Kennis & Jimmy shared their wedding photos this morning and Kennis was kind enough to share some of the ways she saved money on her wedding with Polka Dot Bride.
“It comes down to lots of research. Luckily, most of the time, my job is not that busy, and I have plenty of free time to do research on the Internet to search for the cheapest suppliers, including ones overseas.
I bought most things online or on eBay – these include my Maggie Sottero wedding dress ordered from US, (which is about 50% of the price they sell here, but actually this particular dress is not available in Australia), wedding shoes, dress (cheongsam) and shoes that I wore in the morning for Chinese tea ceremony.
Also the 2nd purple dress that I wore half way through the reception (for the dance). It was custom made to my measurements from dressmaker in China – I gave them a picture of the dress I liked which I found from a magazine and gave them my measurements, for US$220 including shipping – a custom ball gown dress! (I did have to get it altered here for $50, as I think I over-estimated my assets in the chest area!! LOL!)
I also bought online through various websites, the earrings, hair flower, lace parasol, aisle runner, tulle and silk rose petals used for decorating. Our wedding rings, mine has diamonds, were also purchased over the Internet from US. It was a bit risky, but it was much cheaper than if I were to get it in Australia. So well worth the risk, I say! Both rings turned out to be beautiful anyway!
My husband’s Tommy Hilfiger tux, shirt and bow-tie were also bought through eBay. To add to the list, bombonieres - which were apple-shaped crystals for female guests, and a pair of chopsticks for male guests.
Quat Quatta is a historic mansion located in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia which features beautiful Victorian touches. It was built in 1890 and in the 1970s was listed with the National Trust of Australia
To keep the budget low, which means DIY whenever I could.
Choosing a beautiful venue to start with is very important, which means I’d spent less in decorating the place, and only had to add some personal touches to match my theme by adding little decorations here and there. Having said that, my bridesmaid and I spent hours draping tulle on the veranda at the courtyard where I was married the day before the wedding. I bought my own aisle runner and scattered rose petals over it on the day.
I made my invitations and purple envelopes.
Kennis & Jimmy’s invitations (Photo by Kennis)
I made my lace-edged veil with blusher myself, by hand (with help from my Mum on the blusher, as I was running out of time)
I sewed the purple ribbon under the bust myself on my wedding dress.
I bought fresh flowers from the market the day before the wedding and arranged them in little glasses at night as centrepieces on the tables. My guests ended up taking the flowers home at the end of the reception. (Mind you, I was going to make my own bouquet and buttonholes, but decided not to at the end, just to avoid the stress the day before the wedding!)
Also, we bought a cake with simple design, and just added flowers (that I got from the market) on top.
The one thing that I wanted to say is, even though I was on a budget, it doesn’t mean I had to skim on qualities. I just had to do lots of research to find the supplier who offered the best product with the lowest price.”
Thanks for sharing your beautiful wedding with Polka Dot Bride readers Kennis & Jimmy!
Photography by Benedict Morgan
