STICK TO YOUR BUDGET

We help brides plan the wedding of their dreams and stay within their budgets! Yes, it is possible to do both and our trained consultants can show you how. The most important decision you make is to set a budget and then stick to it. Some brides choose to go into debt for their wedding, but we recommend that you make the most of what you can afford. You can have a beautiful wedding on a budget. If parents are giving the couple money for the wedding, they should do without strings attached. Let the bride and groom decide what is the most important to them about the event and then spend accordingly. If the money is to be given well in advance of the wedding, consider putting it in a shore term CD to earn some interest.

Be open to spending the money on items that are very important to you and saving money to fund that wish, elsewhere in the planning. If you have fallen in love with THE gown and it is outside your budgeted amount, get the dress that matters to you and save money on the flowers for your reception. Or instead of hiring a limo for the entire evening, accept the neighbor's offer of his classic car for the trip to the church.

Compare prices on flowers, invitations, programs and favors. Shop for the best price on those items. Rent greenery rather than pay for costly floral arrangements. Choose dear and useful programs for your ceremony rather than elaborate and expensive ones. Know that you can control the costs of food and beverages (the biggest expense categories of the wedding) by the number of guests or what you choose to serve at the wedding. You can keep costs down with hors d'oeuvres rather than a sit down dinner and champagne rather than mixed drinks.

Calculate the per guest cost and use that to determine whether you want more guests or more food. If you are having a sit down dinner with a cost of $50 per person, inviting 30 more people adds $1,500 to your cost. Consider keeping costs for attendants reasonable – especially if they are incurring travel costs to be in your wedding. More and more couples are choosing to pay for an attendant's dress or groomsman's tux if the friend is having to pay for a plane ticket to be in the wedding.