Cutting wedding costs

I did this much during the process which was looking to cancel some things out of the budget or work around it.

Cut down on brand new purchases and look into rentals. This included money box and vases with floral.

Do online shopping for fine details rather than retail stores. Ebay and amazon refund if the product doesn't arrive on time and saved tona that way.

I have been reading over the course of wedding planing that have both the ceremony and reception in one place cuts down the cost. Also, you opt to have silk or other alternatives to flowers rather than real ones which helps with lowering costs. For cake, buy one that feeds at least 70 percent of guests as some will not have any and you can save money this way too. This may not be a popular choice, I'm doing this, cash bar, guests pay for their drinks, eliminate waste and you also save money. Hope this helps as well.

As well I am not doing gifts for the bridal party or parents of the bride. I am paying for my 1 bridesmaids hair and makeup. But for me that's to cut a bit of stress on the wedding day

Hi we went with doing a lunch reception as we are not big drinkers. And this will save on the bar bill. Centre pieces we diyed some mason jars in ribbion colors that we liked and they became our wedding colors. Then my dad is handy so he cut some 12 by 12 squares out of plywood and sanded them down, and we painted them in some leftover house paint. We also have a small bridal party 1 bridesmaid 1 grooms man = easier dress shopping, less atempting to cordinate, less photography time, and we won't be renting a limo service. Ok so not as exciting to drive in our family everyday cars or take a cab home after the receptions but when I think of what else that money can go to I think it's the right choice. In Alberta I also discovered a range in marriage licences cost from 71-100 dollars. Not a big difference but the registrys are all so close why not save a few dollars

Make your own invitations! Order a template from Etsy and envelopes from papergarden.ca and save! We purchased card stock from Michael's and will be printing ours on our printer at home.

Table centrepieces - Get pretty dollar store candles or decorations, don't use flowers as they're costly and honestly some of these little things are gorgeous

Guest list - Big guest lists mean big money, try having a bigger party later on after the reception if you have a lot of people. That way you're not paying for everyone's meal.

Location - I've seen some huge price ranges. I find ones that include everything tend to be better prices and way less stress for you.

Thanks for the advice ladies!! I already know I'll be doing a lot of shopping on etsy (and with my Ebates account I get cash back on all of my purchases!) and I found an amazing store out of Montreal that has beautiful and very affordable wedding dresses and accessories. I think cutting down the guest list is going to be the biggest issue since both my fiancé and I come from very large, very close knit families. All of your suggestions are very appreciated!

Agree with Laura. Do the rule of 3s: the most important 3 things for you, for your fiance, and then focus on those for the wedding. For me, a fabulous day was important. For Evan, all his family. We compromised and settled on just under 100 people (which I am told is small) and are going from there. I will also say, its tempting to extend your engagement longer and save more. We are doing that somewhat, but for me, if I look back and realize I spent $40,000 on one day, I'm going to regret it, regardless of if I had it in the bank or no. It's easy to let the pressure get to you.

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Thanks for that information, Kate. I might reconsider my choice. There are several people at the wedding that are diabetic so I'm going to look into this further.

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We are doing sugar-free cupcakes. too many people have problems with refined sugar. I was thinking of getting a cake from Costco, I tried some at a party, way too sweet for my liking I felt sick after all that sugar. At our age sugar can cause so many health issues.

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Thanks, Kate. I don't believe in dishing out an entire year's salary for one day. After raising 4 children, I've learned how to be thrifty without compromising quality. When my daughter got married, I paid $350.00 for her cake because it was for her. Not many people took notice of the cake and most don't even remember what it looked like. I'll be having a lovely slab cake from Costco for $20.00.

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Wow, Sonja. You are great. You use the Kiss rule very well. I like to keep things simple as well.

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Well said, Kate.

Dollar store is a bride's best friend. I did our wedding for under 3000.00. 90% of it came from the Dollar Store. I paid 160.00 for mY dress which was a great saving as well. There are many ways to have your dream wedding without paying a large amount We have 20 guests coming as well. which makes things a whole lot cheaper. You don't have to a lot of people at your wedding. You don't need to Invite people you work with or people you haven't seen in years or haven't talked to in years.

You can also choose to have your wedding on a Friday or other weeknight or a Sunday. We are having a brunch/daytime wedding so it's on a Sunday and it was about 1/4 the price for the venue compared to a Saturday night.

There are lots of ways to have a wedding at what ever price point you want to have. Figure out what is most important to you and what your budget is and go from there. If you have a very small guest list and friends or family with a big backyard you could do the ceremony and reception there and have a potluck meal with BBQ and music from your phone or laptop. You also don't need a big bridal gown you could get married in a pretty sundress with a few flowers from your garden with your groom in Khakis and a button down. The most important thing is you and FH are happy and married at the end of the day, everything else is just window dressing.

Hi Beth! So nice to meet you! Congrats! Maybe you can get inspired by our DIY. Diy invitations & calligraphy - Diy wedding music- yay or nay - Diy cake topper! - Diy bar or bar service? - Diy bouquet opinions!!. I hope this helps. So nice to have a summer wedding. xx

First of all, DO NOT, and I repeat, DO NOT watch those wedding shows on TV that make you think you NEED to have all these fancy items like a photo booth, a $2000.00 dress (to only wear once), a candy bar, etc. etc. Secondly, cut down your guest list to immediate family and close friends (we have invited only 30 guests). Next, church weddings are super expensive and there is nothing wrong with having a city hall wedding to cut your costs, or hire an officiant to come to the venue. It's about one quarter of the cost, and who are you trying to impress anyway. This day is about celebrating your love for each other with those closest to you.

Our budget is $5,000.00. My beautiful lace dress was brand new at Additionelle and only cost me $40.00. We've made our own bouquets from Dollar store flowers and they're lovely. Most of the décor was purchased at thrift shops or Varagesale. We decided to put our money into the dinner at a gorgeous golf course. Having it on a Sunday afternoon cut our costs considerably. We have hired a classical guitarist instead of a DJ which adds some elegance to the event.

My advice is keep it simple and focus on your future life together. It will be beautiful no matter what because it's your special day!

Pick flowers that are in season for your wedding and ask friends and family to raid their gardens... Print your own invitations... Buy your dress off the rack... Some more extreme measures would be not hiring a photographer or DJ... We hired a local troop of girl guides (with catering experience) to cater our wedding.

I bought my dress at a consignment bridal shop. I bought my invites on vista but I think if you print the template yourself, it's even cheaper. The venue is probably the biggest expense. We did a hotel so everything's all in one place. Everything else we just literally picked the cheapest.. or best bang for our buck.

Start with making a list of what is important to you and your fiancé (eg. photos, food, music, etc.). That will help you focus on where to spend your money.
If you've been to other weddings, what do you remember of each one? Do you remember the flowers that were down the aisle? No, probably no one else either, so no need go have those. That was just an example, but there are many of those things that then only people who really notice them are the bride and groom. So unless it's really important to you, you can cut out those things that people will not remember when asked "what do you remember of so and so's wedding?"