Backyard Wedding

My daughter got married in our backyard 5 years ago and it was the most beautiful of all weddings. The ceremony was around 6 pm and the reception followed. There were 100 guests and everything we used was rented. They put little white Christmas tree lights on the backyard bushes and trees and no other decorations were necessary. She had silk flowers for her bouquet and one attendant, who chose and wore a dress of her own choosing. For the table centerpieces, they had childhood pictures of themselves as children, at similar ages. Although my husband prepared all the cooking (grilled kabob), he hired someone else to grill and serve; including hiring a neighbor girl. We used many items from the house (silk flowers, for instance) to decorate around the yard on tables, etc. Tableclothes were purchased from a party store and were very lightweight plastic. The trick is to be creative and think "outside the box".

Go to orientaltrading.com for all kinds of favors and decorations. Also, if you have a dollar store in your area you can get stuff cheap there. We`re doing our own invitations; Staples offers the stationery and cd in one box to print your own. We`re burning cds and playing music ourselves instead of hiring a dj, and a lot of my co-workers are helping set up and one is bartending. My brother brews his own beer and is doing a bunch for the wedding, and then we`re going to Sam`s Club ( a members only bulk store) to get soda and juice. We`re doing our own cold appetizers and a friend with a grill is doing the rest of the food. A couple of other shutterbug friends are doing the photos. Good luck.

First, are you having a caterer? If so you can lean on them for a lot of coordinating. You can also find out from them who they rent from. Planning a wedding is just planning a bigger party that is all.

Start your planning by going backwards. YUP. Start with the wedding day. What will you need? Food, Flowers, Music, People etc. Then decide in firm timelines. An example would be you need guests to come right? Okay when do you need RSVPs? (3 weeks before). When do they need their invitations? (6 weeks before). So when do they have to be a the post office? (7 weeks before) how long will it take for you to address them?(8 weeks before). How long does the printer need? (10 weeks before). Who`s invited? (12 weeks before).

If you go with this timeline you will need to begin deciding on who`s invited 3 months prior to the wedding, and you must have your print order in 10 weeks prior to the wedding etc.

If you set everyting to a time line like this it will be a sinch! Good luck.

Zim
Http://www.zimphotography.com

I got married in my best friends backyard - well on their deck actually! It turned out nice, we of course had a color theme, we borrowed folding chairs from the local tavern - put them on the grass, we made all the boquets, just go to the dollar store or such, you can find pretty flowers in the color of your choice. I could go on & on... If you`d like more ideas feel free to e-mail me, I`d love to help you. : )

DEAR MS WEBB YOU SOUND WORRIED WELL DONT BE THERE ARE SO MANY DIFFERENT THINGS YOU CAN DO WITH A BACKYARD WEDDING ON A SLIM BUDGET.FIRSTLY BE HONEST WITH YOUR GUESTS AND ASK THEM TO HELP YOU OUT I HAVE A FEW TIPS BUT IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO KNOW MORE PLEASE EMAIL ME PERSONALLY OR ANYONE ELSE NEEDING ADVICE ON melindab@nospam.iprimus.com.au PLEASE REMOVE NO SPAM TO EMAIL ME .. OK WHY DONT YOU ARE THE GUESTS TO BRING ALONG THEIR OWN CHAIR AND A PLATE OF FOOD, BORROW SOME FAIRY LIGHTS YOU HAVE TO KNOW SOMEONE WHO HAS THEM SCATTER THEM AROUND THE BACKYARD,AND PLACE BAMBOO FLARES IN THE GARDEN OR START COLLECTING DIFF SIZE JARS USE GLAS PAINT TO GIVE A SPECIAL TOUCH ATTACH WIRE AND PLACE TEA CANDLES INSIDE VERY ROMANTIC LIGHT AND VERY COST EFFECTIVE- PLANT BULBS NOW IN SMALL POTS PAINT THEM AND ADD A LITLE GREENARY IN THEM HAVE ONE LONG TABLE THROW A TABLECLOTH ON WITH THE PLATES OF FOOD THE GUESTS HAVE BROUGHT ALONG AND PLACE YOUR POTS ON HERE GOODLUCK MELINDA FROM AUSTRALIA

Hi guys, what having a wedding set at dusk and draping the small white xmas mini lights throughout the trees or shrubs in thebackyard or along a fence.If you don`t have any don`t be afraid to ask friends etc...also you could string chinese lanterns along the walk way where the bride may walk .If you have the cheap 2-3 dollar torches you could line the walk way where the bride comes or line an alter of sortss for the bride and groom to stand. You might also ask friends to participate in the decorating and have a wedding decoration party a few weeks ahead and that will allow you time to see what you have for decoartions.you can also borrow these things that your friends bring.that is a nice way for your close friends to become an intimate part fo the wedding. Also check for wild flowers and see what is in bloom and find a field that will give you a few nice flowers to sit around.Even weeds look nice when wrapped in a bit of ribbon and ribbon is fairly cheap by the yard..........hope these few idead help....mini white lights have a way of making most weddings seem like a fairy tale..............good luck Rose

You don`t really need a wedding coordinator. Unless your wedding is huge, like 300 guests or more.

Look under the message for garden themed weeding in this site