Our Beautiful Shoestring Wedding

Church friends were getting married on a shoestring budget and I couldn't resist. My parameters were: we were on vacation until a week before, and the budget was teeny-tiny.

My gallant mother came the day before to lend her eye and good sense to everything that needed to be beautiful. Thank you, Mother! And my best friend Carol was right there too, of course. And Maureen came to help with flowers.

Want to see?

The Ingredients


We had four enormous buckets of flowers purchased for a total of $40 (thank you my adored Kroger florist!!).


We had an enormous fig tree with fruit coming on in great quantities, and a groom who loves figs. I decided to make them a decorative keynote. Free, interesting, beloved by many, and beautiful.


And a bride who could tie nice bows.

The Cake

My beautiful and best friend Carol made the cake, a classic white wedding cake filled with orange marmalade.


She iced it in plain buttercream and then turned it over to my mother,


who created an incredible work of art, using figs and fig leaves, and tiny flowers scavenged from our supplies.


Well done, ladies!



The Food Tables


These were set up under what is familiarly known as the "Pie Shack", after it played an important role in our last wedding. The bare pie shack skeleton was strung with fairy lights and tiny Chinese lanterns.


The tables were draped in soft-colored quilts and lace tablecloths. Different friends brought plates of dainty sandwiches, and of course we had nuts and mints.


The teenaged girls served punch at the end of the line,


and everything was festooned with flowers. We made sure to loosen up the bouquets with some wilderness--whether it was thistles or uncontrolled fronds of wisteria freshly clipped off the arbor.


The Party


The guest tables were each set with layered quilts and an enormous bouquet in wild colors, and milk glass dishes full of figs.


Carol and the bride.


Almost dusk.


She was radiant.












Lovely last light.