[LittleOldLady]

Throwing any party with good food and drink is expensive, period. A couple of years ago a friend and I gave a reception for a couple who had gotten married out of town. So we didn't have any expenses pertaining to the ceremony itself. We had the reception in her (big, beautiful) house Uptown and invited about 60 guests. She did all the catering herself--although she is an amateur, she is probably the best caterer in the New Orleans that was, and that is saying something. The food was upscale, looked great and tasted great. Her aunt and uncle are florists, so we got the flowers at cost, and another friend did a great job of arranging. There is (or was) a huge wedding item store in New Orleans that has very favorable prices (I compared them to online sources), so the invitations were not expensive, and yet another friend who worked his way through school doing calligraphy did the addressing. I went to one of the "society" bakeries and bought a two-layer cake (more than enough for 60) with cascades of flowers for $100 (the exact same cake would cost more than twice that in Vegas). We had an open bar with champagne and hired a student as bartender (a lot of our students tend bar in the Quarter). We used all real plates, flatware, and glassware--we clubbed together what we owned and bought more at a restaurant supply store. The son of yet another colleague who is a professional jazz guitarist did the music for a token fee. His sister and her best friend helped with the serving and cleanup. We used those disposable cameras for the photography. Basically it was a do-it-yourself job--but it was a first-rate do-it-yourself job. The cost was well over $2000--and that was drinks and nibbles and wedding cake for a modest guest list. No professionals involved except for the wedding cake bakery and the invitations printer. Hospitality is simply not cheap.