Budget

[SunBride]

Overall I went over budget on many items, especially photography and video, but also my dress as I had hoped to find a used one, and my husband's clothes, and rings.

1 week Vacation package & insurance (2x1500 + 2x60) = 3120
Spending money = 700
Wedding package = FREE (didn't even get charged for the little extras!)
Blood test & Judge's transportation (150+50) = 200
Wedding Photography (brought our own = travel + 800) = 2400
Wedding videography (Playaweddings 2 hours) = 840
Dress and alterations (675 +175) = 850
Grooms suit and alterations (350 +65 ) = 415
My accessories: veil, shoes x2, purse (75, 45, 12, 23) = 155
Groom's accesories: shirt, sandals, belt (43, 90, 43) = 175
Hair up-dos me and 2 bridesmaids: 130
Make-up (did my own but bought a lot of stuff which I will obviously re-use): 150
2 Bridesmaid dresses: 170
Bridesmaid shoes and necklaces: 35
Angel's Accents Flowers: 225
Decorations (parasols=50, fans=10, tulle=30, starfish=25) = 115
Favors 10 guests (beach bags=50, stuff for bags=70, DIYmugs=60, DIYshirts=85, DIYluggage tags=15) = 280
DIY Invitations (only 5!) = 5
Wedding bands: 1500

Total wedding: ~ 11 500

*that sounds a bit high for only 10 people and not a private reception, it's a very inclusive total (I didn't leave anything out besides the stuff below). Obviously if you have more people the costs would be higher, but the biggest items for me (vacation, photo, video, clothes) wouldn't change so I don't think it would have made a big difference (private reception at our resort would have cost about 3000$ for 50 people but I might have just gone for the buffet for free)


E-ring: 4000
Engagement photos: 200

Total Wedding + Engagement 15 700


We are having 2 at home receptions, as our family are in totally different parts of the country. Each one will cost about 2000-2500$. One is a backyard bbq (75 people) but still costs a lot for rentals of tables, chairs, dishes and linens (600$), alcohol (500$), steak (500$) and other food (500$). The other is at a golf course in a small town (50 people) which charges only about 20$ per meal + alcohol. Each set of parents are paying for that (they did not contribute to the actual wedding besides my parents buying me my dress). I will pay about 500$ for invitations, decorations, etc for both receptions.

AHR total = 5000

Grand total (engagement, wedding, AHRs) ~ 20 000$

Definetely more than I thought but overall pretty reasonable as I would have spent a few thousand more on a wedding here + honeymoon vacation (not much more though, just the receptions I think would have been a bit more expensive, but maybe not as I would not have gone super high class).

[sumrdream]

Wow! I'm hoping to get away with under 6000 for 40 people! But I'm not having my reception at a resort but a restaurant...so there's no extra fees for the rental......just the food and alcahol....I think i can pull this off! Wish me luck!

[SunBride]

Originally Posted by sumrdream

Wow! I'm hoping to get away with under 6000 for 40 people! But I'm not having my reception at a resort but a restaurant...so there's no extra fees for the rental......just the food and alcahol....I think i can pull this off! Wish me luck!

I think you can do it as long as you keep your budget for the other big ticket items, i.e. photo & video, clothes, rings, very small.

[blkladylaw]

When I was looking at local options in the DC/MD area the budget was like $28k or so assuming we would have hosted at least 75 people but I doubt we could have kept the guest list that low as the FI has a very large family locally and I have a zillion local friends that it would be hard not to invite and it would likely have ended up being more like 100-150+ guests and over $30k.

Now it is about $24k at Lake Las Vegas to host about 50 people. It could be $20k if I do not do the VIP room rental at the 40/40 club.

Includes dinner reception for 50 on a chartered yacht cruise, open bar, ceremony package (which includes minister, chapel use, florist, 3 hrs photography and pics package), wedding bands, 1st silver dress that I decided against and am trying to sell on ebay, new dress and alterations, guest transportation from the Vegas strip, Hawaii honeymoon, our airfare and hotel in Nevada and Hawaii for just us, my mom's dress, a camcorder, engagement pics, a trip to Vegas in June to preview places and taste cake, VIP room rental at JayZ's 40/40 club for after party, invitations, cake, and thats it I think.

If I didn't save as much money as I thought by going away I did save a lot more stress and work. The local wedding would have needed a coordinator or I would have had to find all my individual vendors on my own as the venue money just got me the empty venue and food with nothing else in the package. In Nevada everything is packaged and I have much less to do, which is worth a lot more than money to me as I am a busy legal executive that works a lot of hours and can't take the time to do all the stuff that would have been required locally.

[karahmia]

Here's my actual (a)/tentative (t) budget:
Wedding dress: $600 (a) Gotta love a sample sale...

ABOVE ITEMS NOT INCL IN BUDGET
Wedding shoes: $40.00 (a)...and friends with GREAT discounts!
Wedding planner: Free of charge*(a)
Photographer: Free of charge*(a)
Travel (incl planner & photographer): $1700(t)
Accommodations: $3000(t)
Hair & Markeup, FI Grooming: $300
Flowers: $600(t)
Dinner: $400(t) We are eloping so we saved a ton of money here
Honeymoon: $4000(t)
Total: 10,000.00

[kerryjbrown]

So the FI and I discussed budget tonight for the first time (after most things are already chosen) as Mom comes in on Tuesday to Plan & SHop-YEAH! This is SCARY! Thanks Twixy for posting a spreadsheet, I found the knot budget to not be very useful.

[ebbica]

Originally Posted by kerryjbrown

So the FI and I discussed budget tonight for the first time (after most things are already chosen) as Mom comes in on Tuesday to Plan & SHop-YEAH! This is SCARY! Thanks Twixy for posting a spreadsheet, I found the knot budget to not be very useful.

Yeah the knot budget wasn't so great. weddingchannel has a better budget planner.

My main problem w/ budgeting this right now is the accommodations. We don't want to do it at a resort, so we're trying to find a beach house or an estate where we can stay with our family/ friends and have the ceremony & reception all in one. Kinda like a family vacation w/ wedding. I'll talk to some wc's this week, so we'll see what numbers come from that... We're trying to save $18,600... *sigh* SCARY is RIGHT!!

[kerryjbrown]

I actually thought by have a DW we would save money but everyone wants to come.

I will check out the weddingchannel budget, I haven't looked there. Thanks

[Jenn(soon to be)Weatheral]

Hi ladies,

I'm just getting into this game now with only 6 months to go till the wedding...it's my fiance's second wedding so he really wants to down play the whole thing. What's important to me is that we are together on a beach....can't think of much else besides not having all of his boozing friends there. So I think only one other couple is coming with us....and we're going to get married in wedding bathing suits!

Anyway, I'm wondering about the free wedding packages. We don't really have any guests so I'm trying to figure out the best way to choose a resort with the best free wedding package...any thoughts? Suggestions?

Please help!!!!

[caguirre]

Wedding dress: $1800
Reception: $12,500
Flowers: $2200
BM and My flowers: $500
Photographer: $3300
Special lighting: $1000
Church: $2300
Favors: $700
Invitations: $800
Candy Station: $400
DJ: $350
Limo: $1000
Violinist: $700

Honeymoon $7000.00 <---19 days in Europe. Includes England, Germany, France, Italy, Switzerland = $200 ea a day. Includes flight and hotel w/dinner and breakfast.

Not added: hair, makeup, shoes, rehearsal dinner...and a bunch of other things that always come up.