Weddings are extraordinarily special events, for the bride and groom, for the families of the bride and groom, and your guests. Most women (and some men) have their dream wedding all planned out, and using Pinterest or creating “dream boards” are great ways to collect ideas. However, according to The Knot, a wedding website, the average cost of a wedding in 2019 was $28,000, which is a big spend for many couples and their families.
If you’re looking to stay within your budget and still have a beautiful wedding, there are creative ways to make that happen. We also encourage our members who are planning a wedding to visit one of our branches and see if a personal loan would be ideal.
- Plan your wedding date with your budget in mind. Generally speaking, what’s known as ‘wedding season’ falls from April to June or July, because the weather is nicer and spring-themed weddings are very popular. Naturally, vendors (such as caterers, DJs, photographers, and venues) can afford to raise their prices during wedding season, and what’s more, vendors may be trickier to book for those months. So why not choose an off-season month? You can save even more by choosing a day like Friday or Sunday, as vendors and venues may be able to negotiate a cost for choosing for an off-peak day.
- Try a familiar family-style or potluck dinner. Consider choosing a caterer who makes family-style meals instead of a three-course dinner. Oftentimes, choosing an Italian restaurant can be less expensive, as many Italian restaurants allow you to order large family-style dishes. If you have family or friends who love to cook and are willing step up to feed your guests, even better. Family-style meals are both an inexpensive and comfortable way to impress your guests with delicious comfort food. Also, you can cut back on alcohol costs by only serving beer and wine, which you can buy at a big box store like Costco.
- Get creative with your cake and other sweet treats. Traditional wedding cakes don’t come cheap – sometimes even a small-tiered cake can cost hundreds of dollars. Instead of going that route, you can save a lot of money with cake pops, cupcakes (which are easy to make at home, even in larger quantities), mason jar pies, or a ‘candy bar’ where guests can load up a bag with plenty of sweet treats.