So, your wedding is coming up but you don’t have a lot of money to spend on it. You want all the glitz and glamor of a superstar wedding but you’re not made of cash. Hey – we all know that money doesn’t grow on trees. Planning a wedding during a recession is no easy task. It seems like every involved with the big day costs and arm and a leg too.
There are some key tricks for getting things like wedding favors and DJs/bands very cheap. There’s an incredible wedding planning guide available that has been the secret of wedding planners for years. You can DIY when it comes to wedding planning on a dime. You shouldn’t give up on your lifelong dream of having a stunning ceremony just because we’re in hard economic times. Cheer up – there is a solution.
Getting prepared for a wedding can be completely overwhelming. There is so much to think about. The cost of a wedding can be a huge strain on your pocket. The cost of most weddings is simply unreal. If you are a bride considering getting a wedding planner, you may not have to. You can actually organize your own wedding. You can be the mastermind behind your own wedding. Planning a wedding on a shoestring budget does not mean it has to look wimpy. I’ve been to some beautiful weddings that didn’t cost very much. A superb wedding planner can get things for a wedding at very low prices.
If you wish for your wedding to be a momentous event for both you and your partner, without letting your expenses reach monumental proportions, then plan your wedding like a true professional.
To help you out with the basics, here are a few cost-saving tips for wedding planning on a budget.
Decide as a couple how large and formal or how small and intimate your wedding event will be. This is the center from which your main plan will revolve and from which all your succeeding plans will radiate. Remember that wedding planning on a budget is not unusual these days, and almost everyone is going for it.
If there’s something you really have to spend on, it’s spending time for a lot of planning and preparation. You two should do it together. Doing some wedding planning on a budget will truly be worth your while.
Stay within your guest list. If you share common friends, have them as part of your bridal party and entourage. Surround yourselves with happy and supportive people on your rehearsals and on your most special of days.
Be practical yet innovative. Wedding planning on a budget doesn’t have to look plain and common-place.
Have an intimate home wedding and design the landscape to your heart’s desire according to your theme. Choose a naturally lovely garden you both have a soft spot for. Save on some flowers and thrive on the greenery for pictures that come alive.
Have a light and breezy seaside wedding and a romantic beach getaway after that. If you decide to rent a venue, sign up for the best wedding package you can get where you spend less but get more in quality and fineness of services.
Be prudent in estimating additional fees and service charges and in negotiating for wedding cakes, toasts, and other accessories to be included in your package as much as possible. Contracting out services individually and separately will turn out to be significantly more expensive that dealing with one or two contractors only. Coordinating with them will also be much easier.
Accept heartfelt offers of help from friends and family who certainly have talents in designing cakes, flowers, or dresses and who are experienced in taking photos or videos. Make do with your car if you already have a decent one. Use a friend’s classic or vintage car to add more romance and appeal to the church ride.
Create your own gifts and giveaways to surprise your bridal party and guests. Create hand-made crafts and keepsakes which everyone will automatically and fondly associate with you as a couple long after the wedding is done.
Save up for the main event. Give yourselves enough time and space to prepare for this transition emotionally and financially. When you get there, stay within your budget. Don’t let your plans get away from you. You can get away with a proper honeymoon and romantic break for two if you spend less on frivolities and make the most of wedding planning on a budget.
Sometimes there’s no easy way around planning a wedding, but on occasion you can save some time and grief by taking a shorter route to your goals. This article looks at some of these shortcuts.
When brides-to-be are asked about how they feel about planning their wedding, the overwhelming responses are as follows.
“I’m so excited I can hardly speak.”
“I’m really anxious about all I have to get done.”
A wedding is truly a labor of love for most engaged couples, and it’s natural to feel a bit wary of the wedding planning process. However, it doesn’t have to be so intimidating or cumbersome. Sure there are lots of details in even the smallest wedding, but most brides have months (and sometimes years) until the big day. And even though procrastination can sneak in here and there, you have time to get done what you need to plan the wedding of your dreams.
In addition, not every wedding task requires loads of effort, and there are ways you can minimize your effort in some areas, including:
Hiring a wedding planner – This is the ultimate wedding planning shortcut, although it is often the most expensive. A professional wedding planner is worth her/his weight in gold for brides who don’t have the time and want everything to come off without a hitch.
Break down tasks into do-able chunks – Any task is intimidating if you look at everything you have to do and think that it needs to get done now. Instead of setting yourself up to fail like this, instead take each task one-by-one and split it up into manageable chunks.
Using helpful tools and aids – There are now so many wedding planning resources available that you can easily find something that will work well for you. There are wedding scrapbooks and binders, wedding planner software, do-it-yourself wedding websites and thousands of other tools to keep your organized, and many of them cost little to nothing.
Buying it vs. making it – Often DIY brides feel compelled to make everything for their wedding, only to get bogged down in every detail. Sometimes, instead of making everything from scratch, you can buy kits to make favors or decorations, or even purchase some items while making the others.
Eliminating unnecessary stuff – There are often wedding events and items that we feel compelled to have because everyone else does. But just because your cousin had handmade napkin holders that matched the floral centerpieces at her wedding doesn’t mean you have to have them at yours. Give serious thought to what you really want and what is not necessary for your or your fiance’s happiness.
Trimming the decision tree – Often wedding planning gets held up by getting the “OK” from parents, siblings, friends, maids of honor, etc. Although it’s great to get input from people when you want it, this is your wedding and you alone should have the final decision when it comes to the planning it. So if the process gets hung up, you can make the executive decision to politely move on (making sure, of course, that feelings don’t get stepped on).
Recruiting help – Most brides feel like they have to do everything themselves, which could not be farther from the truth. In fact, recruiting your groom, bridesmaids and family to help you is a great way to celebrate your upcoming nuptials and get everyone interacting in a friendly way. For example, you could set up a fun activity at your bridal shower where for an hour everyone makes wedding decorations. It’s a great interactive activity as well as a way to get stuff done without doing it yourself.
