Ahh the circus! So colourful, so fun, such a perfect theme for an alternative wedding! Tamara and Chip’s Florida wedding was a true DIY labour of love. They did almost everything themselves.
“We are both light-hearted and fun people, so we wanted our day to feel like a party with our family and friends”, explained the bride. “We are not stiff and formal, but love vibrancy and uniqueness! Our whimsical circus theme fit perfectly with how we wanted our wedding day to feel.”
“Almost everything we did was DIY, unique and local”, she continued. “Aside from a few amazing vendors like our day-of coordinator, Ashley Packett, who was amazing and seamlessly took my vision and DIY projects and made it come together! We did not want a cookie cutter wedding. I am far too crafty to have let someone else create our wedding day. From our wedding ceremony in front of our DIY circus tent, to our reception under the stars and string lights, to our bartender serving drinks and locally brewed beer from a canoe cooler, to our guests playing shuffleboard, our wedding was far from the norm.”
Tamara’s dress was from David’s Bridal, her sparkly red shoes were Toms and her headpiece was from Etsy. “We bought so many unique things from Etsy”, she said, “and did plenty of DIY. Our projects included the ceremony circus tent with pinwheel top, the flowergirls’ mini top hats and headpieces, the stationery, the signs and all the centerpieces. I gold spray painted plastic elephants and mason jars, and we picked up candle holders from Goodwill. I created the table numbers and we added fresh red roses to complete the look. I cut and sewed our striped table runners.”
“One of our biggest expenses was the day-of coordinator which wasn’t a cheap decision. At over $1100 for her services it wasn’t a small expense but she was worth every single penny and then some! Being able to relax on my wedding day was invaluable. After having spent months on DIY projects, I knew I needed someone to finish the final touches and bring it all together on the day of the wedding. She delivered!”
“We also booked an amazing photographer. After scouring the internet for local wedding photographers (there are TONS), I found and loved Regina as The Photographer‘s unique style. Photographs are what remain after all of the wedding day chaos is over and we wanted the best.”
“However we saved money on catering and our bar. We love good food and decided to go with a local BBQ food truck for our reception. We saved significantly by not using a boring and expensive catering company but NOT at the expense of great food. We chose a menu with a full roasted pig and all of the sides, so delicious! We chose a beer and wine only bar and purchased most of our beer and wine at Sam’s Club. We hired a bartender friend to (wo)man the bar in a fun circus costume. We also had a good friend who is a local beer brewer bring a keg of his locally brewed beer, which was an amazing plus!”
“There is nothing we’d change about our wedding”, she concluded. “There were easy projects and ones that took forever but in the end it was all worth it.”
