DIY Wedding for under $2,000

My eldest daughter recently got married. With only one month and very little money, this was a major DIY project. We knew it had to be a small wedding. She already knew her colors-Purple and Green.  As we searched for local places to have the ceremony, it became clear that the couple wanted an outdoor wedding. Grandma to the rescue-invited us to use her front yard which faces a very pretty lake and had a huge covered carport (in case of rain). The date was set for the beginning of September. Our concerns and prayers about the weather (100 degrees recently) were answered with a cool front that made it a perfect day.  We decided on a BBQ reception, and the work began.
Step 1: (How did we do anything before the internet?) We scoured the internet for ideas. We googled DIY weddings, BBQ weddings, Purple and Green Weddings. I created a file for photos of ideas we might be able to use and a favorites file for sites to come back too.

We found this photo:



found on asoftplace.net/.../for-the-love-of-mason-jars/

What a fantastic idea! I loved that the silverware and napkin and glass are all there-perfect for a buffet.
We also decided to use mason jars for the centerpieces.  Much of the wedding theme came from the mason jars-Something Simple Made Elegant.

We later decided to rent tables and here's our end result:

The wedding was at Sunset and when the candles were lit everything looked so beautiful and guests said they really enjoyed the relaxed atmosphere. We didn't have arranged seating, if we had and had another month, we would have added tags with twine to the jars.
Other ways we saved money- by renting a wedding gown rather than owning one. A relative took over the BBQing duties. We did the food ourselves. We set up a photo download table and had a wedding photo scavenger hunt. (We really did get some great photos)

Here's the Happy Couple:

I hope you found this interesting and helpful enough to check out future blog postings on what we created for the wedding.

I'm linking up: