Trimming Your Wedding Budget: Surviving Wedding Planning
Let's face it, New England is an expensive place to have a wedding. According to survey data from The Knot, a wedding on Cape Cod averages around $55,000 (taking sixth place on the list of priciest places to get hitched) and other spots around the region follow close behind that popular destination spot.
So finding ways to save on your wedding is a perennially popular subject and we're going to tackle it today, so every bride has extra room in their budget for a great package from Ryan Richardson Photography. To help you out, we've come up with six real strategies to save money on your wedding.
6. Guest List: The easiest way to save with your wedding is to cut down on your guest list, but between family politics and the desire to just throw a giant party, it can be difficult to decide who might have to sit your wedding day out. This is actually one reason why destination weddings can be surprisingly cost-effective for the couple, because it's easier to excuse a short list when the wedding is across the country or around the world.
5. The Fuck It Bucket: In addition to saving you the mental energy, making use of the Fuck It Bucket can also save you a bit of cash when it comes to your wedding. $200 for a calligrapher to write out your escort cards? In the bucket. $400 on wedding stationery? To the bucket! Wedding favors that people will mostly forget about? A lot of little expenses can really start to add up when you're putting together your wedding budget.
4. Reselling: There are plenty of wedding yard sale groups of Facebook for offloading your extra gold charger plates and Ikea lantern centerpieces. But unless your sales skills are amazing don't expect to get all your money back (but any amount is more than you'd get from pitching them in the recycling). This is also a bit of a cheat, since the money doesn't come until after the wedding. Don't forget to check out some of these groups for deals and inspiration for your own centerpieces.
3. DIY: In the post-Pinterest era, a lot of couples are getting crafty to save money on decor (plus what is a wedding party for but as extra hands for arts and crafts). But when you're browsing Etsy and thinking of how much money you could save if you just learned how to blow your own glass, keep in mind that your time and effort have value.
2. Cut Corners: Sometimes when you're planning a wedding it can feel like you must take the fanciest option, but on your wedding day your guests won't know you swapped out crab cakes for an array of cheeses and many different types of crackers. If people are enjoying themselves at your wedding, they won't take the time to pick at the seams to see that it's all just papier-mâché and string. Common examples of this include dummy cakes (a fancy looking cake that's mostly Styrofoam, with guests served from a simpler sheet cake), bulking out flowers with less expensive blossoms (or if you're looking for common varieties and are less concerned about artful arrangement, ordered in bulk from a grocery store).
1. Alternative Weddings: There are a lot of structural reasons why traditional weddings can cost so much - it's pretty much three events stacked on top of one another: the ceremony, a dinner, and then a dance party. Alternative weddings (brunch weddings, cake and punch receptions, post-elopement receptions and even destination weddings) often succeed for couples of a budget by eliminating or diminishing one or more of those elements and creating and event that's more manageable.
How are you planning on getting the most from your wedding budget for your Boston Wedding?
Ryan Richardson is a wedding and engagement photographer serving Boston and beyond; including Cape Cod Weddings, New England Weddings, Massachusetts Weddings and Rhode Island Weddings.