Make it Public!

by Teri
(Malden MA )

Okay, maybe my idea is crazy but I've struggled for over a year on how to afford our wedding for roughly 100-125 people. If we had a nice yard it would be easy, but alas our lot is wooded and uneven. It's beautiful to look at and very private but no flat space for a tent and it needs many years of work to make it what it would need to be for a big party.

Sooooo anyway, I'm thinking about getting married either in a small chapel or park in a town just north of our hometown and then having the reception at an area ocean front estate which hosts weekly concerts in the summer for twenty-five dollars a car for addmission. I want to pay them up front of course-hopefully they'll let me-maybe let them know at the gate everyone with a ribbon on their car is all set and then celebrate with the other attendants at the concert.

You can bring in your own food and alcohol to these events and the music is always fantastic not to mention the setting is stunning. It's usually about 10 grand to rent the estate for a private wedding. I'd need a planner or hopefully family friend for the day to make sure to stake out an area for our party and set up the blankets and small tables and chairs for the older guests as well as lighting all of the candles and dragging in the coolers and food.

The only drawback is the concerts are always on a weeknight from 7-9-I think doors open at 5 though. I really am not that worried about it being a weeknight though. People take plenty of time off from work for all kinds of reasons-and 9PM isn't that late anyway. If the weather is bad the estate cancels the concert so my wedding would actually have a rain date. Only one guest is coming from out of town and she loves the idea and is totally flexible anyway.

Well, there it is. It may be crazy but I really think it's all I can afford. And to tell you the truth it's still going to be about 5 grand!!!