No bride wants to look cheap on her special day. So what can you do if you are looking for cheap wedding ideas to keep expenses low, but still want to retain quality and style?
Fortunately, there are many inexpensive wedding ideas that are sure to cut your costs and produce spectacular effects. With just a little imagination and some smart bridal knowledge, you will have a beautiful and unique wedding day that won’t cost you a fortune.
1. Solve your priorities
The most important step in saving your wedding money is to carefully list all of your wedding goals. This will help determine which aspects of the wedding are most important to you and your partner. Incorporate each of your lists into a top ten list. Then decide in which areas to allocate more money and in which areas you can spend less.
2. Inexpensive wedding cakes
A wedding cake can take up a large part of your wedding budget. Take a look at these cheap wedding ideas to keep costs to a minimum:
Order a smaller cake or maybe fewer tiers. You will find that not all wedding guests will eat wedding cake and many guests will choose not to take a piece home with them. Alternatively, you can remove dessert from the menu and use your wedding cake as the final dish.
Consider using fresh flowers to decorate your cake. Fresh flowers save money on handmade sugar toppers, which are time-consuming and add to the cost of a professional wedding cake.
3. Save on wedding flowers
Although your wedding flowers are an essential part of your bridal style statement, you can only enjoy them temporarily. Usually many flower arrangements are simply discarded at the end of the night.
Instead of spending a ton of money on your wedding flowers, you could consider these lower-budget options:
- Select seasonal flowers. Not only are they less expensive than greenhouse flowers, but they will also look fresher and last longer during the day.
- Instead of using just fresh flowers for reception centerpieces, pair them with additional eye-catching decorations. For instance; Twinkling candles, custom handmade touches, and eye-catching vases all create stunning table decor.
- Double the use of your church or ceremony flowers. Transport them to your wedding reception and use them to spruce up venue doors and guest seating areas.
4. Wedding dates
A great way to help make significant savings is to avoid booking your wedding during popular periods.
Avoid getting married during the busiest time of year, usually spring and summer. Why not book a beautiful fall or winter wedding? Not only will you be able to negotiate a lower rate for the venue, but the cool weather will give your wedding day a unique wedding flair.
Instead of a traditional wedding on Saturday, why not book an event on Friday or Sunday? The rates will be really competitive and it’s a great way to shorten your wedding celebrations by a few hours. Budget Tip: Your guests won’t want to party all night when they need to work the next day.
5. Inexpensive wedding reception
The cost of wedding catering is astronomical, so seriously look for areas where you can cut costs. While you don’t want your guests to starve, there are ways to save money and satisfy their appetites.
- Be strict with the guest list. Do you really need to invite Great Auntie you haven’t seen since you were five years old? Weigh your priorities when it comes to family and friends. Try to keep the emphasis on quality, not quantity.
- If allowed, stock the venue with your own alcohol supplies. This way you can buy the alcohol in bulk and make the most of the savings.
- Another idea is to organize a cocktail or garden lunch in the afternoon as a reception celebration. Serving snacks will certainly help reduce the level of catering required. Also, if your guests understand the “cocktail” or “light snacks” you serve, they can prepare themselves beforehand.
6. Keep it simple
Evaluate your wedding list for areas that you can simplify. You may be able to reduce the number of family and friends, the variety available on the menu, or even the number of details on your wedding dress. Just remember, the simplicity is still stylish and you can save extra money by cutting out all the unnecessary extras.
7. Be elegant for little money
Using cheap wedding ideas doesn’t have to mean sacrificing style or quality. The truth is that simple designs combined with custom touches always make the wedding and ceremony elegant and beautiful, regardless of how much you spend.