A few months ago, on a recent trip, I discovered I had accidentally only packed one dress instead of two. So for dinner at the hotel, on the second night, I was in a bit of a quandary as to what to wear, since I’d worn the one and only dress the night before!
Clearly, capris, shorts and tank tops (that was what was left in my suitcase) wouldn’t be in order amongst dinner guests dressed in their night-time “resort best.” It’s true that “necessity is the mother of invention” and I had to think fast; so I tucked in the straps of my existing knit jersey dress to form a strapless dress, I took the sash from the dress that was supposed to be tied to the side and tied it to the back instead and lastly, I took a flower pin I had brought and clipped it to the front of the dress to create a “ruched” effect.
Same dress, different style.
The same thing happens sometimes at weddings, when things don’t work out as they should, perhaps because of budgetary constraints, vendors or volunteers not meeting expectations or just with an unexpected chain of events; we are often forced to improvise using something or someone else!
For example, one bride I know, substituted children’s beaded bangles as napkin holders for her wedding, when she discovered the cost for napkin rings were too high! Another bride who went with a “Moroccan” theme for her wedding bought “old-fashioned” beaded curtains and then clipped them in order to use the individual strings of beads as ornamentation in her décor and on her wedding favours.
Similarly, when it comes to catering, if the idea of a dessert buffet seems out of your reach; improvise by choosing one type of dessert, for example, having a “cookie bar” or a “fruit bar.” This would be an affordable option for dessert paired with an offering of ice-cream, trifle, caramel custard or sorbet. It would certainly be unusual and something guests would surely remember, versus the standard “slice of cheesecake on a plate” type of wedding dessert.
Or if you’re thinking of having a cupcake tower, yet you don’t want to rent a cupcake stand, why not turn terracotta pots upside down, place painted, wooden plywood circles on top of them until you have the desired effect?
Another way to improvise is to “think outside the vase” when it comes to your centrepiece. There’s no requirement that says you have to stick with traditional glass vases and receptacles for your blooms. Why not recycle large cans for a rustic, outdoorsy type of reception? Or you can even use cappuccino cups, watering cans, tea pots, cake pedestals, pitchers, serving bowls and even unused lamp bases.
Improvising doesn’t mean that you have to go it alone! One other idea is to utilise your pool of resources. Friends and family are generally all too wiling to participate in wedding preparations but many just don’t know how to approach you about it or even how they can contribute. What you can do is to draw up a list in say, 4 categories:
1. Friends or relatives who are good for unusual ideas,
2. Those who don’t mind running an errand or two for you
3. Those who are good for “free labour!” such as: helping with valet parking, cooking and ushering and;
4. Those who are good for projects that require craftwork: such as packaging wedding favours, assembling boxes and gift-wrapping.
This way, you can keep your wedding budget down, involve your loved ones and remain somewhat stress-free! Improvising doesn’t necessarily mean having to cut costs though. Many couples improvise simply because they have a hankering to be different and unique, so feel free to improvise, trust me, you’ll be remembered as one original bride and groom!
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