wedding bells at every price point.

I fully intend to stay until the end of our reception. If I put this much time and money and thought into an event, I want to enjoy every moment of it! So I don't see any need for a send-off from the reception (ie. sparklers, rice, etc.).

And I plan to take photos at the church after the ceremony, so no big send-off there either. Just a receiving line and then sneaking off to get down to pictures.

But I do like the idea of guest participation in something. Enter, bells. I'd like to have bells for people to ring as we exit the church. I figure I'll let my immediate family know the plan so that they can start the ringing, just in case other people aren't 100% of when and where to use them. but what kind of bells to hand out?

This is what I had in mind before I started looking. A simple, classic silver bell. Beautiful. Unfortunately, at >$2 each, this looks like a less-viable option unless I can find someone reselling theirs for cheaper. So far, no luck. (Her Wedding Favors, $2.75 each; Open Tip, $2.80 each; Favor Favor, $1.85 each; Amazon, $3.14 each (incl. organza ribbon and printed hang tag))

Then I saw these. Beautiful, classy, and perhaps even easier to ring? And way cheaper. Thank you, Martha. But I'm just not sure that I can get over the fact that they remind me of Christmas. It would be an easy DIY project though - I could feel like I was actually DIYing something for the wedding. (Wedding Bee Classifieds, 150 bells with ribbon and bag for $50; This and That 4 You, 144 plain bells for $28.79; PaperMart, 25 velour bags for $3; PaperMart, 50 yards of 1 1/2inch double-faced satin ribbon for $7.95 (That's $54.74 to DIY 150!))

Then there are these guys. They are ity-bitty, and definitely look cheaper to me. And the cheapest of these come with a card with some sort of kissing poem (that I don't want). But, they are <$1 each, and I'm sure I could remove the cards. And they come in both silver and gold (I'd go with silver). (Oriental Trading Co., 50 for $4.99; Century Novelty, 24 for $8.98; Future Memories, 24 for $10.65 )

I just can't bring myself to commit to the cheap ones. I love the price. I do. Maybe I'm just being snotty. Or maybe, I should run my A.C. Moore (I think I've seen them there), and at least test run the tiny bells and the jingle bells and see if I even like the way they sound - that's what really matters, right?

reception flip flops

I love the idea of having slippers for wedding guests to slip into at the reception. I don't imagine that cozy bedroom slippers or particularly nice flip flops will fit in my budget. we do have a collective 6 years of law school to pay off, after all. So I've been looking into some more affordable alternatives.

First, I saw this pattern for paper slippers on foldingtrees! Way too cute, and I could use any paper and perfectly match the wedding. Too cute! But I wonder how well they would adapt to a variety of foot sizes. Hrm. And can you imagine all the time I would have to spend folding?! I imagine that they most cost effective way would be to buy paper in rolls, but I wonder what it would really work out to be? And would people slip on the dance floor if they were wearing paper slippers? (But they are WAY cute!)

Then I thought about the little slippers that they give you at the pedicurist. They come in a variety of colors and are slightly more substantial, and I wouldn't have to worry about sizes - they are intended to be one size fits all.

And they're only $.33 - that's a big point in their favor. But I worry that they are too obviously cheap. And that people won't slip into them because a) the flimsiness will make them uncomfortable, b) women wearing hose won't want to deal with the toe thong, c) they won't be obviously noticeable, or d) people just won't have a problem with dance barefoot/sock footed.

So, in the end, is it worth doing half-way, or should I just commit to full fledged flip flops or nothing?