The dream of a big wedding is a common one, complete with fine cars, gorgeous flowers, a lavish reception and hundreds of guests to come and enjoy your special day. Unfortunately, those big, ritzy weddings cost money.
While it would be lovely to have a glamorous wedding to rival the Hollywood superstars, there doesn’t seem to be much point beginning your married life in the poorhouse. After all, one of the major causes listed for divorce is arguing over money.
So why not start your marriage out on the right foot and plan on ways to save for your dream wedding. You’ll still be getting married in great style, but you can do it just as easily on a budget and you won’t be starting out your married life with huge debts hanging over your head.
Besides, by saving a little on the wedding costs, you may have enough left over for a nicer honeymoon, or even begin building on saving towards a deposit on your own family home.
Here are some tips on how to save for your dream wedding without breaking the budget:
Start a Savings Plan
Did you know the estimated cost of the average wedding budget is around $36,200? If you don’t have some savings behind you, you may find you end up borrowing most of the costs, either from parents or family, or worse, on a credit card.
Rather than go into debt for your wedding, begin a savings plan as soon as you’re able. If you and your fiance both begin putting aside regular amounts of cash into an allocated savings account, you could find that funds begin to mount up quickly.
Shop around a little and see if you can find a savings account that pays you a decent rate of interest, while still leaving your money on call. You don’t want to lock your money away for too long, as you may need to access it to pay for deposits on the reception hall or church or bridal cars.
Prioritise Your Wedding
Have you thought about what aspects of your wedding have the highest priority in terms of funding allocation? There are plenty of components to a wedding, so it’s completely up to you how you want to prioritise those parts in order to create a memorable day.
Consider the following aspects:
- Reception
- Ceremony
- Dresses/clothing/suits
- Flowers
- Entertainment
- Photographer
- Transport
- Wedding rings
- Gifts/bomboniere
- Stationary/invitations/place-cards
- Sundries
When you consider some of the components that go into creating a memorable day in your life, it’s important to work out which areas have a higher priority than others. Then allocate more funds towards those sections and reduce the others by a little less.
Set a Budget
Based on your own predicted savings levels and on the estimated cost of your main priorities as listed above, you will need to create a budget.
Only you know how much you will have to spend, so it’s up to you to work out how you’ll break down what’s available to spend on what areas. Then make a point to stick to your allocated budget.
A great way to keep track of your budget is with our free budget calculator. Try it out here.
Do It Yourself
Perhaps you know someone who could create a wonderful wedding cake as a wedding gift. You might also be able to enlist friends and family to help you create your own bomboniere, or gifts, to leave your guests for attending your wedding.
Negotiate
Always remember you’re the customer holding the purse-strings. Those bridal stores, florists, caterers, limousine companies and reception halls really want your business, so make them work for it!
Let them know you’re shopping around to find a good price for the items you want for your wedding and ask for a written quote. The prices will start to come down when they know they’re competing against other companies for your business.
Dream Wedding Dress
Wedding dresses can cost anywhere from hundreds up to thousands of dollars. However, if you’re on a budget, it’s very possible to buy your dress ‘off the rack’ instead of paying for a designer dress.
Another way to save money on a great wedding dress is to buy a bridesmaid dress or formal dress in white or ivory. These can work very well as a stylish wedding dress, especially once they’re dressed up with a veil and a lovely bouquet.
Where NOT to Cut Costs
While it’s fine to work to a close budget, there are some areas where you shouldn’t skimp on cost. One of these is food and catering.
Of course it’s fine to cut down from a five-course meal down to a two course meal, offering a main course and a dessert. However, don’t be tempted to offer low-cost tough beef cuts or fried chicken. That just screams cheap.
Photography is another area not worth cutting costs on. You only get one shot at getting those memorable photos and you won’t get a second chance, so it’s worth paying for a professional to create those memories for you.
