Wedding planning on a budget

Did you know the average cost for a wedding in Missouri is like, $20,000? Do you realize what you could do with $20,000??? You can do so much with that amount. For us, that was an unthinkable amount to spend on just one day. Really it’s just a few hours. We managed to come in at or under $2,000 for our wedding, and honestly, that is something we are pretty proud of. Our honeymoon came in way under budget as well. You can find the tips for that on mini-moon on a budget.

Here are 5 tips that may help you in planning a cheap wedding, but still getting what you want out of the day.

1. Start by creating a budget.

The very first thing we did when we started actually planning our wedding was creating a budget. Start with the big things and work down from there. We created an overall budget and then broke it down by items. There were a few things that we decided we wanted to spend more money on: my dress and a photographer. We budget the amount for those first and then worked down to the less important (to us) things. Each couple will have different things that they see as more important in the wedding than others, so base it off that, not off of other people. There are also several apps and websites that you can use to create your budget and track spending it as well. We used theknot.com to track our budget, RSVPs, and other wedding details.

2. Three letters: D I Y

We made a lot of stuff ourselves. I am fairly crafty and my husband is basically a carpenter, so for us this was simple. Making so much stuff ourselves not only helped us save money, but it also made things more meaningful. Every sign we used in decorating was handmade (or received as a gift). We went to lots of garage sales and found different wooden frames that we spray painted white to use as decorations for the wedding and now we use them as decorations for our home. My husband actually built the arbor for our ceremony the day before the wedding (after working a half day at his job). If you are not as crafty, maybe you know a friend that would be willing to lend a hand as a gift.

3. Take advantage of your resources

You likely have many friends with talents that they are happy to use as a wedding gift for you. For example, I have a very sweet friend that took our engagement pictures as a wedding gift (she is the best ever. Follow her on instragram @destrieichmanphotography), another friend baked us 300 cookies for our dessert reception, and our church rents it’s gym and sanctuary very cheaply for members. This saved us so much money on three of the biggest wedding costs.

This is one of my favorites from our engagement shoot

4. Skip the meal

Some people feel very strongly about this, but we chose not to have a meal due to the costs of a meal. We had an early afternoon ceremony followed by a game and dessert reception. Because we had such amazing friends that baked for us, we saved a ton and virtually had a free reception (in terms of food). We also had popcorn and chex mix for people to snack on while we took family pictures directly after the ceremony.

Some people don't like when couples smash cake into each others face's, I however thing it's hilarious

5. Fake flowers

This is another thing that some people feel very strongly about. Once again, it’s your wedding, you choose what is important to you and what you want to spend more money on. We went with fake flowers because, even though I love real flowers so much, it was one less thing to worry about. I made my own bouquet with flowers I bought ½ off at hobby lobby, and chose pre-made smaller bouquet’s for my bridesmaids (also ½ off at hobby lobby). This way I didn’t have to worry about picking them up right before the wedding or having them delivered and trying to keep them pretty until pictures. I was able to get the flowers completely take care of (exactly how I wanted them) months before the wedding.

Fun fact: My something old was a handkerchief from my great-grandpa who passed away the year before our wedding. It's wrapped around my bouquet

Bonus tip:

If you are having music/dancing at your reception, you can create a playlist on spotify (just make sure you have premium or you’ll get adds. If you are a college student, you can get a discount, or if not, I’d still suggest purchasing it for a month and then cancelling. It’ll still be cheaper than a DJ or live music) and just plug a phone into a speaker instead of paying for a DJ. They can get pretty expensive and this way you know exactly what songs will play and you can even choose the order too. It may be more work on you, but in the long run, it can also save you a lot of money!

Weddings are about starting your life with the person you love surrounded by the people who mean the most to you. Your wedding should reflect you two as a couple, not what everyone else wants or expects. Stick to your guns, decide what parts of the day are most important to you, and stick to a budget. You’ll be surprised how easy it can be to plan a wedding without breaking the bank. This is what we chose to do to fit our budget and our personalities.

If you have more questions or comments on how to plan a cheap/classy wedding, leave a comment or send an email.

Our first dance song was "Speechless" by Dan & Shay. What was yours?