Designer Diva Does Budget Wedding- Jennifer Neal Milam Guest Blogger

I asked my sweet friend, Jennifer Neal Milam- Wedding Designer and owner of Reveal Event Style, to share with you about her wedding experience. I have so many clients feeling the pressure of budgeting and cut backs on their dream wedding and I thought this might make those of you feel a little more normal! I was sad to not help her with her dream wedding, but she was adamant that I attend a wedding finally and NOT plan one! I enjoyed myself thoroughly and her music was my favorite part of the entire wedding! This is a two part series and she will share her experience in keeping a designer look but on a defined budget. Thank you for sharing Jennifer!

As a wedding professional the first question everyone asks is “did you plan your own wedding? “ to which I responded emphatically, “No”! I did have input but I shocked myself to let go of many of the decisions and let my dear talented friends in the industry take the reins that day. And more importantly, I was able to let go of expectations of others, having produced events for Colin Cowie along with many other career achievements the bar was set high. Then the pressure mounted as well as the reality that I was working with a REAL budget.
I dealt with all the same issues as any bride; what to wear, who to invite and how to convey our personal style and entertain our friends as they celebrate our marriage. Deciding what is most important to you is a great way to begin the process.
Taking my own advice I made a list of what was most important to me for each event and what experience I hoped for during each festivity.
Below are my suggestions for creative and cost effective ideas:

THE ATTIRE- Who are you wearing?
I had the most wonderful experience with The White Room in Lebanon. They have gowns in a wide spectrum of ranges and styles which made this so much fun. After a few frustrating moments tangled in tulle I called them, told them my budget, style and size. When I arrived there were two racks full of dresses! Most of which reflected the look I was going for and then one that was definitely not but as irony would have it, was THE ONE! And it was the least expensive but the most couture. It was by Allure, a special edition gown that was so unique it had never been photographed! And just a note, not one person was interested in “who” I was wearing. If it looks good on you does it matter the price or who made it? After the accessories and alterations it was just at $1000.

The bridesmaids I wanted to be sure were comfortable, appropriate and fashionable. I chose a two piece ensemble; the ruffled top was a J. Knight from Macy’s and a citrus green skirt from (gasp!) David’s Bridal. The shoes were gold strappy sequined pump. They will truly be able to wear them both again! Ha-ha!
I did want TJ to have something to keep from his attire since he chose not to have a tuxedo made, we did have a custom tie made by Otis James from Street Tuxedo. We also had ties made for our dads and my cousin the Officiant. We had them inscribed with our wedding date and served as a gift as well as a sentimental notion. $40 each.

LOCATION – Find Free Locations
For a couple who has lived everywhere from Brentwood to Beverly Hills, it was an interesting choice to decide on my hometown of Dyersburg, Tennessee to establish our marriage. 2 words FREE VENUES, done and done! The venue was unconventional, historic and perfect! No one had ever used it and I could not have been more thrilled! Built on the downtown square gave it an immediate nostalgia. We would be under the stars and not too much finesse was needed. I knew I wanted two things, an enormous butterfly and roses over the dance floor! We also converted the planters along both sides (200’) into seating by making cushions in 8’ lengths wrapped in white fabric. It was much less than renting which would actually be a custom item for the size we needed.

INVITATIONS- DIY
The invitation being a prelude to your wedding and all the exciting happenings to follow, I decided that our wedding would be all about personal touches. I shopped Office Depot and found a clean package with interesting envelop folds and at Michaels I found a collection of stamps. Our leit motif being butterflies we spent hours stamping each invite, a labor of love that saved us hundreds of dollars. We did however send special invites in boxes to our wedding party designed by Stephanie Kimes of OneNine Designs in Los Angeles because we had enough money left over in this budget to do so.

WELCOME
Each guest was presented with a welcome box full of treats which were family recipes along with a homespun item from my MeMaw. A list of things to do was also included for guest to tour the town where I grew up.

WEDDING CEREMONY
I wanted to make certain that guests talked about the ceremony as much as the reception. It was important to us that it was meaningful and not just a part of the process to get to the party!
The music, processional and our vows were the focus. I dictated the design for my bouquet but all else I left up to my dear friends, A Village of Flowers. The ceremony included modern music selections arranged and performed by Dr. Jordan Tang, the conductor of the Jackson Symphony Orchestra , his daughter and the choir of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church. Selections included, Agnus Dei, Por Ti Volar, In My Life, I Saw a Face and All I Want is You.
Decoratively I wanted all eyes on the altar. With the performances on stage as well as our 14 member wedding did not leave much space as it were . I had one feature design, a thick garland of FAUX white roses, rented for $250 as apposed to $3500 it would cost to make it fresh. No one knew the difference nor did I disclose (until now hee, hee) Instead of a unity candle we signed our family bible which was significant and touching.
I wanted the features to also be the people involved. In the programs which I had custom designed by Nicco & LaLa . For each of our wedding party members we mentioned a note of why they are important to us. The cost effective portion of this project was that we paid for the rights to reprint and printed them at Kinkos and enlisted my cousins to tie them together what I called a “Bonding” experienceJ.
The processional included my honorary bridesmaids acting as the grand marshall’s of sorts. This was a little theatrics that added to the significance of our ceremony.