Wedding profile
Extra preparation time helped
the Pruitts avoid common
pitfalls on their path to marriage
By Jenny Sherman
Freelance Reporter
Ever since she was six years old and
wearing a tutu on her head as veil, Univer
sity graduate Molly Pruitt has imagined
her big day
1 ve been planning
this forever," she said.
But planning a
wedding can be ex
hausting and expen
sive, and for Molly
and her husband
Doug, who is also a
University graduate,
it was no different.
Doug proposed to
Molly in August 2002,
and so began the proj
ect of planning a wed
ding on a tight budget.
"I saved a lot of
money planning (the
wedding) myself,"
Molly said.
With the help of
University financial
aid, money from egg
donations and fami
ly contributions, the
couple planned a 150-guest ceremony
economically.
They began by researching different spe
cialty stores in Eugene and Portland and
comparing prices.
"I spent so many hours on the phone
calling vendors," Molly said.
Molly had the help of the "Bravo
Wedding Planner," which the Web site
labels "the professional, step-by-step
system that keeps track of every detail
of your wedding."
The time commitment to plan the wed
ding conflicted with schoolwork, but the
couple gave themselves plenty of extra
time in case of unexpected obstacles.
"You need more than a couple months
for a wedding like ours. You need time to
compensate," Doug said.
As predicted, a few things didn't work
out as planned. When Molly went to pick
up her dress at Tres Fabu Bridal in
Portland, she found it hadn't even been or
dered. It took seven months to finally get
her dress after she was told it would take
three, and she was never offered a discount
or compensation for her troubles.
Another common problem arose on
the wedding day rain. Luckily for the cou
ple, they had a backup plan.
After some advice from a bank teller, the
L—
Courtesy
Recent University graduates Molly and Doug Pruitt planned their 150-guest wedding
economically, by using family contributions and searching for deals.
two found the Persimmon Country Club
in Gresham to be "perfect" for the ceremo
ny, as it was both breathtaking and afford
able, Molly said. The tranquil site, which
has a panoramic view of the Cascade
Mountains, was clouded over on June 20.
The couple took precautions by moving
the entire event underneath an overhang
and it started to shower precisely as the tra
ditional Wedding March music sounded.
At the reception, the bridesmaids and
groomsmen hemmed the newlyweds at a
center table facing the dance floor. Each
table was adorned with flower pots brim
ming with peaches, which were garnished
with tiny white flowers and miniature air
planes to represent Doug's participation in
the U.S. Air Force.
"They were all real Air Force planes,"
he said.
Flower petals sprinkled the white table
cloths with oranges and pinks, which
matched the Asiatic Lilly corsages on the
bridesmaids' white prom dresses. Al
though the bridesmaids had to purchase
their attire, Molly allowed them to wear
$ 15 J-Crew flip-flops.
To stay on budget, Molly and Doug
ordered a revised menu for the recep
tion that excluded expensive items like
salmon, which carried a tab of $30 a
head. A beer and wine bar opened for
the first hour of the reception, charged
for cocktails and stayed open to the
bridal party all night .
long.
Molly, who loves
the color orange,
found her tangerine
and peach decorations
for 90 percent off at
Michaels, an arts and
crafts store. Her flower
vendor, Blooming
Bouquets of Portland,
is run by a woman out
of her home and offers
bouquets at three
times less than flower
shops.
The wedding cake
had flowers of marzi
pan and was made to
feed about 80 percent
of the guests. Accord
ing to Molly, cakes are
one of the highest ex
penses in a wedding,
so the couple saved
money by asking their
peach-donating cousin to make a cake.
The chocolate confection was in the shape
of a slot machine, celebrating the couple's
honeymoon to Las Vegas.
Molly and Doug said it took a total of
eight months to prepare for the wedding.
After a speech from the best man, dancing
with little children, champagne toasts and
the bouquet tossing, the guests tossed hun
dreds of orange paper airplanes at the new
husband and wife, who ran to their brand
new Chevy Silverado.
The couple now resides in San Antonio,
Texas, where Doug is training to be a navi
gator for the Air Force, and Molly is work
ing as a nanny.
"I like Oregon better," Doug admitted,
but the couple is slowly getting accus
tomed to the different location and their
new lives together.
Jenny Sherman is a freelance
reporter for the Emerald.
I
Lauren Wimer Photographer
Left to right, 6-year-olds Justine Cole and Emily Bly and ^year-old
Maya Weiler model wedding attire while sitting on a carriage
provided by Chafin Farm Carriage at the Emerald City Bridal Show.
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Lauren Wimer Photographer
Nineteen-year-old Katherine Smith tosses a bouquet into the crowd during
one of four fashion shows held this weekend at the Emerald City Bridal Show.
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Tim Kupsick Freelance Photographer
The Campbell House is a great place for a wedding or honeymoon.
L
__
Lauren Wimer Photographer
Julie Hale helps her 23-year-old daughter Sara Hale try on tiaras and veils
for her wedding day. Sara will be getting married on July 3.
Photo Illustration by Lauren Wimer Photographer
v Eugene resident Tiffany Brown models a wedding dress at Eva’s Bridal Mart. Located at
970 Pearl St, Eva’s is one of several bridal shops in the local area.
Tips for an ec
nomic wedding
Bride s gown: Borrow it; rent it; purchase
Flowers: Make the corsages, bouquets and arrangements ahead of time; cut flowers or flowering
Location: Plan a wedding that takes place at a venue where everything is planned in one package deal;
Time: The least expensive months to get married are November through January and any day of the week
from a resale shop; buy off the discount market.
shrubs from a friend's or relative's garden; use the same arrangements for the ceremony and reception.
Ian a destination wedding where the wedding is at the honeymoon site with close friends and family members.
a|cept Saturday; mid-morning and mid-afternoon receptions will save money because they don't require a full meal.
Source: http://www.blissweddings.com.
Bridal show
The Emerald City Bridal Show,
held this weekend, added reality
to many bride-to-be's dreams
By Evan Cael
Freelance Reporter
Brides-to-be, eventual husbands,
families and others filed into the
Lane Events Center for the 2004
Emerald City Bridal Show on
Saturday and Sunday.
Students Jennifer Cooper, 21, and
Rodney Clark, 22, spent much of
their Sunday touring the more than
100 booths of local wedding-related
businesses.
"It's kind of overwhelming," Cooper
said. "I want everything to be perfect
and exactly how I imagine it in my
head, but 1 didn't even know how
many options were out there. It feels
like we're back to the drawing board."
The two were engaged over the hol
idays and are planning an August
wedding with about 300 guests in
Portland. That may seem far off, but
as anyone who has participated in
the coordination of matrimonial
affairs knows, the clock is ticking.
"This (show) is a unique opportu
nity for future brides and grooms to
finalize their wedding plans or just to
get some good ideas all under one
roof," show producer Seth Reese said.
Reese's company, Oregon Wedding
Shows, sponsors similar bridal events
throughout Oregon. Each event takes
about one year to organize.
"It could take weeks or months to
drive to each of these businesses
individually, but we offer the same
service in one afternoon," said Reese,
who was wearing a sleek black tuxe
do at the show.
Walking into the event hall, each
of the roughly 700 brides-to-be in
attendance over the weekend first
entered a portion where string quar
tets were in direct competition with
party disc jockeys and classical gui
tarists — the first of many impas
sioned decisions to be made.
Persisting forward, event partici
pants encountered a mountain range
of wedding cakes where Jill Dian,
owner of Classique Cakes & The
Wedding Solution, had a booth. She
runs her business entirely out of her
home with a small family staff aiding
in the tasks involved in maintaining
a business.
"I don't even advertise in the
phone book," Dian said. "This show
is pretty much the only publicity that
I get aside from word-of-mouth, so I
always look forward to these events."
According to Dian, young couples
like their cakes "simple yet elegant."
David's Bridal customer service
employee Kandayce Day attended the
show and said she has seen many
brides find their dream dresses.
"When you see her come out of the
dressing room and she gets that
sparkle in her eye ... it is a beautiful
moment," Day said.
A fashion show — the main event
of the occasion — occurred four
times throughout the weekend. From
tiny kiss-blowing flower girls to GQ
grooms, the models offered the
hopeful brides and grooms in the
audience the chance to see possible
wedding themes. Exclusively Bridal
now offers a University Ducks wed
ding dress with matching dresses for
the bridesmaids.
The bridal show was not merely an
event where wedding plans were sta
pled down and chicken or fish was
decided. It became a place to facilitate
childlike dreams and hopes, where
tablecloth veils of many years ago were
transformed into thousand-dollar satin
gowns — all under one roof.
Evan Cae) is a freelance reporter
for the Emerald.
Lauren Wimer Photographer
Six-year-old Emily Bly and 15-year-old Matt Collver model wedding fashions at the Emerald City Bridal Show on Saturday.
Wedding Timeline
6-12 months prior >
• Determine a budget (
• Set time, location of ceremony,
rehearsal <§ reception venue
• Pick a honeymoon destination
5 months prior
•Order invitations
Choose florist
Order wedding cake
1 month prior
• Choose weddingbands
• Mail invitations
• Apply for marriage licen
2 months prior
• Plan rehearsal dinner
• Select attendants' gifts and groom's gift
se
2 weeks prior
• Final check on bri
• Notify newspapers
fmt
l party clothing
1 week prior
• Start honeymoon packing
• Schedule rehearsal jot me-—
to two days prior to wedding
• Go over final details of ceremony &
reception with all parties involved
Wedding Day
• Breath! Enjoy your day.
1 day prior
• Have manicure and pedicure
• Attend wedding rehearsal & dinner
SOURCE: http://www.weddingmanor.com