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Florida-Central Florida
KayleighKins
member
Totally new to all of this! Help :(
My fiance just proposed last Saturday, and we have written out a guest list. The natural next step is the budget--but I'm so freaked out by it. We want a pretty small wedding, only about 50 people in total, but the prices for everything are so huge! My budget says that we'd be paying over $10,000 for the ceremony + reception. That's not even including a coordinator. How many people use coordinators? Am I just going through a reality check?
We only have about $6,000 saved and we were hoping to have some left over to put towards a house someday. Here is my budget, don't hesitate to tell me the real figures.
| Bride & Groom Fashion | Cost: |
| Dress and Fitting | $320.00 (Etsy) |
| Tux | $200.00 (Jcrew) |
| Shoes | $80.00 (Etsy) |
| Accessories | $250.00 (Etsy) |
| Hair and Makeup | $135.00 |
| Bride Bouquet | $100.00 |
| Boutonniere | $15.00 |
| Wedding Rings | $100.00 (Etsy) |
| Ceremony & Reception | Cost: |
| Invites | $20.00 (DIY) |
| Venue | $3,500.00 |
| Catering | $2,000.00 |
| Wine/Beer | $200.00 |
| Photographer | $2,000.00 |
| Ceremony Decorations | $400.00 |
| Reception Decorations | $500.00 |
| Reception Floral Pieces | $200.00 |
| Officiant? | ??? |
| Ceremony & Reception Music | $2,000.00 |
| Shuttle Cars/Travel | No idea |
| Guest Favors | $10.30 (DIY) |
| Parent Gifts | $125.00 |
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Re: Totally new to all of this! Help :(
A judge is not allowed to take money to perform a wedding ceremony -- something to think about. You'd only have to buy them a gift. I'm not sure how often this is done, but we are having a judge perform our ceremony for us.
Think of cutting corners in other areas if you're worried about budget. My wedding is just under 50 people and we were able to cut corners by booking a venue that allows outside catering (our food is about $500, catering from Publix), and we're using an iPod playlist instead of a DJ/band. We also purchased plastic plates and silverware (the nicer kind) in bulk online, and it cost us less than $100. I also used silk flowers instead of the real thing, and I was able to do all my bouquets, boutonnieres, and centerpieces for about $100. Obviously, my style isn't for everyone, but I am like you, and I was more concerned about using my savings for a down payment on our future house.
You can really cut down on prices in the venue, catering, and photography area plus decor. I'm a country girl so granted my wedding isn’t fancy. But by no means is it trashy. And actually its turning out very nice. I have 60 people... a venue in a state park that cost me a whopping $400-beautiful nature park with no restrictions unlike some places..there is no reason to pay a crazy amount just to walk in the door.Alot of places are out for the money because they know brides with money will pay for it. But no all of us have that. And you say you have $6000...Youve got more than me. I have $4000. You have to dig deeper. People that are well known for what they do can put prices tag on that. Find ways to cut corners. It's taken me time but saved me a ton!!! I have a lot of people that are good at things. And I also am very artist and creative. So I may have an upper hand. I did not hire any vendors except a DJ, who is giving me a discount in return for allow his crew to run the music while he helps coordinate the wedding. It's extremely easy, and he has been doing DJing for 6years. But now wants to get into event coordinating. So I help him he helps me. And I’m not putting anything on the line. I don’t really need a coordinator. But let me say-It has been a blessing. And I highly suggest having one. That doesn’t mean go pay someone a ton of money because they are "certified coordinators". Yes you want someone to do a good job; you just have to do your research. It’s like a dog food bowl for example. You pay more for it because it says it’s a dog bowl. When you can get the same thing in another section or at the thrift store. It’s a DOG BOWL! No biggie. See the point. There are ways around. Do not get discouraged. And you wanting to save for a house will be the best thing you decide to do. It's the smartest decision. Don’t go pay a bunch of un necessary amounts of money! It’s your special day and of course you want it to be nice. You don’t have to sacrifice everything to save you just have to dig deep and be creative. I have lot of ways I've cut corners and if you'd like input on anything. I'd be glad to assist. I would do wedding for a living if I could. My best friend was going to spend a ton for flowers to be made for the girls...No one knew I had done 3 years of floral design. I ended up doing them for her. Just as beautiful. And when you do things that way. It means so much more to you. We had such a great time doing it together. I showed the other girls. People get the idea that it HAS to cost a lot. It doesn’t. Depending on what you want though. Things can be pricey. The venues are the worst. You have to look in places you normally wouldn’t. Places that are not normally venues for wedding are more apt to be much cheaper. It doesn’t have to be ugly, it’s called a Hidden Gem
Best of Luck to you. Contact me for any help
My advice is to focus on one thing at a time and definitely rank your priorities. We focused on keeping our guests happy so we splurged more on food/alcohol/music/etc. That's what our guests will ultimately care about.
Planning can get overwhelming if you try to look at everything all at once. I found if I just focused on finding vendors, eventually all the details started to fall into place. Good luck and congrats on your engagement!!!