Your wedding is a day that you will remember for your entire life. If you don’t carefully plan your wedding, however, then it will be a day that you don’t forget for all of the wrong reasons. What the “perfect wedding” is to you, depends largely upon your personal preference.
If you are a very quiet and reserved person, then perfect to you could mean a small registry office. Whatever you like, you don’t have to pay an arm and a leg for your wedding. You can cut down costs quite effectively, as long as you plan ahead and take care.
Here’s how you can get your wedding for less:
1. Work Out Your Budget
The first thing that you need to do is to work out a budget. The reason for this, according to Erin Betzler from YeahWeddings.com, is that you don’t start spending without considering how much is actually affordable for you. The best way to create a budget is to sit down with your partner and talk it through them. If you have mutual savings, then you can consider putting them in.
It’s also very common for the engaged couple’s parents to put money into the wedding, so consider asking them if they are going to help out financially. If you want to increase your budget, then you could also consider taking out a loan. The more you can spend, the better your wedding will generally be.
2. Marry Out of Season
If you want to save money, then a good way to do so is to marry out of season. Wedding venues charge an arm and a leg during the wedding season, which is spring until autumn. Additionally, caterers and other wedding service providers increase their charges during these months. The best way to reduce your overall spending is to get married during the winter or autumn months.
Most venues and wedding service providers don’t get a lot of business during these months, which is why they usually offer large discounts. With all of that said, however, most venues and caterers will be kept busy with other things during these months. If you want to book wedding services during the off-season, then make sure that you make inquiries in advance.
3. An Intimate Occasion
Another way to bring down your wedding’s cost is to just invite your immediate friends and loved ones. While a very large wedding is great for photos and is a lot of fun, a small wedding is a lot more intimate and memorable. You will just be surrounded by the people that are closest to you.
Not only will this improve your relationships with these people, but it will also make your wedding day a lot more special. Small, intimate weddings aren’t for everybody, however, so don’t feel compelled to have one if you don’t want to. Just remember that a smaller wedding can save you thousands of dollars.
4. Buy a Bargain Dress
Another way to cut down your wedding cost is to buy a budget dress. You can find budget dresses on sale at dress outlet shops during the sale season, or you can buy them second-hand. If you are going to buy a budget dress, then make sure that it fits you before you buy it. Lots of brides make the mistake of buying dresses second-hand or on sale, and not trying them on.
While in most cases, it is possible to have one’s dress tailored and adjusted to one’s size, in some it isn’t. If your dress is several sizes too big, for example, then a tailor won’t be able to bring it down to your size without compromising the dress’s structure and form.
5. Shop During Sales Season
When you are shopping for your wedding, your dress isn’t the only thing that you need to think about. You also need to think about the groom’s suit, as well as all of the bridesmaids’ and bridegrooms’ clothing. The best way to pick all of these things up (if you are buying them because sometimes the people wearing them will buy them), is then the best time to shop is during sales season.
Additionally, you can also buy other things that you’ll need during the sales season, including decorations. Some venues might provide their own decorations, however.
6. Create Your Own Card
Instead of paying a professional company to print off invitation cards for your wedding, why not create your own card? As long as you’ve got access to a printer, then you should be able to do it. You will need to buy the right paper for the job, however. You cannot send out cards printed on ordinary pieces of paper.
You can download graphic editing software on a trial basis, for your card’s creation. You can also use a template to get your card started. Creating your own cards can save you a lot of money.
7. Use Your Friends’ Talents
If any of your friends are caterers, graphic designers, or event planners, then be sure to use their talents to your advantage. Ask them if they would be willing to contribute to your wedding, for the sake of saving money. If they are a good friend of yours or a close relative, then this shouldn’t be a problem.
If you don’t know them as well, then ask them if they would offer you their services at a discount. If your close friends and relatives agree to help you for free, you should still try to offer them some payment as a thank you for their help, even if it’s only a small amount.
8. Find the Perfect Venue
Finally, make sure that you find the perfect venue. Your wedding venue has a lot of influence over how much you will enjoy it. Your wedding venue doesn’t have to be a large hall like most people hold their weddings in nowadays.
It could be something more intimate like a small local church, or even one of your loved one’s gardens. What the perfect venue is depended largely upon you, your life, and what you like most. Don’t let anybody else influence your decision.
Your wedding is a day that you will remember for the rest of your life. For this reason, it needs to be perfectly planned. Planning the perfect wedding and cutting down costs can be very difficult, however. The best way to save money is to create a budget from the very beginning, so you don’t end up overspending. It’s very easy to overspend on a wedding, especially a large one.
