Budgeting Tips

contauri

Hey guys, I was just creating a budgeting spreadsheet and have managed to go over my budget by quite a bit. (figures) I was just wondering what everyone's budget is and how you managed to stay within that budget, or any tips you have I apologize if this was brought up before, I couldn't seem to find anything on it. Thanks!!

KermitClin06

Our budget was about $15k and I don't know what our final number came in at (honestly I didn't want to know, though I think I came in right around that number). Some of the best budget savers we had were DIY projects and the venue we selected that was a great price for the number of guests we were allowed and included a lot of things we wanted that we didn't think we'd be able to afford. We DIYed a lot like STDs, invites, tables numbers and more (all listed in my planning bio). I did a lot, I mean a lot, of research online to find the best prices for the items I needed to buy and tried to find items that I could easily sell afterward to recoop some of our expenses (table runners and table numbers were super cheap, nice, and I got at least half our money back on both). Be a little creative and try thinking outside the box and you'll discover ways to do the things you want to do or include in your wedding in less expensive ways than you might have expected.By the way, I think the last issue of Columbus Bride magazine talked about budget saving tips/ideas.

roomuss

Whatever your budget is, hold 10% of it for unexpected costs. I forget who originally told me that, but I wish I had listened to them!!! We actually kept the spending close to our budget. But as we got closer, I thought I had all the costs figured out and everything finalized. You will be AMAZED at all the little (and big) stuff you just HAVE to have in the last couple weeks before the big day. It would have been easier to convince my fiance at the time being if I would have held back some of the funds. Don't worry...I still talked him into it!!! LOL! Happy planning

kerr

DH and I had a pretty nice budget, but we were paying for 75% of the wedding ourselves, so anywhere we could save money we did!I saved money in almost every single category with the exception of alcohol just by being smar about things. The trick is to shop around for sure, book EARLY to get in on costs before they rise, do your research (thank you, Knot boards), and really prioritize your wants and wishes.If you buy a dress off the rack instead of ordering it the style, you can get a pretty good deal on it (considered a "sample"). I saved $600 by doing that and no one ever knew. Pick flowers that don't cost too much (gerbera daises are great and super cheap) and make sure the flowers you pick are in season. Order your BM dresses online from netbride or other bridal websites instead of a bridal salon. Find a reception hall that lets your bring in your own liquor. If they don't, make sure they charge you by head and not by drink (that is where people lose thousands). Some caterers will throw in extras for you to cater your wedding (i.e. linens, glassware, votives, etc.) so shop around for those caterers (Boardwalk Catering is great at that). DIY projects can REALLY cut costs: invitations, programs, place cards, STDs, menu cards, table numbers, favors, etc. (see websites Vistaprint, American Wedding, and go crazy with Michael's and Hobby Lobby coupons-- make sure you sign up for their online coupon/saver programs). You can add a lot of romance to a wedding reception buy just buying a lot of votive candles (see quickcandles.com or check out Flower Factory). I used seal-n-send invitations which cut out all of the envelopes entirely, and saved about $400 on invitations (see www.seal-n-send.com or www.invitationsbydawn.com). Also, make sure you budget for STAMPS!!! I did not do this, and after all was said and done I spent about $300 on stamps for invites, thank yous, etc. Find a photographer that will include engagement pics session with your wedding package. I made my own flower petal cones to hang from the church pews (see pictures in wedding bio) with stuff from Michael's and saved lots of money on flowers. Check out people's bios to see ideas of things they are doing and ask a lot of questions! People on here can really save you a lot of money, everyone has such great ideas!!Also, make sure you budget for undergarments, which a lot of budgeters don't have listed. A bridal bra can be almost $100 sometimes, and if you buy spanx to wear, those are expensive too. Good luck!!

mrslinhart

We saved a lot of money by using some smaller name vendors.  I estimate that we saved over $1000 by asking my grandmother to make our cake, a friend to do the photography and we found our DJ on Craigslist for $350.  Obviously these would have to be things you would feel comfortable doing, but we liked it because it made everything a little bit more personal as well as cheaper. Along with DIY a lot of things, we also saved money by cutting what we felt were "unnecessary costs".  It's the little things that add up the quickest so we did went without favors, had the church print our programs for free, rented a luxury car for DH and I instead of a limo, had the girls buy whatever shoes they wanted, ordered from BM dresses from netbride, etc. We did end up going over our budget a smidge . . . but I'd rather not think about that ;-)

jordylee8455

Our budget was $10k, and we came in just under. We only invited 80 guests, and had 68 come. The small guest list was a huge money saver, and i loved that everyone there was very close family and we got to spend time with all of our guests, and each other. We budgeted as if every person would RSVP yes, so each time a "no" came in, it was basically extra money that we would save. We had our wedding on a Sunday, which saved us $1000 on venue rental and $100 on photography. Also, our photographer included an e-session in her package which we didn't use, so she took $100 off our package. I bought my dress for $250 at filene's running of the brides (It was a couture gown with the $6,500 price tag from the store still on it) and had my aunt do the alterations. I used target invite kits and had them printed at Kinko's instead of obsessing about something that would be thrown away anyway. They turned out great. We hept our bridal party small - DH's two brothers were GM, my brother was my "MOH", and my cousin was a BM. We didn't serve alcohol. I know this wouldn't work for most people, but neither of us drink, most of our family doesn't drink, and there are a few recovering alcoholics. For a casual Sunday affair, nobody missed it.Hope some of these tips help, these board are a great source of information!

myvette13

Budget cutting tips: We used cupcakes instead of a cake.  In total for the cupcake tree and cupcakes we spent less than $100.00 ( I think the total was around 75.00).  I made all the bouquets myself, flowers from costco.com hydrangeas are easy to arrange into bouguets.  In total for flowers I spent $150 (4 bridesmaids, myself, and some reception decor)  We did not do boutineers.  Used a reception hall where we could buy the booze.  Big savings.  Used invitation kits from Micheals, we got them 50% off so for 80 invites we spent ~50.00.  Bought as much as I could from other brides.  Mistakes we made: we did the ceremony at a local park because I loved the views and the rental was super cheap.  However, the chairs were not cheap, factoring in delivery and setup and it was a costly ceremony!  Best advice I got was don't plan for your family or yourself to do anything the day of the wedding... I didn't listen completely to this advice and it did cause stress for my parents and husband the day of since they were finishing last minute details.  It also ran up cost towards the end as I tired to pay others to do day of tasks (ie: chair set up).    

second time around

Check the Hobby Lobby ads. They have everything on sale 50% off on a rotation. This includes the bridal section. You can save some major bucks there. Choose a theme instead of colors or have all shades of one color. That way you can have things in different colors or shades that tie into the theme and not have special order things. For example: We used the "fall in love" theme. I had fall leaves everywhere, which I bought at Hobby Lobby 50% off. I also was able to buy things in any fall color, and it would look good instead of just red and orange, and it didn't have to be the exact shade because fall leave are every shade of every color. DIY invites, which I got at Hobby Lobby for $12.50 a box and printed them with red and orange ink at home. I got pre made bouquets at Hobby Lobby, and added ribbon and pearl sprays to them. I only spent around $50 on flowers. My budget was $25,000 I spent $12,000, and had everything I wanted.

missjones2009

Our budget was 10k, we ended up about $300 over. We invited 150 guests, 125 actually attended.Ways I saved.. DIYing: Invites, Programs, Bouquets, Centerpieces, Hair, Make-upHaving a Day time wedding--that cut the meal price down a few dollars by serving lunch portions, also we got our reception room cost cut down. Also since it was mid-day we didn't have to have a big "party" for the reception--so no alcohol and the music was provided from my laptop hooked to the sound system. I made playlists and had a friend start and stop the music 2 times during the reception--other than that the playlist played on it's own how i set it up.Online purchases: I found my dress only for $300 less than it was in the boutique--the online store i purchased from also offered a free veil and shoes of my choice--so that was awesome. it was $530 for my dress veil and shoes.Honey moon: we did a mini moon instead.Rings: found online for great prices.Decor: choosing a venue that didn't need alot of decoration helped. we spent about $100 on ceremony decor, and under $250-300 on reception decor. The venue (the athenaeum) provided alot of things in their packages outside of what we spent.Being real with my self and not trying to create a fantasy day helped alot--I wanted a day that truly reflected who we are. We put alot of emphasis and importance into the ceremony and made the reception more low-key--but still a lovely lunch with our friends and family.My blog has some info on how we saved---i should be posting our pics & budget details soon... as well.