After nearly a decade of dating, Samantha was tired of waiting for Matthew to pop the question and set out to make the proposal happen on her own. She planned a trip down the coast of California with Long Beach as the final destination, since that’s where they originally met. Samantha casually walked with Matthew past the building where they met in college while their song “Please Forgive Me” by David Gray was playing. This was the moment Samantha had planned; however, when the song began to play, she simply couldn’t get the words out. In an effort to pull things together, she turned away from the groom. When she turned back around, Matthew was down on one knee and asked her to be his wife. Though it’s not exactly how she planned the proposal to go, the end outcome was perfect: Samantha was engaged!
With a strict budget of $10,000, they set out to create their ideal wedding—something fun, low key and not overly traditional—and selected a New Year’s/winter celebration, since they met in January and winter weddings are much less popular than other seasons. The couple enlisted the help of family to turn their wedding dreams into reality. Matthew’s father, Raymond, performed the ceremony, which Samantha’s aunt filmed, and Matthew’s sister, Adriana, who happens to be a cosmetologist, did Samantha’s makeup. Friends and family brought appetizers and wine, a co-worker made the cake as a gift, and a friend worked as the DJ. And that only touches the list of those who offered their assistance. The couple was lucky to have so many people offer to help, and smart to accept it. “I would recommend utilizing assistance offered from others as much as possible,” says Samantha.
Determined to stay within the budget, Samantha used several great resources such as eBay, Etsy and discount stores to create her unique wedding look, and for under $500 she managed to be a stunning bride with two dresses! She surprised guests by wearing a floor-length sequin gown for the ceremony, and a short vintage-inspired dress for the reception. She also helped her bridesmaids keep costs down by having them select items from their own wardrobe within the wedding colors. The process may have been frugal, but the result was gorgeous and charming.
By incorporating so many friends and family, the feeling of love, support and togetherness was abundant and authentic through each and every detail; while the areas in which Samantha and Matthew chose to save or splurge truly captured their fun and earnestly quirky personalities.
—Kelley Saia
First Dance Song
"Please Forgive Me" by David Gray (sung by Aaron Ross, local musician)
Father/Daughter Dance Song
"Stay Young Forever" by Aaron Ross
Details about the cake
Cake that was cut - vanilla frosting and vanilla cake from Safeway Bakery
Groom’s co-worker (Wedding Cakes by Wendy) made lemon vanilla cake with buttercream frosting for guests.
Details about the flowers
Bride created bouquets for bridal party with fake flowers from various arts and crafts stores. Men wore snowflake pins instead of boutonnieres.
Details about the favors
Small bags of candy with Groom’s favorite candy (Kit Kats) and Bride’s favorite candy (peanut M&Ms) with small tag that said “Sam & Matt 1/2/16”. Bride’s Aunt Alice created these for us.
Anything else you’d like to share about your wedding?
We paid for our own wedding, so we tried to save money as much as possible. Our friends/family were a BIG help in accomplishing this. I would recommend utilizing assistance offered from others as much as possible. For example: my Aunt made the party favors, the Bride’s family/friends brought appetizers to share, the Groom’s family/friends each brought a bottle of wine to share, the Groom’s friend was our DJ who also brought lighting and a projector, the Groom’s co-worker is a professional baker who made the cake as a gift, and the “Bridesmaid” was wedding coordinator with the vendors on the day of the wedding.
We also had a fabulous caterer (Farm to Table Catering) who stayed within the budget we had originally discussed, and she doubled somewhat as a wedding planner by coordinating ALL of our rentals for us. I would recommend having an expected budget ready to discuss when meeting with your caterer for the first time. That way, they can tell you if it is realistic or not. This is where we spent the majority of our wedding budget, so it’s important to know your limits. I would also recommend asking if they can assist you with rental coordination, especially if you aren’t going to have a wedding planner.
I (the bride) made just about all of the decorations, and purchased other decorations from thrift stores or through sales. I also made the flower arrangements out of fake flowers purchased from arts and crafts stores. I feel that we also saved a lot of money by creating our own photo booth out of cardboard and PVC piping so that people could take pictures with their cell phones. I would recommend DIY projects as much as possible, because this makes your wedding more unique, and it really assists with decreasing your budget, if you buy wisely. However, if you are creating a lot of your own decorations, start way before you think you need to (6 months before the wedding), everything takes much longer than you think it will.
Our photographers were amazing, and VERY inexpensive. It’s not all about how much your photographer costs, it’s about how well they “mesh” with you and your vision. Kurtis and Anastasia make a great team. Anastasia spends most of the wedding prep time with the Bride’s party as they get ready, and Kurtis spends the prep time with the Groom’s party as they get ready. Because there are 2 of them, they get multiple perspectives throughout the ceremony and reception. They also were great about helping me manage my time throughout the wedding, which is very important.
I would recommend having an organized friend or family member be the main person you talk to (with regard to coordinating the wedding) throughout the day. My friend did this, and he helped keep things running very smoothly. I also provided him with a tentative schedule of the day, so that he knew what time things should be happening. If you have a bunch of people coming up to you asking you questions about scheduling, etc., you will get very overwhelmed.
And, by providing beer kegs and champagne, I believe we saved a lot of money when compared to paying a bar tender, etc.
I would recommend getting a Spotify Premium account, if you don’t already have one. This way you can create your own playlists for dinner, slow dances, 80s, 90s, etc.
