Create your dream wedding without breaking the bank

50
WAYS
TO SAVE!
Create your
dream wedding
without breaking
the bank
Photography by Patricia Heal
50 WAYS T0 SAVE!
1 / Buy, don’t rent
7 / Shop at home
“When I got a quote for more than $500
to rent linens, I went on Ebay and purchased what I needed for less than $250.
And we’re going to resell them after the
honeymoon!”
—Mandy C., West Palm Beach, Fla.
—Brittani P., Jacksonville, Fla.
2 / Find a smart substitute
“Instead of a bouquet, I carried my
favorite book wrapped in something
borrowed—a friend’s blueembroidered
handkerchief. I called it my ‘book-quet.’ ”
—Emily L., Los Angeles
3 / Get intimate
“For the rehearsal dinner, we threw a
casual outdoor barbecue for just our
families, the officiant, and the bridal party.
Keeping it low-key and super-small
meant we had more to spend on the wedding itself.”
—Shannon M., New York City
4 / Bail on the ballroom
“Get creative with your wedding venue.
We married on a 1920s theater stage,
then had a reception upstairs. Everyone
raved about how different and fun it was.
And it only cost us a few hundred bucks
to rent the whole thing.”
—Samantha S., Harrisburg, Pa.
5 / Make yourself beautiful
“We’re having a nautical wedding, so
we’re using a bunch of decor that we
already own, like lanterns, seashells,
driftwood, and model ships.”
8 / Try the barter system
“The church where we married let
us use its wedding ministry for free in
return for my volunteering at other weddings. The ministry did everything—
decorating, flowers, catering, and coordinating. We saved thousands of dollars,
and the day was so much less stressful
for everyone.”
—Bekah S., Fairbanks, Alaska
9 / Cut it out
“Every week, I clip coupons for decor
and DIY supplies at Michaels and Hobby
Lobby . We still have a year of deals to
go!”
—Lindsay C., Martinez, Ga.
10 / Skimp on stamps
“We chose postcards for our save-thedates. It saved us money on postage and
envelopes!”
—Kelly N., Omaha, Neb.
11 / Go local
“We went to our farmer’s market the
morning of the wedding and bought all
the flowers we needed to make our bouquets and centerpieces. It was so
much more affordable than going
through a florist.”
—Hannah I., Seattle
12 / Pay with plastic
“We’ve been saving credit card points
for two and a half years. Our honeymoon
is practically paid for.”
—Alexis J., Forest Hills, N.Y.
13 / Aim low
“Instead of hiring a makeup artist, I’m
going to go to a department store for a
free makeover, then use what I learn to
do it myself.”
“I set a spending limit for every item,
then tried to come in a little bit under for
each purchase. Saving a couple
hundred on a dress here and a DJ there
really adds up!”
—Emily C., Sterling, Ill.
—Alyssa D., Moorhead, Minn.
6 / Get married by a pal
14 / Choose an off-day
“A friend from high school officiated at
our wedding. He got ordained through
the Universal Life Church for free!”
“Having your wedding on a Friday night
is so much cheaper than doing it on a
Saturday.”
—Swan C., New York City
—Rachel P., New York City
50 WAYS T0 SAVE!
18 / Shop outside the box
“I bought two beautiful lovebirds for less
than four dollars and used them as cake
toppers.”
—Gia L., West Hartford, Conn.
19 / Involve your guests
“I wanted to make a brooch bouquet for
my walk down the aisle, but buying the
seventy-five pieces I needed would
have been expensive. So I asked my
loved ones to help with the hunt. Soon
I had brooches pouring in—some from
personal collections, some from thrift
stores, some from department-store
sales. The best part? Now guests are
buzzing in anticipation, of seeing the
finished bouquet.”
—Laurie M., Margate, N.J.
16 / Dress differently
“I bought a gorgeous off-white bridesmaids’ gown with a full A-line skirt
instead of a traditional wedding dress.
It only cost $350!”
—Rebecca K., Miami
—Allison V., Tulsa, Okla.
22 / Do double duty
“My mom bought a bunch of colored
pashminas in bulk for about $4 each.
We used them as chair coverings
and as party favors for guests.”
—Vivian S., Norfolk, Va.
23 / Plan destination I do’s
“Order a smaller ‘show cake,’ then ask
your caterer to serve guests from a sheet
cake in the back. They’ll never know
the difference!”
—Tiffani R., Rolla, Mo.
—Brooke B., Madison, Wis.
20 / Downsize the cake
“My husband and I made fourteen tissue
pomanders by hand to decorate the aisle
at our wedding ceremony. It took a lot of
time and effort, but it saved us a ton. And
it looked amazing!”
“Vendors often offer great specials and
giveaways at shows. I was able to save
$500 on our florist and $100 on our
wedding photographer.”
“I have a large extended family, so
having a huge local wedding in
Wisconsin would’ve been pricey.
Most of them aren’t big on traveling,
so we decided to marry in Bald Head
Island, North Carolina, instead. We’re
saving a bundle!”
—Lauren C., New York City
15 / Get crafty
21 / Go to bridal shows
24 / Choose à la carte
“Don’t feel pressured to buy a photography package. They often include a lot
of extras you may not want. Instead, ask
your photographer to quote you a lower
price based only on the options that are
most important to you.”
—Emily W., New York City
25 / Plant some memories
“Yes, we paid extra at the outset, but
our planner more than made up for it
by helping us negotiate better deals.
Plus, nothing curbs the urge to spend
like running all your purchases by a
professional.”
“In keeping with our antiquegarden
theme, I potted cheap flowers in clay
pots and used them to brighten up the
reception tables. After the wedding, we
decided to plant the perennials in our
yard. Now we have colorful mementos in
our garden that we can enjoy for years
to come.”
—Morgan M., Richmond, Va.
—Nancy C., Lafayette, Ind.
17 / Hire a wedding planner
50 WAYS T0 SAVE!
26 / Skip the tulle
32 / Get graphic
“I’m wearing fabric flowers in my hair.
I found someone online to make them
custom for me at a quarter of the price
of a new veil!”
“I designed our wedding invitations
using Adobe Illustrator. Then I sent
them to CatPrint.com to be printed—
it’s awesome and super-cheap.”
—Jennifer M., Brooklyn
—Amanda S., Brooklyn
27 / Make it personal
33 / Bribe your BFFs
“I put pictures of me and my fiancé
in Mason jars we got from friends and
family, dressed them up with twine, and
used them as centerpieces. The cost?
Practically nothing.”
“To entice friends to help with my DIY
projects, I threw several girly cocktail
parties. It made tying ribbons on bottles
of bubbles and arranging flowers a
blast.” —Sarah W., Manistee, Mich.
—Amanda P., Vassar, Mich.
28 / Capture the moment
“Instead of hiring a videographer, we
signed up with a company that sends you
cameras for each table, so your guests
can shoot your wedding video. Luckily,
two members of our bridal party are
film students.”
—Shelly P., Lawrence, Kans.
29 / Restrict your list
“I have lots of acquaintances but only
a few very close friends. Booking the
Stone Mill at the New York Botanical
Gardens—which has a capacity of a
hundred and twenty—gave me an excuse
to keep my guest list really small.”
34 / Pick a public place
“My fiancé and I booked our ceremony
and reception at a state park—it was
only $160 for the whole day. And since
it’s such a pretty location, we barely need
any decor.”
—Ashley N., DeFuniak Springs, Fla.
35 / Ride the bus
“Instead of blowing our entire budget
renting limos or shuttles, we found a
charter company that leases yellow
school buses for events. It’s way cheaper
and so much more fun!”
—Ashley W., New York City
36 / Pick blooms online
“I ordered my flowers in bulk from Fiftyflowers.com and put them together with
my family. The site also has premade
bouquets and centerpieces.”
—Chetna K., Houston
37 / Say no to rentals
“Booking a venue with tables, chairs,
and china meant we didn’t have to rent
anything. We ended up saving $900!”
—Cassandra R., Farmington, N.M.
38 / Get inked
“Letterpressed envelopes are expensive,
so I had a rubber stamp with my return
address on it custom-made. I still use it
for thank-you notes and holiday cards.”
—Denise S., Port Chester, N.Y.
39 / Leave a message
“When I ordered our engagement-photo
album online, I had extra pages put in, so
we could use it as our wedding
guestbook.”
—Rachel J., New York City
—Tiffany G., Boswell, Pa.
30 / Do a photo-strip search
40 / Drink more
“I got my photo booth on Groupon and
saved half of the original cost!”
“I’m saving wine bottles and using them
as vases and candle holders.”
—Alissa R., Pittsburgh
—Stephani R., San Diego
31 / Go to school
41 / Learn a new trick
“Hire recent graduates from a local
culinary institute to cater your wedding.
They’ll be grateful for the experience
and charge way less than an established
caterer.”
—Thea K., Chicago
“I taught myself calligraphy in just a few
hours, using a kit I found on Amazon.
The invitation and save-the-date envelopes we sent out looked great, and the
tutorial and all the materials only cost
me $25.”
—Jess S., Vancouver, Wash.
50 WAYS T0 SAVE!
42 / Forget the favors
48 / Be good to your feet
“We were more worried about showing
our guests a good time than giving them
gifts. Trust me, no one missed the little
goodie bags of chocolate at the end of
the night.”
“If you’re wearing a long dress, choose
affordable, comfortable shoes, rather
than killing yourself (and your wallet) in
expensive five-inch stilettos. No one can
really see them anyway.”
—Kate H., Washington, D.C.
—Jacqui G., New York City
43 / Raise the bar
49 / Negotiate nicely
“We had the bartender offer wine, beer,
and two signature cocktails. It was less
expensive than a full open bar, and
guests couldn’t stop talking about how
fun the drinks were.”
—Erika T., Napa, Calif.
“We found an amazing venue that was
beyond our budget. We told the sales
director how much we loved it and what
we could spend. He knocked down the
price dramatically.”
44 / Check out Etsy
“I had a vision of hand-painted signs
for the bride-and-groom chairs. I found
exactly what I wanted on Etsy for about
$30, and the quality was amazing. You
can find just about anything there if
you’re patient and have the time to
look.”
—Melisa M., New York City
—Katie A., Enfield, Conn.
46 / Borrow for your big day
“I’m wearing the veil my mother wore
at her wedding. I saw one just like it for
$800.”
—Natalie I., Tampa, Fla.
47 / Do a dessert table
“We created a homemade dessert buffet
instead of ordering a wedding cake. My
husband and I asked all of the ladies
from his family to make their signature
dessert, and we put their names next to
each one. Everyone loved the variety,
and it saved us a lot of cash.”
—Kristin S., Irvine, Calif.
45 / Be morning people
“We had a late-morning wedding, which
saved us a ton of money. The reception
ended at four p.m., and then we threw
an after-party at someone’s house at
six-thirty!”
—Sarah M., Dartmouth, Mass.
50/ Hit the town
“Instead of having a formal after-party,
we’re going to hit some bars with our
friends post-wedding to celebrate. It’s
less pricey and feels more adventurous!”
—Chelsea A., Plainfield, Ill.