Weddings are a time to gather with loved ones in celebration of love. What better place to celebrate your love than where the heart is? Home.
An intimate backyard wedding at home allows you to have the union of your dreams on a budget. From DIY decorations to homemade cocktails, you can have a romantic or rustic reception for a fraction of the cost.
Are you interested in having a beautiful outdoor ceremony, but don’t know where to start? Use these ideas for the perfect backyard at-home wedding on a budget to get the love-party started.
THE OUTDOOR CEREMONY
There’s nothing more personal than inviting someone into your house. Holding a wedding ceremony at home brings the personal and intimate factor that every couple longs for.
How do you add magic to your everyday yard?
Amp up the Altar
While you’re fighting back the tears when you say your I do’s, the focal point will be on you and your future spouse.
In addition to a beautiful dress or sharp tuxedo, give guests something to gush about by framing your vows with a rustic or glamorous altar.
Save money in the budget by using an existing overgrown tree, or simple wooden frame, and adding strung flowers and lights to create simple but gorgeous altar.
Bonus! The altar can turn into a selfie wall later in the night, so keep a bucket filled with fun props next to the area after your first kiss as a married couple is sealed.
Walk Down the Aisle
There’s nothing more special than that moment in a wedding ceremony where the future spouses see each other for the first time.
The pathway you walk down towards the person you’re about to spend the rest of your life with should reflect the importance of the moment.
If you’re having an outdoor summer wedding, line the aisle with fresh or fake flowers. If a backyard fall wedding is in your future, take those gorgeous Iowa leaves and scatter them down the path you’ll take towards marriage.
As an Ankeny resident and real estate agent, I’ve seen many gardens and trees that would make decorating your aisle on a budget very easy.
COCKTAIL HOUR FUN
While you’re off taking outdoor wedding photographs with your new bride or groom, set up an area for your guests to eat, drink and be married!
Crafts and Cocktails
An easy way to keep a group of adults happy is drinks!
Keep craft beers and cute canned cocktails chilled in large barrels or metal bins for those of age to sip on while they mingle.
It’s equally as important to have water, lemonade, or tea readily available to keep guests hydrated and presentable for reception fun to come. Add extra DIY glamor by putting fresh fruit and herbs into the drink pitchers.
It’s All Fun and Games
After the intimate outdoor wedding ceremony, it’s time to take full advantage of what your backyard has to offer.
For those of you reading this from my home state of Iowa, I have one word for you. Cornhole.
Set up games such as cornhole, horseshoes and beer pong to get people up and moving. DIY backyard entertainment is a clever way to keep guests preoccupied while you’re off getting photos taken.
Don’t forget to plug in the aux cord and start your favorite party playlist to accompany cocktails and cornhole.
THE BACKYARD RECEPTION
Now it’s time for the fun to begin! These ideas for an at-home wedding reception will make you thankful you didn’t go the traditional route.
Just Dance
It’s the time we’ve all been waiting for. The first dance.
Set up an outdoor dance floor on a budget by laying color rugs or portable dance floor mats down on the lawn.
Ladies can cut up a rug all night (pun intended), without getting their brand new high heels stuck in the grown.
Let’s Eat!
The biggest budget saver for a wedding at home is food.
Skip the $50 per plate catering company, and opt for a beautifully decorated buffet instead. If you really want to kick it up a notch, hire a food truck to park out front! Food trucks are fun and tasty without the catering price tag.
Don’t forget about the best part! Dessert. Pile cookies, candies, and donuts up onto uniquely decorated dessert tables so guests can grab something whenever their sweet tooth strikes.
After the night winds down, start up your bonfire and take full advantage of your backyard wedding. Bring out s’more kits, and keep the sweet memories burning all night long.
There’s nothing better than knowing you’ve found your person, and celebrating that with everyone you love. Just because you’ve found a love that’s priceless, you don’t have to have a wedding that’s pricey.
Use these ideas for a backyard at-home wedding on a budget to keep the magic high, and costs low.
Have you ever been to an outdoor home wedding? What was your favorite part?
Photos Source: Pinterest
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