Ways to Cut Wedding Cost

How is it possible for a couple to have the wedding of their dreams, while staying within budget? By learning to cut wedding costs. The following are tips and practical advice on reducing the overall wedding cost in ways that the guests will be none the wiser:

The guest list
For every person that gets invited to the wedding, the cost of the invitations and food rises. Create a master guest list. Then sit down and go through the list eliminating guests one by one. Some couples may have to do to this a few times over the course of several days until the guest list has been trimmed down to a reasonable and affordable number.

Invitations
Keep the invitations simple. The more detail that is on the invitation, the higher the price will be. Consider printing the invitations using a home printer, purchasing them through a stationary store, party store, or an online retailer. Instead of including a reply card, have guests reply online or the telephone.

Wedding attire
Consider purchasing a used wedding gown, renting a gown and bridesmaid's dresses, shop in thrift stores, in department stores that sell designer dresses and gowns, or take advantage of sample sales.

Flowers
Flowers are one expense that can add up quickly. Choose flowers that are in season and consider using more greens than flowers wherever possible.

Day of the week & time of year
Saturday is the most popular day of the week to get married. As a result, many churches, house of worship, and reception venues charge top dollar for a Saturday wedding. To save money, some couples choose to get married during the week or on a Sunday.

The months of June through August are very popular months for marriages. Couples can save a considerable amount of money if they choose to get married in the fall, winter, and early spring months.

Decorations
Many wedding decorations can be purchased at craft stores, party supply outlets, and after holiday sales for a fraction of the cost of ordering through traditional wedding supply stores.

If a couple chooses to get married around a holiday, such as Christmas, many churches and reception venues are already decorated for the holiday, which will greatly reduce the amount of decorations that need to be purchased.

When purchasing wedding decorations, choose decorations that can later be used at the reception.

Cake
Wedding cakes can be rather expensive. The more layers and detail that goes into a cake, the more expensive the cake becomes. What many couples choose to do is serve their guests sheet cake. The wedding cake is made with the top layer being the actual cake and the bottom layers are just forms. The wedding cake will look just like a real elaborate wedding cake, but without the added expense.