Customer Reviews

Priceless Weddings for Under $5,000

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(11)

 

 

This book was a total waste of money. The elegant weddings cost so little because the brides have family or friends who provide food, liquor, photos, reception sites, etc. If you have an aunt who is a professional wedding photographer, you probably don't need to spend money on a book that tells you to ask her to take your photos. If you don't have family who can provide these services, or you don't want to ask your friends to provide a dish for a potluck reception, then do yourself a favor and save the money you planned to spend on this book for your wedding itself. It should receive zero stars.

This is a wonderful book with real-life solutions for brides-to-be. As a party planner for over 15 years, I have had the occasion to help hundreds of brides plan their weddings and there is an abundance of usable ideas in this book. The average wedding in the U.S. is tens of thousands of dollars and that simply does not make sense. The bridal industry takes advantage of brides who want their day to be a once in a lifetime event - Kathleen Kennedy helps them do just that, but with budget conscious ideas. This is not a book about cutting corners. It is about making priorities and planning a wedding that truly reflects who the bridal couple is; that, as Kennedy explains, does not have to break the bank. I will recommend this book to every bride I know.

I thought this book was great. Dealing with a low budget and wanting the perfect wedding, I found this book very helpful in managing lesser expenses, and still pulling off the wedding of my dreams. The author helped me to focus on the really important things I wanted rather than the superficial things. A great book for low cost and well done weddings. Recomended to all who are planning weddings.

this is an easy read. if that is all you are looking for, then yes, buy the book. the book gives stories on how friends helped with the food, the pictures, the place, the flowers, etc. if i had someone to give me the food as a gift, sure, i could do a wedding under 5K. a few ideas, but instead of buying the book, check it out at your local library. anyone could tell you to keep your list small to save money. have friends bring food to save money. hire your uncle to take pictures. if ms. kennedy is a caterer, than we should be able to hire her for under 5K.

The only useful things it said are (a) that small weddings are cheaper so keep your guest list small (duh!) and (b)that you should decide on the 5 things that you absolutely can't give up and be willing to sacrifice anything else if needed.

There were sample budgets from real life couples but they weren't very helpful. Most of the stories were about how the bride and groom had family members and friends chip in - a friend who is a photographer took the pictures, another friend baked the cake etc. If you don't have talented friends and family - this book isn't helpful.

One bride and groom were able to keep their expenses low because her brother donated the food and beverages at the reception. Well the food at the reception was still paid for by someone so it wasn't really a wedding for less than $5000. The title should be "how to get other people to pay for your wedding".

According to the writer, the best way to have an affordable wedding is to gouge friends and family and get them to "donate" cakes, flowers, decorations etc... I see thousands of readers morphing into Bridezillas as we speak. Yes, if your family can afford this, or you have well-connected friends - duh. The average poor bride's family is usually as poor as she is, so this book won't be of any help. Visit The Knot or Bride's magazine and get better advice for free

I have a large family (9 sisters, 1 brother, plus their kids, etc.), so this book wasn't very helpful.

Also, the tips for getting family members to help out with the cake and misc wedding stuff, DUH! The crafty members of my family are going to help me out to cut the cost.

This guide is not practical at all. Save your money and be creative with ways to cut costs for your wedding.

Whether you are on a budget or have all the money in the world, this is a great book for anyone planning a wedding. Ms. Kennedy covers all the bases with money-saving suggestions for everything from choosing a location, purchasing wedding garb, choosing caterers...even great recipes for catering your own event! I especially liked the descriptions of real-life weddings found throughout the book. I highly recommend it.

This book would be great if it were the only one out there. However, it is most certainly not. The only original parts of the book (and by that I mean ideas that you couldn't find elsewhere) were the dollar breakdowns of some actual weddings for less than $5,000. Those examples were very specific scenarios, and if you weren't one of those similar situations(ie: having a friend or family with a home large enough for your guestlist), there wasn't much value gained from the book.

Given the target audience for the book are couples trying to get the most for their dollar, the book itself fails to carry it's own weight. Page for page, better value can be found elsewhere, such as Bridal Bargains by Denise and Alan Fields. There wasn't a single idea in Priceless Weddings that I didn't find in Bridal Bargains.

I bought this book with high hopes, only to discover that the author's recommendations involve sponging off your friends and family. Sure, I could save money on a wedding and anything else, if I manipulate my friends into donating their valuable time and services. Almost every example given involved people who happened to have friends available to do photography, help with food, etc. I'm sure my friends would help, but why on earth would I expect them to do so??? This book was ridiculous and presumptous. I'm returning my copy.