Cheap Wedding Budget

If you don't have a lot of money to spend on your wedding, put yourself on a cheap wedding budget. There is no shame in that.

Not everyone in the U.S. can afford to spend $29,000 on the wedding of their dreams, nor should they have to. I think that is ridiculous. For many, $29,000 is more than one year's pay, yet that is the approximate cost of a wedding now in 2009 in the United States.

Most of your cheap wedding budget will be spent on food, beverages, and your cake.

Approximately 40% of your wedding money will be spent on them.

Surprisingly, only 12% of your budget should go towards what you and your groom will wear on your wedding day. That includes your dress, veil, shoes, and undergarments and your groom's suit or tuxedo. It also includes the bride's hair and makeup.

8% of your budget should be put towards your reception site.

Another 8% should go to photography and videography.

An additional 8% goes to your music, but if you burn your own mixed CDs and play them on a good CD player, you can save this amount of money.

7% of your wedding money should go to flowers and decorations, including bouquets for you and your attendants, flowers for the groom's lapel and his attendants, rose petals, flower arrangements for the church and flower centerpieces at the reception, if you choose to use them.

Allow 5% for incidentals. These are whatever other expenses that may come up, not covered in other categories.

3% goes to parties that you choose to have prior to the wedding.

3% goes to paying for the ceremony site, the minister, and accessories not included elsewhere.

2% of your cheap wedding budget should go for invitations, thank you notes, postage, and any other stationery you use.

2% goes to transportation to the wedding, to the reception, and to the airport or hotel afterward.

Another 2% is for gifts. This includes wedding favors for your guests and gifts for all of your attendants.

By making some of the items yourself or by getting help from some of your family and friends, you can save money. The more you do-it-yourself, the more you will save and the more you will have towards a honeymoon and setting up your new home.

I encourage you to read the other pages on this wedding site so you can get ideas on how you and your family can do a lot of things on your own and save money!

I wish you the best as you create the Christian wedding of your dreams on a cheap wedding budget. It is do-able with a little know-how, some imagination, and a some help from willing family and friends.

One reader responded:

Tried To Create A Budget

by Aiysha
(NY)

I tried to start a budget so I knew what I was buying and I didn't want people to force me to buy stuff for a wedding if I didn't need it. I think not planning a wedding is like throwing money out of the window. If you are not on a budget that's just way too much in one day.
I tried it the cheap way but those ideas failed and DIY is too much time.

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Hi Aiysha,
I can hear your frustration and I understand how you feel. But if you do not create a budget and stick by your budget, you are not in control. Start over. First, how much money do you have or will you have saved up when it is time to start buying things for your wedding?

Maybe your wedding date should be postponed so you have the time to save up and so that you have the time to make the things you want for your wedding. Or maybe you don't want a big wedding. That is fine. Either way, make a decision as to when you will have it and how much you have to spend. See if the groom and his family, along with your family would be willing to help financially or with the food or cake or dress or flowers. Find out who cooks great food and who is crafty. Have a meeting and explain that you are the bride so you are in charge but you would really appreciate their help if they will go along with you and your dreams while staying in budget.

Then sit down and make a list of the wedding things that are important to you. Divide up the money between categories. This is your wedding budget. Don't buy anything at this stage. You are just seeing how much you have and how much each category in your budget will get.

Remember, you are in charge of your money. Your money is not in charge of you. You tell it where to go. It does not boss you. That is all a budget is.

If you don't have much to spend, get married in your church using your fellowship hall and it should cost you little to nothing. Find a cheap dress at a consignment shop or a second hand store, unless someone will let you borrow one.

As far as do it yourself takes too much time, yes, it can, if you do not have help. You need a team to help you. Your friends and relatives should help you do stuff. If they will not help you, I understand. My family would not help me with anything and my best friend got angry when I got engaged so she would not help me. My other best friend was her sister so she would not help me either. I was on my own. I did what I could. We just had a cake and coffee reception. It was a very simple wedding, but here we are almost 23 years later, still married. We have 3 grown children. Our oldest got married in May of this year (2009) on a budget and their wedding was much fancier than ours was, very beautiful. They were on a budget and planned it all out over a year in advance. They dated for 4 years. Don't be in a hurry. Take your time and enjoy dating and planning. I wish you the best. Would love to hear how it all turns out. Let me know if I can help.
--Juanita

I have a lot of cheap wedding ideas that can help you as you plan your wedding. In today's economy, I feel it is a waste of money to throw away $27,000 on a one day event when so many are jobless or are struggling financially. Even if you have that much money, are you sure you want to waste it on a big party? It would be better to have that money in a household emergency fund or to use it for a down payment on a home, don't you think?

Don't be afraid to be frugal as you plan. It does not mean you are a cheapskate. It means you are smart and that you know the value of a dollar.

Don't worry! You can still have a beautiful wedding, but you don't need to act like you are rich to get married. I didn't. My son and his wife, who just got married in May of 2009, did not spend a fortune, and neither should you.

I am a big Martha Stewart fan. I love her show, her web site, and her wedding magazines, but remember, she is a billionaire so she has a different perspective than typical middle class people. She shows perfect and very expensive weddings, but most regular brides do not have perfect, expensive weddings with caterers in fabulous halls with designers wedding gowns and thousand dollar cakes. It is simply not in our budget and that is okay.

I will tell you a secret. When two believers marry in the sight of God, no matter how much money they spent, they are still married. God does not tally up how much you spent and check to see if your reception was lavish enough for his taste. Many couples who spend unbelievable amounts for their big day are divorced within just a few years of their wedding and that is so sad. Marriage is not about your wedding day. It is about how the two of you choose to live each day after you are married together.

So talk it over with your fiance. Decide whether you want a big wedding day production or if you would like to get on the same page financially and emotionally as a couple so that your marriage will last. Then, start discussing cheap wedding ideas. Brainstorm and write down what you come up with.

Then invite your parents and his parents, along with a few special relatives who have good ideas and have another brainstorming session. See what cheap wedding ideas they have. Be open to suggestions and think about them. Then decide on what you like and how you can make it work to make your wedding day wonderful without breaking the bank.

You will find that your families and friends will be happy to help you with your wedding day by cooking, taking photos, making your dress, cake, veil, or bouquets. They love you and want you to have a special, almost perfect day. Just ask them. Include them. You will be amazed at the cheap wedding ideas your families will come up with. They have probably been to a lot more weddings than you have and they have been frugal for a lot longer than you have since they have lived a lot longer!