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St. Simons Wedding Planner :: Island Destination Weddings | Stupid Stuff No One Will Miss (or Notice)
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Stupid Stuff No One Will Miss (or Notice)

Perhaps a nicer title would have been “You Can Stop Stressing Over ______”.

Following along the premise of yesterday’s post about brides on a budget, I would like to quell some fears.  I even discussed this with a few industry buddies, just to add some clarity and variety.  Here we go!

  1. Non-Edible Favors–Skip the seashells or swans full of dinner mints and wrapped in tulle.  It’s waste.  You can also do away with the photo frames and place card holders.  You will find a majority are going to be left on your table.  Another thing, if it is has your name on it, it will probably be abandoned.  This includes personalized CDs (copyright issues), jars, candles, etc.  I can remember years ago going to a baby shower and receiving an angel figurine with the baby’s name on it.  I thought, “Ok. What am I going to do with this?” Your guests will be thinking the same thing. Honestly,  I have no need for a 2×3 frame.  And ONE place card holder.  No. No use at all.  Instead, opt for little things, with style.  Candy, dessert and popcorn bars are a great way to show your appreciation and are a hit. Better yet, give a donation in the name of your wedding or guests. Leave a nice bookmark or card on the place setting to say that it has been done. Just don’t say how much you donated.
  2. Those 1983 Gold Imprinted Cocktail Napkins— I haven’t seen these in forever, but as long as they are selling them in the back of wedding invitation catalogs, someone is buying them (unfortunately).  No one will miss these. No one is looking for them.  Spend your money somewhere else.
  3. The Groom’s Cake—  Don’t get me wrong, the sentiment is really sweet. If you have the money and want to honor your hubby-to-be, go for it. However, if you don’t, don’t sweat it. I have been to some of the most beautiful weddings and there is wedding cake left over for days.  Can you imagine how upset you would be if you had TWO cakes that no one touched? 
  4. Champagne–Yep, unless you’re Puff Daddy, I think it’s perfectly fine to skip the bubbly.  I know, I know, it’s a wedding.  But…a lot of people don’t even like champagne. So you save yourself the pain and angst of buying it by the bottles only for people to take a sip and sit it down.  People can toast with what they have at hand, or shoot for the Italian prosecco that is more cost effective.
  5. Bathroom Baskets— Again, sweet in sentiment, but unnecessary.  Your guests are only there for four hours.  Save your money and put it somewhere else. 
  6. Ceremony Programs— If you have the money to spend on them, fine. Knock yourself out.  In some cultures it is customary to honor certain individuals.  But I will tell you, a majority of the people don’t care about what your flower girl’s name is or what song the grandmothers are being seated to.  If we leave or hand out 100 programs, 50 to 75 of them are left in the seats or the baskets. Put your money some where else.
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10 Comments

  • GREAT post Terrica!! One idea if you are dead set on the ceremony programs (as most people are) only make 45% of the guests that are coming. One program per couple, dudes don’t hold those things!!!

    June 23, 2007 at 9:45 am
  • Aug Bride

    Reply

    I totally agree with the whole list…. except for programs. I agree that most people don’t save them, but I think the vast majority still “follow along.” There are ways to do the program without breaking the bank so that it serves it’s purpose =)

    June 27, 2007 at 9:37 am
  • Chrissy

    Reply

    I agree with the non-edible favors above all! If I can’t eat it, what exactly am I supposed to do with it?

    Champagne: we’re only going to supply it to the head table at the wedding. Why go broke over it, there will already be enough alcohol at the bar!

    The bathroom baskets are also not necessary, but a very nice gesture. You don’t have to go broke over them if you have one. Just hit the dollar store or bargain store for some hair spray, body spray, tampons, panty liners, safety pins, and bobby pins.

    And as for the programs, they’re very nice to have for people to follow along. They don’t need to be expensive or extravagant. But they’re very nice if there is a lot going on in your ceremony, especially if the guests need to respond to anything.

    June 29, 2007 at 4:59 pm
  • Jeanette

    Reply

    I can’t agree with your first suggestion… And the whole post seems like kind of a stretch. Really, every aspect of the wedding apart from the bride, groom, and the person that makes it legal is expendable (that includes the dress, flowers, cake, and everything else) – and anyone who says otherwise is not looking out for your best interest, they are trying to create their wedding dream or sell you something.

    Most edible wedding favors shout, “No thought put into this!” That’s a lousy way to try to express your gratitude for the support your guests have been over the years.

    Your donation idea works though.

    That being said, it is true that not all favors are useful and as a result will often be left behind. You mentioned most of them, but sets of coasters, sun catchers, wine glass charms, many candles, bookmarks, and decorative (but not too cutsie) bottle stoppers make very useful favors that a bride is likely to see in her guests homes for months or even years to come.

    Bathroom Baskets? The idea has merits, but you are celebrating with adults are you not? We should all be responsible for ourselves. The opera is roughly just as long and does not offer them – except sometimes behind the counter and at greatly inflated prices. This seems like kind of a stretch.

    July 19, 2007 at 11:21 pm
  • Hi jeanette,

    It’s not so much dumping everything that doesn’t make the wedding legal that is the gist of the post. I am a strong advocate of not selling dreams and puffery, but I am also a big advocate of nixing superfluous things and wasting money as well.

    Non-Edible favors vs. Edible Favors, to each his own, kwim? Some brides love the candy bars, dessert sushi, custom popcorn bars, etc. We’re not talking the rinky dink swans and pastel dinner mints. Edible favors have come a long way in both creativity and design. Some brides go overboard with NEF and start putting their names and wedding dates on everything. That, a lot of people abhorr and have no use for at all. There are some non-edible favors that are great…but if you don’t have the money for them…I wouldn’t be out putting my kidneys on eBay to get them.
    Perhaps you misunderstood– I said bathroom baskets WERE unnecessary.

    Thanks for your thoughts! You make some very good points and they are much appreciated.

    July 19, 2007 at 11:44 pm
  • yorutunocn…

    nice post…

    July 31, 2007 at 12:54 am
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