When making a list of rental items you will need for your wedding, it’s easy to get caught up in comparison-shopping. Twenty-five dollars for a basic white tablecloth? You can buy them online for $12 apiece.

With a little forethought and Internet sleuthing, you certainly can save money buying some items for your wedding. But then again, those savings might cost you your sanity. After all, the rental company’s price typically includes laundering and setup. Plus, rental agencies often coordinate with your other vendors to determine exactly which items you need.

Before going it alone, ask yourself: “Do I really need thirty-five tablecloths or 140 napkins that afterward need to be washed and folded, then re-sold or stored?” (The answer is probably: no, you don’t.)

Also take into consideration the ease of procuring an item, and whether you’ll have use for it after the wedding is over. Island bride Bethany deBettencourt opted to rent tables, chairs, and silverware for her wedding to Stephen Hammond, for instance, but collected mismatched vintage china plates, which she felt was important to the overall vibe of the reception.

 “I did see in my researching some really cool pictures of weddings where everyone's chair was different and antique and collected,” she said. “That was not feasible, not at all. I could barely manage the plates.” But the mason jars she sourced as glasses? That was well worth the effort, thanks to their built-in dual purpose: "My parents do a lot of pickling and canning.”