Money Saving Tips for Weddings

Having been married a year and everything is settled, I can now look back and consider what it was all about and if it was worth the money.

I believe that we spent a lot of money on our wedding - 14k for one day in your life is a lot of money. But in comparison to what people are spending, we came in about 10k less than the average. I mean can you imagine spending over 20k in one day, just like that? and believe me, it is just like that. You're wedding day is the quickest day of your life.

Everyday, someone will come up with a new idea about what you HAVE TO HAVE at your wedding. All a big marketing ploy to catch you while you're in wedding hype mode and make you spend more money. Worrying about everyone's expectations, we suddenly believe that we need to have singing parrots (or whatever the next new thing is). It's totally ridiculous, but the truth is you so want your day to be amazing you become blind to people basically taking you for mug!

There are a lot of things you CAN have for your wedding, but do you NEED these things? Will people actually notice them? and will you look back and think "why did I throw away 500 quid on wedding favours?"

These are the bits we wanted to get right:

• Music
• Food
• Venue/Location
• Photographer

These are the things you and your guests will remember. Guests always comment on these things! If they are treated well, they will remember it. They won't remember the fancy guestbook and pen or the program you spent hours making.

Things we skipped and didn't miss:

Wedding Favours - I can't tell you how many times I've heard brides say they were the biggest waste of money because the guests left them on the table at the end of the night
Church flowers - really no one noticed this! spending hundreds on flowers for one hour is a sin
Cake - we didn't skip it, but we kept it simple
Table plan - we hung cards to a nearby tree (outdoor reception)
Menu Cards
Video - a great friend did loads of interviews with guests, these were invaluable. We still laugh at them
Luxury honeymoon - most people regret what they spend on this. Pick somewhere you know you're going to like, just book a nicer hotel if that makes it more special.
Minimal Bridesmaids and groomsmen - you won't believe how much they add up

  

Things I regret spending money on:

Flowers - even though we went totally minimal, I still can't believe what a waste it is and how unbelievably expensive bouquets costs.
Car - they are used so little. We had a Jaguar, I didn't even like it. I just got it because my Dad wanted a car. Sometimes you have to keep the parents happy.
Cake - we didn't spend a lot, but I still wonder why we even bother with them

Things I wasn't going to spend money on, but glad I did:

Hair and Makeup. I had the crazy idea that I could do this myself. I have no patience for doing my hair on a normal day and I didn't realise how nervous I would have been on the day. The ladies were real pros and there's no way I could have done half the job they did.

BBQ the day after the wedding. Was coaxed into this by my parents, who helped with the cost. But as we had a wedding abroad, it was nice to thank guests for their effort in coming over and didn't cost a huge amount compared to other wedding costs.


Final tips

Spend what you can afford. Don't get into debt buying diamond encrusted wedding rings if you can't afford it. How do you think we ended up in a recession? People always put themselves under so much pressure to buy what they think they should. I always remember weddings from my parents day, they were so simple. There are people I know paying off a wedding a year after the day - this is ludicrous!

Pick a few things that are most important to you e.g. entertainment and get that right. And don't depend on wedding gifts to pay for your wedding. Despite what people say, guests do not pay for themselves in wedding gifts!

It's so easy to get caught up in wedding fever. You want everything you see in sight. But just ask yourself the question "do I really need this? Is it worth the money? Is my sane self going to tell me off about this after the wedding?".

What do you think of these tips? Do you have any yourself? What are the important elements of your day?


If you're considering getting married abroad, go on over to my post to help you decide Here