Planning Your Wedding on a Budget

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With the economy suffering right now, it can seem impossible to afford your dream wedding. But luckily there are ways to cut costs in your wedding budget so that you don’t have to compromise that dream gown or beautiful destination. Here’s my top five tips for keeping your wedding budget under control:

1. Choose your date carefully. Off-season is the best, and stay away from holidays. Many locations will give big discounts for Sunday vs. Saturday. A candlelight wedding on a Friday night is extremely romantic - and much less expensive than the typical Saturday evening wedding. Not only can you save on locations, but vendors such as catering, bakeries, and florists, will often give you a discount since they are less likely to be busy those days.

2. Invite less guests. It’s amazing how much you can save by eliminating a few folks from your guest list. It’s your wedding - you don’t “have” to invite anyone. Let go of the pressure to invite those friends you haven’t seen in years or those coworkers you don’t even like. Not only will it keep your wedding day less expensive, but you can actually spend time with all your guests this way. A smaller wedding can feel more intimate and relaxed, as well.

3. Plan the wedding yourself. Wedding planners can be costly, and many of the tasks that they perform you may be able to do yourself. Enlist the help of bridesmaids, Moms, grandmothers, and other friends to keep from getting overwhelmed. Your family and friends will be happy to help with your special day!

4. Have the wedding and reception in the same place. By picking a multi-purpose venue you can usually get a package deal and save a good bit of money. It also keeps your planning less stressful, and you don’t have to pay for transportation to several locations.

5. Limit your attendants. Each bridesmaid, groomsman, flower girl, ring bearer, etc. all cost you. Sure we all want our family and friends to be involved in our wedding day, but try to limit the number of attendants wherever possible. There are lots of way to get these folks involved, like with the planning!

I found some great budget wedding tips here for further reading. Brides.com also has several great articles on saving money in your wedding budget.

If you are looking for affordable bridal accessories, check out some of my favorites below. These pieces look pricey, so no one will know your money-saving-secret!