Wedding planning is making me cry every other day.

View Quoted Comment Yes, been to both multiple times. Both couldn’t get me below $1000

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I wouldn't worry about the wedding timelines you see online, just use it as a to-do list. People have planned weddings in 6 months or less, so you can totally do this! I was a total tomboy growing up and I never had dreamed of my wedding day either when I was a kid, so don't stress over that .

There's a website called Azazie.com and your girls can order their dresses from there. There's all different shades of purple, so you can either choose one color for all of them or have them pick between a few different shades of purple. They also have wedding dresses as low as $199!!

For photographer, see if there's any local college students that may be starting up their company and need practice. You could probably get a really good deal.

For food, see what local restaurants can cater. BBQ or Tacos/Mexican might be more reasonably priced. I went to a wedding where they did an Italian buffet and it was great, then they had beer and wine for drinks to keep costs down.

Relax. You can do it, but a $10k budget in the South Florida area means getting creative. Call around Nova or UMiami or other big universities and ask their art departments for some photography students. Stillwhite.com sells used gowns for a fraction of the price. Pick whatever color you want. Look at Rent the Runway for bridesmaid dresses. It will be okay.

I found a dress online from a bridal shop. It was on sale because one button loop was broken and it was a discontinued dress. It was originally $2,300 and I got it for $376 after tax.

Look up what your size would be in bridal measurements (I normally wear a size 8 but in bridal wear I am a 10) and try that avenue? Not sure how long it takes to alter a dress but if you can find one close to your budget it may be worth looking into. (If you aren't super into the experience of being able to try stuff on of course).

Also another option would be to try an online shop:

https://www.lulus.com/products/true-love-white-beaded-rhinestone-maxi-dress/513882.html

I personally think this dress is beautiful and it is only $252, but it is not as structured as a traditional bridal gown. But they have a whole wedding dress section of their online store.

There are a lot of five star reviews on it and real pictures of brides in all different shapes and sizes uploaded their pictures ☺️

Luckily women on here love to help and be supportive so hopefully you don't feel so alone.

I am so sorry to hear about your father passing, I can imagine that is adding some additional stress!

Is there a particular bridesmaid there that you really trust? Make it her job to try the food and that kind of stuff for you?

At the end of the day what really matters is that you are getting to marry your partner and the whole day is just a celebration of your union. I know it seems stressful but the people who are truly there to celebrate you won't care about the little stuff.

I hope that helps! ☺️

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Have you looked outside of Seattle? I went to the Brides for a Cause location in Tacoma, and most of the dresses I looked at were $500-800. I feel like everything is more expensive in Seattle lol

If you are comfortable with it, it's definitely worth checking out websites with people reselling their gowns. I went to shops just to try on dresses, get an idea of size and what I liked, and then went online (stillwhite, poshmark, etc.) and started searching there. I managed to get the dress I had fallen in love with for 1/3 of the price, with the tags still on it because the bride changed her theme and went with a different dress. Also going to "third" checking thumbtack or local FaceBook groups for photographers who are just getting started on their portfolio.

Wishing you the best!!

View Quoted Comment Haven’t been to the Tacoma location. Thank you for the suggestion. It’s more the alterations than anything else. The dress i looked at from a shop in Fort Lauderdale is $600 which is fine but then it’s another $200 in alterations and $150 for the belt to add a little style. So even if I found a dress at the shop I’d still be at the same price point.

View Quoted Comment Thank you for the kind words.