Tight times, tight budgets. Tips and advice on low cost weddings
You would be an amazed at how much people spend on just one day. Believe it or not the average Joe spends in excess of 20,000 pounds on the big day! There are so many things that need to be done that the cost can soon rise so here are a few areas where you might be able to save. Cost cutting can be cruel so be warned you might have to be firm with yourself.
Where to hold it
Everyone’s dream is to have the wedding either in a church or in a big stately home. Unfortunately for most of fairy tale simply cost too much. It is not unusual for the top end venues to cost the entire budget of the average wedding. There is a hotel in St Albans where hire of the venue is £20,000. Once this is discovered, the bride or groom to be soon realise that this is not realistic, but thankfully the world is still their oyster. The unsuspecting village halls is underused for this purpose but perfect in every way. Okay so they don’t have the grand architecture that stately homes do but they are more often than not clean, tidy and full of space. You need to have the ability to be creative and see some things potential, but with some small tweaks and a bit of love these places can be completely converted into your dream venue.
expensive wedding cakes
Don’t underestimate the price of a cake, they can cost £1000! Heavy wedding cake is often not even what people want after a big meal! Admittedly they look fantastic and very impressive but there’s just no escaping they are not a favourite flavour. What you are paying for is the time it takes to create these masterpieces which will eventually end up in a belly or in a bin. As is the case with many aspects of a wedding the cake can be a bit of a showpiece when it doesn’t need to be.
I suggest you try individual muffins, cakes or brownies instead. The ultimate cheap way to do it is to bake and decorate them yourself. These types of cakes are by far more popular and will result in less wastage. Presentation is key so jazz them up with decorations and icing and show them off by putting them on tiers like the real thing. They are easy to cook, transport, and decorate and just a fraction of the price of a £1000 wedding cake.
Stationery
With an average budget of £600′s, stationery is a pricey game! With 100 guests on the list that would mean £6.00 per person per invite. It really doesn’t need to cost that much.
The cheapest way would be to send an e-mail invite or e-vite. Unfortunately not everyone has access to e-mail, some of the older attendees may feel left out. In order to cater for everyone a physical invite is going to be best. The first idea that comes to mind is to send a card, but it doesn’t need to be that way.
Generate your own wedding invite letter, tart it up using Photoshop or word, print it out on nice paper, shove it in a tactile envelope and you’ve got yourself a perfectly acceptable, attractive wedding invite. You don’t need to send a card, just make a nice job of designing and presenting a really good letter invite and people won’t even mention it. The trick is in the presentation, if you make a nice job then it will be impressive.
Florists
The budget for flowers can quickly get wildly out of control. A professional florist can charge a great deal of money. It is an art form and so once again you’re paying for somebody’s time. The disposable nature of flowers also adds to the cost.
These days you can get flowers from a variety of places. Florists are the favourite place for wedding flowers but if you’re a little more flexible there may be more solutions. The local superstore always has a great selection of cut flowers so why not to pick some last minute from there. With colour choice and style abundant there will surely be something you like, just be sure to speak to someone in charge to guarantee there will be enough for your big day. From here the rest is down to you. Buying flowers this way will mean more work for you but you will save a bucket load of money doing it. Knowing which flowers to pick and which flowers go together is very hard but buying in this way means that this part is done for you.
Including the right people
Knowing which people to invite is very tricky. You have to tread the line of not offending anyone but not going over your budget. There is no easy message here, you just have to be brutal. Sticking to the plan is not easy but those who you haven’t seen for years really don’t need an invite. The only people that need an invite are close friends and family members. It’s easy to get lost in the splendour and forget the point of the event in the first place. The guest list is about quality not quantity. By inviting too many people you will reduce the amount of time you have to spend with those closest to you. Receiving an invite feels like a great privilege, is it really worth wasting that on somebody you barely see?
Adam Barnes www.VenueShire.co.uk
