Hey guys! My name is Jennifer Farley and I am the guest blogger today from Midwesteclectic.com, formerly iloverehabs.com. I am not a photographer. My love is interior design, home renovations and wedding décor. I have worked with Mary recently with her stylized shoot. She asked me to help her because I have decorated a handful of weddings and she took a chance on me. We were helping each other get our portfolio together and I had a blast doing the shoot with her. Since Mary is a wedding photographer, I figured I would keep on the subject of the bulk of her customers…brides and future brides. In my experience in planning and helping others coordinate weddings, I thought I would share with you some ways to save money on your wedding.
Weddings are expensive and if you are not thoughtful you will spend more money than you want to.
Here are five tips to help be thoughtful about saving money.
1.) Figure out what is important to you and make sacrifices elsewhere.
If you are on a strict budget you need to know now that you can’t have everything you want…but you can make sure you focus on what you really want. For example…
- If having 350 people at your wedding is the most important then you will free up some money if you don’t serve a full course meal dinner. If serving a full course meal is important then cut back on that guest list.
My Advice: Don’t cut back on your photography. This is not a shameless plug for Mary…but something I believe in. Flowers last a day, your wedding photos will be with you for a lifetime.
2.) Cut Back on your Cake
How? This is an easy fix.
- Have your cake decorator design a fake cake except for the top. Imagine a 4 tier cake that is basically decorated Styrofoam, all except the top layer. The top layer is for you to cut and for you to keep. What about your guests? Have your bakery make sheet cake the same flavor and icing as your top layer. Have your venue precut them and bring them out after you have cut the top layer….no one will ever know.
- Do something unique. I decorated a vintage/flea market themed wedding and she had distant family members and friends make pies. They brought them to me on the way to the wedding and I just set them out. The venue helped to keep the pies refilled. Another one of my brides decided to do a cupcake table.
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3.) Cut back on flowers
- Candles are a great way to cut back on flowers and much cheaper.
- Wildflowers can be a cheap alternative, just make sure you are not cutting a state protective flower. You might go to jail! Here were some wildflower centerpieces I did for this outdoor wedding
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- Use non flowered centerpieces based on your theme. The main event for Mary’s photo shoot was a feather boa centerpiece. I shared here how I made this out of a lamp.
http://www.midwesteclectic.com/2014/03/13/ostrich-feather-centerpiece-knock-off/
4.) Be Strategic about picking your wedding time.
If you have always wanted an evening wedding then really think through the time. If you have a 5:00pm wedding then people will start getting to your ceremony at 4:30, earlier for bigger weddings. They will be hungry at your reception and if you don’t serve food they will leave early. Food can be expensive, but here are ways to save money with food.
- Have your wedding at 7:00 and at the bottom of your invitation indicate “dessert and beverages to follow”. Now people know they need to eat a quick bite to eat around 5 to get to your wedding by 6:30. Dessert and coffee are so much cheaper than a full meal or food buffet.
- Have your wedding at 2 or 3. You can serve a snack here and then people can get dinner at home.
5.) Be Strategic about picking the time of year of your wedding
For example:
- If you want lots of flowers but can’t afford them, pick a season that there are lots of greenery and flowers in nature. Have your wedding outside with lots of candles and you can have your flowers…naturally. This wedding had all vintage items and purchased no flowers. The scenery took the place of the flowers.
- Christmas time is a great time to have a wedding because most churches and venues already have decorations up. IT is also easier to borrow from friends and family. Not everyone has glass vases, but everyone has Christmas lights and greenery.
I hope this helps you with your wedding planning! If you are in the Kansas area and want help with your wedding, contact me if would like some help. iloverehabs@gmail.com Check out my new website midwesteclectic.com. It’s new but you can find lots of fun wedding ideas and even home renovation ideas after your wedding
Thanks for reading,
Jennifer