Wedding Help

Times are tough to be planning a wedding. Everyone seems to be worried about the housing crisis and rising gas prices, which leads to higher costs everywhere else. Now typically the wedding industry has pretty much been immune to any of these kinds of concerns. This is because couples getting married tend to want to splurge a little bit when they’re planning their wedding to make it the fairy tale wedding they’ve always dreamed of having. A wedding is typically a once in a lifetime event that parents, brides and grooms don’t want to skimp on it. But in times like these where the dollar is losing it’s value, you’re actually going to be getting less wedding for your money than you would have if you had gotten married a year ago. The cost of gold is up as well as the cost of food, and with rising travel costs the price tag on an international honeymoon is skyrocketing as well.

So how are couples handling the dollar crisis? By looking for extra ways to save money on their wedding, of course! Many brides and their families are starting to hunt for bargains for their weddings, and are starting to do away with any special but unnecessary extras. Many other couples are trying their hand at do-it-yourself weddings, which of course can be a lot of extra work, but totally worth it for the dollar savings. Many other brides are planning morning and afternoon weddings in an effort to save money on their wedding receptions. A morning or afternoon wedding will save money on not having to provide a large fancy dinner with a caterer. Instead, a morning or early afternoon wedding will allow the bride and groom to host a small snack reception which is less formal, but also a lot less money.

There is nothing wrong with looking for bargains when doing your wedding planning. If done properly, your wedding guests will not be able to tell how much you spent on any particular item, and you’ll be glad of the savings when looking at your finances after the wedding. Your wedding is most certainly a once in a lifetime event, and you should have a beautiful wedding, but you shouldn’t have to spend a fortune on it. When I started this blog, I wanted to help brides find lots of different ways to save money on their weddings. The recession (or “slow down”) wasn’t in place when I was planning my wedding, or even the thought that it could happen in the near future. But I wanted to give brides lots of ideas on how to save money on their weddings, and not forgo a great wedding look. The same thought still remains. There are lots of great about how to save money on your wedding ceremony, wedding flowers, wedding dress, catering, and even your honeymoon so that you can have the wedding of your dreams without breaking the budget. In times like these, it’s certainly worth looking at.

Tags: planning a wedding, Wedding Budget

By Minnie, a guest author and an editor at Modern Wedding Advice

There are many different venues to consider when planning your wedding budget. Starting the process can really feel overwhelming. The big ticket items to keep in mind when you are outlining your budget are your venues, food, entertainment, photography, attire, and decorations. Here are some ideas on where to start, and the major things to consider so that you can come up with a wedding budget that will fit with the idea you have for your wedding.

First, you will need a rough outline- What do you already have to spend? What is your projected income from now until the wedding? How much of that can you safely allot to wedding expenses? Are there things you spend money on now that you could cut back on, such as dinners out, to save more for the wedding? Will other people be helping you financially? How much can they give, and when?  Will they be giving you money to use as you see fit, or would they be more comfortable doing something along the lines of paying your photographer directly?  The more answers you can at least guess at for these questions, the easier your outline will be.  Don’t worry about exact numbers, and the fine-tuning will come later, but it helps to know your ballpark, whether you’ll be working with $2,000 or with $15,000.  Many bills won’t need to be paid until right before the wedding, but most expenses will involve a down payment at the time you book a service.

Venue- Are you having a ceremony and reception in the same place? This can cut down on costs.  If you plan to have them at separate sites, factor in the cost of each.  If you are getting married in your house of worship, find out how much the fee is for the facility, for the officiant, the musicians, and any other fees involved.  For reception sites, call around and visit as many places as you can.  When you find some that you like, sit down and ask for an estimate.  Find out everything that is included in that estimate, and get it in writing.  Some places will charge you just for the space, and everything else is extra.  Other places charge per person for everything from the space itself to the food, service, even a wedding coordinator. There may be bar minimums included, depending on what bar service you’re including.  Gratuities may or may not be included, make sure you ask.

Food- This item can affect your budget quite a bit depending on what you choose. It often costs more to offer a choice of entrees.  A simple chicken dish will probably cost less than filet mignon.  Keep your own taste and budget in mind, and if you’re using an independent caterer, shop around. Find out whether any beverages are included.  Would you like to do an open bar, cash bar, or no alcohol?  Don’t forget your wedding cake.  Find out if there is a “cutting fee” per slice at your reception site.

Entertainment- Your DJ or bandleader will be a driving force of the party energy.  Find someone you feel matches the energy you want at your wedding.

Photography- Photography can be a big chunk of your budget.  Your wedding photos will capture this day forever, so you want to make sure you love them. A good wedding photographer will know what angles, lighting, moments are important.  Do you want a basic package and a simple album, or do you want to capture every last detail? Find someone who can give you what you’re looking for.  Do you want a videographer?  This can be expensive, and feelings vary on how important this is.  Some couples wouldn’t dream of not having a wedding video, while others can’t see spending the money.

Attire- Everyone imagines the wedding gown.  This is indeed the most expensive article of clothing you are ever likely to buy.  Is it important to you to have a designer label, or do you want to shop around until you find the right dress in your budget, no matter how long it takes?  Is wearing your Mom’s dress an option?  Expenses in addition to the dress itself include alterations, which can cost up to several hundred dollars, undergarments, veil, shoes, jewelry, etc.  The groom needs to get dressed, too- don’t forget to budget for the tux.  If you order all the tuxes for the wedding party from the same place, often times the groom’s tux rental will be free. Certainly don’t forget to budget for the wedding rings!  Other incidentals include hair and makeup the day of the wedding for the bride, and bridesmaids if this is in your budget, and boutonnieres or corsages for the bridal party, parents, and grandparents.

Decorations- If you’re really unsure of how much money you will have to spend, this is an easy place to give a minimal spot on your rough budget, then add to later.  You can use very simple, in-season flowers, non-floral centerpieces, candles, and ribbons to give a simply elegant feel to your wedding, or you can go all out and deck the hall in orchids and lillies. Linens may need to be included in this part of your budget, depending on whether or not your caterer will provide them.  Chair covers are frequently an item that have an individual fee.  Simple white tablecloths and napkins are generally more inexpensive than upgraded fancy linens.

Other expenses to budget for: Transportation- will you borrow a friend’s car, or will you hire a limo or other kind of transportation for the whole bridal party? Invitations- save the date cards, invitations and response cards, wedding programs, all need to be printed.  Favors for your guests and gifts for the bridal party and each other.  Gratuities for your various vendors.  There will probably be some unforeseen expense, but the more planning you do, the more you can minimize that risk.  Good luck, and congratulations.

Tags: creating a wedding budget, Wedding Budget, Wedding Planning

I’ve talked about this in several of my other articles, but it seems that wedding costs are out of control these days. Everything with wedding attached to the front seems to cost twice what it would otherwise. If you’ve started getting quotes from wedding vendors, then you know what I’m talking about. Not only that, but when you’re doing your wedding planning, it seems as though the wedding costs are never going to end. It seems different wedding costs keep springing up all over the place, which can make it extremely difficult to keep up with your wedding budget. I remember it all too well.  The sad thing is, many couples pay the premium because it’s for their wedding, and figure it’s a special occasion.  This is a bad way to look at it. Yes, you are going to get married, but that doesn’t give wedding vendors the right to take advantage of you. Here are some great ways to keep your wedding costs under control.

Make a List - and Check it Twice

Maybe at the risk of sounding like Santa here, I’ll make a point that will stick. Nearly all of the wedding costs you will be looking at are based off of the number of people on your guest list.  Inviting your best friend from kindergarten whom you haven’t seen in ten years really isn’t necessary, and choices like that will drive up your wedding costs. Make a comprehensive list of close friends and family that you want to invite to the wedding, and send out RSVP cards. If they don’t send the RSVP card back, it doesn’t hurt to give them a call and ask. You’d be surprised how many wedding costs are associated with the number of guests you are inviting. Just for starters, your wedding invitations, catering, wedding cake, wedding favors, even reception hall and renting tables and chairs, and programs are different wedding costs associated with your guest list. And that is just off the top of my head.

Cut Out Unnecessary Expenses

This is where a lot of brides stumble when it comes to dealing with wedding costs. Figuring their wedding is a one time occasion and celebration will cause some brides to pay much more than they need to. If you are on a tight budget, there are a lot of perks and luxuries that you can rule out. If your reception hall has centerpieces that you can use for the tables at little or no cost, then consider using them. Buying flower arrangements for 25 tables adds up quickly. Opt out of the open bar, and let your guests either buy their own drinks or only serve water and iced tea. There is no need to pay the extra wedding costs for some of the perks that people do.

I can’t stress just how important it is to stay within your wedding budget. I know that wedding costs can be overwhelming at times, and that you want to have a beautiful wedding day, I really do. Looking for ways to cut wedding costs can be a lot of work, but it will be worth it in the end. Just be reasonable with yourself and your wedding budget. There is no reason to put yourselves into debt from wedding costs that you will have to deal with after you get back.

Tags: Wedding Budget, wedding costs, wedding vendors

If you’re like most couples out there, you don’t have all of the cash available to pay for your wedding right now. Chances are, if your parents are helping you out, they may not have funds readily available to help you out either. Or perhaps you have some cash available to you, but you know that it isn’t going to be enough to plan your wedding, much less make it the wedding day that you’ve always dreamed of. With the average cost of weddings being over $28 grand, the numbers you’ll see when talking with wedding vendors can be staggering - trust me, I’ve been there. I remember lots of conversations where I said, “You want how much for this? Are you serious!?” So what can you do?
Before you begin planning your wedding, you’ll need to determine your wedding budget, what funds you have available to pay for your wedding. Then, make a rough estimate from talking to vendors and venues to find out how much you’ll need total to pay for your wedding. If there is a difference, you’ll need to figure out a way to meet it. You could max out your credit cards and start your new married life with a ton of credit card debt…and credit card interest rates can be a killer. Not fun. Another thing that you can look at is getting an online loan at a low interest rate to help pay for those wedding bills. To find out if an online loan is right for you, then you may want to get an online loan education.

Probably the best way to learn about what kinds of monies are available to you is to get an online loan education. With an online loan education, you can learn a lot about how to save your pennies for the big day and make the cost of your wedding a whole lot easier on your checkbook, wallet or credit card. An online loan education will help you determine if loans are even necessary for you to get, or if you will be able to absorb the cost of the length of time it takes for you to plan. It will let you know what options are available for you, whether it be an online loan, a payday loan, or any other loans that could be useful to you.

I remember what it’s like to plan a wedding, it can be pretty stressful. If you have to worry about money and how you’re going to pay for your wedding, it’s even worse. The best piece of advice I can offer is to get an online loan education, find out if they can take any of the stress off of you when it comes to paying for your wedding. It never hurts to see what is out there for you to take advantage of.

Tags: online loan, online loan education, payday loan, Wedding Budget

If you are like most people out there, then when you are planning your wedding, you need to stay within some sort of wedding budget. Not everyone has an extra $15 grand (or more!) laying around that can be used just to plan the perfect wedding, with the best of everything, and everything just how you want it. The reality of it all is, that nearly every couple planning a wedding is having to stay very conscious of their wedding budget to make sure they don’t wind up with debt problems after the wedding. Each couples wedding budget is different, and some have larger wedding budgets than others, but just because you have a lower wedding budget doesn’t mean that your wedding has to look cheap. Perhaps your wedding budget is a sum your parents are going to help you out with, and then a certain amount of money that you and your fiance are going to use towards the wedding, or perhaps your wedding budget is being funded completely by you. Whatever the case, you’ll need to learn how to show smart, and bargain, so that you can have the wedding of your dreams and still stay within your wedding budget.

Keeping Track of your Wedding Budget

I can’t stress the importance of keeping close tabs on your wedding budget. As I girl, I know how fast expenses can add up while you’re shopping, you go out for a few items and end up spending much more than you had planned. Hence why my husband tags along when I go grocery shopping. But, back to the subject, it’s important to special attention to what you’ve spent, what you still have left to buy, and about how much money you have to spend for each thing. Perhaps the best way to do this is to start a wedding book, and include receipts, coupons, vendor names and phone numbers, and much more. Also, if you have knowledge of Excel spreadsheets, you may want to create some spreadsheets with guest lists, gift lists from showers, and other useful information. Using this method to keep track to your expenses in regard to your wedding budget can require a lot of organization and computer knowledge.

Get Help with Your Wedding Budget

If you have a friend or family who is good with organization and keeping track of money, then you could enlist their help on getting yourself set up. But this may not be available to every couple. In that case, you may want to look for some kind of wedding book or wedding software which can help you keep track of everything having to do with your wedding and your wedding budget. Check out card stores for different planners that you can buy and use, or look on the Internet for other help with your wedding budget. There is one great tool that I found on the Internet, I purchased it and it really does have a lot of great information.

I can’t tell you the importance of keeping close tabs on your wedding budget. The last thing you want when starting your new marriage is to have money problems and extra unexpected debt from the wedding. Not only that, but if you run out of money in your wedding budget while you are still buying things for the wedding, you could run into lots of different problems, creating unneeded stress on you!

Tags: Wedding Budget, Wedding Planning, wedding software