Second (or third or fourth, etc) Wedding Budget Poll.

melissamc2 · July 2010

Budget has been mentioned a few times, lately, and it made me wonder what kind of range everyone is in. Feel free to keep this anonymous, if you're prefer!

right1thistime · July 2010

Depends what you are including. 4 years ago we spent a good amount of money. But in that figure, I am counting the wedding/attire/ rings (including ering)/attire for children*/lodging for pre wedding and wedding night for us, the kids, my mother, and my bro & SIL who were taking the kids for the duration of our honeymoon*/rehearsal dinner/reception - food, open bar, music, tip / limo/photographer & copyright to images/honeymoon.

Our wedding was in a town where my DH's family have a summer home, so that's why lodging was required. We chose not to stay at the house with other family members.

The items I marked with a * are those that encore brides may have to figure in and that first timers often don't have to. The planning for us is complicated by having dependent children who must be cared for, planned for and paid for. In my case, I also had to care for, plan for and pay for my mother-- I bought her attire for both the rehearsal and the wedding, packed for her, arranged her transportation and weeklong care while we were on our honeymoon. I am forever grateful that she was there with us.

DH and I make a decent salary, saved up to host this event and to treat ourselves to the type & style of event & honeymoon we wanted. We wanted to host an event that we would be pleased with-- and we budgeted to do so. We could have just as easily spent 1/10th of what we did and had a perfectly nice wedding. ~Donna

Marrin713 · July 2010

We did everything for less than $2000. 50 guests, cocktail party reception with a hosted bar, heavy apps, and cake on a Sunday evening = $1600 Ceremony at county courthouse = $50. Add in clothing (casual), mani/pedi, hair = probably another $200. My best friend's daughter is trying to start a photography business she she did the pics for free so she can put them on website but I am sending her money and a gift card.

It CAN be done

just depends on the couple and the look/feel you are going for.

debnchris · July 2010

I'm doing a Friday night wedding that seems to help the budget!

melissamc2 · July 2010

I wasn't including any rings, child care, or travel.

If I throw all of that in...ugh. Haha. No need to put all those numbers together! I'm really just counting everything from the minute you wake up on your wedding day until you leave the reception.

2dBride · July 2010

Our $5,000 to $10,000 budget included everything--accommodations for us and all of our ceremony guests in Massachusetts, rings, basically every cost that was in any way associated with the wedding. Of course, our budget was inflated by our being a same-sex couple, in three ways:

First, we had to travel to MA to have the wedding. This meant not only paying for accommodations there, but paying nonmember rates for the rabbi and synagogue.

Second, all of the "bride" expenses got doubled. A second wedding gown costs a lot more than just renting a tux! Same for hair/make-up, etc.

Third, there were some things that we had to order custom, because all the existing ones assumed an opposite-sex couple. For example, we had to get customized text for our ketubah (Jewish wedding contract).

SueR13 · July 2010

We stayed within our budget until I calculate in what I'm spending for my kids to be part of the day. They are young adults (two in college, one a graduate still without a job) and paying their own way would have been financial ruin for them. Attire, hotel rooms, and day after event. Hair and make-up for the girls.

LMB311 · July 2010

It's my 1st wedding but my fiance's 2nd wedding. We're having about 60 people, but I have a lot of brothers and sisters, so it's still immediate family and attendants + guests only, so it's small for us. We have budgeted $8,000...but this includes everything (place to stay, food and drink out, ceremony, reception--with food and alcohol, favors, dress, clothing for his children, flowers, welcome bags)...as we're having a destination wedding.

hsbstone · July 2010

Our budget started between 10.000 to 15.000 but could be stretched till 20.000with a lot of things included in it like:
hotel and air tickets for 8 people, all the meals and activities for 25 people, the ceremonies fees and reception dinner and beverage for 25 people, the 5 days honeymoon, the air ticket to Italy, hotel and clothes to both events, gifts to the wedding party, flowers, decor, wedding and groom cake, DJ, make up artist and hairdresser for at least 12 people, new wedding bands, photography, attraction during the dinner, OOT tote bags, invitations, wedding planner on the Destination Wedding, favor e gifts to my family in Italy. If I follow FI directions, this can be added even more, because he thinks I should organize a dinner for my friends of the church where I am involved in more than one ministry...It will be around 50 people to dinner and it means at least more 3 grand no computed so far...Seeing all this, my first thought is E L O P E !!!!!! Am I a Bridezilla???? hahaha

melliott09 · July 2010

We are trying to keep everything under $5k...I was hoping for less, but doesn't seem to be going that way.

I'd prefer not to dump a lot of money into the wedding "day"....We have so many other things that would be better suited, like the kids, house, car, etc.....

Lisa50 · July 2010

Our budget is $9K (not including clothes/shoes) ... but we've slowly crept passed that. The good news is the big ticket items (venue, catering, photography) have already been paid for. Music (string quartet and DJ), invitations and flowers/decor will take us to about $10.5K, but that will be everything.

right1thistime · July 2010

By the time we were within 6 months of our wedding, approximately every other week, DH or I would turn to the other, having just gotten another price quote that was over our budget, shrug and say, "well, its only money!"

It became our running joke. Which is not to say we weren't trying to stay on a budget. We came pretty close for the things we had set out. But I would say we allowed ourselves to go over the line item budget on almost every item. For example, if our flower budget was $1200 - we would agree to spend $1450. Not breaking the bank, but just inching the whole total up. We didn't create any debt, we saved to pay the bills, and no one but us was footing the bill. Most importantly of all, we were THRILLED at the outcome. ~Donna

Sue-n-Kevin · August 2010

I had to check the $5001-$10,000, but only because it's closer to $5001, but not much over. Because we are planning this over a very long engagement, the money still sits in our "wedding account" until we tap it for vendor deposits.

I'm doing so much DIY and have so much "stuff" sitting around beforehand, that has become our running joke.

My biggest expense by far will be the food which we are planning on spending $20 per person because we can get caterer quotes because the venue doesn't have catering. A recession in the Detroit area allows us to get more for less money right now. The alcohol will probably be next. I'm not including the honeymoon, because that will be paid for with the wedding money we get from guests.

anabella97 · August 2010

Wow! a $2000 wedding, that's inspiring!!!
Were there any hurt feelings? Only inviting 50? I like your idea/budget...will discuss this when the time is right with BF.
Thanks for sharing your info.

Second (or third or fourth, etc) Wedding Budget Poll.

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