Diana's Affordable Wedding
With A Cornish Theme

Diana married Darren Tozer in early May 2009 and their affordable wedding cost them just under £4,000. Diana had dreams of getting married in the stunning countryside of Dorset. She chose a Cornish theme in memory of her Cornish grandfather and so from bunting to the buffet, all things Cornish were included in her big day. Here's how she made it happen.

Diana and Darren's wedding ceremony was at St Stephens Church in the parish of Kingston Lacy, Pamphill, Wimborne in sunny Dorset. She'd always intended to get married at this church, as it was the village where her grandmother was stationed when she was in the Women's Land Army. The family had always returned to village for summer picnics, so it was close to her heart and the perfect setting for her affordable wedding.

Diana's affordable wedding reception

The wedding food

The Cornish theme continued with the menu, a buffet made to her own specifications by Morgan's Catering, in Poole. The buffet included Cornish pasties (her grandfather adored these!), pork pies, sliced meats, quiche, Scotch eggs, English cheeses, breads and salad followed by Dorset apple cake, scones, jam and clotted cream and fruit salad. Everyone commented on what a lovely buffet it was.

Diana baked the three tier wedding cake herself, but left the decorating to her brother David, who trained as a baker. Beside it she placed a photograph of my grandmother and grandfather on their wedding day in honour of the fact that her grandfather continually asked her to save him a piece of wedding cake all through their courtship!

The stationery and favours

All of her stationery was bought from from a new seller who was just starting out. The designer (Jade Tipling) had made up the perfect affordable wedding stationery to match her bouquet and colour theme with a stunning iris on the front. The favours were matching bookmarks and they also supplied sweets for the little ones.

The outfits

Diana's dress was a full length ivory satin dress with long train elaborately trimmed in beaded lace. The stunning wedding dress only cost £125 because it was an ex-sample at Oxfam Bridal Room in Poole. She also managed to get a generous discount as she was a volunteer there at the time she bought it. Diana also wore a simple tiara with pearls and crystals from the same place (£5), put pearl and crystal flower pins in the back of her hair (from a local shop, £1 each) and found her pearl embroidered full-length veil in a nearly new shop for £40. The shoes were from BHS, but bought off for only £10.

The chief bridesmaid wore a royal blue chiffon dress found in a local boutique for £30. Three of the bridesmaids all wore light blue chiffon dresses which were found in a dress agency that was closing down, all brand new and only £15 each. Despite the mixture of blues and yellow, they all looked beautiful together as they fitted in with the colour scheme and their bouquets made up of irises drew them all together. The men all looked dapper in hired suits from Moss Bros.

And a little help from her friends

Their official photographer was a friend who'd studied media and publishing. Not only does Diana own all the copyright to the photographs, but the photographs turned out really well as you can see here. A family friend filmed the event too and created a DVD so they can recapture the spirit and atmosphere of the occasion at any time. Finally, Diana's son's band, Southern Edge, entertained them all night!

To give a real sea-side finish to the night, the evening buffet was a fish and chips van, which went down a treat with her guests!

Diana's focus was the union with her partner and always kept that at the forefront of her mind. The ceremony was a very personal event where she'd pretty much designed the service herself, and the vicar was happy to follow it with only a few (very minor) alterations. Diana also wrote and read her own poem at the service which made some guests cry, I'm told!

Here's what Diana had to say about her affordable wedding:

"My wedding day was the most beautiful and personal day of my life and it didn't cost us a fortune! The sun shone, the choir sang and the bells rang! The speeches were hilarious and had everyone in stitches.

My advice? If you want an affordable wedding, make your wedding day your own!! Really think about it, include many personal touches that are important to you. Use the talents of people you know. People love being involved in a wedding and it makes for such a fantastic atmosphere!

My wedding was so wonderful because it was really personal to us. Each and every stage of it I designed myself and I am so proud of my efforts now I look back on it. All of the hard work was worth it and I ended up with a wedding that huge sums of money would never have bought me!"

Other affordable wedding stories:

Get Your FREE Wedding Planner Sign up for the free Cheap Wedding Tips newsletter for instant acccess to your wedding planner.

Email: First Name: Your e-mail will never be shared or sold. You'll receive a password and link immediately after confirming your subscription...