Responsible For Your Wedding Budget? 30 Top Notch Ways to Spend Your Money – Weddingz Advice #8

Modern couples these days are no longer dependent on their parents to get their wedding planning sorted. Except for minor to major financial assistance here and there, contemporary couples more or less know what and how they want to celebrate their big day. If you or your spouse is taking full responsibility for the wedding budget and looking for smart ways to cut costs, we’ve got some amazing hacks to help you pull this off with ease without making your celebration seem cheap.

Let’s get started!

Pre-Wedding and Wedding Celebration

Cut short your guest list: Because the less number of people, the lesser expenses on invitations, venue, catering and decoration

Keep the celebration close and intimate: Because all you need around you are just people whose presence matters, it’s not an obligation to cater to thousands of which hundreds you don’t even know.

Have an off-season wedding: Because this is the time vendors, venues and suppliers slash their prices, due to low demands

Have all your functions at one venue: Because this helps you save on unnecessary travel costs

No need to hire fancy cars: Because it’s not necessary you need to arrive in a Mercedes or Jaguar. Use your own or borrow a friend or relative’s car and design with DIY decor.

Choose a venue that offers all-inclusive wedding services: Because this will save you from paying for the logistics and other needless expenses of outside vendors

Ask for help from talented friends and relatives: Because this is a great way to save them from buying you pointless gifts and do something meaningful for you instead and what better than helping you cut your wedding budget

Make yourself beautiful: Make YouTube your go-to resource months prior to your wedding and practice bridal makeup and hairstyles or have your friends or relatives try their hands on it

Wedding Decoration

Buy, don’t rent: Because the items you buy can be later used for your own home or given away as favours. Renting will cost you more than actually buying items, such as centrepieces (they needn’t be all the same, you can have different centrepieces for each table), lanterns for aisle decoration etc.

Get crafty: Gather your bridal party and have a fun night of making your own decoration items or wedding favours. This will act as a great time to bond with your friends and relatives

Arrange for bigger seating tables: This way you save on placing more centrepieces and table cloths, further cutting your cost on table settings

Shop for off-season extra decor: Items sold during Valentine’s Days, Diwali and so on get stocked in large numbers once the occasion has passed. This is the best time to grab your hands on any extra items, such as firecrackers or pink cushion hearts you may need at half rate

Select in-season flowers: Because off-season flowers are hard to find, hence charged at a higher price. As much as you would love to have those blooms in your decor to stick to your budget it’s better that you stick to roses and the all-time favourite Genda Phool for instance

Use more greens than colourful flowers: Flowers can be expensive, so why not the stuff in more greens; this will not make your setting look shabby, but give it a classic minimal look

Include non-floral, like lanterns: Go the no-flower way, by incorporating decoration items that are inexpensive yet make your decor look outstanding. For tips on how to do so, click here

Wedding Catering

Limit alcohol beverages: The best way to do so is by serving signature drinks, beer or wine only at your wedding

Consider a wedding breakfast or brunch: Go a little Hatke and have a breakfast or brunch arrangement than a complete main course

Forgo full dinner service: Have a cocktail theme party or serve light meals, then spend more on full-course dinners that eventually go waste

Serve comfort food, like BBQ chicken, corn etc.: Because who doesn’t love binging?! This concept is something your guests will never expect, which will eventually turn into the fun element of your wedding and this arrangement is inexpensive too. So, it’s a win-win here

Wedding Cake

Order one or two-tiered cake: You needn’t have a life-size or multi-tiered cake. Even one tiered exceptionally decorated wedding cake is more than enough to kick-start the celebration

Keep the add-ons simple, as well as the cake: Decorate the cake with subtle add-ons like metallic finish or flowers. If you go for textures or extravagant fondant decor, which is high on sugar, you will end up paying more   

Use fresh flowers and not fondant or sugar ones: Like we mentioned earlier fondant decorations on cake cost more, including fresh flowers will be cheaper

Make cake the dessert course: In terms of catering, make your wedding cake your dessert option. Trust us, your guests will not complain, instead feel privileged to be sharing this sweet treat with you

Wedding Return Gifts

Turn favours into centrepieces: As we mentioned in our decoration section of this blog, you could buy your centrepieces instead of renting them and turn them into your wedding favours. Do not forget to mention a little thank you note on it to help your guests take notice and pick one for themselves to take it along

Give out one favour per couple or family: You need not give away wedding favours to each member who attends your wedding. Just giving away 1 per couple or per family will also be well appreciated

Make your own favours: If you wish to give away favours in large numbers or cut your wedding budget on favours, make these giveaways at home. You can either choose to bake some sweet treats or prepare homemade marmalades, pickles and jams. Food is always well accepted can be given away in bulk

Wedding Photos & Video

Hire associate photographers: Your wedding budget is restricting you from hiring the ace photographers whose work you’ve been following on your Instagram, request an associate wedding shooters availability that will cover your wedding for less.

Capture only important moments on video: Most photographers and videographers charge by the hour. So, it’s best to let them know the timeframe you need them to be present and capture selective glimpses of your event  

Honeymoon

Fly on credit: If not all, make major purchases on your credit card as these give you bonus points and travel offers that will pretty much cover your honeymoon cost