While watching The Real L Word the other day I nearly choked on the cookie I was eating when the lesbian couple who is getting married were talking about their wedding planner. What did me in? The fact that they are spending more on just their wedding planner than we have budgeted for our entire wedding.
Now I get that these people have way way way more money than me, but still that was hard to fathom.
This made me curious about how much people in different parts of the country spend on their weddings and I discovered: costofwedding.com. First I couldn't believe that the US average is about $20,000. That is just seriously insane to me. But I thought, well that takes into account people who spend millions. So I typed in my zip code and learned that most people in my area spend between $12,500 and $20,000. That is still unreal to me. Our budget is quite a bit lower than the bottom number never mind the upper.
Which made me freak out a bit. Is our budget unrealistic? Am I forgetting to put things in our budget? Is it really possible to throw a party and all that jazz for 130 people and not go broke?
I'm thinking its time to bust out one of those wedding calculator worksheet thingies and really get to business. Cause I have a feeling this is going to cost a lot more than we think it is.
So what are your money saving tips for weddings? I'm willing to hear any suggestions. Ways to save on invitations, favors, decorations, whatever.
In other reality tv news I must confess I got one of my ideas regarding decorations from watching The Real Housewives of New York. I'm not sure which is worse, confessing I've watched that show or stealing decorating ideas from women with some seriously questionable tastes.
Print your invites yourself. Don't order them. Michael's has some kits. Also, DIY party favors.
ReplyDeleteInstead of giving wedding favors you can make a donation to a charity in honor of each guest (but done in a lump sum from you). At my sister's wedding they had little cards for each person to check off which of 3 charities they would like the donation to go to and then she donated some amount to each charity based on what people voted for. I read once about an opposite-sex couple who donated to HRC and told their guests it was to support the fight for marriage rights for everyone.
ReplyDeleteDon't go crazy on the flowers, keep them simple and seasonal. Have a friend who's into photography take the pictures.
That's all I've got at the moment :)
Jayna... gmta, sort of. We aren't doing the donation thing for the favors, we are, however, registering at the HRC website. i'm planning on doing a post about that one of these days. The HRC offers a wedding registry where people can donate to the cause in a couples name. So while we will also be filling out a more traditional registry at like target or something, we are going to encourage people to donate instead if they like. :D
ReplyDeleteAnd as for the flowers, we've already decided whatever is available day of at the local supermarket shall do just fine :D
Thanks for your thoughts! I do like the idea of the donation cards for the favors. its very cool.
Hi!
ReplyDeleteI have at least one good tip- buy a smaller wedding cake for the display, pictures, and cake cutting ceremony and have sheet cake of the same flavor to serve the bulk of the guests. The sheet cake can be hidden in the kitchen and the guests will never know. Don't forget the save the top of the wedding cake for your first anniversary! :)
My matron-of-honor's husband occasionally played in a string quartet for weddings, so I was able to get them to play during the hors d'oeuvres for free.
My husband made the website of a local band and they played at our reception. Swapping services saved us a bunch of money in this instance.
Photos are the only aspect of the day that lasts beyond the party, and you want to make sure they are quality photos that will last. With this in mind, I would caution you about using a friend to take your wedding photos. I am not saying a non-professional can't do a great job, but don't assume he or she can. Practice with the friend, if you decide against hiring someone, to take engagement photos of you and C. You'll be able to see the quality and (hopefully) get cute pics of you two!
I've read that one or two large arrangements of flowers, say 18 roses, will have a greater visual impact than 18 single roses spread throughout the entire room. Place arrangement somewhere important and the room will seem "full of flowers."
Instead of an open bar, serve pitchers of margaritas or sangria. Or just have beer and soda. I don't drink, and I don't know the etiquette of these things, but something to think about.
White tablecloths were provided by the location. Renting colored tablecloths was going to cost $300. My MIL bought some colored fabric and made simple squares to top the round tables and saved us $250.
That's all I've got. Good luck and have fun!
Maxy
I came across this site and thought of you immediately! Lots of tips for a budget-friendly wedding: http://www.younghouselove.com/wedding-album/
ReplyDeleteMaxy
Thanks for the web site and suggestions Maxy!
ReplyDelete~The Lesbian Bride
Skip things! We didn't do a program, saving us both the time (and anxiety) of putting it together, and the cost. We should have skipped buying a guest book, as it was expensive and almost no one signed it. We bought cheap invitations from David's Bridal online. They looked fine, but cost a fraction of the price of fancy invitations. If you plan to buy any thank you gifts for family/friends involved in the wedding, buy them well in advance so you don't end up spending too much at the end because you have to do it quickly. Simple flowers. Great DJ instead of a band (if you need a suggestion in Milwaukee, we loved our DJ and can probably find the name). So excited for you!
ReplyDelete~Anne