One of the most stressful parts of organizing your wedding is going to involve money. It certainly makes the world go round, and that’s no exception when it comes to weddings.
If only we could have a endless flow of cash and price wasn’t at the top of the agenda when chatting to suppliers and looking at the to-do list you endlessly work on.
Having a wedding budget, of course is great advice, but knowing what you can realistically achieve under a price bracket is hard to understand. Chances are you have no real clue of prices until it comes to planning – I mean why would you?
But i’m going to very real with you now, a wedding really is as expensive as you make it. And if you want all frills in your day, you have to be completely realistic on the time-frame it may take you to achieve everything you want, on the money you have.
Need to know :
Churches tend to be more expensive than registrars. Some even demand more money for things like flowers in the church, wedding bells to be rung and the vicar to be filmed on the wedding video.
Venues that offer the service and reception are cheaper in the long run.
Having it all in one location is a massive money saver. It will save you lots of money on transport and save you on time for everyone to get from one venue to the other.
Venues can cost from £1500- £4,000 depending on location and type of course.
Catering is a great place to cut back and save money. Having food that is offered to the table, 3 courses, and drinks included are all what makes food expensive.
Bands are more expensive than Djs. If you really want to save money – look to hiring a sound system and sticking on your own playlist.
Wedding cakes are expensive. They can range from £300 – £1200 depending on the size and the flavorings.
Day guests cost roughly £50 a head for food and drink. This doesn’t account for other expenses like entertainment, favours and the hiring of chairs ect.
Evening guests roughly cost £12.50 a head and you often only account for 75% of these guests.
So, before you head into that panic mode of freaking the fuck out on how the hella you’re going to afford it, here’s my top tips on how to set your wedding budget, and managing your expectations.
Read : Small changes that will save you big money on your wedding
Read : How to pick your wedding venue
Doing it alone?
Sometimes, some very very very generous family members raise their head showing support and their willing to contribute. Obviously this will be a huge help to you and your partner, and well worth knowing before booking anything. Its a difficult question to ask yes, but speak to parents and family members to establish what help you will be receiving, if any. This is gonnah be a massive help when looking at what you need to save.
What can you save?
Now you have a rough idea of any help you may be receiving, time to take a look at how you will foot the rest. This of course comes down to how much money you can set aside monthly to contribute towards the overall cost. Don’t be too optimistic here, really consider what you can afford to put aside month on month that won’t effect your affordability on vital bills and day to day living.
This is a huge indicator on what you can afford and ultimately the earliest time / date you can get married.
Have a specific date in mind?
How much you can save a month between now and 2 months before your preferred date gives you your budget. Remember most suppliers will want the full payment two months before the big day, and a deposit of some kind when booking their services.
Here is where you may have to decide whether the ideal date, or a day full of everything you want is going to be the best foot forward.
I think its really important for me to say here that it’s your day. Since my very own wedding, I have met lots of different brides who want a small, intimate affair and have often mocked how much we spent on ours. I’ve also met brides who want lots of elements and are happy to wait so they can afford what they want. Truth be told, money can be earnt again and whilst it would be easy for me to say what else we could have spent our money on, I wouldn’t change a single thing from our day. We had everything we wanted and didn’t make compromises due to cost. We had nearing on a 2 year engagement so we could afford everything and it was well worth it.
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