I wanted to do a wedding recap because I always found them really helpful to read! I’ll provide some things I liked/didn’t like, as well as a budget breakdown if I’m able. All photos are from my photographer, Citrine Pine Photography (based in Wisconsin).
Background: I was originally supposed to get married March 13, 2021 at a really beautiful indoor venue in downtown Milwaukee. I LOVED this place and it was everything I wanted. We planned to have 90-100 people. However, COVID hit and I was afraid that things wouldn’t be better enough to have an entirely indoor wedding in March. My husband and I discussed our options. We really did not want to wait another whole year to have our wedding, but we also were afraid to commit to our indoor wedding when at the time we had no clue if a vaccine would ever be developed. We bounced around a few ideas, but ultimately decided a backyard wedding in June was the way to go. Luckily, our venue let us cancel without losing a ton of money, and so we went forward with planning a backyard wedding at my parent’s home in Wisconsin!
We had 82 people attend. Our wedding was from 4:30-10:30. Here are a few likes and dislikes, though really everything went almost perfectly.
What I didn’t like:
- WORRYING ABOUT THE WEATHER FOR 2 WEEKS STRAIGHT. Y’all. This is the exact reason I never wanted an outdoor wedding. I knew I would be freaking out about the weather, but I didn’t know how badly. I had a rain plan, but I desperately wanted my ceremony to be fully outdoors and not under the tent because I knew the photos would be way better. I obsessed over the weather the entire wedding week, and it definitely ruined my mood a number of times. By Wednesday, there was a 90% chance of rain/storms and I had a really hard time remaining calm about it. The morning of my wedding there was still a 90% chance of rain during the time of our ceremony and GUESS WHAT? It didn’t rain. Not a drop. Not during our first look, ceremony, photos, or reception. Seriously, for all my fellow outdoor wedding couples, don’t let the weather stress you out until literally two hours before your wedding. The forecast can change in an instant. Don’t let it ruin your week.
- Making dumb alcohol purchases. My family/friends are mainly beer drinkers (I knew this) but for some reason I got it into my head that I needed wine on all the tables. A RED AND A WHITE. I don’t know why I thought this was a good idea. I think out of the 20 bottles maybe 5 were actually opened. I wish I would’ve put more of the booze budget towards craft beers because those went pretty quickly. We had kegs too luckily so we never ran out of beer, but I think my crowd would’ve preferred craft beers over all the wine. Know your crowd and trust your gut!
Things I liked:
- Our photos. I loved our photographer from the minute I met her and I knew I wanted no one else to shoot our wedding. I can’t express how important it is to have a photographer that you vibe with. I had so much fun taking the photos, and the final results blew me away. I know not everyone loves the moody style and it seems pretty divisive on this sub, but I know I’ll love these photos forever. She really captured the feel of the day. Photography was the most important thing to me so I was beyond happy. The reason I was so sad about not being able to have the Downtown venue is because I wanted an urban feel. I was so happy with the photos we took Downtown before the ceremony. They really captured the vibe I wanted.
- Forgoing the DJ. Also a divisive subject. I was going to have a DJ for our indoor wedding, but we ended up forgoing one for the backyard wedding. We had our officiant act as an MC (this is something you’ll definitely want to have), and we made two playlists. Our cocktail hour playlist was pretty straightforward, but we actually spent a loooot of time curating our dance playlist. I was also extremely fortunate to have access to really good sound equipment since my dad is a radio/TV/film teacher. Our dance floor was rocking all night and we got a lot of compliments on the music. Really helped save money!
- Hiring wedding coordinators. So, when I decided to have a backyard wedding I knew I’d need help. Luckily, my mom has two friends who were looking to start getting in to professional wedding coordinating and they offered to essentially use my wedding as their first venture. We agreed, and I was blown away by the results. They made all of our decorations, signs, kept the night moving, and were truly lifesavers the entire day. You can see from the photos they turned a plain, suburban backyard into a beautiful wedding venue. I am the least crafty person alive so I was immensely grateful and pleased at how it turned out. I highly, highly recommend hiring a coordinator for any sort of wedding that is mainly DIY. There’s a lot more to think about and it helps to know you have people who are taking care of the little things you might forget about.
- Doing my own makeup. I went back and forth a lot on whether or not I wanted to do my own makeup. In the end, I was really happy I did. I actually found it to be really relaxing and distracting when I did it. It sort of distracted me from my anxiety. I had basic makeup knowledge and practiced a lot beforehand and I was really happy with how it turned out.
Budget Breakdown (these are approximations). - Rentals: ~$4k (tent, linens, tables, chairs, lighting, bathroom, decorative hedges, bar, cake & gift table)
- Cake/Cupcakes: $300
- Coordination/Decorations: $2500
- Sound equipment: Free
- Photography: $2650 (7 hours of shooting, we got an extra hour instead of a free engagement session)
- Alcohol: $450
- Catering: $1600
- Appetizers (Grazing table): $800
- Misc: ~$2000 in additional expenses
- Florals: $1500
Total: Approximately $16,000
