Every bride wants a marvellous wedding but sometimes money can get in the way: do you have champagne taste and caviar dreams, on a white bread and soda budget? Don’t worry, you can still have a beautiful cheaper wedding. Check out our 5 great ways to cut costs and save money.
Each time you add a name to your invitation list, you’re increasing your budget significantly. It’s not just the catering costs, but also the extra centerpieces, favors, rentals, etc. Don’t invite anyone you haven’t talked to in five years. Don’t feel obligated to let single people bring a date. Avoid feeling pressured to invite all your work colleagues. You can also decide to eliminate entire categories like “relatives more distant than first cousins” or “friends from the previous job”: by not inviting anyone from that group, you’ll help avoid hurt feelings.
Skip the inner envelope and blotter paper, which are leftover relics from times when ink needed time to dry and people wanted a pristine envelope. Rather than having a reply card, ask guests to reply online or by the telephone. Not only will you save money on the printed bill, but it should also reduce your postage expense.
Have your wedding on a weeknight or a Sunday. There is less demand for these dates, so vendors will often be willing to give you a better rate. Check with your wedding venue to see whether they schedule at such times. While you may worry that some guests can’t make it, consider that many of them would have plans for any given Saturday as well. It may take a little more coordination for people who are travelling, but it’s just as likely they would have had to take a day or two off from work to come to a Saturday wedding anyway.
For religious weddings, consider having your wedding near a major holiday. The church will already be decorated, saving you lots of money on flowers. On other days, look for simplicity. A candlelit ceremony can be romantic, gorgeous, and inexpensive.
Don’t go for engraving—regular printed invites work just as well. There are a variety of cheap wedding invitations available on the internet. For a casual wedding, consider printing your own invites from your home computer. Stationery stores now sell printed paper meant to use in a home printer as cheap wedding invitations.
