Planning a budget Engagement Party… and working with the unexpected.
So, back in February, my partner and i had an incredible engagement party. It was a fantastic evening, and ourselves and our guests had an incredible time. IT WAS PERSONAL, NOT STUCK UP OR STUFFY, AND JUST ABOUT HAVING A GREAT TIME, WITH SOME GREAT PHOTOS TO REMEMBER THE EVENING BY.
here’s how i planned it.
The Budget
so… with the wedding looming, we didn’t really have anything put aside for the engagement party (and i really wanted to have onE!), so we decided just to spend as little as possible.
In the end, WE spent £165.68. yup- £165.68
The only thingS we ended up forking out for WERE…
cake ingredients- £58 tesco (i also bought too much!)
balloons (GARLAND KIT THAT CAME WITH TROPICAL LEAVES)- £35.98 (FOR 2) amazon
mini ikea greenhouse (for cards)- £10 from facebook marketplace.
tinsel curtains (4 packs at around £8 each)- £32- AMAZON
eaSEL- £10 (FOR 2) FACEBOOK MARKETPLACE
VINYL STICKER - £5 FACEBOOK MARKET PLACE
PIECE OF CARD - £3 (ISH?) HOBBYCRAFT
LOVE BALLOON- £1 POUNDLAND
NOTE CARDS (FOR ADVICE FOR THE BRIDE AND GROOM)- £2 POUNDLAND
NAPKINS-£2 POUNDLAND
CAKE BOARDS- £6.70 HOBBYCRAFT
Something missing?
so you might be thinking… what about the venue, the food, the invites?
well, here is how i tackled all of those things…
THE INVITES
IT’S ALL ABOUT E-VITES, AND FACEBOOK EVENTS. IF YOU AREN’T ON FACEBOOK, YOU CAN MAKE AN ELECTRONIC EVENT PAGE ON SOMETHING LIKE WIX OR WORDPRESS.
I JUST MADE A PDF INVITE, TOOK A SCREENSHOT OF IT AND POSTED IT ON FACEBOOK (THERE IS DEFINITELY A MORE TECHNICAL WAY OF DOING THIS!). I THEN MADE A FACEBOOK EVENT, AND INVITED EVERYONE TO IT. I MADE SURE TO EMAIL PEOPLE THE INVITE AS WELL.
I KNEW I WAS HAVING A TROPICAL/BOTANICAL THEME, SO I MADE THE INVITES TO MATCH. USE GOOGLE IMAGES FOR PICTURES TO ADORN YOUR E-VITE WITH. IF IT IS A KIDS BIRTHDAY PARTY, YOU COULD GET THEM TO DRAW OUT AN INVITE THEMSELVES, AND THEN YOU CAN SCAN AND UPLOAD. PERSONAL AND FREE!
(HONESTLY, PEOPLE WON’T REMEMBER WHAT YOUR INVITE LOOKED LIKE, SO DON’T STRESS OUT ABOUT IT)
food
FOOD IS BY AND LARGE ONE OF THE MOST EXPENSIVE THINGS TO PROVIDE AT A PARTY LIKE THIS, SO IF YOU ARE PARTYING ON A BUDGET, CATERING IS BEST AVOIDED. INSTEAD, PLAN YOUR EVENING AT A TIME WHERE PEOPLE WOULD HAVE HAD THE CHANCE TO PICK UP A MEAL BEFOREHAND. WE WENT FOR AN 8PM START TIME.
PEOPLE WILL STILL GET PECKISH WHEN THEY ARE DRINKING AND DANCING, WHICH IS WHY I PROVIDED CAKE. VENUES NEVER CHARGE PEOPLE FOR BRINGING IN CAKE, AND IT’S A GOOD SOURCE OF CARBS FOR SOAKING UP ALCOHOL. IT ALSO GIVES A PARTY A SENSE OF OCCASION. I MADE MY OWN CAKE, BUT IF YOU AREN’T AN AVID BAKER AND WANT A BUDGET CAKE- BUY A SUPERMARKET CAKE, AND DECORATE WITH FLOWERS. (I DECORATED MINE WITH FLOWERS THAT I HAD BEEN GIFTED THE DAY BEFORE, AND THE FAUX TROPICAL LEAVES FROM THE BALLOON KIT).
VENUE
Now this, i wrangled for free. and you can get your party venue free too!
i called round all of the bars and pubs that i liked in leeds, and explained that i wanted to hire on a minimum-spend basis. most people wilL spend AT LEAST £10 on drinks in a city. in leeds for example, you’ll get a maximum of two alcoholic drinks out of a £10 note. so if you have 100 people, look at a minimum spend of around £750 to be safe. (BECAUSE IN A WORST-CASE SCENARIO, YOU’LL HAVE TO PAY THE DIFFERENCE).
i decided to book oracle bar in leeds. if i’m honest, i went for practicality over aesthetic- i was having a big party with around 250 people, so i needed the venue capacity. i knew that i could decorate it in a style i wanted. (rather than having a specific theme in mind, it is best to work with the style of the venue and adapt your ideas). the minimum spend on a weekend was £3000, which i didn’t want to risk. so i opted for a tuesday night. yup! tuesday partayy! the minimum spend was £1000. HAVING YOUR PARTY ON WEEKDAY GENERALLY REDUCES MOST COSTS. ENTERTAINMENT, FOOD, VENUE HIRE ETC.
Then…. disaster.
2 weeks before the party… oracle called. they had gone into administration.
THIS, WAS VERY FRUSTRATING.
But in times like this, it is important not to panic. Remain calm, look at your options. If a venue has let you down, ask them to look at other venues for you, they’ll have contacts. If they aren’t prepared to do that, reach out to an event planner.
It will be okay.
LUCKILY, I HAD ALREADY DONE THE GROUND WORK ON OTHER VENUES.
SO I CONTACTED REVOLUTION DE CUBA. IT WAS A VENUE NEARBY, SO THOSE BOOKING HOTELS DIDN’T HAVE MUCH FURTHER TO GO… AND ACTUALLY IT TURNED OUT TO BE THE BETTER VENUE. THE ONLY REASON I DIDN’T WANT TO HIRE REVOLUTION DE CUBA IN THE FIRST PLACE, WAS BECAUSE I OFTEN WORK THERE AS A SINGER… BUT NEVER MIND! THEY HAD A GREAT UPSTAIRS FUNCTION ROOM WITH PLENTY OF SEATING (SEATING IS REALLY IMPORTANT WHEN LOOKING FOR A VENUE. FOR GUESTS OVER 22… WE LIKE TO SIT DOWN FROM TIME TO TIME!). THEY ALSO DID LOADS OF FUN DRINKS- MAKE SURE YOU CHECK OUT THE DRINKS MENUS OF ANY PLACES YOU ARE HIRING.
(Lucky i did those invitations electronically right!?)
I HAD ALREADY BOUGHT ALL OF THE DECOR ETC.. BUT IT WORKED WITH REVS DE CUBA TOO. IF YOU HAVE A STRONG THEME, THERE ARE ALWAYS A FEW ADJUSTMENTS YOU CAN MAKE TO MAKE IT FIT WITH WHATEVER VENUE YOU ARE USING.
Creating a look on a budget
if you are looking to decorate a whole venue with specific colours/themes, it will get pricey.
instead, focus on these two areas
YOUR ENTRAnCE
A FOCAL POINT (THIS COULD BE A FAR CORNER OF THE ROOM, AND AREA WITH A RAISED PLATFORM, OR SOMETHING SLAP BANG IN THE MIDDLE (HOWEVER, WALLS CAN BE USEFUL).
IT’S GREAT TO GIVE GUESTS SOMETHING VISUAL ON ARRIVAL. I USED AN EASEL WITH A WELCOME SIGN, AND SOME OF THE BALLOONS AND FOIL CURTAINS.
I THEN CHOSE THE FOCAL POINT OF THE ROOM TO BE THE STAGE IN THE FAR CORNER. I PUT MOST OF THE REST OF THE DECOR UP THERE, AS WELL AS THE CAKE, THE CARD BOX AND THE ‘ADVICE FOR THE BRIDE AND GROOM’ CARDS, AS IT GAVE PEOPLE REASONS TO VISIT THE AREA. THIS IS A GREAT PLACE FOR PEOPLE TO GET PICTURES, AND IT GIVES YOUR PARTY A FOCAL POINT, WITHOUT YOU HAVING TO SPEND A FORTUNE DECORATING THE ENTIRE VENUE. I JUST PUT A FEW BALLOONS ON SOME OF THE PILLARS TO TIE IN THE THEME FURTHER.
If you are wanting a luxe-look, this is not it. but it was fun, and interesting, and with the evening lighting it was brilliant! it made for some great, bright and colourful photos of the NIGHT, and it was just what i wanted. there is no reason THAT you canNNOT do more classic venue styling on a budget either, just pick out the main elements of a theme, and group them together in a focal point.
Have a schedule of events.
PLAN OUT THE GENERAL CURVE OF YOUR EVENING.
MINE WENT LIKE THIS:
AT ABOUT 8.30PM, I THANKED EVERYONE FOR COMING, AND ASKED THEM TO MINGLE AND INTRODUCE THEMSELVES TO EACH OTHER.
9.15PM I ASKED MY CHOIR MEMBERS TO SING (YOU CAN EASILY GET SOME LOCAL AMATEUR CHOIR GROUPS TO DO THIS FOR FREE FOR YOU, OR YOU MAY HAVE TO PAY AROUND £50-£100 TO THE CHOIR LEADER, YOU CAN INVITE THEM TO STAY AT THE PARTY AND FEED THEM CAKE!). FOR OTHER FREE ENTERTAINMENT IDEAS, CONSIDER ASKING THE VENUE IF THEY’LL PLAY A SLIDE SHOW OF PHOTOS FOR YOU, OR A LIP-SYNCED SONG BY YOUR FRIENDS. YOU MAY ALSO HAVE A FRIEND OR RELATIVE WITH A TALENT- THIS WILL MAKE THE EVENING VERY PERSONAL. ASK THE VENUE IF THEY DON’T MIND YOU USING THEIR SOUND EQUIPMENT.
AT 9.45PM WE CUT THE CAKE, AND GAVE SOME SPEECHES. YOU COULD GET A FEW PEOPLE INVOLVED. IF YOU HAVE A LOT OF GUESTS, SEE IF YOU CAN DESIGNATE A COUPLE OF PEOPLE TO BE THE CAKE CUTTERS, AS THIS WILL TAKE SOME TIME.
JUST A FEW THINGS PLANNED IN WILL DO THE TRICK, AND WILL KEEP THE EVENING FLOWING.
At the end of the day, it’s the people that make the party. If you are surrounded by people you love, you’ll have a great time.
I HOPE YOU FOUND THIS GUIDE TO BUDGET PARTY-PLANNING USEFUL.
any questions, email rebeccajoannefrodsham@gmail.com
