All brides SHOULD have a budget but some are just tighter than others. A pure fact of life. I wanted to take the opportunity to showcase how a budget bride can not only choose us as a venue but stay on budget in many other ways – and still have a beautiful wedding with little indication of the tighter restraints.
Rentals: No need to rent chairs, tables, and furniture pieces – as our Basic Package includes all of this.
Set-Up/Break-Down: HP Farms sets up your furniture pieces where you want them so that you don’t need to find helpers to do this sweaty job. At the night’s end, we put up the furniture, clean up, and dispose of the trash.
Freebie Decor Stall: We have a room full of a variety of decor that you are free to borrow. We have items like lanterns, a mess of mis-match clear glass bottles of varying sizes (and green ones too), votives, mini-logs/log rounds/log stumps, windows, distressed door for hanging photos, mason jars with hangers, extra large empty frame for photo ops, wash tins for drinks or gifts, and a slew of chalkboard signs – some pre-written and some blank. We say that this helps to save on your Hobby Lobby bill. No need to buy 20 things that you will likely never use again. This not only saves you money but also saves you on your time; to purchase those items, to pack and haul them to the venue, and to collect, pack, and haul them back home.
Farm Fresh Flowers: Since HP Farms is a flower farm, we have a multitude of flowers growing throughout the year. Even though we offer full decorating services and we can be hired to create your bouquets, we also provide options where you can just purchase buckets of flowers. This allows you to take those freebie decor items mentioned above and easily make your tables look beautiful. Some brides will even have a bridesmaid powwow and create their own bouquets from our flowers.
Linens: HP Farms has 13 hand-made farmhouse tables that can sit 104. Though we do have additional round folding tables for a larger wedding (to mix or not), most of our brides love these farmhouse table and the look that they provide…..and when you use these, there is no need for a linen plus you get that beautiful hue of repurposed wood.
Lights: We got lights. Strung in the barn, around the venue on all sides, over the patio, in the trees…let me tell you – we got lights. No need for more.
Vendor Suggestions/Vendor Choice: Because we don’t mandate you use “in-house” caterer, florists, DJ, or photographer – this allows you to choose your own whether this is driven by budget, by taste or vision, or pure preference. We have our Preferred Vendor List of tried-and-true vendors who have come to the farm, proven their professionalism with being well staffed, great service, and great food plus they receive great reviews from our brides. It is a smart move to consider using this list as these not only come with my Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval but they know our venue well – what we have and don’t have – how our set up is – what capacity of power we have – etc….but there is less need to hand-hold these vendors. The more you can avoid the need of micro-managing vendors the easier your wedding planning will be. We have vendors in all categories and there is a range in prices for these too so you can shop for just what you need.
Drink: You are in charge of providing drink for your guests. For the non-alcoholic drinks, we have wash tins and a cute vintage trough that makes a great way to display these drinks without using an ugly cooler. If you want to save some money, rent some of our glass drink decanters in order to provide water for your guests without buying water bottles. Making tea for these decanters will also save money over buying sodas. You can always have a few sodas available but when they are out – they are out.
Beer/Wine/Champagne: Again, you are in charge of providing these drinks for your guests. Some venues require you to contract through them. We don’t. This allows you to do a Costco run in order to save money.
Sound System: Beginning 2019, we will have an additional rental option – a portable sound system. There is no way that this can replace all of the advantages of one of our super-duper DJs, but for a bride on a tight budget, it will provide an alternative to consider instead of hiring a DJ.
Our Uniquely Decorated Barn: Our barn is authentic so it just exudes character alone in its worn
barn wood, hay stacked in the loft, remnants of some of her stalls, and her slew of cool barn doors. Beyond that, we have decorated the inside of the barn with some interesting features that makes hosting an event here so much easier because you aren’t taking a naked barn and having to dress her up. We have our infamous bottle wall, a mirror wall, and a frame wall. This means that no matter what you put at any of these areas – cake, decanters of tea, or pictures – it will be “picture-worthy”. This again alleviates the need to buy a bunch of extra “farm-esque” decor just to dress up our facility.
Cake/Desserts: Weddings cakes look different from bride to bride. Nowadays many forego a cake and do cupcakes. Beyond that, we see donuts, pies, smorgasbords of desserts, and such. Publix, the North Chattanooga location, makes fresh wedding cakes at an affordable price and they look and taste great. They will not be a show stopper like some of our wedding cake specialists can produce but they do not….do not taste “grocery story-esque.” Cutting the cake is an odd tradition – celebrating the couple’s first domestic duty together (so lame……) or often consider a fertility tradition (multiplying as you cut the cake). If this tradition doesn’t ring special, then consider having an assortment of desserts which often please your guests better and will save you money. If you are a local bride, consider requesting from some of your family to bring some of their dessert specialties and as long as you stage it well (no metal pie tins)….then all will be delighted to have home cooked foods.
Entertainment: The Farm is just self-entertaining. Your guests come to the farm and have a good time. The views given by God to us our breathtaking…..but……our goats are the entertainment. Eye candy in the background is a given, but when guests are here, the goats come to the fences in hopes of somebody bringing crackers. It is a little bit of a farm experience but it always a huge hit with guests. Beyond the goats, we have cornhole and horseshoes, so the entertainment is all free!
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- Holt Webb Photography
The Grounds/The Facility: Because the grounds are so beautiful, full of flower beds and gardens, and the barn is so unique and so rustic chic – it takes the pressure off of what all you have to do, what you have to bring, what you have to serve, in order for you to have a memorable event. So use plastic plates if you need to, plastic cups, plasticware, and such. I promise you can go simple and and pull it off big even on a tight budget.
Now get all excited that you don’t have to break the bank to have your dream-come-true wedding.
~ Margie