www.greenbrideguide.com/12-ways-green-your-wedding

My favorite tip is choosing dresses your bridesmaids WILL wear again, rather that dresses you have fooled yourself into thinking they may wear again.  I personally chose simple, elegant and inexpensive dresses that my girls all wore again, one of the multiple times.

Vintage Brooch Bouquet

Check out his DIY Vintage Brooch Bouquet tutorial on Off Beat Bride!

Guest Blogger: Saving, Serving and Conserving.

My first guest blogger is Ashley (Dill) Baker.  Ashley and Matt were married in May.  It was my second wedding with this family and we have so many mutual friends and so much in common that our families have started to blur into each other.  Ashley is a practical woman and like me lives her life in a way that causes less waste and harm to the Earth.  Her sister, Janna is past bride of mine and an event planner.  Janna and Jennae of Statements Wedding and Event Design had the day running smoothly and were a great help to me.

I met my husband Matt through a friend at church. After dating for about 2 years, Matt popped the question at Apple Hill (the very place I had dreamed of being proposed to since I was a child). When I began planning I quickly realized that my small wedding budget wasn't going to get me an extravagant wedding. However, that didn't mean I couldn't have the wedding I always dreamed of; with a few creative changes, we were able to create the perfect wedding. 


The key to our success was deciding what aspects of the wedding were most important to us (this is where we used most of our budget). For us, it was flowers, food, and photography. This doesn't mean I chose the most expensive vendors for those items, it just meant I spent more in those areas because they were important to me. Some things that we did to keep the cost down were:

• I purchased my dress off the rack and did alterations instead of paying the full price. I ended up saving about $500 doing this.
• I had my sister and brother in law be my DJ's and they did a great job. They used their church sound equipment and an IPOD. This by far was my favorite low cost idea. Not only did I personally know my DJ, but I was able to easily pass on information to them, request things, and they never forgot our names (I have seen this at MANY weddings). Hint~ as long as music is playing and things are moving along, no one will care if your DJ is a "professional".
• My reception was held in the backyard of a friends house. It was great because it didn't need much decorating to be exactly how I wanted it. I borrowed a lot of different decorations and things for my wedding. I can't stress this enough; why pay for something someone else is willing to let you use. You will end up saving a lot of money this way. So when planning your wedding let your friends and family know what your looking for and see if they know anyone that has it already.
• My wedding cake was free. I found out that a friend of mine makes cakes on the side. She did a fantastic job and it ended up being her wedding gift to us. If you know of anyone handy in the baking department, see if they would be interested in baking your cake.
• I don't like to see flowers used as centerpieces all the time. They are beautiful but end up dying quickly (what a waist of God's beauty). What I decided to do was to have potted flowers as my centerpieces. This way, the family and friends of the wedding party could take them home and either plant them in their yard or keep them in the pot. Either way, the flowers live on and become a reminder of our wedding day. It can double as a favor and centerpiece.

I did many other things to keep my wedding costs down. The best advice I can pass on to another bride is to not focus on the little things. As much as you would like to think people notice all the small things, they don't. Keep it simple and cut corners where you can. Borrow, call upon friends help, and be creative and you will be able to create a wedding you love as well.

New features

I am so happy that a few friends and brides have agreed to act as guest bloggers on Bobo Bride.  They will be sharing true life experiences about wedding planning, marriage, and whatever else they can think of.  I am hoping to get some grooms on board, too.  If you have questions for brides, grooms, wedding vendors, or myself let me know and I will find the answers and share them with you.

Look for my first guest blogger, Ashley Baker this week.

Your Day

I have noticed that weddings are expensive.  Make that CAN BE expensive.  Of the brides that I meet with read about or overhear there seems to be a common thread amongst those who are the most worried about the expense: tradition.  They see a list in a bridal magazine of all of the things they will need and become convinced that they must have those things, then stress about how they will fund the wedding.

I am going to let you in on a secret.  Things don't matter.  It is your day, your family's day and things don't matter.  At the end of the evening the menus will end up in the garbage and half of the favors will be left on the tables.  The food will only be remembered if it is very bad or very remarkable.  The center pieces will wilt, as will the bouquets.

I am not trying to be a downer.  I want to encourage you to focus on the details of your wedding that are important to you.  Some things matter to you and some things don't.  If your budget is tight then put your money where it matters most TO YOU.  Then cross some things off of your list that matter less.

A good DJ and a good photographer will make the day more enjoyable, but one more variety of candy for the candy bar will be very soon forgotten.