Operation: Recessionista Series {$5,000 Wedding Bailout} :: Invites
So, you have only $5000 for your entire wedding budget. Can you still have everything you want? Everything you need to have to pull off a beautiful event? With Operation: Recessionista, we’ll show you how to approach your planning, budget and overall event vision, without compromising your special day or having to rely on family and friends to get things done. Instead, we will rely on ingenuity, DIY, With each Operation: Recessionista segment, we will form a budget with you, break it down and give you suggested resources to make it fabulous. This week, we will talk about your invites.
Invites
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Budget: $200
Everything about your wedding will be intensive upon your guest list number. When you are working with only $5,000, you should look to keep your guest list numbers low. To be completely honest—ditch the ego and the need to show off. There is no way you can have a wedding with all of the laced details with this amount of money without something missing something. That being said, our hypothetical guest list is no more than fifty people. Just because you have a budget of $200, doesn’t mean you cannot have gorgeous invites. Enter: BRIDES Chocolate Pocket Invites. Created by BRIDES (yes, the magazine people!) and sold at Michaels stores nationwide, the kit is all you need: beauty without breaking the bank. It comes with:
Includes printable invites, response cards, ribbon, jackets, address labels and seals to make 30
Response card and envelope fits in invite jacket
Just "wrap" invite in ribbon jacket, seal, label and send
The kits retail for $34.95 apiece, but can be scored for much lower if you are able to find a Michaels coupon. There are other colors in this same design: Black and White and Silver and White (note that you can get different styles as well for a similar price). You can print these out and and they will be a great touch with your wedding. Try to find some standard colors and add your own signature color—replace ribbon if necessary. For other beautiful DIY invitations that are also in this same price range, try Target, who also carries a retail Jean M line. Another one of my personal favorites are Uniquity Invitations. These beautiful templates allow you customize them your way, just be sure to price out your paper and envelopes to stay within your budget. Depending on your left over budget or what you decide to do for your invites, you may choose to forego the save-the-dates.
Let’s total it out:
BRIDES invites $34.95 x 2; inc any taxes: $74.95
Canceled 2 oz Stamps x 2 books of 20, inc. taxes: $12.80 (We say only 40 stamps, as we will assume that some of your guests will be invited as couples)
Canceled 1 oz Stamps x 2 books of 20, inc. taxes: $16.93 (see above)
Wedding Photo Thank You Cards (set of 50) inc. taxes: $23.98
Ink Cartridges (if needed) inc. taxes: $23.98
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Total: $152.64 Remaining budget: $47.36
Stay tuned for next week, when we talk about your ceremony and reception sites.