Although weddings are considered to be the most special occasions in one’s life or a once-in-a-lifetime occasion, many of us find ourselves in such a situation where a lavish wedding is not a feasible option. Such a tight budget wedding requires cost cutting on a large scale and hence will need a lot of planning. However, there is no need to worry, as a wedding on a tight budget can surely be your dream wedding. If you are about to have a tight-budget wedding, then you must know how to plan a wedding on a tight budget. You can find some tips on planning a wedding on a tight budget and some wedding ideas on a tight budget.
Planning a Wedding on a Tight Budget
Planning a tight-budget wedding will require a lot of attention to detail, as cutting out on the wedding budget would not mean missing or ignoring certain important details. While planning a tight budget wedding, start with the guest list, then the wedding invitations, the wedding decorations, the wedding attire, and the wedding reception. Here are some tips that will help you decide on each of the above-mentioned points, for proper wedding planning.
Wedding Guests List
When having a tight budget wedding, it is essential to cut down on the headcount, as the rest of the factors will depend on the number of people who will be attending the wedding. Now, I know this sounds a bit rude, but it is really not that essential to invite distant relatives, long lost friends and the whole of your workplace! Stick to inviting just close friends and important relatives.
Wedding Invitations
For a wedding on a tight budget, do-it-yourself wedding invitations are a really good option. Also, handmade wedding invitations will be unique and will have your personal touch. It need not be very fancy, it just needs to be simple, and you can use basic, inexpensive materials to make your own wedding invitations. Another option is to enlist some help from friends and family and design an invitation card on the computer. You can either remove the card’s printouts or send the invitations via e-mail.
Wedding Location
As far as the location for the wedding is concerned, there are quite a few options to be evaluated. The wedding ceremony can be conducted at the local church, followed by the reception at the church community hall. A tight budget wedding can be arranged outdoors if you are getting married off the wedding season. A beach, a public park, or somebody’s backyard are all good options.
Wedding Decorations
When it comes to choosing and opting for tight budget wedding decorations, you will need to opt for the cheapest available and choose from the best deals. This is one area where you can cut down on costs immensely. Try and compare some online wedding decoration sites for the best deals or if you are artistically inclined, you could engage a few of your friends to help you make the decorations. You will be able to find a lot of wedding decoration ideas online. Use simple and inexpensive material that also looks great. While choosing flowers, roses need not be your only choice. Try incorporating flowers that are in season for the tight budget wedding decorations.
Wedding Dress
To find the best deal for your bridal gown and bridal jewelry, you may have to do a bit of detailed and comparative window shopping. Try as many wedding attire stores as possible to find that perfect wedding dress and jewelry that suits your budget and your desire. Another thing that you could try, is to ask around your family if anybody has a wedding dress that has not been worn after their wedding. This could save you a lot of money. To personalize it, you could come up with some modifications here and there, in the dress.
Wedding Reception
The food and the wedding cake will obviously highlight any wedding reception. A nice way to cut down on the wedding cake costs is to bake one on your own. It will take up some of your time, but it will also be a pleasant and humbling surprise for your fiancé. As far as the food is considered, you can have a simple evening buffet, skipping the designated champagne toast. Instead, they can raise a toast with whatever they’ve got to drink. Skip the option of having an open bar and have the wedding cake as the dessert.
The best time to have a tight budget wedding is during the off-season, say sometime between October and March. If you are planning to hire a wedding planner, remember that the person’s skills are what matters and not the brand he/she represents. Take suggestions from friends and family for this. Remember to make arrangements for the honeymoon well in advance to save on undesired expenses. Request a friend to play DJ for the wedding music and another friend to play photographer for the wedding photography, so that even these two things are taken care of.
Hope the above tips will help you have a fantastic dream wedding, without compromising on many things. Good Luck!