My Struggle With the Kilt

This is probably the one area that the bridal-blogland has thoroughly brainwashed me: handsome groomsmen assembles.

Whether it is dashing tuxes:


Or fabulous colored suits:


Or cute matching ties:


Or fun argyle socks:


Or even suspenders:


All these photos capture my heart, and I start envisioning my man and how handsome he would look in a gray suit...

But every once in a while, I am reminded of my significant other's Scottish heritage, and he reminds that if he's ever getting married, :P he's going to be married in a kilt. XP

In a leg-barring kilt:

*sob* *sob* *sob*

I'm sorry for all the Scottish lassies or those who love men in kilts, but I am simply not a fan.

Perhaps it's because they show off men's legs, and I really think they look kinda strange, lol. Men shouldn't have ankles, Ken dolls taught me men's calves should just melt into feet, right...right?!

Just joking about the Ken doll XD

I have mentioned the possibility last night about wearing pants underneath to hide the hairy awfulness, (although I didn't say the "hide awfulness" part, lol) but he looked at me like I had three heads. XP I also mentioned possibly wearing pants for pictures, and he still looked at me like I had three heads. XP

*sighs* It is it so bad that I want to look at him on our one-day-may-be-existing wedding day and think he looks very handsome?! Because I think he looks handsome anyways :)

But he can make himself look pretty goofy. This is the guy that walked around on our vacation in a speedo and a bright red sunburn. XP (Sunburn was not by choice XD) He did bring normal swim trunks, but I was having so much fun I didn't care about normal photos, lol. And I love him for his free spirit and the fact that he doesn't give a damn what others think.

But would it kill him to not look like a dork when he marries me?! Why not start dying his hair bright colors again while we're at it?!

I'm sorry if I'm over-reacting, but this is just something I'll have to get over I guess. Darn you wedding-blogland!!! XP

How to Get A Phantom Wedding Like David Tutera's My Fair Wedding: Cake

Step 6: Get a romantic wedding cake.

Okay, let's face it, after DIY-ing the lighting, the linens, the bouquets, and the centerpieces, there is no way in hell we would even want to attempt to pull off the skyscraper of a cake presented in My Fair Wedding - Phantom of the Opera episode:

Yeah...not happening
So what's a budget girl to do?!

There are workarounds.

Looking back at my DIY wedding cake post, I would go with the deconstructed tiered cake in this situation. Why? Because you do not have to mention that your cakes are for a wedding! And partially avoid the Wedding Industrial Complex (WIC).

Photo copyright and courtesy of B. Scott Photography
Wait, what? No really you can! Bear with me.

You look around for some good, reputable, reasonably priced bakeries in your area, and ask for a quote for 4 or 5 round cakes in different sizes. Because it is not a tiered cake or even cupcakes, (which are trendy now so even those will be expensive,) they have no reason to think that it's for a wedding.

If you want to bring your finance with you, just look with him the first time, ask about your options, don't mention the wedding, then leave. Come back on your own a couple weeks later. Even if they remember you, I don't think it would be too problematic, they do want your business after all.

Say it's for a big 50th birthday party, a big fancy gala, a huge family reunion, whatever. If they greatly question your reasons, you probably shouldn't work with them anyways, because they're trying to suck every penny out of you. Look elsewhere.

If you want that true metallic gold look, you will have to pay extra for fondant, because this will be easier to cover with metallic luster. If you can handle having a gold colored cake only, buttercream will be a more budget-friendly option.

The cakes seem to have a lace-like design on the bottom as a border, and possibly minimal design on the sides, small S designs or something like that. This should not induce any extra charges, but check because you never know. The piping isn't that important, it just needs to give the cake some personality so it isn't as plain.

Since you are ordering multiple cakes with minimal decorations, the cost should be less than that of an average wedding cake.

You might be thinking, "But Sarah, that cake is covered with sugar flowers! Every bride knows those are expensive!" And yes, you are right. But the key is to not ask the bakery to do the sugar flowers.

No, I will not say to DIY them. I already gotten a sugar flower kit, and tried to make some myself. My roses aren't half bad, but other flowers? Sad little things. An orchid?! So pitiful. Maybe I can improve my skills later, but without formal training, don't even think about it! XP

You can however, buy them yourself, then just insert them in the cakes the morning of the wedding. A little bit of DIY, but that's the easiest way I can think of, given all the other wedding aspects!

The only place in my opinion to buy your sugar flowers was mentioned in my previous cake decoration post, DiscountSugarFlowers.com!

Here is where you can buy all the pretty and lovely red flowers you would ever need!

Gladiola flower, 3.5in wide, $1.11 eachHibiscus flower, 2.5in wide, $0.72 eachTulip flower, 1.5in wide, $0.78 eachLily flower, 4in wide, $1.11 eachRose flower, 2in wide, $0.72 eachIf these are too red and not enough burgundy for your liking? Then buy some desert plum or red terracotta lust dust for $2.99 a jar, (a powder made for coloring sugar flowers,) and a small quality paintbrush. Dip your dry brush into the powder, tap off excess, and softly brush where you want the color on the flower. The more swipes you put on, the more intense the color.

I gave you a variety of red flowers just because they don't have the exact kind of look as the flowers given on the Phantom cake, (and that luster dust can only go so far color-wise,) so I tried to give the flowers a varied texture.

How many do you need? Well, this is now a bit debatable. Because the Phantom cake is so lush, the number of flowers you need will add up quickly since you want to completely cover the tops of each cake.

The way I estimated the number of flowers you may need is I first calculated the approximate area covered by each flower, then calculated the price per square inch. (Excel helps out a lot with quick calculations.) Then I calculated the area of each tier. Then I divided the area into slices for each flower, cheaper flowers per square inch got a larger slice than more expensive flowers per square inch. In this way I got the cheapest combinations for the cakes, while still having a variety of flowers. Note that I used only half the surface area of the 6" inch cake, leaving room for a cake topper.

Let's say you have a 6", 8", 10", and 12" cakes.

I'll spare you the details, (email me if you do want the spreadsheet!) but you need 24 Gladiola flowers, 31 Hibiscus flowers, 48 roses, 27 tulips and 18 lilies. However, you can only buy them in specified amounts, so you end up buying 27 Gladiolas, 50 Hibiscus, 54 roses, 36 tulips and 18 lilies, costing you a total of $152.88.

Since sugar flowers can last up to a year in a sealed tupperware container, you can buy all your sugar flowers a month or so in advance to take care of breakage issues or color issues before the big day. As long as you can transport them carefully things should work out fine, you probably will have extras anyways. Place the larger flowers on the cake first, then work the smaller flowers around them.

Yes, even buying them yourself is still very expensive, but the labor involved with asking your bakery to make a couple hundred sugar flowers...I'm sure this is the cheaper option, lol.

So what if you don't have $150 lying around for sugar flowers? Reduce their number. It won't look as lush as the Phantom cake, but you will still get the feel. Buy one less box of flowers for each kind of flower, and now the cost is down to $87.93. Buy one box each of flowers, and the cost goes down to $64.95. It's all up to how much you love the original design and how much you are willing to pay to get it.

In order to figure out pricing, I searched online to look for pricing in the Buffalo area. I found two places that posted their prices, Delish! and Dolci Dessert Bakery.

Dolci has a nicer menu since it gives the option of a mini cake that's even smaller, (and cheaper,) than the 6"!

-Mini cake = $11.50
-6" cake = $20.50
-8" cake = $31.50
-10" cake = $47.00

Since we're using smaller cakes, I'm deducting one box from each sugar flower, making the cost of the sugar flowers $87.93.

Total cost for cakes from Dolci Dessert Bakery = $198.43, plus any extra charges for fondant, metallic coating, etc.

From Delish! we can order:

-6" cake = $26
-8" cake = $48
-10" cake = $65
-12" cake = $85

Total cost for cakes from Delish! = $376.88, plus any extra charges for fondant, metallic coating, etc.

Not bad... *sighs* One can only DIY so much, lol.

On to Step 7: Bridesmaid Dresses!

How to Get A Phantom Wedding Like David Tutera's My Fair Wedding: Flower Centerpieces

We already discussed one part of the Phantom flowers, now on to the more challenging one...

Step 5: Create the centerpieces and complete the table decor.

Oh boy. This may be even harder than trying to figure out affordable linens.

Because it always seems like David Tutera's specialty is over-the-top centerpieces...to put this bluntly there really is no way to reasonably recreate his centerpieces. But you can do something on a smaller scale.

As mentioned in the linen post, the florist Studio Fiore posted some lovely photos of their grand centerpieces...

Large gold urns:


Tall flower stands and candle holders:


All accented with fallen chandeliers, numerous candles, and red rose petals:


We'll tackle the easier elements first.

1) Lots of candle holders

Now I have been trying to tackle this one in my spare time. Candles are a universal design element so I know I can incorporate them into whatever I plan for my own wedding.

In previous posts I have mentioned the Dollar Tree as a great place to search for affordable candle holders, and I have had luck looking in other dollar stores finding wrought iron candle holders as well! You never know what you may find, and be sure to check every couple months to look for newly stocked items.

One site that is really helpful is Crafta! This site takes the cake when it comes to affordable candle holders. Sure, some can look plain, but they can be spray painted to be any color you like, and can be easily decorated!

I found a tall 11.5in wire pillar candle holder for just $2.09 when you buy 12 or more!

And for your taper candles, a shorter but still fitting 7.5in wire taper candle holder also just $2.09 each when you buy 12 or more!

Coat these with some gold spray paint, $4.99 from Joann Fabrics, and you have wonderfully thrifty gold candle holders!

For even more candlelight ambiance, go to Candles DLight and purchase 72 of these amber colored votives with included ivory candles for just $37.99! There are other deals like this online but this site had the cheapest shipping charges as well.

Let's say you need one 14" candle holder and one taper candle holder per guest table, plus 2 of the 14" and 3 of the taper for the head table. Let's say you need 3 cans of spray paint to cover all of those.

Total cost for candle holders = $117.75

2) Lots of candles

In the show they used battery operated candles for safety, however if your venue allows flames onsite, real candles will be cheaper for you. All candles should be in a enclosed candle holder besides the tapered candles, which I don't recommend lighting at all.

The must-have tapered candles can be purchased at the wonderful Dollar Tree, for $0.50 per 10" candle.
For the small taper candles needed for the chandeliers, (mentioned near the end of this post,) go to DiscountCandle.com and get 20 ivory 4" taper candles for $5.65 each!
For pillar candles, try looking at Candles DLight again, 36 count 2"x4.5" ivory pillar candles for just $32.99 plus ship!

We need 15 pillar candles, 3 boxes of small taper candles, 48 taper candles, and the votive candles have already been purchased with their candle holders. Even though we have more pillar candles than we need, these can be distributed on the tables or around the cake, guest book, escort cards, or whatever they are needed :)

Total cost for candles = $73.94

3) Tons of rose petals

Because of the number of petals we need and due to the expensive costs of other parts of this Phantom wedding, we're going to use fake rose petals. Now, now, it won't be a disaster, and the price difference is worth it, so bear with me!

I don't know how the Dollar Tree can get their petals so cheap, but really their 300 white, red or pink petals for $1 just can't be beat.

But how many do we need?

We want pretty heavy coverage on the tables, and Petal Garden says that one needs 2-4 cups of petals to decorate tables with centerpieces. They discuss earlier in the article how many petals are in a cup, and I got an approximate amount of 22. So 88 petals per table for heavy coverage.

Another site Petal Toss, says that one bag will cover 2-3 tables with heavy coverage. One bag seems to be about 10 cups, which is equal to 220 petals, so each table would then need 110 petals. I like this number better, (rather estimate more than less,) so for 14 tables we need approximately 1540 petals, which turns out to be six 300 count red petal bags.

Total cost for rose petals = $6!!!

4) Large rose topiaries

Okay, this can be done, but it must be planned out efficiently. In order to be realistic, many steps should be done a few days in advance, in order to lesson the amount of work done the day beforehand. Bribing family and friends with food and alcohol is almost a must XD there is a lot of labor involved! Remember if you're DIYing your bouquets also that there will be less time and adding stress, however some steps will help out both projects.

What you will need for 13 tables:
-Many, many buckets, plastic tubs or containers
-Either 500 and 250 roses from Amazonia Flowers for $565 or 375 roses from Amazonia Flowers with 350 carnations from Global Rose for a total of $414
-10 bunches of leather leaf ferns from Sam's Club for $60.74
-13 count 19.5" high wire sphere bases from Crafta.com for $3.49 each
-13 floral foam 8" diameter spheres from Save-On-Crafts, 2 for $9.36
-2 cans of gold spray paint from Joann Fabrics for $4.99 each
-greening pins from Save-On-Crafts, 600 for $7.20
-spray bottle, $1 at the Dollar Tree
-floral clippers

Before you start: Ask yourself one question: Do I have air conditioning? Do I know someone who does and wouldn't mind me leaving hundreds of flowers there for a few days? The longevity of your roses depend on this. Heat can easily cause flowers to wilt, keep this in mind before attempting such a floral-intensive project!

Way in advance:
a) Purchase or borrow many buckets, plastic tubs, or large containers that can easily hold the bunches of roses, ferns, and possibly carnations you will receive for your wedding.

b) Purchase wire forms and floral foam.
c) Schedule delivery of flowers 3 days before wedding.

d) Spray paint your wire forms gold.

3 days beforehand:
a) Fill all your containers with plenty of water.

b) Once your flowers are delivered quickly put them all in the containers.

c) Prep your flowers. Since you don't need their full stem length, start by cutting each stem at an angle to about 5in in length. Look at my DIY tutorial for prepping reference, with the exception of leaving about 2in of greenery at the tops of the flowers.

The evening beforehand:
a) Fill up your bathtub or more containers with water and flower preservatives. (Read the preservative packet/container to see how much should be added!)

b) Place the foam spheres in the water and wait until they sink to the bottom on their own, approximately 30 seconds.

c) Try to push the 8in spheres into the 7.5in wire forms. If they don't fit, trim all sides a little at a time. You want a snug fit, so it won't move around while you are arranging the flowers. Since they are wire forms, they can probably be bent or moved without too much difficulty. (Hopefully! XP)

d) Start placing ferns around the sphere, in order to eventually completely cover the wires and foam, secure stems and leaves with greening pins.

e) Starting at the top of the sphere, start piercing the flowers into the sphere leaving approx 2in of stem sticking out of the foam. Make circles around this center flower as you move down the sphere.

f) Stop about 3/4 down the sphere, look at the floral photos in the beginning of this post for reference. You can do a full sphere, however you may want to secure the upside down flowers with greening pins to ensure they do not fall out.

g) Decorate the stand to your liking. Add ribbons, bead garland, or whatever your heart desires. (Give a break, this is a long research post! I kinda lost steam at deciding how to dress up the wire forms XP)

The morning of: Using a spray bottle, spray in between the flowers and try to re-moisten the foam to make sure the flowers will last until the evening.

Total cost for large rose centerpieces = $603.81 - $754.81 plus lots of labor

5) "Fallen" chandeliers

Obviously, renting a bunch of crystal chandeliers to just sit on your tables is pretty much out of the budget. I figured there had to be another way!

After lots of searching, I finally found a smaller chandelier that we can use for a wholesale price, without the sketchy wholesaler websites! Yea!

Here at the reputable Koehler Home Decor, you can get a Shabby Chic Scroll Chandelier for just $9.96 each!

At 9.25" wide and over 2ft long, they are a great size for the table design!

Total cost for chandeliers = $129.48

Okay, so now you have candle holders and candles, rose ball centerpieces, rose petals and fallen chandeliers. I think that's a very complete and decorated table! And if you also have the themed linens to boot?!

Okay, look past the bad Photoshop-ing...that's one lovely table! :D

So...the cost...

Cost for all centerpiece and table decor = $930.98 - $1081.98

I'll admit, that's a LOT for just some pretty table decor. But at least it won't cost you thousands from a florist.

Realize however, without the rose centerpieces, the total cost drops to $327.17! Remember, flowers are expensive! Just saying :)

On to Step 6: The Cake! :D

How to Get A Phantom Wedding Like David Tutera's My Fair Wedding: Flower Bouquets

A continuation of the David Tutera Phantom wedding series, on to the next item...

Step 4: Assemble the bouquets and boutonnieres.

Now, for the bouquets and the boutonnieres, I can say with confidence, you can DIY them. Fortunately, all the bouquets are monochromatic red rose bouquets. The only difference is that the bride's bouquet had sparkly floral picks, and those are very simple to add in.

Follow my DIY bouquet tutorial using only red roses, and as long as you pay very careful attention to the shape of each bouquet, (nice smooth dome,) and do not underestimate the amount of roses you need, it will work out just fine. :)

Where to get all the lovely red roses?

I would highly recommend getting your bulk flowers online, especially if you're going to DIY them anyways. I went to a supposed "wholesale" flower retailer in Buffalo and was fairly disappointed. The flowers were sub-par and it was obvious this was just another florist and not a DIYer's haven. Most of the shop was not for viewing, (and I awkwardly wandered in by accident,) and prices were not widely posted.

Since you don't have to worry about stem length with the bouquets, 16in stems will do just fine, however one site said that the longer the stems, the larger the blooms. (So if you have your heart set on large roses, keep this in mind.)

I searched the many, many wholesale flower sites, and I found the biggest bang for your buck was at Amazonia Flowers for 16" stem or 20" stem roses. You can get 375 16" roses for $280, which comes to $0.75 per stem, and this will more than cover all the bouquets, boutonnieres, corsages, and whatever else you need!

Just because of the number of flowers, I would highly recommend help with the assembly of all the florals, the bouquets the day before, and the boutonnieres at the very earliest the night before.

An easy and affordable way to add bling to your bouquet is to make your own floral picks! Just go to Joann.com and purchase these crystal beads, 52 count on sale for $2.24, or these Swarovski beads, 12 count for $7.86, if you have to have fancy crystals, and a few spools of around 18 gauge jewelry wire, on sale for $2.46 for 10 yards.

Cut approx 28in pieces of wire for each bead you want to include. (The lengths of the wires do not need to reach the ends of the bouquet stems.) Thread the bead to the center of the wire, then bend each end on each side of the bead, and twist the wire underneath all the way down. Put some melted wax on the ends of the wire so it won't prick you while you insert the flower picks, unless you want them in the center of the roses, then leave the ends sharp so they can pierce the flower easier.

If you would rather not go the DIY route, this seems to be a good choice for an affordable florist, try a local grocery store or a Sam's Club, Costco or BJ's. They may be able to do all the work for you and still be reasonably priced. Since the design is simple, nothing should go wrong with the final product.

Edit: I should have done a price breakdown for this, so here it is...

Refer to my DIY bouquet post for details on the floral supplies. This is an estimation for a lot of bouquets, boutonnieres, and corsages (5 maids, 5 groomsmen, plus everyone else) in order to be realistic in pricing. I'd rather estimate for too much rather than too little.

-375 count 16" red roses = $280
-52 count crystal beads = $2.24
-18 gauge jewelry wire = $2.46
-7 spools of floral tape = $14
-1 spool of Dollar Tree twine = $1
-5 spools of Dollar Tree ribbon = $5
-pearl floral pins = $2.99
-Lots of labor = free, or possibly the cost of food and/or wine to convince your family/friends to help you, lol

Total cost for bouquets, boutonnieres, and corsages = $307.69

Now on to the harder part of the flower equation, Step 5: Floral centerpieces...

Because I'm a Weddingbee Addict...

There's another set of Weddingbee icons out! :D

Behold the Carnival icons!

Now these are cute, however I think the brunch icons would have been more fitting for me. (However I wouldn't mind being Miss Funnel Cake! :D)

But if my wonderful bf saw them, I know which one he would insist that I choose.

My silly boy calls me a bunch of silly animal names just because it makes no sense whatsoever and he knows that bugs me, lol. (What I would give to have a normal pet name, lol.) And one of those names...is 'seal'. So nothing would make him happier than for me to be, officially, Miss Seal. XD

Just saying. :)