Friday, January 1, 2010

Budget: San Francisco Elopement

We normally don't post a lot of personal information about ourselves, but we had some life-changing news; we're taking this opportunity to burst through the 4th wall.
This past week E and I got married; we actually flew to San Francisco to elope.
This was the right decision for us. We didn't want the stress or expense of a big wedding, so we decided to do something classy and special, for the two of us, without spending a lot of money.
We had always considered moving to San Francisco, so it seemed like the perfect place to elope. Plus, they perform civil ceremonies at City Hall: an amazingly beautiful domed building occupying over 2 city blocks.
Every inch of this building is absolutely beautiful. You don't even need to be a California resident to get married here; just bring your documents and reserve a time to get a marriage license and have a civil ceremony. They perform the civil ceremony at the top of a great flight of stairs in the rotunda.
We wanted to wear something nice, but not too formal, and we were able to take advantage of JCrew's 30% off holiday discount to get amazing deals on E's suit and my dress: I wore the silk tricotine Gracie gown. Plus, we got free shipping by going to the store and ordering from the red phone.
We wanted to get some fun pictures "on location" around San Francisco, so I posted an ad on Craigslist to find a non-wedding photographer. We chose a photographer specializing in natural light, so he was a perfect fit to take some candid shots around the city. We ventured allover the city: The Mission Dolores, Petrillo Hill, The Golden Gate Bridge, and various parks and buses in-between. We looked at murals, ate ice-cream, and shopped at fruit stands. It's amazing how friendly people become when you're running around town in wedding clothes.Overall, our photographer only cost about one-third of the typical "City Hall Photographers" rate. Plus, we received a disc of all the photographs only two hours later. With these digital rights we can now share the photos online and print out as many copies as we needed. We're also able to use the digital images to make our own hardcover photo books to give to our families.
We also had a ton of fun around the city, and it wasn't too expensive. We were able to use our free tickets to fly to San Francisco, and we stayed at The Chancellor Hotel right in the heart of downtown's Union Square.
Our hotel was a great deal; it was only $100/per night for a boutique, European-feeling hotel. Our room even came with its own rubber duck.
We spent a memorable weekend riding tandems across the Golden Gate Bridge, eating Dim Sum, and meeting skateboarding pitbulls in Haight-Ashbury.
Our only regret is our parents were disappointed that we didn't ask them to come. We didn't really think about that when we planned it. We just wanted to do something inexpensive without having people spend a lot of time or money. Knowing this, we probably would have invited them to come. I guess we will also be having some kind of celebration in the near future.

15 comments:

Kari in Alaska said...

Congrats! That sounds like the perfect wedding. We loved San Fransisco when we lived up there last year :)

pibble said...

How wonderful for you! I love San Francisco; it's probably my favorite city in the world. The photo of the two of you on the stairs is beautiful. All the best for many, many years of happiness together!

laura said...

How wonderful, and thank you for sharing (your pictures are stunning)!! I dearly love it when people break tradition and do things differently. I used to be a waitress (and a banquet manager) and I hated weddings! I know that sounds odd but I got so sick of expensive 'cookie cutter' (same old/same old) receptions and the amount of money spent? Way too much. If any of my kids did what you did, I would thank them, and I'm sure if you have a celebration later on your parents will be just fine.
I'm so impressed with you two! I'm just sorry that Ms M and Mr B didn't get to stand up for you!!

Unknown said...

Congratulations!!

Dexter said...

That is wonderful news! Momma says San Francisco is just about the nicest city she has ever visited.

Good luck to you both!

Slobbers,
Mango

Rachiley said...

So very awesome! I hope I get to see you next time you're down visiting your parents or I'm in Chicago!

Shauna (Fido and Wino) said...

CONGRATULATIONS! I absolutely LOVE E's shoes and you looked beautiful! What a great, memorable experience for you two! Congrats again!

Dottie said...

Congratulations! Sounds like the perfect wedding, for real :)

Martine said...

This is a bit late, but CONGRATS!!! Seth and I also eloped... we do live right across the bay from SF and never thought to do it here!! We went alone to Vegas, it was an adventure... we are not the Vegas types, so whenever we tell people they are just shocked!!

SWK said...

Awww!! I love the pictures!! Great dress/suit and nice place to get married!! Congrats!!

Joanie Hoffman said...

Wonderful photos!

Anonymous said...

This is really special. The photos are gorgeous!

Unknown said...

Hi Admin,

Your collections are very imaginative and arty. I love seeing a fellow photographer have so much passion for picture making as I am! Great skills, fantastic works of art!

San Francisco City Hall Wedding Photographer

Unknown said...

The photos are awesome

Wenni Donna said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
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