Message from The MOG (Mother of the Groom)

 

OUR REHEARSAL DINNER CENTERPIECE

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Good Friday to You.  Hope this post finds you well.

I cannot begin to tell you how wonderful it is to resume our little chats.

(Thinking out loud… I am planning on posting 3 times a week and working on my manuscript the other days.) 

This is a special article for all MOGs – Mothers of the Groom….and about sharing after it’s all over.

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L@@k – The wedding industry is Exploding.  And Expensive.  And Extraordinary.

So how do you stretch a dollar here….and pinch a penny there?

I’d like to share a tip with you this morning.

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I priced centerpieces at local florist shops and from floral designers down in the city.

Wowzer.

Quotes came in high and hot!  $75-$100 for a simple centerpiece.

All I requested was a tiny nosegay of rose/pink/blush-colored flowers with fern and ecru baby’s breath….to be plated on a simple round mirror outlined by votives.

Sophisticated by simplicity….I thought.  And inexpensive!

Nothing exotic or tropical….and definitely no hot-house flowers.

Well, needless to say – I could not and would not pull the trigger.

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So what is a MOG to do?

MIRRORS:  

I purchased 15 large, round mirrors (online) from JoAnn’s on sale.  I paid approximately $2.50 each.  They were a very nice quality and packed so well that not one was cracked or chipped in the mail.

VASES:  

Then, I shopped for vases online and in every local arts and craft store imaginable.  The affordable ones were way too small.  The right-sized ones were $8+ each.  More than I wanted to spend.

And guess where I found the best ones for the right price?  My local grocery store’s floral department.  Only $4.00 a piece for these vases.  In full disclosure – these vessels are not made of first quality glass.  They are considered by professionals as ‘dirty glass’ with teeny/tiny bubbles and imperfections.  But I promise you that no one noticed during our dinner party!

FLOWERS:

Here’s where the trouble began.

I ordered, online, pre-made bouquets/nosegays (ready-for-the-vase) from a large, reputable warehouse store/club.

The flowers were to arrive 2 days in advance (guaranteed promise date!) so the flowers would be in full bloom by the rehearsal dinner on the 3rd day.  I placed my order 3 months before the dinner party.

The week before the wedding, I got email notice (no phone call) that my flowers were stuck in customs.They were now slated to arrive on the Monday after our Friday night rehearsal dinner.  Great!  Just great!

I called customer service.

Of course, there was nothing they could do so it was a futile exercise to make the call  – they insinuated!  Customs is Customs.  And I should know that.  And besides, there was an outside chance the flowers ‘could’ arrive on time!

Well, working full time and doing everything late at night and on weekends, I was really in a lurch.

I had heard from many ladies that our local Trader Joe’s had beautiful, fresh stems at unbelievable prices.  I was elated!  I spent a fraction of the original cost of my order from the warehouse club and made my own arrangements the day of the dinner.

There is no doubt in my mind that my centerpieces would have been more lush and lavish from a professional florist.  And my dear husband wouldn’t have had to haul in large boxes of mirrors, vases, and buckets of flowers with water spilling everywhere.  But for that super cheap, bottom-line tab, he was more than willing to help out.

The restaurant furnished the votives and mood music….and delicious food and impeccable service.

The only special adornment I planned for the Head Table was a shiny and sparkling elasticized band of rhinestones which outlined the top edge.  This was probably my favorite decoration!  Again, I made my purchase from JoAnn’s with a coupon.

(Also from JoAnn’s, I purchased a few other pieces – large, glittery table numbers and lose acrylic diamonds to spread around the table.)

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There you have it.

This MOG’s answer to inexpensive centerpieces.

And the best part of the story?  

I bubble-wrapped everything in a large corrugated box and gave it to another MOG who is hosting a rehearsal dinner in August.

….with the only stipulation that she passes it forward to, yet, another MOG.

Guess what?  Her best friend is ready to receive it later this year for her son’s fall wedding!!!!

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Have a wonderful weekend.  Boy, it’s good to be back.  Take Care now.