Budget Weddings Need Not be Cheap
Ranked #18,948 in Culture & Society, #384,877 overall
Well Budgeted Weddings are Possible
It starts with the "proposal".
How the big question is asked can set the scene for the theme of the wedding. Take time to consider the way in which you propose.
Next comes planning the wedding. Most times, the groom is happy to leave this to the bride to be. BUT....he needs to remember that this is both a time of joy and also a time of stress for his loved one. His input and support is vital.
It doesn't matter how fantastic the "big day" is, if you end up in debt over it, your memories will always be tinged with the smallest degree of regret.
That is why, you would do well to come up with a plan to meet both your financial goals and the most important goal ... a happy stress free day.
How the big question is asked can set the scene for the theme of the wedding. Take time to consider the way in which you propose.
Next comes planning the wedding. Most times, the groom is happy to leave this to the bride to be. BUT....he needs to remember that this is both a time of joy and also a time of stress for his loved one. His input and support is vital.
It doesn't matter how fantastic the "big day" is, if you end up in debt over it, your memories will always be tinged with the smallest degree of regret.
That is why, you would do well to come up with a plan to meet both your financial goals and the most important goal ... a happy stress free day.
Index
- Submit Your Money Saving Tips
- Links of Interest
- How to Buy Diamond Engagement Rings
- Choosing A Wedding Date
- Create your own flawless inexpensive wedding plan!
- Million Dollar Wedding Under $10,000
- Chosing Your Bridesmaids
- Matron of Honour Duties
- Bridesmaid Duties
- The Perfect Speech
- The MC's Duties
- The Bridal Waltz
- Feel free to Leave Feedback
Money Saving Tip # 1
Have your wedding outdoors. You wont need to pay location rental costs.
Submit Your Money Saving Tips
If you have a money saving tip for planning a wedding, please leave it here and I will add it to this lense.
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Links of Interest
- Relationship Resources
- Excellent Ideas & Practical Advice on Love, Dating & Romance
- Amazing Wedding Planning
- Do NOT even attempt to plan your own wedding yourself until you read this
- Wedding Speaches for Everyone
- Professionally Written And Inspirational Wedding Speeches And Toasts
- MC Jokes
- Be Hilarious, Entertaining and Relieve the Pressure You Are Feeling With The Wedding MC Jokebook
- First Dance Fabulous
- When everyone asks, "Where did you find the time to learn to dance like that? "you don't have to admit that you learned a simple system, right in your own home.
How to Buy Diamond Engagement Rings
There is much to consider when purchasing a diamond - especially diamond engagement rings! The tradition of presenting a woman with a diamond engagement ring when proposing began in 1477 when Archduke Maximilian presented a diamond ring to Mary of Burgundy - and in most cases, the woman you plan to propose to will expect a ring to accompany that proposal!
First, determine how much ring you can afford. Most people use the 'two months salary' rule. This means that the ring should cost the equivalent of two months of your current salary. Because you have other bills to pay, saving up this amount of money may take quite a bit of time. You should consider financing. Simply go to the jeweler of your choice and tell them that you plan to buy an engagement ring, and that financing will be necessary. Go ahead and get the credit check out of the way, find out what your payments will be, and how much of a down payment is required.
Now, have your mother, sister, or your girlfriends best friend take your girlfriend shopping, and make sure that they gaze at the engagement rings to get an idea of what she might like. Make sure that the jewelry store you buy the ring from will allow you to return the ring, if that is required, or allow your girlfriend to exchange it for another if she isn't happy with it!
First, determine how much ring you can afford. Most people use the 'two months salary' rule. This means that the ring should cost the equivalent of two months of your current salary. Because you have other bills to pay, saving up this amount of money may take quite a bit of time. You should consider financing. Simply go to the jeweler of your choice and tell them that you plan to buy an engagement ring, and that financing will be necessary. Go ahead and get the credit check out of the way, find out what your payments will be, and how much of a down payment is required.
Now, have your mother, sister, or your girlfriends best friend take your girlfriend shopping, and make sure that they gaze at the engagement rings to get an idea of what she might like. Make sure that the jewelry store you buy the ring from will allow you to return the ring, if that is required, or allow your girlfriend to exchange it for another if she isn't happy with it!
Money Saving Tip # 2
Talk to friends and family to find "hookups" for a DJ, caterer, band, etc.
Choosing A Wedding Date
OK. You have announced your engagement. Now the first thing everyone is going to ask is when is "When is the wedding?"
Choosing your wedding date is the first step to organising your wedding. Almost every part of your plan will revolve around the date that you choose. Here are some things to take into consideration to help you pick a perfect date for your wedding.
If you have already chosen your location for both the ceremony and receptions, you will need to contact the venues to make sure both venues will be available on the day that you are choosing. Bear in mind that many very popular wedding venues can be booked out years in advance, especially if you are planning your day during high popularity times (eg: Valentines, Christmas, Easter)
Take into consideration what type of wedding you have in mind. If you are thinking of a beach wedding with the sounds of surf crashing on the shore or perhaps a parkland setting you will have to choose a date that is conducive to the temperature and time of year.
Also, if you have already chosen your dress, then again, you will need to consider the time of year that you chose as this will also influence your choices (consider yourself if a strapless number standing outside with snowflakes falling softly on your shoulders....brrrr)
Whilst the wedding is about both of you, you need at the planning stage to ensure that the people who are important to you (family members who live in other states or even countries etc) will be able to attend on the date you are thinking of. Whilst for many brides to be this is not an issue, with more and more globally spread out families this is becoming a more common logistical problem for many wedding plans. Prevent scheduling conflicts as much as possible by discussing your wedding date with these important people to avoid any problems.
Above all else, remember this is your day. Whilst there are considerations to be taken into account when setting your wedding date, do not let yourself be bullied or cajoled into setting a date that is not really what you wanted.
Choosing your wedding date is the first step to organising your wedding. Almost every part of your plan will revolve around the date that you choose. Here are some things to take into consideration to help you pick a perfect date for your wedding.
If you have already chosen your location for both the ceremony and receptions, you will need to contact the venues to make sure both venues will be available on the day that you are choosing. Bear in mind that many very popular wedding venues can be booked out years in advance, especially if you are planning your day during high popularity times (eg: Valentines, Christmas, Easter)
Take into consideration what type of wedding you have in mind. If you are thinking of a beach wedding with the sounds of surf crashing on the shore or perhaps a parkland setting you will have to choose a date that is conducive to the temperature and time of year.
Also, if you have already chosen your dress, then again, you will need to consider the time of year that you chose as this will also influence your choices (consider yourself if a strapless number standing outside with snowflakes falling softly on your shoulders....brrrr)
Whilst the wedding is about both of you, you need at the planning stage to ensure that the people who are important to you (family members who live in other states or even countries etc) will be able to attend on the date you are thinking of. Whilst for many brides to be this is not an issue, with more and more globally spread out families this is becoming a more common logistical problem for many wedding plans. Prevent scheduling conflicts as much as possible by discussing your wedding date with these important people to avoid any problems.
Above all else, remember this is your day. Whilst there are considerations to be taken into account when setting your wedding date, do not let yourself be bullied or cajoled into setting a date that is not really what you wanted.
Money Saving Tip # 3
Make your own invitations.
Create your own flawless inexpensive wedding plan!
Set your limits but keep it simple. This first step is basically an overview of your entire requirements and will give you a timeline and budget limit for your planning.
The first thing you'll need to do is set your limits. Stay general:
* How long do you have to plan till the actual wedding?
* How much do you have to spend overall? etc.
Step 2 Do you need to hire a wedding planner?
A wedding planner can be a good investment as they do reduce the stresses of organising a wedding and they are by the very nature of their names, experts at orgainising wedding (or at least they should be...make sure if you are going to hire one that you check their credentials and also feedback from previous clients).
They do however, tend to add to the overall cost of your wedding and if you are on a tight budget, by doing it yourself you can save $1,000 's !
Overall, the best way to eliminate the need of a hiring a wedding planner is to track your budget and plans with a wedding planning software program These programs also come with sound advice to help with your plan.
Step 3 - The little things:
The easiest way to do this is to break down each part of the wedding, and go from there. Think of each piece of the wedding separately, and only tie them all back together again for the overall budget.
It is a good idea to break down the overall budget into a separate budgets for each of the following:
* the ceremony
* the reception
* the accessories
* the attire (not just the bride here...the entire party)
* the honeymoon
* and miscellaneous.
By treating each of these as their own budget, you will save time, money and effort and end up with a much better wedding!
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Money Saving Tip # 4
Limit guests to the invitee and their spouse, and their kids only if necessary. Make the engagement party for other friends and acquaintances.
Million Dollar Wedding Under $10,000
But did you also know that the average cost of a SECOND wedding is around $12,000?
In other words, the first timers (probably without any experience) spend more than twice of what the second timers spend.
This seems to indicate that having experience in planning a wedding can save you more than $10,000.
If you want to know how you can save $1,000's or even $10,000's for your wedding, I strongly recommend that you read Erica Yoon's
Amazing Wedding Planning
guide. She saved over $10,000 on her wedding and reveals just exactly how she did it.
And she will also layout the process in easy to follow step-by-step so you can duplicate the process.
Chosing Your Bridesmaids
Traditionally, the bridesmaids party includes the bride's sisters and close friends. Some brides know who their bridesmaids are going to be even before the formalities of the proposal. For others, choosing the members of the wedding party can be traumatic experience. In some instances, the problem with choosing a bridesmaid is because of an overabundance of eligible bridesmaids that is nearly impossible to narrow down; in others, the problem is a shortage of bridesmaids making it nearly impossible to find anyone suitable.
If your problem is the first, list all the candidates, and pick out which ones are closest to you, which ones you have known the longest and are most likely to help you with everything from wedding jitters to potential disasters. DO NOT include people solely because you feel obligate to. This needs to be a choice that you really want... it is after all your most important day.
Your next step is to work out the details of what you expect each of your bridesmaids to do, and what duties you would require of them. Do you want them to be involved with planning every detail of the wedding or just expect them to show up for the ceremony and reception?
If your bridesmaids are needed with putting the wedding together then you should choose friends and family members that will be available during the planning stage. You also need to choose people that can work together or are comfortable with each other. You don't want personality clashes now or later down the track.
If the bridesmaids are required to show up for the rehearsal dinner and the wedding, then your only criteria would only include who you would like to have in your wedding party and who would be available for the wedding day.
Having a lack of choices can also prove problematic. If you are short of choices, consider work colleagues or even relatives of the groom.
These days too, many brides opt for "male" attendants for their wedding party. Of course, you should double check with the groom that this option will not offend either he himself or any other men in the bridal party.
Remember, the wedding is for you and your fiancée, so don't waste time too much time worrying over the wedding party. In the end, everybody who cares about you would still be there for you both, not just during the wedding day but for the rest of your lives.
If your problem is the first, list all the candidates, and pick out which ones are closest to you, which ones you have known the longest and are most likely to help you with everything from wedding jitters to potential disasters. DO NOT include people solely because you feel obligate to. This needs to be a choice that you really want... it is after all your most important day.
Your next step is to work out the details of what you expect each of your bridesmaids to do, and what duties you would require of them. Do you want them to be involved with planning every detail of the wedding or just expect them to show up for the ceremony and reception?
If your bridesmaids are needed with putting the wedding together then you should choose friends and family members that will be available during the planning stage. You also need to choose people that can work together or are comfortable with each other. You don't want personality clashes now or later down the track.
If the bridesmaids are required to show up for the rehearsal dinner and the wedding, then your only criteria would only include who you would like to have in your wedding party and who would be available for the wedding day.
Having a lack of choices can also prove problematic. If you are short of choices, consider work colleagues or even relatives of the groom.
These days too, many brides opt for "male" attendants for their wedding party. Of course, you should double check with the groom that this option will not offend either he himself or any other men in the bridal party.
Remember, the wedding is for you and your fiancée, so don't waste time too much time worrying over the wedding party. In the end, everybody who cares about you would still be there for you both, not just during the wedding day but for the rest of your lives.
Money Saving Tip # 5
Create your own music mix with your friends and family to play at the reception.
Matron of Honour Duties
This is perhaps the biggest honour your friend (the bride) will ever bestow upon you and with this honour comes great responsibility. The matron of honour is a person who the bride trusts and she will rely on you to ensure that everything on the wedding day goes without disaster.
Although most pre-wedding day duties are shared by all the bridesmaids, you as the matron of honour must take the lead on those duties. It will be up to you to help the bride choose her wedding gown and accessories. You should also be on hand to discuss the wedding plans and offer advice on other decisions as required.
On the day, you need to be an alert assistant. Ensure that the bride is on time and looks beautiful throughout the day (you may need to touch up makeup and hair at time especially if the wedding is outdoors and the weather breezy).
You will need to hold the bride's bouquet at times, lift the veil and train and if there are no ring bearers you will be required to hold the grooms ring until called for during the ceremony. You will act as an official witness at the ceremony.
After the reception you will need to help the bride change (if applicable) and send the dress to her new home, along with safely storing gifts while the couple are on their honeymoon. (The best man and mother of the bride also help with the gifts.)
Your last duty for the night will be to inform the parents of the bride and groom whey the happy couple are ready to leave the reception.
Although most pre-wedding day duties are shared by all the bridesmaids, you as the matron of honour must take the lead on those duties. It will be up to you to help the bride choose her wedding gown and accessories. You should also be on hand to discuss the wedding plans and offer advice on other decisions as required.
On the day, you need to be an alert assistant. Ensure that the bride is on time and looks beautiful throughout the day (you may need to touch up makeup and hair at time especially if the wedding is outdoors and the weather breezy).
You will need to hold the bride's bouquet at times, lift the veil and train and if there are no ring bearers you will be required to hold the grooms ring until called for during the ceremony. You will act as an official witness at the ceremony.
After the reception you will need to help the bride change (if applicable) and send the dress to her new home, along with safely storing gifts while the couple are on their honeymoon. (The best man and mother of the bride also help with the gifts.)
Your last duty for the night will be to inform the parents of the bride and groom whey the happy couple are ready to leave the reception.
Bridesmaid Duties
Congratulations, of everyone in her life, the bride has chosen you to be one of her bridesmaids.
You are to be there for the bride in a supportive way from the beginning of the planning stage to the wedding day. Although the Maid/Matron of Honour will be the main support, you are also needed for comfort and opinions along the way.
Your role also comes with costs both in terms of time and money. If you don't have the time or money to be a part of a wedding party, there's nothing wrong with turning the bride down and just coming as a guest. Your friendship is strong enough to say, "Sorry, but I can't accept this honour." Better you are honest up front than risk your friendship by taking on a responsibility knowing you can not undertake long term.
Depending on the size of the wedding (and other factors such as formality, location, cultural aspects) the cost personally to you as a bridesmaid could be up to $500.00 for the wedding. Even on a budget conscious plan, there will be costs involved.
The bride and her Maid of Honour will look to you for help many times during the planning stages and on the wedding day. So, what do you have to do?
Pre-Wedding
You are to be there for the bride in a supportive way from the beginning of the planning stage to the wedding day. Although the Maid/Matron of Honour will be the main support, you are also needed for comfort and opinions along the way.
Your role also comes with costs both in terms of time and money. If you don't have the time or money to be a part of a wedding party, there's nothing wrong with turning the bride down and just coming as a guest. Your friendship is strong enough to say, "Sorry, but I can't accept this honour." Better you are honest up front than risk your friendship by taking on a responsibility knowing you can not undertake long term.
Depending on the size of the wedding (and other factors such as formality, location, cultural aspects) the cost personally to you as a bridesmaid could be up to $500.00 for the wedding. Even on a budget conscious plan, there will be costs involved.
The bride and her Maid of Honour will look to you for help many times during the planning stages and on the wedding day. So, what do you have to do?
Pre-Wedding
- If the maid/matron of honour isn't already handling this task, keep a record of all the gifts received at various parties and showers (so that the bride/couple can write thank-you notes); maintain RSVP lists.
- If you have neat writing volunteer to address at least some the invitations. The budget conscious bride will be addressing invitations by hand instead of sending out to printing companies. Your help will be key in reducing the load of tasks to complete.
- One of the most enjoyable "girlie" treats is shopping with the bride for her wedding dress and the bridesmaids dresses. It is very important to help make sure the dresses are ordered and arrive in enough time for any alterations
- Pay for your bridesmaid's dress, even if you hate it. Remember, try not to complain about the bridesmaid dress -- even if the colour is horrendous. Be gracious and tactful.
- Make sure to pick up your bridesmaid dress in a "reasonable" amount of time in case of additional fittings.
- Help plan, co-host, and pay for the Bridal Shower with the Maid of Honour and other bridesmaids.
- If the reception is to be a seated affair, help the bride in the seating arrangements. It can be helpful to draw out the tables and move people around until you have a close to perfect fit. Note: It is very helpful to bring this drawing to the wedding just in case there are any mix-ups, you will save the day.
- With budget weddings, most times it will come down to the bridal party to source and purchase decorations and favours. Your opinions will be helpful in making decisions for narrowing down choices and making sure the decorations are in on time for the wedding, shower and bachelorette parties.
- Help wrap and tag guest favours and Bonbonniere.
- Help decorate ceremony and reception locations if necessary (this will be vital for the budget conscious wedding as most times, it is venue related costs that blow the wedding budget.
- Help with clean-up at the end of the night (for all the different events)
- Attend the ceremony rehearsal and rehearsal dinner. (Keep abreast of all pre-wedding parties, and go to as many as possible.)
- Provide emotional support during the planning and on the wedding day.
Wedding Day
- The budget conscious bride may have decided against the additional cost of having a beautician applying the bridal party's makeup. Be prepared to do all you can to assist in ensuring everyone's makeup looks flawless and is not overdone. Remember, less is often best.
- Be on hand to confirm flower delivery times, meet and greet the ceremony officiate, or simply run any last minute errands as required.
- Help the bride in getting into her dress and makeup
- Help make sure the bride has privacy if she needs some quiet time before the ceremony.
- Assist the guests to their seats and be social prior to the wedding. It is important to be seen along with the groomsmen helping make guests at ease.
- It is your duty to ensure any younger members of the bridal party behave on the day (so if you can not abide children, then it is an idea to search your heart early and deicide if this role is for you).
- Be the witness in the signing of the marriage license - this is a great honour!
- Keep an eye out for any unforeseen problems (i.e., something falling down at the alter). If you are close enough, fix what needs to be fixed so the bride, groom and their families can focus on the ceremony.
- Make sure to take lots of pictures at the reception, wedding procession and afterwards. Many forget to take pictures and the bride and groom will appreciate them!
- The bridesmaids are often called upon to help read out messages and good wishes cards Serve as auxiliary hostess at the reception by introducing guests, making sure they know where the bar is located, and inviting them to sign the guest book.
- Hit the dance floor when the music kicks in. Dance with groomsmen during the formal first-dance sequence. Also, be on the lookout for toe-tapping guests who might need encouragement and/or a dance partner.
Wedding Mags
Money Saving Tip # 6
Use online tools, books and software programs instead of a wedding planner.
The Perfect Speech
The average length of a marriage speech, depending on how many people have been asked to speak, is usually from three to ten minutes long. The problem that often occurs is that the person about to give the speed is so nervous the will speak very fast, making the speech hard to be understood or they may speak too slow, causing people to become bored.
If you have been asked to speak at a wedding and do not know what to say or how to structure your speech there are many speech packages available today. One that I have found to be excellent is
WeddingSpeech4U.com
. This resource has been designed to make your speech writing and delivery as pain-free as possible, with speech books and sample speeches to help you give the speech of a lifetime.
Money Saving Tip # 7
Have friends and family help with decorations for ceremony and reception
The MC's Duties
Do you know what you will need to do to ensure a successful reception.
The one person who cant be late is the MC. You need to be inside the venue at least one hour before the time you welcome the bridal party in. The first duty is to tell the catering and functions manager you've arrived.
All the best MC's make it look natural, but you will find that they have all rehearsed their speeches beforehand.
Not only will you need to have a speech, you you should also arrive armed with MC Jokes. The telling of jokes will go a long way to relaxing the reception audience, especially at the beginning of the evening as many people will not know each other yet.
It is the Emcee's responsibility to announce:
* The person giving the blessing
* The best man giving the toast
* The first bridal dance
* The father/daughter dance
* The mother/son dance
* The formal cake cutting
* The tossing of the bouquet and garter
Money Saving Tip # 8
Most magazines or internet sites have discount coupons. Find coupons and discount offers through magazines, books, online, etc.
The Bridal Waltz
The waltz is traditionally the dance and the music traditionally ¾ tempo. Many other styles have become popular in recent years (foxtrot, quickstep and more and more often the Tango) and often the music is now contemporary.
The bride and groom take to the floor and during the dance will invite first their bridesmaids and groomsmen, and then all the guests to the floor to join in the celebration of their new beginning.
The success of this dance will often depend on how comfortable the bridal party feel and look as they are dancing. The more comfortable they appear, the more willing the invited guests will be in joining them on the floor.
There are many online tools out there that will teach couples how to dance for their Weddings at a fraction of the cost of formal studio lessons. This option also allows you to learn at any time and in the privacy of your home ( a perfect option if either of you are nervous about learning to dance in public).
One such tool that I found was First Dance Fabulous. This particular one actually has online videos lessons as well as the normal ebook. It takes you through simple exercises as well as the different step lessons. I was very impressed with it.
Your First Dance should be one that you remember for an eternity. By preparing in advance you will be able to enjoy the moment.
Feel free to Leave Feedback
Thank you for reading my lens.
If you have anything you would like to see here or if you would like to leave a comment, please do so
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LyanaVoteyPhotography
Dec 11, 2009 @ 4:13 pm | delete
- Good information but fraught with unforgivable grammatical errors.
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M_in_Qld Jan 25, 2010 @ 3:39 pm | delete
- If nothing else, this then should prove that this lense was put together by a ridgy didge real person...excuse any errors in my response as well please
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Wedding_DJ
Jun 10, 2009 @ 10:11 pm | delete
- Great article! The only thing that needs to be cheap is the pricetag paid for everything not the overall look and feel of the wedding. DIY Uplighting is another way to save a ton of money but get a really elegant look, it can dress up the dullest of venues.
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gaganraoh
Jul 7, 2008 @ 4:32 am | delete
- Yes, not everytime one has enough budget for the weddings, I am one of them, Thanks for sharing the info. I also found some good stuff at Wedding Invitations
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merx2go
Jul 4, 2008 @ 6:20 pm | delete
- Great info. Rated 5 star. Please rate my lenses when you get a chance. Thanks.
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Janet21
Jun 17, 2008 @ 10:03 pm | delete
- Great lens! Welcome to the Let's Party Group. :)
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Regan
May 4, 2008 @ 2:42 am | delete
- Like the look of the page. Would like to see something around what is expected of the bridesmaids and also something of how to do the flowers without spending a fortune
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