Weddings are known to get expensive. Even if you choose to have a small party, you will still pay a sizable amount. With venues, food, and wedding attire to think about, your big day will leave a dent in your wallet. However, with a few tweaks to your planning, you can enjoy your wedding without spending all your money. Here are 10 easy ways to save money for your wedding.
1. Weekday Wedding
Weekends are the most popular for weddings. Therefore, when looking for 10 easy ways to save money, have your wedding on a weekday. Wedding venues are booked fully during weekends. You will find that they are available at a discount on weekdays. Therefore, you can get your dream wedding venue at a fraction of the cost if you get married on a weekday.
Additionally, Saturdays are busy days for all wedding vendors. An additional wedding will pay more and get a few of the vendor’s stretched staff and other resources. However, most wedding vendors do not have as many customers on weekdays. They spend most of their time on weekdays preparing for weekends. Therefore you can afford your preferred vendor on a weekday. Since they are not busy, you will likely get the best of their people catering on your weekday wedding.
Further, there are fewer people available for a weekday wedding. Close friends and family will rearrange their schedules to attend your wedding any day. With fewer people to feed, you can save a lot of money hosting your wedding reception. A weekday wedding will go a long way in ensuring you save money for your wedding.
2. Wedding Venue
Wedding venues are a huge wedding expense. You may have more than one venue. You will need a venue for the ceremony, photoshoot, and wedding reception. You will have to pay for each venue depending on how long you will use it and its demand. One of the 10 easy ways to save money for your wedding is to hire a venue that offers all these services. Rather than paying different amounts for three venues, you can save money by paying a discounted price for a single venue.
To save money on your wedding venue, you can choose a non-traditional wedding venue. If you have a family member with a spacious garden, you can ask them to rent it to you for the wedding at a discount. Choosing a non-traditional venue also will allow you to save on event rental and the cost of feeding your guests. While most wedding venues provide drinks and food, you can buy these affordably if you go for an unusual but creative wedding venue.
Some non-traditional wedding venues include a restaurant, an industrial area, or a large party house. Also, you can choose a location that will not require additional decor. For example, holding your wedding on a beach does not require decoration. You will only need a setup to host your guests.
3. DIY
One of the 10 easy ways to save money for your wedding is to DIY. As the bride and groom, the first option to DIY is wedding jewelry. You can get a custom jeweler for your rings. It is going to be more affordable than buying ready rings. You can agree on a material you would like to make your rings. If you have to wear any other jewelry, you can wear the ones you own and save money instead of buying new ones for the wedding.
Another aspect of DIY you can include is for the bridal party to wear clothes they own. Or, have them buy their wedding clothes. Give them a color scheme, and they will pick suits from their wardrobes or buy them from their favorite stores. It will ensure you eliminate a budget line for the wedding attire.
If you hire a venue that requires decor, you can opt to do it yourself. You can ask for help from your friends and guests to save time and money. Additionally, you can bake the wedding cake, set up a photo booth, or any other aspect of your wedding you may find you can save money through DIY.
4. Compare Quotes
In every project you embark on, you will receive several quotes before you select your preferred contractor. Do the same for your wedding. The main reason behind the quote comparison is to hire an affordable service provider who has a high-quality offering. If the bridal party requires a facial care service or orthodontists services, check the price with several providers before choosing where to go. It ensures that you pay the least amount for a comparable service.
Compare quotes from other wedding vendors and service providers. Check the price from different vendors for any service you need for your wedding. To save money, pick the vendor with the lowest price. However, ensure that you are keen on the quality of service offered. If the lowest cost provider gives poor service, choose a more expensive vendor so you will not regret it later.
Check the price of wedding dresses, if they are too high, you could choose to go with a pre-owned one, or you can ask a friend to lend you theirs. Also, compare quotes for meal prices at different venues before you can pick one for your wedding. Comparing prices offered by a range of service providers is one of the 10 easy ways to save money for your wedding.
5. Consider Hidden Fees And Additional Costs
There are hidden costs that arise at wedding venues and with service providers. For example, if you hire a photographer for the day, you will pay more than if you hire them for a few hours. Ask them to capture the highlight moments of the wedding for a few hours, then let them go. Ensure that none of your service providers has hidden fees to their service with different conditions. Among the 10 easy ways to save money for your wedding is to clear out hidden fees and additional costs for services provided.
Check for hidden fees when you engage a family attorney at law. Also, check for hidden fees and additional prices for phone repairs and use in the wedding venue. Depending on the services you request or pay for, you will pay more than previously agreed for any extras. Therefore, ensure that you only use the services for which you pay. You will have to pay for additional services or time you spend at the venue. If you have a bar at the wedding, only serve beer and wine. Guests who ask for anything else will have to pay for themselves. Hire a suit or order a supermarket cake to reduce hidden fees and additional costs. A luxury portable restroom at a marina venue will increase the cost of your wedding.
6. Go Paperless
Using a wedding website is another method of the 10 easy ways to save money for your wedding. First, it ensures that you save money on printing costs. With a wedding website service, you can send out your wedding invitations and programs without incurring printing costs. Additionally, sending invitations is free. The wedding website will also help you manage the number of guests in at10dance. You can send reminders and updates fast and easily.
Similarly, you can ask for the rights to the digital negatives of your wedding photos. Therefore, you do not have to pay them to print the wedding photos. You can print them at your convenience. Also, ensure that the photographer allows the rights to your images in any form. Pay for their service and agree on any future use of the photos.
7. Lower Your Cake Cost
Another of the 10 easy ways to save money for your wedding is to lower the cake cost. Depending on the number of guests you expect, your wedding cake takes up a humongous amount of your wedding budget. There are several ways to lower the cake cost on your big day. First, bake the cake yourself. How successful you are, depends on your baking skill levels. If you do not have the required baking skills for the cake of your dreams, you can ask a friend to do it at a lower cost than if you hired a baker.
Secondly, you can lower your cake cost by baking a different type of cake. You can reduce the number of tiers on the cake. The more levels on the cake, the more you pay for it. Also, instead of hiring a baker, you can buy your cake from the supermarket and have it decorated to fit the theme of the wedding. Supermarket cakes are affordable, presentable, and as sweet as one ordered from the bakers.
Also, you can lower the cake costs by serving cupcakes instead of baking a wedding cake. They are cheaper, appetizing, and appealing. You can pack them out of small bags or on trays at every guest table. Additionally, you can opt for more affordable alternatives to the cake. You can choose an alternative dessert that will help ease the pressure on your wedding budget.
8. Limit The Number Of Guests
Who at10ds and does not at10d the wedding is a con10tion between the bride and groom and their respective families. The bride and groom may have friends they would want to invite to the wedding, and the other invited relatives may have additional friends they would like to get invitations. The number of guests expected at a wedding determines the venue and the amount of food and drinks to order. Consequently, they take up most of the wedding budget. Limiting the number of guests is among the 10 easy ways to save money for your wedding.
One way to limit the number of guests is to remove plus ones for the single guests you invite. You can also opt for a destination wedding and have your guests pay for themselves to get there. It will reduce the number of people who attend your wedding and lower your budget. Also, consider inviting only close friends and family for an intimate event.
9. Wedding Attire
The wedding gown and suit for the bride and groom are a wedding expense you cannot avoid. However, you can find a way to reduce how much you have to spend on clothes you will need for one day only. Renting your wedding suit and dress is one of the 10 easy ways to save money for your wedding. It is cheaper than buying a dress or suit for the day. Additionally, you will save money if you borrow from friends. If you have to buy, do not go for designer wedding clothes. You can buy from your favorite department store affordably.
10. Time
Akin to choosing a weekday wedding, consider time as one of the 10 easy ways to save money for your wedding. Instead of holding a whole day affair, you can have your wedding in the afternoon. It helps you save money as you will serve less food and you will not have the venue for the whole day. Further, you do not have to hire a photographer or DJ for a full day. You can pay them for the few hours they will spend at your event. The cost is much lower than you would have paid for a whole day event.
Depending on your needs, the wedding budget can get uncontrollably high. Therefore, you need creative ways to bring it down without affecting your dream day. A professional wedding planner can help you make good decisions on an affordable wedding. They can help you decide on the services to keep and those to discard based on how much you want to spend. The above are 10 easy ways to save money on your wedding day.
