Bride on A Budget (7,000.00 WEDDING CHALLENGE)

[TiarraBeautyJ]

Hello Ladies,

 

The average cost of a wedding in the United States is estimated at about 25,000.  Destination Weddings have become very popular due to cost shifting from Bride and Groom to Individual Guest. As I read forums and posts it seems like all brides want their day to be perfect to say the least. They book the best hotels, biggest packages, best invitations and before you know it the destination wedding turns into 14,000-30,000 easily. 

 

I am going to challenge myself to create a wedding for my FI and I with a 7,000 budget. Here is how I expect to achieve this

 

1. Choosing a resort that is price friendly

2. Choosing a wedding package that does not have extra things included that I will not need

3. Finding a photographer that can do amazing work with budget friendly pricing

4. Using silk flowers to make my day special

5. DIY projects in every aspect

6. Staying in basic rooms 

 

I will keep track of my  journey by posting a lot of information in the forums.

 

Please add any tips to help me out. 

 

Having a wedding on a budget does not mean sacrificing the beauty of it.

After all a wedding is about more than money, more than glam, it is about love. 

I know people who have paid thousands of dollars for a luxurious wedding and they were divorced 6 months later.

[TiarraBeautyJ]

Hello Ladies,

 

The average cost of a wedding in the United States is estimated at about 25,000.  Destination Weddings have become very popular due to cost shifting from Bride and Groom to Individual Guest. As I read forums and posts it seems like all brides want their day to be perfect to say the least. They book the best hotels, biggest packages, best invitations and before you know it the destination wedding turns into 14,000-30,000 easily. 

 

I am going to challenge myself to create a wedding for my FI and I with a 7,000 budget. Here is how I expect to achieve this

 

1. Choosing a resort that is price friendly

2. Choosing a wedding package that does not have extra things included that I will not need

3. Finding a photographer that can do amazing work with budget friendly pricing

4. Using silk flowers to make my day special

5. DIY projects in every aspect

6. Staying in basic rooms 

 

I will keep track of my  journey by posting a lot of information in the forums.

 

Please add any tips to help me out. 

 

Having a wedding on a budget does not mean sacrificing the beauty of it.

After all a wedding is about more than money, more than glam, it is about love. 

I know people who have paid thousands of dollars for a luxurious wedding and they were divorced 6 months later.

[brownsugarbride]

Hello Ladies, The average cost of a wedding in the United States is estimated at about 25,000.  Destination Weddings have become very popular due to cost shifting from Bride and Groom to Individual Guest. As I read forums and posts it seems like all brides want their day to be perfect to say the least. They book the best hotels, biggest packages, best invitations and before you know it the destination wedding turns into 14,000-30,000 easily.  I am going to challenge myself to create a wedding for my FI and I with a 7,000 budget. Here is how I expect to achieve this 1. Choosing a resort that is price friendly 2. Choosing a wedding package that does not have extra things included that I will not need 3. Finding a photographer that can do amazing work with budget friendly pricing 4. Using silk flowers to make my day special 5. DIY projects in every aspect 6. Staying in basic rooms  I will keep track of my  journey by posting a lot of information in the forums. Please add any tips to help me out.  Having a wedding on a budget does not mean sacrificing the beauty of it. After all a wedding is about more than money, more than glam, it is about love.  I know people who have paid thousands of dollars for a luxurious wedding and they were divorced 6 months later.

Hi Tiarra: I think these are all great tips and a nice reminder of what is important. The biggest thing I think anyone can do is to trim the guest list.That's the biggest driver of costs, and what gets brides in the end. I'm really going to have to take a hard look at mine. I would also say that DIY can be fabulous, but a lot of brides get caught up in the excitement and possibilities and waste money on DIY that someone else can do for cheaper or start DIY before they choose their overall theme. Keeping this in mind, I too, am thinking carefully about what DIY will work for my wedding that won't have me spending more than I want. The last thing is invites and save the dates. I love all of the fabulous invitations that I see, but you can do great things and save lots of cash by going to Costco or if you have a graphic designer friend, getting them to help you with invites. On basic rooms...a lot of times, it sounds like you get good upgrades anyway---especially with a good travel agent! LOL I hope this helps and I can't wait to see your tips! P.S. I used to live in WI too!

[Kaiden1215]

I like this idea Tiera! I too am on a budget for our wedding. Mine is $8,000. When is your wedding? It would be great to follow eachother's journey. Ball on a budget as they saying goes. Congrats!

[brownsugarbride]

Originally Posted by Kaiden1215 

 

I like this idea Tiera! I too am on a budget for our wedding. Mine is $8,000. When is your wedding? It would be great to follow eachother's journey. Ball on a budget as they saying goes. Congrats!

 

Congratulations Kaiden! I am having my wedding off-resort, but the (tentative) plan as of now is to stay at the Now Jade.

[TiarraBeautyJ]

Originally Posted by Kaiden1215 

 

I like this idea Tiera! I too am on a budget for our wedding. Mine is $8,000. When is your wedding? It would be great to follow eachother's journey. Ball on a budget as they saying goes. Congrats!

Hi Kaiden!!! 

 

I am having my wedding at the Barcelo Palace Resort located in the Riviera Maya area. I am doing pretty well with staying on budget. So far I am calculating 3600. This of course does not include photography, I have been going back and forth trying to find the perfect photographer. I would like to spend the bulk of my budget on Photography because this gives me the everlasting photos I will need. I would love to share our journey and ideas to each other. And you should be fine with an 8,000 budget. I can not see myself spending 20,000 on one day. Although is is very important I do think you can have a wonderful wedding at an affordable price. 

 

Best Regards,

 

Tiarra J

[TiarraBeautyJ]

Originally Posted by brownsugarbride 

 

 

Congratulations Kaiden! I am having my wedding off-resort, but the (tentative) plan as of now is to stay at the Now Jade.

Hi BrownsugarBride!!!

 

How is your planning going? I know when we first started chatting you were in the beginning stages of making your wedding plans. The Now Jade resort is beautiful. !!!!! I love the modern amenities it has to offer. I actually was going to go with a wedding planner and have an off- resort wedding but the wedding coordinator was lacking and it seemed pricey. So I am sticking with my original plan to have the wedding at a resort. 

 

Best Regards, 

 

Tiarra Jones

[brownsugarbride]

Hi BrownsugarBride!!! How is your planning going? I know when we first started chatting you were in the beginning stages of making your wedding plans. The Now Jade resort is beautiful. !!!!! I love the modern amenities it has to offer. I actually was going to go with a wedding planner and have an off- resort wedding but the wedding coordinator was lacking and it seemed pricey. So I am sticking with my original plan to have the wedding at a resort.  Best Regards,  Tiarra Jones

Tiarra: I am not quite succeeding at reining in costs as I would like! LOL It is soooo much easier to contain costs on a resort, but I had to be difficult! One thing I'm doing now is to use my debit card points to go toward my dress and other things, so that I can pay a lot less on the things I'm buying outside of Mexico. I'm still hoping to stay on budget, and I think that may come from cutting down on guests. How are your plans coming along?

[mrsbrowntobe]

I love this thread. I am doing whatever it takes to stay around 6,000-7,000 dollars. I chose an off peak time in Jamaica and I am going with the free package. Not sure what I plan on bringing for decorates (aisle, dinner, chairs) but I want to keep it minimal. After all, the reasons for destination for me were stress-free (as possible), less planning, cheaper and I get to have a holiday with my family and friends since we live in a different province. I created my own luggage tags for STDs on Word and am going to print them on card stock, attach a polka dot ribbon, and viola. I have decided to send out STD with our wedding date & time, resort, and "for further details and to RSVP visit our wedding website..." I know that some people see invitations as being very important, and that's fine, but I personally see them as a waste of time and money. The website will have all the information that my potential guests will require. I know people worry about pleasing relatives who won't be able to attend. I am sending my STDs to EVERYONE and on our welcome page on our site, I included a blurb about the guests who can't make it. We will take a moment on our special day to reflect on all of the important relationships in our lives, and I want you all to know that you will be in our thoughts. Something along those lines. I want to go super casual for my boys and will probably get their outfits from Old Navy, as a friend of mine did who married in Cuba last year. She waited until the end of the season sale to order the shirts and sandals. I want to rider my dress and BM dresses from one of those China Made online dress sites, but am a little nervous. Did anyone else do this? Any more tips would be awesome. Happy budget wise planning!

[curlygirlnpearl]

Hey ladies! I like this idea too! I'm trying to keep my budget at $7,000. I wanted to have my wedding at another location other than the resort but with the budget I think I may have to stay at the resort, which isn't completely bad! Trying not to go crazy with OOT bags now! Happy Planning!