Brides on a Budget: 10 Tricks
Your wedding day is one of the most important days of your life, one you have pictured in your day dreams thousands of times. But, it can also be one of the most expensive. It’s a rare event where everyone from your lives comes together, mingles, dances, and showers you with love, so you want it to be as magical as can be.
To make it beautiful and memorable, you don’t have to also make it expensive. Here are 10 easy tips to help you save money for the big day!
1. Location Location Location
While you may have dreamed your wedding day would take place at an 18th century French castle, your bank account is saying no way Jose. Backyards are beautiful, intimate, and personal settings for this special day. If it isn’t your own, offer to pay your friend or family a small fee for landscaping and clean-up.
Photo: Wedding Party
2. Down the Aisle
You’ve spent so much time thinking about your table settings and party decor that you may forget about the actual ceremony! Keep the decoration cheap but elegant by lining the aisle with galvanized buckets of baby’s breath.
Photo: Buzzfeed
3. Cute-tensils
Sometimes renting dishes, utensils, and linens is more expensive than just buying your own. Try hitting a flea market for some mismatched tableware and give it a makeover with this dipped, painted look.
Photo: Style Me Pretty
4. Paper Trail
This idea kills two (love) birds with one stone. Use brown butcher paper as your table runner and your table numbers! If your handwriting isn’t this good, try using stencils with paint or oversized number stickers. Washi tape would make a cute and poppy border around the number.
Photo: Charm City Wed
5. Bedazzled Bouquet
Some floral wedding bouquets can cost up to $400! For this cool idea, hot-glue vintage costume jewelry on a fabric-covered Styfrofoam ball. Insert a short dowel in the bottom and wrap with fabric and ribbon to cover.
Photo: Intimate Weddings
6. The I-Do Hair-Do
Hiring someone to style your hair the day of your wedding can cost a pretty penny. Instead, recruit one of your creative friends to do your do! Websites like The Small Things Blog have tons of easy-to-follow tutorials for up dos, half-up dos, braids, and everything in between! (Just make sure to do a trial before the big day so you and your appointed beautician have the technique down pat.)
Photo: The Small Things Blog
7. Bon Appetit!
The food is one of the key parts of a wedding—you want your guests to have as much energy as possible to dance the night away! But it can also be one of the most pricey expenses. Think beyond the salmon and serve creative fare that says something about you and your betrothed. Are you burger lovers? Set up a cute burger buffet with all the fixins!
Photo: Heart. Love. Always.
8. Take a Seat!
Making or buying place cards can be really expensive (and also time consuming), so instead, opt for the seating chart idea. And to make this even more affordable, this chart is housed in the Ung Drill Ikea frame!
Photo: Project Kid
9. You’re Invited
The invitation is the first thing your guests will see that sets the tone for your big day. But it can also cost a lot of pretty pennies. Scan the internet for free wedding invite printable, like this one! You can customize text and colors right from the website.
Photo: Wedding Chicks
10. Parting Gifts
After eating scrumptious food, cake, and dancing ‘til their heels come off, does anyone really expect a favor these days? Maybe, maybe not, but it’s always a nice gesture. Here’s a favor that keeps on giving—make adorable seed packets with the seeds of your favorite flower and decorate with ribbon and a label.
Photo: Canadian Gardening
