This week, Liz gave us the uh, dish on candy buffets and wrangling your wedding guests' accomodations. Two disparate topics that are equally important to the happy couple with a serious sweet tooth! Whenever Liz is giving out FREE wedding advice, there's tons of useful information to cram into your cranium, so take notes!
Dear Liz,
There are so many wonderful ideas out there for DIY dessert tables, but few instructions about the quantity of desserts/candy to actually buy! Please help a broke-student bride figure out a close ballpark on how much to buy without overspending and under-delivering to her sweet guests. I’ll be having about 250 guests, and since I don’t have a wedding cake I’d like people to bring some home with them as their favors.
Signed,
Sugar Rushed
Dear Sugar,
Ah, Candy Buffets. They’re like cake that just keeps on giving. I could be here all day expressing my love, but you’ve got a wedding to plan. So, first you need to decide what type of candies you want to serve, and how. You’ve got a lot of guests, so shoot for say, 8 different types of candies. Do you want to bring in a certain color scheme, too, to match your wedding colors? Once you’ve picked your candies and your colors, you can look for containers. Floral supply stores, Ikea, thrift stores, flea markets, or even Amazon.com. (type in “candy buffet” and marvel at the results). Just make sure that you can clean them easily! I’m a bigger fan of not having lids on them, or at least not on all of them – easier access, less juggling. Do NOT forget scoops for the non-wrapped candy. And if you’re having 250 guests, try and get at least 500 bags. At least.
Got a bargain to share? Hit up emily@brokeassbride.com with the deets, and reach thousands of subscribers, hungry for savings!
Advantage Bridal is giving you
FREE SHIPPING on all orders over $99 through the end of July! They're also running a special promotion on their
FB page - post a pic of your wedding shoes on their wall and enter to win a luxe, dupioni silk shoe bag customized with your name or monogram in rhinestones!
Indie Wed - THE alternative to the traditional wedding expo- will be hosting their 3rd annual Summer Soiree on Thursday, July 21st from 5-9 p.m. at room1520 in Chicago, IL. There'll be two whole floors of the Midwest's finest wedding vendors, DJs and dancing, a bridal lounge, food tastings, and of course, fabulous swag bags! This week we've got
3 FREE PAIRS OF TIX to giveaway! Email emily@brokeassbride to claim them!
The Man Registry has teamed with Greenvelope, Gigmasters, SmartBride Boutique and Wishpot to giveaway
$1500 worth of fabulous wedding luxuries! One lucky guy or gal will win FREE wedding invites, $300 towards the dress of your dreams, a beautiful MayRey birdcage veil - heck, they'll even throw in a harpist to provide rockin' angelic tunes during your ceremony. I am not even kidding. To find out how to enter all of these fab prizes, just
click here!
HOORAH! NY just legalized gay marriage, and to celebrate, photographer
Rima Campbell is giving away a
FREE wedding day photography package to one lucky LGBTQ couple! For more info,
just click here!
123Print.com is giving away
$1,000 worth of high quality wedding invitations fo' free, yo!!!
Click here to enter to win - the lucky winner will be drawn on July 25th!
Bride-to-be Tori Nelson is having a
"Very Bloggy Wedding"- she's turning over all of her crucial wedding decisions to her blog readers! We can't decide if this sheer madness or utter genius! Anyhoo, Tori has partnered with Amy Adams of {a}Printables to offer her readers (and now OUR readers) a fab discount on gorgeous wedding invites!!! Get
25% off on anything from Amy's
Etsy shop with coupon code: VERYBLOGGYWEDDING!
The Dessy Group and
Pantone have just released a super fun Ipad app -
the Pantone Wedding Styleboard app- for organizing all of your wedding inspiration on the go! Check it out by
clicking here!
Unique Vintage is now carrying Dolly Couture black label gowns, an amazing line of impossibly chic, delectably retro wedding dresses! Check 'em out!
The Rapid City, SD-based wedding photographers at Studio LB have teamed up with local videographers AJ Productions for a destination wedding photography/videography package giveaway! One lucky couple will
win FREE wedding photography & videography for their destination wedding. To find out how to enter,
click here!
Want to win a gorgeous,
$1000 Anjolique or Casablanca Bridal wedding gown?! Perfect Bridal is gonna make it happen for one lucky bride - just trot on over to their
facebook page to find out how to enter!
ATL-based photographers
This Is You are offering a SWEET deal -
50% off on any wedding photography packages booked on their remaining dates in June, July, and August, and
25% off on engagement sessions all summer long!
Listen up, NYC brides! Kari Adams from
The Handmade Event has a very special offer Broke-Ass Bride readers! Kari is a Day-of Wedding Coordinatator with a serious crafty streak, so she is offering
5 FREE hours of crafty assistance with any of your wedding projects when you book DOC services for 2011! If you've ever tried to DIY ANYTHING, you know how invaluable an extra set of helping hands can be!
And for brides in the Twin Cities area, we've got an awesome deal on Day-of wedding services for you too!
Bride Support is offering all their DOC services for remaining 2011 dates at a flat rate of
$295! WHAT A STEAL! They also offer "virtual wedding planning" services to brides all across the US, so check them out!
Want a destination wedding on the house? Well
TheKnot.com and The Greater Miami Convention and Visitors Bureau have teamed up for an exciting
dream wedding giveaway valued at $150,000!!! To enter to win, just
click here and take this quiz on all things Miami -
5 couples will win a FREE trip to Miami to compete for the grand prize!
Or maybe a Santa Barbera wedding with a honeymoon in Vegas is more your speed? Well then check out
Icing on the Ring and enter to win a fabulously
FREE wedding + honeymoon! One lucky couple will win a beautiful wedding ceremony at the Santa Barbera Polo & Racquet Club, FREE wedding bands and bridal jewelry from Icing on the Ring, and a 3 day, 2 night VIP Honeymoon Experience at The Mirage Hotel and Casino in VEGAS! Altogether, that's over $100,000 of FREE wedding goodness!!! For more details,
click here!
Want to win a
FREE brand new bedroom suite from Thomasville Furniture? Simply
like their facebook page! BOOM!
We are completely doe-eyed for Etsy seller
BetterOffWed - she offers a gorgeous selection of fully customizable, color coordinated, retro/shabby chic wedding decor that's simply too cute for words! AND she's offering YOU
10% off when you use the coupon code IHEARTBROKEASSBRIDE.
Too many bridesmaids gowns cluttering up your wardrobe? Trade 'em in!
Newlymaid.com is a ridiculously awesome new program from
The Dessy Group, and here's how it works....have
Newlymaid send you a pre-paid mailer for your old gowns, then receive a
30-50% discount on
Newlymaid styles! Trade in that frou-frou frock you'll never wear again for a classic LBD! Your dresses are either recycled into new fabric by Unifi, or donated to
Clothes4Souls - a charity that distributes clothing to people in need around the world. So your dresses are either lovingly repurposed or carefully recycled, AND you get a sweet discount on sassy new threads to boot?! That's a win-win-win.
If you'd like a small, fuss-free wedding or elopement, why not head to Hawaii?
Rainforest Weddings is giving you a
FREE wedding photo session with any event booked before Dec. 20th, 2011. All packages include a 3 night Treehouse honeymoon stay!
Etsy seller
Amanda Rose Bridal wants to offer all BAB readers
15% off on any of her lovely wedding apparel creations! Just use coupon code: BABLOVE777 at checkout. Check out her
facebook page to see more samples of her work!
Are you in a serious hurry to run down that aisle?
BrideRush.com is a brand new website aimed at brides getting wed in 6 months or less! They'll be launching soon, but they're already rolling out the red carpet with some
fab giveaways! Sign up on their site, and start tweeting
@briderush! Whoever tweets at them the most scores the giveaway prize! For more info check out
their facebook page.
jcpenney is currently hosting an awesome giveaway - one lucky bride will
win a GORGEOUS diamond ring valued at over $2400 from their new
Modern Bride collection! Just post a photo of your and your fiance to
their facebook page, and share your love story!
PoshVeils.com just launched their 2011 collection of beautiful bridal accessories, and to celebrate, they want to offer you
25% off! Just enter VENDORREF25 at checkout! AND for a limited time, USA & Canada brides get
FREE SHIPPING! We’re seriously enamored with all their pretty new birdcage veils, headbands, and jeweled hairpieces, so be sure to
take a look!
How does this math add up: Designer couture gown from Enzoani? FREE. Beachside wedding ceremony for up to 150 guests? FREE. Reception site? Also free! Photographer? On the house! Booze? FREE BOOZE. Gourmet cupcake tower? FREE CUPCAKES! Other swanky perks, like hair and makeup for your bridal party, a wedding planner, and a 4 night resort stay for you and your new groomie? All deliciously FREE!
Eden Condominiums in beautiful Perdido Key, FL is hosting this sweet
FREE WEDDING GIVEAWAY, and one lucky couple will snag it all! Could it be you? Find out how to enter by
clicking here!
Paloma's Nest, purveyors of charming ceramic pieces ideal for your wedding day, are offering our readers an EXCLUSIVE coupon code for
$5 off any order! Just enter BROKEASS at checkout!
Onlineformals.com has a bevy of awesome promo codes for all y'all - get
a $50 credit towards any $200 purchase with promo code: SHOES - get
FREE UPGRADED SHIPPING on any order with promo code: FASTSHIP - Get a
FREE pair of bra cups with any order of $99 or more with promo code: BRACUPS - and finally, get a
FREE $25 Visa giftcard with any order over $200 with promo code: GIFTCARD - Whew!
Diamer Jewelry has a brand new website, and they're very excited to offer all BAB readers
15% off any fine jewelry purchase! Just enter the discount code: SHOPGIRL at checkout.
Greenvelope.com just launched their innovative electronic invitation service, and to celebrate, they're offering Broke-Ass Masses an exclusive
25% off their packages! Just use the discount code: brokeassbride.
LA Photo Party is offering a
10% discount to all of our gorgeous West Coast readers! Whether you're looking to add another way to engage your guests, or you're opting for a photo booth, rather than a free-ranging photog, LA Photo Party are sure to add some fun, stylish flair to any event!