When it comes to wedding costs, not a lot is cheap. Put the word "wedding" in front of anything and the price is guaranteed to have tripled. We all wish for a great day to remember, but at the cost of breaking the bank.. no thank you! Whether you are planning an extravagant soirée or a more intimate gathering, there are plenty of ways to save the pennies.
Find a venue that does it all
After so much searching and contacting potential venues we were lucky enough to find somewhere that was not only picturesque but also supplies all catering and sleeping accommodations as well as the ceremony. I would just like to add that the venue searching process was extremely stressful because not all venues will give you a price estimate until you have visited. This is of course intended for you to fall head over heels for a venue that is £1000's over your budget, which in my experience made the viewing rather awkward and uncomfortable. Anyway back to the ideal venue.. if you can find a venue that accommodates the ceremony, food, entertainment and rooms for guests to stay... you are laughing. No need to splurge on fancy travel to and in between destinations.. you're already there! Plus having a number of rooms being occupied can make for a possible discount depending on who you ask.
Shop bought cake
Who wants to pay £600 for 3 sponges stacked on top of each other? No exaggeration either, that is how much I was quoted before deciding a cake was not worth hundreds of pounds (wedding or not). Thankfully a friend informed me of plain wedding cakes that can be purchased from M&S of all places. There's a couple of flavour and size options, ideal for a tiered wedding cake. Cost can be well under £100 and if you want to decorate, why not do it yourself with fresh flowers or ask a creative friend to help. We are lucky enough to have had a friend offer assistance after attending some cake decorating courses. That's at least £500 saved that could go towards the honeymoon.
ASOS is worth a look
I personally can't be bothered with the hassle of bridesmaid shopping for hours and hours. If you didn't already know ASOS have really upped their game when it comes to wedding attire and there are tons of beautiful and reasonably priced bridesmaid dresses to chose from. I'm talking hundreds of colours, styles and lengths so there is something to please everyone. This is much better for a bride on a budget, or even if you are asking for bridesmaid contributions, you may feel a little easier in asking for a dress that's around the £50 mark. Brides also note ASOS have been adding wedding dresses online and they shouldn't be underestimated.
DIY table decor
Brides love a good Pinterest search for centrepiece ideas and they can be so easy and inexpensive to make yourself. From painted mason jars to candles in fishbowls, there's everything you could imagine. A recent idea I have come across is incorporating the bridesmaids flowers into the centrepieces after the ceremony is over. What a great idea and a special touch for guests to admire.
Negotiate & question
Not my strongest point but let's face it, most venues and wedding services chuck their prices up because people splurge on their big day. There's no harm in asking where prices can be lowered or if you could change a few things to reduce the spend. Take canapés for example. Our first wedding outline with our chosen venue included a lot more booze than we wanted to pay for and canapés between the ceremony and sit down meal. Our ceremony is in the afternoon so we expect people will eat before and can hold off finger food before the meal. This saved us another £100 or so and all because we questioned it. Don't be afraid to negotiate and question what you would like. It's your big day after all.
Talk to friends and family
You may be surprised of what good can come of just mentioning your ideas to family and friends. We are extremely lucky in having my mum (a florist) who is helping with all the flower arrangements and my dad (a graphic designer) who can create all wedding stationary. But professions aside, having casually mentioned our plans to various people, we found some of them to have connections including a DJ friend who would help at a discounted rate. Talking to others can also be great for reviews or different services. If nothing else, you get a good chat session.
I hope this has given you some ideas when it comes to budgeting. Do you have any ideas? Comment below.
No comments
Post a Comment