Last year in April, I was in the thick of wedding planning. Sending invitations, planning decorations, finalizing everyone’s outfits in the wedding party, and more. I enjoyed the process and our wedding day was a dream… however, I am glad I don’t need to spend this year doing it all over again!
One of my top priorities for wedding planning was staying within budget. I wanted to enjoy the day and yes, to splurge on the things that were important to us. On the flip side, I didn’t want us or our parents to feel strapped for cash afterwards. Our wedding definitely didn’t have the typical “budget breakdown” but it was very us and everyone enjoyed the day.
So here are my best tips for weddings on a budget–whatever your budget is.
- Prioritize what’s important to you and your fiance(e)–not what some formula says you should spend on your venue, catering, florals, etc. We “overspent” on food; 40% of our budget was devoted to catering the reception! But we’re healthy foodies and Eric is gluten-free, so we had an entirely gluten-free menu done by a local, organic caterer. On the flip side, I spent just a few hundred dollars on decorations. We didn’t have professional floral arrangements, a rented photobooth, or a wedding planner–it was totally DIY. I don’t regret either choice.
- Skip wedding traditions you don’t care about. For us, we skipped an open bar (our venue wouldn’t allow it anyway), happy hour, a DJ or live music, and a wedding car. If it doesn’t matter to you and won’t affect your guests’ experience too much–why bother?
- Make your own floral arrangements or decor. I saved $1,433 by not ordering ten professional floral arrangements for tables and instead making them with friends the day before the wedding. Whether it’s placecards, favors, flowers, or something else: put your craftiness and friends’ help to work!
- Hire friends and family instead of professionals. We paid two family members of a friend to be “security guards” at our reception venue during the ceremony, had friends MC the reception, and a bridesmaid made our “photobooth” setup. People will be more than willing to help you cut costs by using their natural talents, so ask!
- Dress shop during sales. We bought my dress during Black Friday weekend so it was 10% off. Most of my bridesmaids found their dresses on sale as well.
- Reserve room blocks at hotels that will throw in a bride/groom suite. We actually didn’t do this, as I’ve always wanted to stay at a specific boutique hotel downtown and Eric indulged me on our wedding. But one of our reserved hotels did offer us a free room.
- Supplement your dessert offerings with a sheetcake. Gluten-free wedding cake from boutique bakeries is… expensive. So instead of a massive multi-tiered cake, we had a smaller decorated cutting cake, some cute cupcakes, and a giant sheetcake that covered half the guests. As long as there’s enough to go around!
- Look into photographers with discounts. Our photographers gave us a discounted engagement session when we booked our wedding shoot with them. They also offered us a sizable discount on their photobooth rentals. So ask around and see what people are willing to offer you.
- Wait to order stationary until there’s a sale. I got our invitations and inserts half-price by ordering them during a sale. There is no reason to pay hundreds (or thousands!) of dollars for cardstock that will be recycled within a few months, anyways.
- Remember: the day is about your love, not about impressing your guests. So don’t outdo yourself in an attempt to make everyone else’s experience “the best ever.” Feed your guests well and ensure that they’re not totally bored during the reception, but your day should scream you. Not professional wedding mag shoot if that’s not at all you.
Note that I didn’t include tips like “cut your guest list,” “don’t host your wedding on a Saturday,” or similar ones here. Weddings on a budget can still plan around personal choices like that. We didn’t manage to keep our guest list under 100 people, got married on a Saturday, had our ceremony + reception in different places, etc–but we still managed to keep things in budget.
Former brides–what are your best tips for weddings on a budget? Future brides–what is one of your top priorities for a future wedding?