Ways to Cut Your Wedding Budget

Weddings today can cost a ton of money. Women often dream of their wedding and want it to be a nice event.
There are ways to have a nice wedding without taking out a second mortgage.

One of the biggest ways to cut costs is to have the wedding on an off day. Saturdays are the most popular day for a wedding. Think about having the wedding on a Friday or even a Sunday. Most places book Saturday evenings early and are anxious to rent their space on the less used days. Ask for a discount for holding the wedding on the "off" day. If you opt for a Sunday wedding, you can have a Sunday morning brunch event. This is a great way around a huge food cost.

You can also make your own invitations. You dont have to go all out for the invitation. Lots of people pay close to $500 for the invitations alone. There are a lot of printable wedding invitations available at craft stores and even Wal-mart now. You can make your own invitations for a fraction of the price.

Food is another huge expense for weddings. Consider a buffet or appetizers only. This is a great way to help cut costs while still offering something to eat. You dont have to have a 7 course meal, when 6 fingers foods will do. As long as guests have something to nibble on, they are generally happy. This works especially well for the Sunday weddings.

Make the center pieces yourself! You can make centerpieces inexpensively by picking up candles from a craft store. There are so many ideas out there, dont be fooled into thinking that you have to have a floral arrangement, as fresh flowers can be pricey.

Which brings me to flowers. Some women really want fresh flowers. That is really up to each individual person. If you do want fresh flowers, try to go with something that is in season. If you aren't set on fresh flowers, consider having a craft store arrange a bouquet out of fake flowers. They look great, and with it costing so much less than fresh flowers, you have more room in your budget for other things.

Another huge expense for weddings is the dress and accessories. This is what I did. I went to the Bridal Store and tried on several different dresses. I found the size and style that I wanted. The dress retailed for $600. I went home and searched eBay for the same dress. I actually found the exact one, in my size with tags still attached for $100. That was a huge savings right there!

Another thing i did to save money was making my own veil. It is extremely easy to do. The veil that i wanted was selling for $85. I went to the craft store and bought tulle. I quickly stitched it to a comb, added rhinestones to the edges and for $10 i had the exact same veil.

It all comes down to what you really want and what you are willing to do without. I consider myself to be an artistic person and was able to do a lot of it on my own. My wedding could have easily cost over $15,000. By doing the things that I outlined here, I was able to have that wedding (and rings, and honeymoon) for less than $10,000.

It just takes time and research, but it is possible to have that dream wedding for much less money.