Money Saving Wedding Day Tips

According to wedding statistics from the Bridal Association of America, the typical wedding in 2009 will cost over $30,000. Your wedding is supposed to be a special day, but realistically speaking, $30,000 can buy you a 20% down payment on a $150,000 home. Would you rather start your married life with a brand new house or fondly remember that $12,000 wedding dress from Vera Wang? Consider downsizing your wedding budget and put that money towards a new house or possibly an extravagant honeymoon. My wedding day money saving tips below will show you that having your dream wedding on a tight budget is possible.

Buy your Wedding Dress Online

Every bride dreams of going to a wedding boutique and slipping into the dress that she knows is "the one." It's a wonderful feeling, but shopping for a wedding dress at a wedding boutique typically comes with an exorbitant price tag. If you're willing to give up that moment of slipping into your dream dress at the boutique, you can get your dream wedding dress for as little as $100 or up to 80% off

The internet is filled with dozens of websites that are prepared to sell quality wedding dresses to brides at a discounted price. They can sell you boutique worthy wedding dresses because they're saving substantial money on overhead. The majority of the discount wedding dress websites employ in-house seamstresses that will alter the wedding dress to fit your exact measurements. Sure, you'll be forgoing the boutique dream dress moment, but you'll be saving a substantial amount of money.

Trade your Location

Your wedding reception and ceremony locations will likely make the biggest dent in your wedding budget. Consider trading out the traditional church and hall for a far less expensive alternative wedding location. One of my top wedding money saving tips is to opt for an outdoor location such as a park, community garden or restaurant. The city is often ready and willing to rent out a community park or garden for a wedding and restaurant owners always welcome weddings during their non-peak hours.

Don't Hire a Caterer

Instead of dropping thousands of dollars on wedding catering, consider making your reception revolve around a dessert buffet. Opting for a dessert buffet will shave off possibly $2,000 or more from your original wedding budget. Hire a pastry chef to create a table full of macaroons, cupcakes, petit fours, cake pops and of course, a wedding cake. Ask the pastry chef to use your wedding color in all of your wedding day confections to create a unified look. This is a money saving wedding idea that would be great combined with the money saving wedding tip above.

Sources:

Bridal Association of America