My wife and I got married in April (this past April). We saved a TON of money by buying stuff on E-Bay. It was really a godsend. Plus, she's very artsy-fartsy and made her bouquet, her maid-of-honor's bouquet and centerpieces for all the tables at the reception (minus the flowers). She kept a close watch on sales at places like Michael's and JoAnn Fabrics for their various wedding things.
We saved A LOT of money on my wedding band by buying it on E-Bay. I saw a titanium ring there that I thought was really cool (she wanted a jacket for her heirloom engagement ring, so matching wedding bands were out) and got it custom-made and delivered for under $100. Plus, it will last practically forever.
We also saved a lot of money on some things that regular people won't have access to. Our photographer was a professional who'd been out of it for several years and was looking to rebuild his portfolio. So, we got our photos for free. He did all digital and just gave us a disc with the pictures on it. We just had to pay for getting the prints ourselves (17 cents each at Sam's Club). My dad was on the board of directors at a local club, so we got the reception hall rental and patio (for the ceremony outside) for free, though we still had to pay for the catering.
One thing to remember when planning the reception, and you can take some gambles on this: typically, 75% of the people you send invitations to will RSVP and of them, only 75% will actually show up. Only about half of the people we invited came, but we still planned for 75%. We probably wasted several hundred dollars in food. Just something to keep in mind.
I'm sure my wife would be more than happy to give you pointers and such. She's very pleased with way things went. Just shoot me an e-mail sometime.
Good luck!
JediSoth
