The wedding attire and saving a few bucks
Wedding Dress – When it comes to buying your wedding dress, ask yourself do you really need the large white gown, or would something a little more traditional, and cost effective, be a better option for you. If saving is what you are going for, then you can eliminate most wedding dress stores off your list. There are places like consignment shops, the garment district and ordering from places in China. I just had a client the other day who bought her dress in China. She had it made for $95 and was a knock off of a dress she saw in a magazine that cost $6,000. She looked like a million bucks. If your getting married here on Maui, you can forfeit the wedding dress and do a beautiful white sun dress. I did a big wedding the other day at Olowalu Plantation house and the bride didn’t wear a wedding dress. In fact, she wore a short beige dress and look fabulous.
Once you have made that decision, you will realize you will be spending a couple hundred dollars, instead of a couple thousand, thus saving you a large chunk of money on your budget. Besides, is it practical to spend that kind of money on a dress you will only wear once and or twice if you decide to do a trash the dress session.
Bridesmaid Dresses – If you are cost conscious about your wedding then asking the bridesmaids to buy their own dresses is not out of the realm. However, you should be up front about it at the moment you ask. Don’t wait to ask and spring it on them because what if they are on a tight budget themselves?
If you tell them your intentions up front when asking, then they either have the option of saying no, or they can start budgeting for it. Then be flexible. Perhaps since they are paying for it, the dresses don’t have to be an exact match, but ones in their own style that they can wear multiple times, but have some common theme, perhaps the color?
Groomsmen – Approach this in the same manner and inform the guys that they will be paying for their own tuxes, as many do already. Most tuxedo shops offer a deal that if the party gets all their tuxedos at the same shop, the groom’s is often free. You can rent a tux and if your getting here in Maui, you don’t even have to have a tux. You can dress it down a bit and maybe do nice slacks and a button down short sleeve shirt. If you want to dress it up a bit, stop by Tommy Bahamas in the shops of Wailea and pick up a great shirt that goes well with the tropical weather here in Maui.
Maui Wedding Photographer- Nicole Sanchez
