We are all watching the pennies nowadays, and you want your wedding to be a special day, but it’s only sensible to try to save money. Once you have decided on your budget, you should try to stick to it, otherwise you might regret it later on.
If you are working to a budget, you will be looking for ways to save money on your wedding day. Here are a few easy ways to cut back on the expenses and avoid a financial disaster!
Friends and Neighbors
Start by thinking about what skills there are in your own pool of acquaintance. If you know a baker, a seamstress or a photographer, rope them in to help out on your big day. They might not be able to do the work completely for free, but many will do the work at cost for you, or will do it for you are your wedding present.
Cake
Making the wedding cake yourself can save your hundreds of dollars. If you plan in advance, you have time to practice the cake and to plan the decoration.
You could choose to have an alternative wedding cake, such as a wide, rectangular cake decorated in a particular style, or to have individual cup cakes for your guests, arranged in a tier. All these options are cheaper than a traditional wedding cake.
If you aren’t confident enough to decorate the cake yourself, see if you can find a decorator who will take a pre-baked cake and decorate it. This will save you a lot of money, as they charge you for the time it takes as well as the cost of the ingredients.
Favors
Making the wedding favors yourself will save a lot of money. The main cost involved in wedding favors is the time it takes for the company to put them together, as they are often very fiddly. If you have time to plan and make the favors, then this is a good place to make savings.
Flowers
Your choice of wedding flowers is a very personal one, and almost every bride has a different personal preference. If having a lot of flowers at your wedding is a priority, then you could think of ways to cut what is bound to be a large expenditure.
Making the bridal bouquets and flowers for the wedding party might not be an option, as you probably won’t have time on the day, but you could easily make the flowers for the wedding venue and the wedding reception, as they can all be done in advance. Make a deal with your local florist to buy the flowers in bulk and practice the arrangements beforehand to avoid disappointment.
Photography
Think carefully about your wedding photography. Everybody loves to see the photos, but do you really need that many? A photographer will charge for how long he is at the venue taking photos, so if you only want half-a-dozen shots, he can take them and go on to another job. Think about how often you will look at the photos and whether you really need any more than one of the whole wedding party and a few of the bridal party.
You should also think carefully about having a wedding video. If is a commonly acknowledged fact that many people never look at their videos. Given the fact that they can cost thousands of dollars, perhaps this is one area you can trim the spending.
These are just a few of the areas you can save money on your wedding. The main thing is to decide on your budget and stick to it. All it takes is a little planning – good luck!
