Wedding Ideas

Romance is in the air this month. After all, Valentine's Day is the perfect time to propose! To gather inspiration, read through our posts, Creative Proposal Ideas for Valentine's Day and 5 More Creative Proposal Ideas for Valentine's Day. Then pick out the perfect engagement ring. Save big by choosing a trio ring set, which includes the three matching rings you need for your wedding: a ladies' engagement ring, a ladies' wedding band, and a men's wedding band. 

You'll find rings to suit every style and price range. Here are three examples:

1/2 Carat Diamond Trio Wedding Ring Set 10K White Gold

Our Price: $639.99  Retail: $1,599.99  You Save: $960.00

What better way to say "forever" than a white gold trio ring set? The sleek, classical style of these rings is designed to show the timelessness of your love. The diamonds are carefully embedded in the ring, lined up to draw attention to the stunning centerpiece of the engagement ring: a round-cut diamond. Each ring contains five diamonds. White gold is both durable and stylish. Watch the videos on the product page to see 360 degree views of each ring!

1/3 Carat Diamond Trio Wedding Ring Set 14K White Gold

Our Price: $899.99  Retail: $2,299.99  You Save: $1,400.00

The elegant curves of this trio ring set make a lasting impression. The wavy ridges are sleek and polished, complementing the sparkle of the diamonds with the shine of white gold. The ladies' engagement ring is set with seven round diamonds in a beautiful flower. This floral design, offset by the flowing lines that suggest ocean waves, gives these rings a touch of the natural world. See 360 views of each ring by watching the videos on the product page.

1 1/4 Carat T.W. Diamond Solitaire Trio Ring Set 14K Yellow Gold

Our Price: $1,299.99  Retail: $3,299.99  You Save: $2,000.00

Purchase any Trio Ring Wedding Set or Bridal Ring Set until Feb 7th  to save over 65% off retail prices. All orders are guaranteed to be delivered in time for Valentine's Day. See over 100 d deals going on now on our Valentine's Day Specials Page.

Perhaps you aren't a very by-the-book kind of person. Perhaps walking down a straight aisle in a white strapless gown in front of 100 guests just isn't your fantasy wedding. Perhaps you feel a little bit uncomfortable about registering for 12 place settings of china on your wedding registry.

If you don't fit in the typical $25,000 wedding box, never fear! From an original trio wedding ring set to creative wedding gifts, from unconventional wedding ceremony sites to eccentric wedding cake choices, there are a lot of different ways to make your budget wedding your own. Here are three ideas to get you thinking about a different kind of wedding registry.

1. Eclectic Budget Wedding Gifts

With such websites as My Registry or Amazon, you can create one single registry with a variety of different lovely and unconventional items from local family businesses, your favorite environmentally friendly companies, or even your favorite homemade items from stores like Etsy.

2. Intangible Budget Wedding Gifts

Perhaps you both already have your own homes and already have a lot of stuff. You may be planning to downsize rather than scale up after yourwedding, with a trio wedding ring set being the only new item you wish to bring into your home. If that is the case, consider a honeymoon registry to fund the trip of your dreams or perhaps a charitable gift registry to help people in need, rather than feeling committed to a more conventional registry populated with hand towels and waffle makers.

3. Homemade Budget Wedding Gifts

If the best present would be having your guests give of themselves for your wedding gift, then consider asking friends to prepare and bring their favorite dish for you, either for a potluck reception or to stock your newlywed freezer. Or ask a friend to host a wedding shower to which everyone brings a favorite plant from their garden to help get yours started. If you're crafty and have crafty friends and family, consider asking each wedding guest to create a quilt square for you. Just send a small square of plain fabric in each budget wedding invitation and ask family and friends to use fabric, fabric pens, embroidery floss, or other washable materials to create a special square that you can incorporate into a memorable wedding quilt.

What are your unique weeding registry ideas?

Photo Credit: Flickr (MRS TWINS)

It seems like there is an app for everything these days – getting restaurant reservations, quizzing kids on spelling words, checking traffic conditions, and so much more. In today's increasingly digital world, many people spend much of their day glued to a cell phone, even at work. Now if only you could find an app to help you select the perfect inexpensive wedding ring set before you pop the question!

Believe it or not, you can get a free wedding proposal app in the iTunes store for your iPhone, which also includes tips about selecting an inexpensive wedding ring set.

Additionally, there are many popular free or relatively inexpensive budget wedding planning apps that might be helpful to you and your spouse-to-be as you try to keep track of your wedding budget and wedding plans.

1. TheKnot.com offers a free wedding planning app, Wedding 911, with popular wedding advice from TheKnot.com as well as the ability to post questions for input from fellow app users, anytime, anywhere.

2. iWedding is a more pricey purchase, at $6.99. It includes features such as planning and tracking a budget, managing guest lists, and staying on top of to-do lists.

3. A different budget wedding app that you may choose to purchase is the $4.99 Bride Guide, another app which purports to be a comprehensive wedding planning resource, from budgeting to buffeting. You probably only want one of these more comprehensive budget wedding planning programs, since it might get confusing to switch between programs.

4. Keep on top of your budget wedding dress shopping with iBridalGown, a virtual dress-shopping helper which you can purchase for $3.99.

5. If it is your registry you are working on, apps such as the free Amazon Mobile might be a good resource for keeping your gift ideas all in one place at your fingertips.

What apps have you found helpful in your wedding planning?

Photo Credit: Jim G

You are almost there. After months of writing lists, making phone calls, and planning, you are about to embark on the budget honeymoon of your dreams. There’s no doubt that you are ready to kick back and relax with your new spouse. But how can you best capture the memories from your honeymoon?

No matter what budget wedding photography decisions you made, you will most likely be on your own to take your honeymoon photos. Even though professional wedding planners don’t recommend a DIY approach for wedding photography, it is unlikely that you will have a professional photographer at your fingertips on your honeymoon.

Here are 5 tips for taking beautiful pictures on your budget honeymoon:

1. Request a digital camera on your budget wedding registry.

If you don’t already have a nice digital camera, it is a good investment or a good wedding gift to receive. You save money on film and developing costs, since you can take as many pictures as you wish but only develop your favorites. Many people don’t develop pictures at all – they just store their pictures digitally to enjoy in online photo albums, share on Facebook, or email to relatives.

2. Pack extra batteries.

If you are going out of the country or to a remote location for your budget honeymoon, you will want to be sure that you have extra batteries for your camera. If it is a camera with a rechargeable battery, you will want to make sure that you will have the ability to recharge the batteries. If you are out of the country, this means you may need to purchase a country-specific electrical adaptor.

3. Practice taking pictures ahead of time.

To avoid wasting your valuable honeymoon time trying to figure out a new electronic device, be sure to play around with your camera for a few weeks ahead of time to learn its features and be ready to point and shoot at the first beautiful sunset you come across without missing the sunset.

4. Don’t be afraid of taking multiple pictures of the same scene.

There is no cost for taking several pictures of the same thing on a digital camera. You can keep the best image and easily delete the rest off of your camera or your computer. If you are likely to take a high volume of photographs on your budget honeymoon, you may wish to consider purchasing an extra memory card for your camera in case you fill the first one up.

5. Put yourselves in the pictures.

Take turns taking pictures of the beautiful scenery, and make sure to include each other in the pictures. In years to come, chances are that you will be much more interested in how young you looked or how happy you looked on your honeymoon rather than what a particular beach or mountain looked like. Ask fellow tourists to take pictures of the two of you as a couple, and request that they take a few just in case.

Most importantly, don’t forget to have fun and enjoy your budget honeymoon. You can always buy a postcard with a beautiful sunset or a stunning view, but you can’t always enjoy the company of your new spouse on your honeymoon, since it will too quickly become a happy memory.

Photo Credit: Flickr (mikebaird)

While some couples in Hong Kong are taking budget weddings to another level by tying the knot in McDonald’s, most Chinese couples spend extraordinary amounts on their weddings, including in the latest trend of elaborate pre-wedding photo shoots. Several months before the big day, couples put together pre-enactments of the event, dressing up in rented bridal gowns and tuxes, renting out a church, and hiring a photographer to capture those crucial marriage moments. Such performances can cost up to $10,000, which falls on top of the more traditional wedding expenses. Many couples choose to document a variety of staged experiences that incorporate several costume changes, and some couples even travel to exotic locations for these photo shoots, adding to the cost. Brides and grooms are seeking to capture fantasies rather than candid moments, and because of that, few pictures are actually taken on the day of the wedding.

In the U.S., the emphasis is on the big day itself, and anyone organizing a budget wedding knows that photographs are a crucial part of capturing the magic. As you plan your own budget wedding, consider a few alternatives to the high cost of wedding photographers. Here are a few suggestions:

1) Ask a trustworthy or artsy friend to take photographs.

2) Find a package deal with a local photographer who would be willing to do both your engagement and wedding photos.

3) To supplement professional photographs, leave disposable cameras on your guests’ tables during the reception to add more candid shots to the mix.

4) If there are shots you want to make sure you have, plan them out before the wedding day, and let your bridesmaids, groomsmen, and family members know when and where you’ll need them. You’ll save your photographer’s time, thus saving money.

5) Ask recently married friends for their budget wedding tips. You want to be sure you have beautiful images of the day without spending an arm and a leg.

Photo Credit: Jakob Montrasio