Making a wedding budget and sticking to it throughout the constant stress of planning a wedding can be the most stressful part of getting married, but it can also be the part that keeps you and your bank account sane. Maybe you’ll have to get creative and choose a different location to lower the cost or maybe you’ll learn lots of new DIY skills to save money! Either way, most brides and grooms look for new places and things to save money on constantly!

This week, I to spend some time talking with Jessica Bishop, founder of The Budget Savvy Bride, who spends most of her time running her online business to help others save as much money as possible when planning the party of a lifetime! While speaking with her, I got to learn some of her best tips and tricks to keeping every wedding under budget.

 

Here were 10 of my favorite secrets Jessica shared with me:

 

1. “Cut the guest list.” Everyone wants all of their friends and family to be at their wedding, but do you really want to spend the money to feed all of them? Cutting your guest list by just a few could downsize even your venue and wind up saving you hundreds of dollars in the long run! Consider only inviting those closest to you to protect your wallet.

 

2. “Choose a wedding date during off-peak seasons.” Why not have a Winter Wonderland Wedding or a destination wedding to get the perfect weather even during winter? The cost of wedding services during a high-demand season could scare you away from getting married if you don’t at least consider the lower prices during other seasons.

 

3. “Consider a local restaurant instead of a caterer for your meal.” Caterers jack up the prices in ways that even you won’t notice! Plus, a local restaurant might end up tasting better than that high-end caterer you were considering before.

 

4. “Recruit talented family and friends for help.” Most people get too scared to ask their family and friends for help with wedding planning or making DIY decorations, but don’t forget to utilize those who love you most! It’s pretty likely that someone will be willing to help you out and reduce your overall cost.

 

5. “Choose flowers that are in-season.” Don’t get too wrapped up in the specific kind of flowers you want. Picking a specific flower that’s out-of-season and has to be flown in could add hundreds of dollars to your budget that you weren’t anticipating. Go with something simple and elegant; your guests will even focus on you more if the flowers aren’t distracting.

 

6. “Cake switch: display a small decorative cake but serve a sheet cake to your guests.” Not only are huge, fancy cakes ridiculously expensive, but you’ll likely have to ask the caterers to cut and serve the whole thing. Opt for the cheaper version and have a couple friends serve a sheet cake to the guests. People are just happy to be eating cake, they don’t care what it looked like before they ate it.

 

7. “Serve only wine and beer – forget an expensive open bar.” Cash bars are totally okay to have at your wedding, but if you’re concerned your guests will be unhappy, choose to only serve wine and beer! There will still be plenty of drinks to get the party started!

 

8. “Rock your reception with an iPod DJ.” Sometimes it can be hard to find the perfect DJ who will play the kind of music you love. With an iPod DJ, you can save your bank from imploding and listen to your own playlist all night! No one will even notice that a machine is doing all the work!

 

9. “Remember to factor in the cost of rentals. Sometimes all-inclusive venues can be more affordable than a blank slate.” People generally assume that renting all of the equipment it takes to have a wedding would be cheaper than having a wedding somewhere that already has the required equipment. Don’t make this mistake. Do your research, make spreadsheets, and calculate what each separate venue will cost total before you make a decision.

 

10. “Consider DIYing your invites. Lots of free printables available on our site!” Some aspects of your wedding are going to have to take the fall when it comes to price. Prioritize what is most important to you and your fiancé and cut the cost of the rest of the items – invitations are the perfect place to save money if you don’t know where to start!

 

Check out the other 40 Wedding Budget Tips online to learn more about throwing your perfect wedding without blowing your bank account!

 

Meet Kaelly:

I’m a recent University of Iowa graduate who just moved out to the Seattle area. I’m an avid reader, adventure addict, and coffee connoisseur. Also, I like to write sometimes: https://kaellywelsh.wordpress.com/