Have Your Dream Wedding at a Price You Can Afford

Many couples have grand ideas about their special day. But as they start adding the costs, they begin to feel that they can't have the wedding of their dreams. It is possible to have an elegant wedding at a price you can afford. It all starts with a budget. According to CNNMoney.com, the average wedding in the US costs:

- Northeast: $32,221

- NY Metro: $38,361

- South-Southeast: $22,662

- Midwest: $23,181

- West: $27,776

To keep your wedding costs down, a budget is absolutely essential in planning your wedding. Costs can quickly get out of your control, so if you don't plan for and document your expenses, you may end up paying far more for your wedding than you originally planned.

Your budget will determine many factors of your wedding such as the number of guests you can invite, the ceremony location and reception size, location, and menu. Other reasons for establishing a budget are that it will help guide and determine how much you can afford to spend on wedding flowers, entertainment for both the ceremony and reception, photographer, videographer, and many other wedding items.

Where to start

Your first step is in determining your total budget figure. How much can you afford to spend on your wedding? What is your bottom-line amount? Once you have this figure in mind, the book, Bridal Bargains by Denise and Alan Fields, suggests that you then start with identifying your priorities. You, your fiancée, and your parents (if they are helping to pay for the wedding) should sit down with a piece of paper and draw up a list of priorities, then rank each category in the order of importance from one (least important) to nine (most important).

Now compare your worksheets and discuss and agree on the overall ranking of priorities. This will help you in allocating your dollars on your budget. Now you can begin allotting your money to correspond with your priorities. You should plan to spend a larger part of your budget on the higher priority items.

According to Bridal Bargains,the average bride spends 40% of her total wedding budget on the caterer (food, cake, and liquor), 3% on the facilities for the reception, 8% on the flowers, 10% on entertainment, 14% on clothing, 7% on a photographer, 4% on invitations and other printed supplies, 4% on gifts, 2% on transportation, and 8% on miscellaneous items.

Where you can save and where you shouldn't

When the reception ends and all the guests go home, what do you have to show for your wedding? The rings, gown, photos and video. You'll pack away the gown, but your friends and family with see the ring, photos and video untold times over the decades. So you don't want to skimp on these items. However, this doesn't mean that you can't still save money on these items. One area where you can save is the guest list. By trimming the guest list, you can save on your reception costs. Also, look at your menu. Is there something more practical, yet delicious that you can serve instead of a fancy dish? Whatever you serve, be sure it's quality food.

It is possible to plan your dream wedding on a budget. With good planning and a realistic budget, you can have an elegant wedding at a price you can afford.