Did you have the wedding of your dreams? Did you get into debt? Do you regret it?
I hear and read a lot about how newly engaged women become bridezillas, and how extravagant weddings can be. Most everyone agrees that it is ridiculous behavior, and that the important thing is the marriage and the man you are marrying. Yet Bridal magazines continue to flaunt showy and frivolous affairs that cost a fortune to achieve. And weddings that are under $10,000 are considered "cheap" -- well, I spent less than $1,000 on mine, MUCH LESS! The most expensive item was the flowers, and I only spent $150 on them!!! I wonder how many people out there rack up debt to pay for their "perfect wedding" and they are paying it off for years afterward... sometimes even after they end up divorced! I am not ashamed to admit I had a simple wedding, with what I thought was a beautiful dress. I bought my dress on eBay brand new for only $25. I actually bought two that I liked, in case one didn't fit right, so I got 2 dresses for $50, and that second dress I sold locally on Craigslist for $100, making enough money to buy my tiara and some shoes, a garter and I splurged and had some tanning sessions. Here is a picture of us, my beautiful $25 dress, the homemade floral bouquet, and my new husband who never smiles! Trust me, he really is happy to be married!!!!
And for the cake, we got two regular white cakes from the local bakery. Their wedding cakes started around $150 for something simple that only fed like 10 people, and only went up in price from there... so I got a 10" and a 7" regular cake (NOT wedding cake) and bought the cake stand and cake topper from Michael's with a coupon I had. Then some of the flower clippings, we decorated the cake with. It ended up being only $50 with all the supplies, and it fed up to 35 people, although there were only 15 people at my wedding:
I will admit that I do not like huge crowds. I do have a lot of friends, but I wanted to celebrate this intensely special day with just my immediate family. At least those who could make it out to Minnesota. The rest of my family watched via Skype. I didn't need to rent a huge banquet hall, we didn't have to do anything special except state our vows and make promises to each other. We didn't have to have bridesmaids and groomsmen, and make others fork over tons of money for a tux or a dress, nor did we need gifts. A few people demanded to be allowed to buy us gifts, but we didn't want any. We are two professionals who make decent money. This is a second marriage for us both, and we have everything we need. So I wonder -- do you regret having a huge wedding? If so, was it because you are now divorced, or because you got into debt? If you are a parent who paid for a huge wedding for a child, do you regret that? I wonder because I hear about so many marriages being in jeopardy, people going through divorce, and I am curious -- did they start out on the wrong foot? Focused on materialism and fancy "things" vs. the treasures of the heart? Please comment, I would love to hear your take on this... and if you had the perfect wedding, what was it? I am very far from being materialistic. I prefer comfort over fashion. I have bad taste in styles and accessories, and you know what? I don't care. What I care about is if I perform to the best of my ability, that I don't lie, that I don't cheat, and that I do what is right. My wedding may be considered tacky by some, especially being married on April Fool's Day, which I think fits us perfectly! It is pretty funny, we have a great relationship filled with jokes and pranks and teasing. And we have our bad days, too. We are still doing somewhat of the "dance" and learning how to be each others support, friend, encourager, while still trying to get our own needs met. It is a dance. And we sometimes act like we have two left feet, and stumble. But, I am in for the long haul, and practice will make us perfect. I have married the man I chose, and I would marry him again in a heartbeat. So tell me your experiences!! Good or bad! I want to hear!