Can You Say Champagne Tastes On A Beer Budget!
Business By cakesdivine Updated 26 Oct 2009 , 6:01pm by CarolAnn
I just received this lead from Eventective, almost bought it just so I could ream out this idiot, but decided the $2.50 wasn't worth it.
Laura and Henry's Wedding
Type of Event: Wedding
Number of Attendees: 200
Date: Saturday, 4/24/2010
Event Location: San Antonio, TX 78217
Event Duration in Days: 1
Total Event Budget: $2000 (no this is not a typo)
Planner's Comments: Wedding date not set in stone....about 200 guests...there will be a dance after the dinner reception....budget low at about 2-3K.
Contact Info Provided: Email (Phone not provided)
I wonder how many vendors will actually contact them...
Oh you know a looooot will. Ooo! Ooo! They're cheap, I'm cheap, I'll make their cake super cheap and give everyone in town a bad rep! 40 cents a serving- you betcha!!! Yay! Sign me up! Wooooohooooo!
It never ceases to amaze me.
"I only have $2000 but I STILL want to invite everyone I know, so YOU, vendors, need to adjust YOUR pricing so I can have what I want!"
Bite me.
Now explain to me how they are going to feed 200 people a dinner, and have a cake to fee 200 and buy flowers, DJ, Photographer, Venue rental for $2000? Even if that was just for the catering alone that is $10 a plate, so start hacking away from there and what they are spending $2 per person on a Dinner? I think not.
They're going to ask for donations in exchange for advertising at the wedding at some point! Want to sponsor my wedding? It will be SUCH good exposure for your business!
Now explain to me how they are going to feed 200 people a dinner, and have a cake to fee 200 and buy flowers, DJ, Photographer, Venue rental for $2000? Even if that was just for the catering alone that is $10 a plate, so start hacking away from there and what they are spending $2 per person on a Dinner? I think not.
You can get a plate of dinner for $10?
Aussie wedding "plates" start at about $80 and it only goes UP from there!
We couldn't even get what we call the "chew & spew" for $10ph
$2 = half a cup of coffee here!
Question....where do these 200 people come from that everyone invites to their weddings?
Do people really know that many people well enough to have them present on their wedding day?
I don't know 200 people, even if I invited all my long lost relatives and their families it would'nt come to 200 .
I heard that people invite anyone and everyone so they can get more gifts, was I told wrong or is that how it goes?
FYI never been to a wedding other then my sis's and she had about 30 people , close friends and family (I made the grooms cakes 10 years ago, with no dowels in a 3 tier,did'nt know any better!)
Hubby and I are common law so we did'nt have the hoopla either, so basically other then there has to be a cake I know nothing about weddings, sad I know.
Question....where do these 200 people come from that everyone invites to their weddings?
Do people really know that many people well enough to have them present on their wedding day?
I don't know 200 people, even if I invited all my long lost relatives and their families it would'nt come to 200
EASY - Irish Catholics or European background!
My husband is one of 5 (all have spouses and adult children) I am 1 of 4 (all have spouses and adult children) - We are still in close contact with MOST of our relatives.... my father was 1 of 9 - it goes on and on!
Our family is really close - my children see their cousins on a regular basis and we would count our family as out close circle fo 'FRIENDS' - so when my daughter got married last year- it was DIFFICULT to get the numbers lower than 130. We ended up having it on our property and had nearly a 3day good old fashioned country wedding - whereby we had an after wedding lunch the next day for those that didn't make the 'cut' for the actual wedding - most came to the church service as well
NOBODY was offended !! it was a fantastic wedding!
Sure, I can tell you, as an event planner, exactly how they could do the wedding on 2K:
location: public park $25 reg fee (or you can use someones REALLY large backyard for free)
Officiant: get a friend to get ordained online, FREE
Chairs: $350
Cake: $300 (one small decorative, and supplimented with sheet)
Champagne: $300
Rental Champagne Glasses: $100
Rental tables for food/drink with tablecloths: $50
Paper napkins, plates,cups and forks: $75
Misc non alcoholic drinks: $75
Favors: homemade from a kit at michaels: $80
Invitations: homemade from a kit at michaels: $50
Dress: $300
Tux: $100
Flowers: $100 package from local florist.
Gifts for Maid of Honor and Best man: $50
Disposable camera pack so everyone can take photos for you: $40
Total for wedding: 2K not including rings
So, possible, yes, but a grand affair, no...a very modest one...and the ONLY way you could have that many people. (notice that there is no "real" food, just cake and champagne, so it would have to be mid afternoon or you would have to have your family members volunteer to make and bring food to serve, and no DJ)
Sadly, I've actually worked weddings where I had this low of a budget and had to find many ways to save the pennies. One wedding I got the Bride to go to an outlet for her dress and she only paid $120 for her dress AND got it cleaned for that too. Good thing since the money she saved paid my fees.
And, yes, in this economic climate people are going to be haggling for anything they can get. I try to keep them grounded and explain the fees for things and what I can do for them within their severely limited budget. Not everyone walks away happy after a consultation but for some they just don't have a real option.
I agree with inviting so many people...we've been married 22 years and STILL wouldn't have 200 people to invite. We are getting remarried in two weeks and our outstanding guest list is 54. I think those families would have to invite their friends in order to fill out our guest list for 200! LOL!
As planners we encourage "nearest and dearest" but there are lots of parents out there who want to invite every family memeber that they have spoken to or heard about in the past 20 years as well as every co worker and client they have ever worked with or for and yet not pitch in on paying for the cost of entertaining such a crowd. SIGH.
Anyways, there's my "other" view.
Cat
I was lucky....had a small wedding in South Dakota 13 years ago where it wasn't rude just to have cake, punch, nuts, and mints...paid a friend to make the cake....rented a pretty little scenic chapel.....had the rehearsal dinner at my parents house as a backyard BBQ and then took everyone to Mt Rushmore....the biggest thing I spent on was the photographs, for about $600. The dress was $300 and then the rings, and everything else was nominal.
Ahhh the good old days. haha.
My concern is why do they have my front page for my website on there site and I keep getting emails from them everyday. Kind of thinking it may be some kind of scam once you give them your credit card # they may keep charging you $2.50. Has anyone used them and have you recieved business through them.
My concern is why do they have my front page for my website on there site and I keep getting emails from them everyday. Kind of thinking it may be some kind of scam once you give them your credit card # they may keep charging you $2.50. Has anyone used them and have you recieved business through them.
No it's not a scam. It's free to sign up on their site. If they have your site on there, you must have signed up at some point.
You buy "credits" ($5 or $25 at a time, if I recall correctly). Then you have $25 in your account. If you buy a lead for $2.50, it's deducted from this account.
I've had Eventective for at least a couple of years. It's not a scam to get your credit card number. As a matter of fact, it ticks me off that I have to enter my card number everytime I replenish my account. Why CAN'T they keep that on file for me? (big sigh!)
Question....where do these 200 people come from that everyone invites to their weddings?
Do people really know that many people well enough to have them present on their wedding day?
I don't know 200 people, even if I invited all my long lost relatives and their families it would'nt come to 200 .
I heard that people invite anyone and everyone so they can get more gifts, was I told wrong or is that how it goes?
FYI never been to a wedding other then my sis's and she had about 30 people , close friends and family (I made the grooms cakes 10 years ago, with no dowels in a 3 tier,did'nt know any better!)
Hubby and I are common law so we did'nt have the hoopla either, so basically other then there has to be a cake I know nothing about weddings, sad I know.
It's quite possible to have a wedding consisting of 200 people. We had over 200 people attend our wedding. It was not our intention, but quickly the numbers added up. My mother has 10 brothers and sisters. Some of them are married. We invited first cousins. Some of them are married. Move over to my husband's side. Both of his parents have large families. All of them have adult children. Some of their children are married. Lastly, add our friends. There were some people who were invited that werent able to attend. Thank goodness! LOL! I remember there was a lady upset with us because we didnt invite her. She reminded my husband that she used to change his diapers. I guess that should've landed her an invitation! LOL!
And nope, they werent all invited because of gifts. LOL! It's just hard to seperate, pick or choose when coming from large families who are close.
Now explain to me how they are going to feed 200 people a dinner, and have a cake to fee 200 and buy flowers, DJ, Photographer, Venue rental for $2000? Even if that was just for the catering alone that is $10 a plate, so start hacking away from there and what they are spending $2 per person on a Dinner? I think not.
Ok now let's try and break it down:
Dinner ---> 200 x boxes of Kraft Dinner..........$200.00
5 x lbs of butter........................... $15.00
1 x Bag of Milk...............................$6.00
Total for Dinner............................................$221.00
Flowers ---> Dandelions.................................$0.00
See Venue below =)
DJ ---> IPOD w/Downloaded Pirated Music........$0.00 (Jail time & a
Fine if your caught)
Borrow and Ipod and plug in some external speakers &
your good to go!
Photographer ---> Camera Phones...................$0.00
Invite 200 guests and hope that at least
half of them have video and camera
capability on their phones!
Venue ---> Our Back Yard................................$0.00
Free and comes with Dandelions and various other
plant life.
Catering ---> DIY............................................$0.00
How hard can it be right?
Cake ---> $1779.00 Budget from original $2000.00 budget.
Can do a pretty nice cake for that
G_Cakes, dandelions are also edible, so you could add that to suggested catering options.
That is the funniest budget I've seen for a long time!
LOL G...too funny! And yes, I could do a heck of a cake for the "leftover" budget! LOL!
Question....where do these 200 people come from that everyone invites to their weddings?
Do people really know that many people well enough to have them present on their wedding day?
I don't know 200 people, even if I invited all my long lost relatives and their families it would'nt come to 200 .
I heard that people invite anyone and everyone so they can get more gifts, was I told wrong or is that how it goes?
FYI never been to a wedding other then my sis's and she had about 30 people , close friends and family (I made the grooms cakes 10 years ago, with no dowels in a 3 tier,did'nt know any better!)
Hubby and I are common law so we did'nt have the hoopla either, so basically other then there has to be a cake I know nothing about weddings, sad I know.
oh yeah, its easy to have over 200 ppl at a wedding. my dad was the youngest in his family and he was #13. i'm the 49th grandchild (the baby of course) and with my family, if you dont invite them, you will really let hell loose. we germans can be quite tempermental..jk. our family reunion usually consists of at least 300 ppl and thats only half. then you have my moms side, my fiance's family and so on. i'm looking at over 400 ppl for my wedding which is why we are not married yet nor are going to be anytime in the near future. lol but 200 ppl on a 2000 buck budget, you gotta be kidding me right?! no way...cept for the kraft mac dinner suggested earlier. lol.
Sure, I can tell you, as an event planner, exactly how they could do the wedding on 2K:
location: public park $25 reg fee (or you can use someones REALLY large backyard for free)
Officiant: get a friend to get ordained online, FREE
Chairs: $350
Cake: $300 (one small decorative, and supplimented with sheet)
Champagne: $300
Rental Champagne Glasses: $100
Rental tables for food/drink with tablecloths: $50
Paper napkins, plates,cups and forks: $75
Misc non alcoholic drinks: $75
Favors: homemade from a kit at michaels: $80
Invitations: homemade from a kit at michaels: $50
Dress: $300
Tux: $100
Flowers: $100 package from local florist.
Gifts for Maid of Honor and Best man: $50
Disposable camera pack so everyone can take photos for you: $40
Total for wedding: 2K not including rings
So, possible, yes, but a grand affair, no...a very modest one...and the ONLY way you could have that many people. (notice that there is no "real" food, just cake and champagne, so it would have to be mid afternoon or you would have to have your family members volunteer to make and bring food to serve, and no DJ)
Sadly, I've actually worked weddings where I had this low of a budget and had to find many ways to save the pennies. One wedding I got the Bride to go to an outlet for her dress and she only paid $120 for her dress AND got it cleaned for that too. Good thing since the money she saved paid my fees.
And, yes, in this economic climate people are going to be haggling for anything they can get. I try to keep them grounded and explain the fees for things and what I can do for them within their severely limited budget. Not everyone walks away happy after a consultation but for some they just don't have a real option.
I agree with inviting so many people...we've been married 22 years and STILL wouldn't have 200 people to invite. We are getting remarried in two weeks and our outstanding guest list is 54. I think those families would have to invite their friends in order to fill out our guest list for 200! LOL!
As planners we encourage "nearest and dearest" but there are lots of parents out there who want to invite every family memeber that they have spoken to or heard about in the past 20 years as well as every co worker and client they have ever worked with or for and yet not pitch in on paying for the cost of entertaining such a crowd. SIGH.
Anyways, there's my "other" view.
Cat
where's the food in this budget?
Ok now let's try and break it down:
Dinner ---> 200 x boxes of Kraft Dinner..........$200.00
5 x lbs of butter........................... $15.00
Heck Kraft Mac-n-Cheese is 3 for 1$ at HEB, and you could always skip the real butter and go for Blue Bonnet!
Sure, I can tell you, as an event planner, exactly how they could do the wedding on 2K:
location: public park $25 reg fee (or you can use someones REALLY large backyard for free)
Officiant: get a friend to get ordained online, FREE
Chairs: $350
Cake: $300 (one small decorative, and supplimented with sheet)
Champagne: $300
Rental Champagne Glasses: $100
Rental tables for food/drink with tablecloths: $50
Paper napkins, plates,cups and forks: $75
Misc non alcoholic drinks: $75
Favors: homemade from a kit at michaels: $80
Invitations: homemade from a kit at michaels: $50
Dress: $300
Tux: $100
Flowers: $100 package from local florist.
Gifts for Maid of Honor and Best man: $50
Disposable camera pack so everyone can take photos for you: $40
Total for wedding: 2K not including rings
So, possible, yes, but a grand affair, no...a very modest one...and the ONLY way you could have that many people. (notice that there is no "real" food, just cake and champagne, so it would have to be mid afternoon or you would have to have your family members volunteer to make and bring food to serve, and no DJ)
Cat
where's the food in this budget?
She did note that this was a cake/champagne reception, it's not unheard of. I did an afternoon reception when we got married, and we didn't have a sit-down dinner. We did everything for about $3000, including a VERY open bar (our friend were all musicians or grad students, so there was a lot of drinking going on!) We had to decide between a sit-down dinner or an open bar, and due to previously mentioned type of guest that we had, the bar was the way to go
oh wow! never heard of that! Thanks for clearing that up costumeczar!
It's funny, because before I moved to the Northeast I'd never head of a sit-down dinner reception! Growing up in places where the cake/champagne/hors douevres (?) reception was the norm I thought the sit-down dinner was unusual. Now it seems to be the norm everywhere, but if you're on a budget it makes sense to eliminate that.
I did passed food and a dessert buffet along with the open bar, it wasn't just a bunch of alcoholics drinking... Just to be clear!
costume, I grew up on cake-n-punch receptions. Was in my 20's before I knew anyone who had food at their wedding and even that was just sandwiches and veggie trays. Our reaction to that simple one was "well la-dee-DAH! Who are THEY trying to impress!"
It's very sad to see the prevelent condescending attitudes here. I think you can have a very lovely wedding on $2-3K. You just have to decide which areas are most important to you and spend the bulk of it on those. In our family,we have several professional photogs, a cake decorator (me) and a DJ (also me) ... so weddings can be pretty cheap.
How do you know the cake budget isn't $1,500 of that?!? If someone has up to $3,000 to spend, I'd want to find out how much of that they planned to spend on cake before I dismissed them entirely... unless I were foolish - which I'm not.
Wykd...you are right, that was what I was showing in my break down. There is a way to have a wedding and reception but just not the grand sit down type with crystal and china. In my notes I added that there could be food if you could get your family to volunteer and bring homemade dishes...this is what we did for our wedding and it worked very well. Our original wedding 22 years ago was on a 5K budget and included renting a hall, tables chairs, dishes and having a photographer. We did not have a DJ, my brothers band played. We didn't not buy a cake, a friend who did cakes for fun made us an amazing 4 tier cake that was gorgeous. But I had a gorgeous dress, ordered invites, real flowers and we did serve champagne, etc. It was small, it was modest, it was what we could afford without anyone going into debt. For many a champagne and cake reception is all the budget will allow.
This time around (for our renewal) we are also on a budget, not wanting to put anything on a credit card, so we did pick and choose what was important. We ended up with about 8k including our honeymoon. We are having a photographer, DJ, catered passed hordeourves, a cake made by a local bakery that graciously is using my design, in a museum in Monterey. As an event planner I have been able to DIY a lot of the trimmings in order to get more bang for my buck. We are having under 60 people, champagne and other drinks as well as boxed lunches for the kids, real flowers that I will hand tie (I've learned how to do a lot in the event business! LOL!). So the wedding we'll end up with will probably save us about 8K with all the stuff I've done myself but it's exactly what we could afford and exactly what we wanted. I think the real problem with the 2K estimated budget here is their expectations of what they can get for the money. Keep your expectations in line with your budget and you should be just fine but too many people, and from what I can see from the sketch the "lead" given implies, these people, are far from keeping their expectations in line with their budget.
In my event world there are a lot of planners who will not even take on a budget that is less than 5k and several who won't consider a budget under 15k. Too much work to get the brides expectations in line with the budget and give her the fairytale wedding she is dreaming on with that limited of a budget. I'm not one of those...I'll work with whatever is given and do my best to do the most with whatever the budget is but am careful to advise on the reality of what they can get. The three things I advise a bride to never go cheap on is her dress, her cake and her photographer...the rest can be worked out!<G>
Cat
Now explain to me how they are going to feed 200 people a dinner, and have a cake to fee 200 and buy flowers, DJ, Photographer, Venue rental for $2000? Even if that was just for the catering alone that is $10 a plate, so start hacking away from there and what they are spending $2 per person on a Dinner? I think not.
Ok now let's try and break it down:
Dinner ---> 200 x boxes of Kraft Dinner..........$200.00
5 x lbs of butter........................... $15.00
1 x Bag of Milk...............................$6.00
Total for Dinner............................................$221.00
Flowers ---> Dandelions.................................$0.00
See Venue below =)
DJ ---> IPOD w/Downloaded Pirated Music........$0.00 (Jail time & a
Fine if your caught)
Borrow and Ipod and plug in some external speakers &
your good to go!
Photographer ---> Camera Phones...................$0.00
Invite 200 guests and hope that at least
half of them have video and camera
capability on their phones!
Venue ---> Our Back Yard................................$0.00
Free and comes with Dandelions and various other
plant life.
Catering ---> DIY............................................$0.00
How hard can it be right?
Cake ---> $1779.00 Budget from original $2000.00 budget.
Can do a pretty nice cake for that
That's funny but catering won't be for free cuz they still have to buy the food...LOL
I know of a wedding where, they did not want to spend a lot on a wedding cake, I actually do not know what they did for a "wedding cake", but they did ask family and friends to bring a cake for the guest tables they would be sitting at. I was asked to make two of the cakes, for two different people who were invited to bring. I understand it worked fine. The two guests that were asked to bring cakes were happy to do so. I think I was the only one that thought it strange.
As for a wedding with 200 guests, not hard to do in a small town, where both the bride and groom have grown up, and the parents have worked in local businesses for many years. I made the wedding cakes for 3 sisters in one family, and all of them were for a minium of 400 servings.
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