Planning a Wedding on a Budget
Of course, everyone plans a wedding on a budget. Do you know of anybody with unlimited funds? Kidding aside, the title of this piece refers to a situation wherein the couple would really like to keep wedding costs to a minimum for one reason or the other.The simplest way to keep costs down is not to have an elaborate ceremony or celebration. All you really need is a religious minister or a judge, the couple, and a handful of witnesses and you are all set. But what if you would still like all the usual trappings that come with weddings but just not as luxurious? What can you do? Listed below are a few ways that you may be able to save money and still have a traditional wedding:
1. Choosing the date for your wedding: Steer away from peak periods for weddings (most likely June, December, January) or around major holidays like Christmas, Easter, and the like. Although the chances of your guests being able to come increases if you schedule your wedding around vacation times, the rates for the reception venue, for example, or for hotels and other places of accommodation will also be higher. Having your wedding on a weekday may allow you to generate some savings as the places that you are targeting may have slightly lower rates.
2. Booking the venue for and planning the reception: You may want to survey your relatives and friends for a relatively big house or garden that you can use. This will generate substantial savings in terms of renting the place. If this is not possible, you can also look for a park or a social hall where you can hold the reception and this should turn out cheaper than having your party at a hotel or a restaurant.
Instead of getting someone to cater for the event, you may want to have someone cook party food for you and just deliver this to the venue for the celebration. You can have an ordinary cake for your wedding festivities instead of having a special wedding cake made. In one case, I have even heard of a potluck party where the wedding guests actually brought food to the celebration!
Serving breakfast or light snacks (mid- to late-afternoon) will also be more economical than going for a lunch or dinner reception.
3. Putting your wedding outfit together: There are several options to save money in this area. The couple may opt to just wear slightly dressy outfits to the occasion than having wedding outfits made. For the bride, she may also want to consider buying a gown off the rack, renting a gown, or buying the textiles or materials so a seamstress can make her wedding gown. Designer gowns will surely be out of the question. Another alternative will be to work on your mother’s wedding gown (if it is still around and if it fits you). You can just have someone re-do the gown a bit to make it more modern-looking and to have it suit the bride’s personality. In the case of the other members of the entourage, you might be able to politely tell them that they will need to take care of their own individual outfits.
4. Recording the proceedings: Instead of hiring a professional photographer or videographer, you may want to ask a talented friend or relative to just do this for you. Off-hand, photos may be more useful than having a video of the whole event for honestly-speaking, there will be a greater chance in the future that you will still be looking at the photos but there will be very few occasions when you would want to sit through watching the video of the complete proceedings.
5. Deciding on whom to invite: Keep your guest list to the barest minimum. This will include the couple, the entourage, and immediate family members. That would make a party of about 50 people?
There are countless other ways to be able to save money while preparing for your own wedding. Design and print the wedding invitations on your own. Get your relatives and friends to provide the music and/or entertainment during the reception. A wedding is a wonderful event that is worth remembering. It is important to keep in mind though that after the wedding comes numerous years together and it is best to be financially prepared by not splurging all of your life savings on just a single day.
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