Simple Ways to Cut Wedding Costs Without Feeling Cheap
Photography by Jessie Wyman & Christina Anne
The average wedding costs over $33,000! But what if you don’t have or don’t want to spend the price of a new car on your nuptials? Don’t worry! There are plenty of ways to cut wedding costs without looking cheap or having to sacrifice your dream wedding. Here are some of our favorite money-saving tips!
Know What Your Venue Offers
You may find an inexpensive venue that seems perfect only to realize that renting chairs and tables, linens, and even restroom facilities drives up the cost rapidly. Shop around for venues and see what each venue offers, including timing, set-up, and take-down.
Also, some venues don’t let you bring in outside vendors, instead only allowing you to use exclusive or preferred vendors. These vendors’ prices may be significantly higher than what you budgeted for, so again, clarity is key!
Have the Wedding and Reception in One Location
Instead of worrying about renting a limo, fuel, or two separate fees for two separate locations, have the wedding on the same property as the reception. Many outdoor venues are large enough to cater to requiring a space for the wedding and a separate space for the reception.
For smaller weddings, even having the wedding and the reception in the same room by renting a large assembly room and partitioning one side for the reception and one side for the wedding.
Hold Your Wedding Early in the Day
, and with good reason! They’re incredibly versatile and often more affordable than a typical wedding reception.
Brunch food is often less expensive than dinner entrees, and your guests will be less likely to expect large quantities of alcohol. You can easily get by with mimosas or a champagne toast and plenty of non-alcoholic options to go with tasty brunch offerings!
With an early wedding, you can skip the big meal all together and serve appetizers and hors d’oeuvres instead.
Keep Your Flowers Simple and Seasonal
While you don’t need to select poinsettias for a December wedding, you can look to the season of your wedding to help you decorate and select colors. Local, in-season flowers are going to be so much less expensive than out-of-season, imported flowers, so consider tulips for a spring wedding or chrysanthemums for a fall wedding.
Also, part of flower costs are in the labor, so simple vase arrangements and bouquets for you and your bridal party will be less expensive and just as lovely as cascades and labor-intensive floral centerpieces.
Embrace a Simple, Smaller Cake
Yes, a four-tiered cake-stravaganza covered with fondant birds and delicate sugar flowers is lovely, but it’s also going to cost a lot of money. With wedding cakes, the more labor that’s involved, the higher the cost (like flower arrangements). Consider a small, two-tiered cake decorated with ribbons and fresh flowers for the cake you and your partner cut, then a sheet cake that can be sliced and served for the guests. Or skip the traditional wedding cake and get creative with a non-traditional wedding dessert! (Churros tower, anyone?)
Skip Anything Excessive
From fancy wedding favors to personalized napkins (yes, that’s a thing) to wedding programs, stuff like that doesn’t add to the wedding experience for you or your guests but it does add to the total bill. It’s so easy to get wrapped up in the wedding that pretty soon, everything seems necessary and if you don’t have it, your wedding will look tacky. Before you make any choices, think about if the cost is worth it and weigh what will happen if you don’t have it.
No matter what your budget is or how much you’d like to spend, at Lyra Vega Bridal, you can order an affordable wedding dress that is handmade, stylish, and absolutely gorgeous! This is one place you can cut a wedding cost without sacrificing looking and feeling like the beautiful bride you are! Schedule your free online consultation today!
Other Topics You May Be Interested In
