Customer Reviews

How to Have an Elegant Wedding for $5000 (or Less) : Achieving Beautiful Simplicity Without Mortgaging Your Future

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Although this is rated high up there with the many top wedding advice books, this still isn't one of the best. My main and only problem of the book is where is the "budget" aspect of the book as it says in the title. They offer numerous and helpful tips and advice about planning a wedding, even an elegant wedding. But for those actually looking for advice on keeping a wedding under a limited budget, this isn't the book. For real and practical budget advice, I recomend Bridal Bargains by D. Fields.

If you are really trying to throw a wedding for under 5,000 you can't afford this book. The book could have been called how to throw a wedding for 20,000 dollars. It really is a very basic wedding planner that has nothing to do with saving any money. The best book you could buy is Bridal Bargins. That book shows how to save money.

This book should be titled something like: "Things to Think About When Planning a Wedding". It contained very little money saving tips, which is why I bought the book.

This fabulous, easy to read book is filled with many wonderful ideas on how to have a wedding on a small budget! While this book offers amusing stories of other couples' successful and not-so-successful wedding ideas, its main focus is on getting you organized from the day after your engagement until the thank you notes have been sent out. Each chapter is filled with great organizational tips as well as tips for cutting costs. This book is definitly a must if you're a starving college student!

This was disappointing--to keep the budget down depended on keeping the number of guests WAY down, below normal expectations. Anyone can plan a modestly-priced wedding for 60 people. I had expected more along the lines of "serving your guests a lovely dinner for under $10 a head" similar to magazine articles I've seen in the past. This book is not worth the money to buy it, nor even the time to read it.

I regret ordering this book. I've rated it two stars instead of one, because overall, the book is a decent and helpful wedding planner. The problem is it fails to adequately address the subject for which it's named: elegant weddings on a budget.

Another reviewer commented that it should have been titled "How to Have an Elegant Wedding." (Not for $5,000 or less). I wish I'd heeded that advice!

I purchased this book to obtain suggestions and advice regarding how I can cut costs while still planning an elegant wedding. The first chapter does address the issue of money, but it simply states: "Set a budget, and stick to it." ??? Almost every wedding planning book does that!

There isn't much elaboration on the low costs, or ways to achieve low costs, other than some random statements from vendors and newlyweds, such as "Don't spend money on wedding favors. We decided not to have them, and don't regret it."

There were also a few tidbits of advice that are so obvious they border on insulting: "Flowers will be more expensive around Valentine's Day & Mother's Day." And, did you know that you can save money on attire by renting a gown or wearing your mother's? :-x

I do like the way the book was written - the author is part of a mother/daughter wedding coordination team. She describes many real life examples of weddings she's been involved in, but rarely as it relates to money!

I'm clearly disappointed because I expected this book to offer some kind of guidance, or maybe even some trade secrets, about how to find or negotiate bargains with wedding vendors. All I got was one chapter about how to slash categories from my wedding (e.g., videography, flowers, alcohol, etc.), followed by a wedding planner that failed to give specific money-saving advice.

Save your money: This is a well-written wedding planner, but offers very little specific advice or tips for the bride on a budget.

you plan on having your ceremony and reception in the back yard. I still found the book really helpful. I knew there was no way I could have a wedding for 5K or less in the bay area. However, there are great tips on ways to cut corners along the way. The book breaks up the stages of planning into chapters. At the end of some chapters it gives you a list of good questions to ask potential vendors. I read the book cover to cover the first week I got it and now I skim the appropriate chapter the night before I meet with a vendor. I would have been clueless without it.

This is, I feel, one of the best books on the market. I have purchased and scanned numbers of other books, and none compare to this. It spends a lot of time on how to make a realistic budget, and how to stick to that budget. This can be a messy, but necessary part of the wedding planning. Along with wonderful advice and tips, the actual authors of the book are a mother/daughter team who started in the wedding business by planning the daughters marriage a number of years ago. This very personal introduction explaining their begining created in me a great confidence and trust in the authors. I feel that the authors really have a solid grasp on what to expect, how to deal with vendors, and even include a chapter on the brides anxieties and stresses before the wedding. They write in an easy manner and include numerous real life stories to make points and show examples. Though, I personally plan to spend more than 5,000 dollars on my wedding, they give wonderful advice on how to cut costs, and not create a 'tacky' affair. Their budgeting advice is the best. I feel this book goes over every aspect of the wedding and deals with numerous scenarios. It is truely a great find.

Great tips! However, this book also shares the same information as Bridal Budgets and other books of this category. The print is easy on the eyes, unlike Bridal Budgets by Denise Fields, and is a little more easy to understand and actually do! I suggest this book before buying Bridal Budgets. It's very informative and less stressful to read.

I bought and read this book when my youngest daughter began planning her wedding. She had 3 years to plan so we had a lot of time to consider the suggestions in the book. She planned her wedding with the guidelines suggested in the book. I dont think it would have been as helpful if we had less time to plan. This book is not going to give you a detailed list of how to spend only 5000. It gives you ideas on how to cut cost in areas that are inconsequential. It still takes time to locate reasonable vendors, and you HAVE to either cut down on your guest list or offer a less formal reception. I would recommend this book to anyone that needs to keep costs down.