Cheap Wedding Plans – How to Save A Bundle of Money on Your Dream Wedding
You can save a bundle on your wedding plans with a few simple strategies. Check out these ideas for keeping some of your cash, while still giving her the dream wedding she deserves.
If you have started planning your wedding, you have no doubt come to the sickening realization that weddings can get very expensive in a hurry. In fact, the 2002 American Wedding Study pegged the average cost of a wedding in the U.S. at $22,000, and that was 8 years ago! If your girlfriend has her heart set on a lavish affair fit for royalty, you’re pretty darn lucky if her father is footing the entire bill. If you are looking to stretch your wedding dollars, maybe some cheap wedding plans are in order, but only if she doesn’t have to sacrifice her day due to the economy.
Sure, you may have to make some sacrifices, such as forgoing a 5 star hotel on your wedding night, but overall, your ceremony should be all you have hoped for. Here are some great tips that can really help you save money, but still get the wedding you (and mostly she) have been dreaming about. The key is to be cheap without looking cheap.
Start planning early –
It is never too early to start the wedding planning process. If you are going to have a large wedding, there are a tremendous number of details to be worked out, and the sooner you get started, the easier it will be. From a cost standpoint, early planning means that you have more time to get the best deals on everything from the venue, to napkins, to booze. Use the Internet to find and compare prices on everything. Getting an early start will allow you to do this much more effectively.
Get a used gown –
Think about it, you can have her get a spectacular, designer wedding gown for pennies on the dollar. The great thing about wedding gowns is that they are only used once. In some cases, people put them away for relatives or friends to use in the future, but many times very expensive designer gowns are sold for next to nothing. Check Craigslist, eBay, and one of the many used wedding gown referral sites populating the Internet. Often you can get a fantastic deal from an individual on Craigslist or eBay, but you’ll get a better selection and easier shopping at the referral sites.
Wear old shoes (her, not you) –
Yes, I can hear her screaming now, but think about it for a second; if she has a long gown, no one is ever going to see her shoes, and when you’re peeling them off her feet later that night, she isn’t going to care that they are old. There is no sense in spending a few hundred clams on new designer shoes that no one is ever going to see anyway.
Get discount flowers at the local market or online, don’t go to a specialty florist -
Specialty florists are very expensive and do you really care that you’re not going to have bouquets of Casablanca Lilys, Hydrangeas, or Lily of the Valley? Probably not, and if you’re having a large wedding with a bouquet she is going to throw, and dozens of tables at the reception, you don’t want to be using these kinds of flowers. You could spend thousands on flowers alone.
Have the reception somewhere that doesn’t look cheap, but is. –
Why rent an expensive venue such as a 5 star hotel for your reception, when there are some fantastic places that can be had for far less? For example, try some of the state parks where you can rent space. You’ll be rewarded with spectacular views and spend a fraction of what you’d spend renting the ballroom at a nice hotel or other venue. For example, the Egyptian Ballroom and terrace at the Fox Theater in Atlanta goes for about $7,000 a night, and a ballroom at many 5 star hotels such as the The Grand Ballroom at The Peninsula Chicago, can command that much and more for the privilege of holding your reception there.
Have the reception at some place that looks cheap and is. –
You can rent a lodge or hall from the VFW, ELKS, or any one of a dozen organizations in lieu of shelling out the cash for some expensive digs.
This is one time to call in favors from friends, relatives, and acquaintances. In our current economic situation, bargains are to be found, if you spend the time to look for them. Check for hotels with meeting facilities in your that have been experiencing a lag in business, then, and this important, negotiate with them for a reduced rate. Remember many hotels have been hit especially hard by reductions in business travel and meetings, so their meeting room and ballroom bookings are way down. Use this to your advantage. It will take some time on the phone, but it will be well worth it.
If you have any friends or relatives with nice homes, or homes with scenic views, now may be the time to see if they’ve ever thought about hosting a wedding or reception. Don’t make them feel bad or hold it against them if they say no, though.
My wedding was on a beach in Hawaii. It was one of the most beautiful settings anywhere, and it was so cheap it was almost free. The weather was perfect, except for the wedding party there was no one around for a mile, and the warm sand felt fantastic between our toes. See, if you aren’t wearing shoes, you’ll definitely save money on them. It took some time to find the perfect beach and set it all up, but the money we saved on the venue paid for our trip to the islands.
Get your cake at Costco or Sam’s Club –
You might also negotiate a favorable rate with a small, local baker if there is one in your neighborhood. That will save you money on the cake vs. one of those larger bakeries or custom cake places.
Look to other sources for the eat and drink. – Another way you’ll save big by not having your reception at a fancy schmancy hotel is on the booze and food. If you have the reception on a beach or in a state park, you’ll be able to bring your own alcohol, and have the food brought in from a local restaurant or caterer with reasonable catering rates. You can even cook the food yourselves and have it brought to the reception by a friend. You can get the hors d overs at a warehouse food store or at Costco for a much better deal than you’ll get at a hotel.
Hire a photography or videography student to handle the photo and video duties –
This can save you a substantial amount of money, but be aware that you’re potentially risking family heirlooms here. “What, Grandma and Grandpa don’t have any pictures from their wedding because they cheaped out and there was a problem?” On the other hand, you may get fantastic results and save hundreds.
These are just some of the ways you can save your hard earned dough on your wedding plans. You may have to scale back your (or her) expectations somewhat, but you can still get a tremendous wedding for far less than you’d expect. Remember, it pays to negotiate, and never take the first price they quote you for anything.
