Some of the consignment shops around Raleigh, have wedding accesories, including new tiaras. Also, Michaels has tiara and veils (hemmed in a variety of ways, ribbon, with fishing line so they are curly, pearls and plain.) They also offer the option of ordering different lengths for the veils.

Sewing shops also carry tiara (JoAnn's). A few years ago there was a link here to a place that made tiaras with semi precious stones (but more expensive) Hopefully, someone will remember the site, or it is still searchable.

Best wishes,

Susan

My daughter got married last February. Ebay became a good friend to us. We got her tiara, flower girl dress, votive holders, votive candles, and bubbles there. There are many professional wedding vendors on there - all the time. Everything we bought was new, not used. Her tiara was 28.00 plus shipping.
Take your time there, watch the vendors who have what you like, watch their sales for awhile, and above all, follow their feedback comments. We saved so much money using ebay - don't rush it though! If you find the tiara of your dreams, trust me, another one just like it will show up in a few weeks.

Congratulations on the wedding. You will find the planning process to be a great time of bonding with your daughter. One of the big costs with a back yard wedding is the rental of tables, chairs, and linens. Be sure to attend wedding shows in your area and watch for coupons or discounts offered by rental centers and/or decorators. It all sounds lovely.

Thank you everyone for the welcome and advice. Been searching since wed for another version of this tiara...no luck so far. A friend and I went to the bridal store again today and looked at it again. As much as I love her, the money would be well spent elsewhere and hopefully someone on ebay or somewhere may offer a "mock version" of it. It really is quite pretty, more of a band than a tiara. No pearls, the flowers are pale pink and purple jewels and green leaves on a goldtone band.
We surprisingly were able to get a fantastic deal on a dress for me though...regular $210. on for $19.99 I couldn't believe it!!! The colour is called clover green, seperate lined chiffon sleevless dress, covered buttons...perfect fit and length. No beading etc. on it, just very simple. I also bought the stole/wrap (same colour in satin) that was the same price. I am hoping a seamstress freind of mine may be able to make a bolaro (sp?) type jacket from it. Her maid of honour was in the mall and found a beautiful blue/white floral halter dress (long) for $58.00. We called my daughter (bride) and she said go for it.... so the dress shopping is all done now. Amazing...! The other bridesmaid is wearing a gown that she wore this past summer to a wedding....don't worry, it was a freind of hers so no real concern over seeing the "same dress" type of situation. Both girls will be in halter style long dresses.
Today I picked up the embossing plates for the invitations and also got two pre-light wedding arches at our new Micheals store with the 40% off coupon.
All in all...a good day :)
Thank you all again, and I'll keep you posted.

Those 40% off coupons were lifesavers for us! Those and ebay saved us hundreds! By the way - Joanne Fabrics also accepts Michael's coupons - at least they do here in Michigan. That's how we bought the flower girl basket, card box, and ring bearer pillow - saved loads. Good luck to you!

I agree with Nana there are some lovely new things on Ebay

Martha Stewart Weddings has show several backyard/garden/outdoor weddings (including the wedding of one of their editors, who married in her folks' backyard in Toronto!)

You might look there for ideas.

The biggest thing, I think, is to pick the ceremony site and focal point, and to figure out how you want to draw attention to it. Not at all? Already have a gazebo? Get a rental-tent company to provide a small platform so everybody in the ceremony is raised up a bit? Install a lattice arch this spring and plant a climbing&flowering vine that'll be in bloom in August? Or a wide lattice screen to be a backdrop behind them, and plant it w/ climbing greenery?

Also, you'll want to research what's available (and what it'll cost) for rental in terms of chairs, potties, tents, runners, aisles (sometimes you can get wooden planking for the bride to walk up to the aisle, so her heels don't sink in).

Then you can decide what you want, and what you can afford.

It can be expensive to do a wedding at home if you need to rent a lot of stuff like chairs and tents.

But you can also make it lovely without spending that much. It'll have to be simpler, of course.