Weddings are beautiful celebrations for newly engaged couples and their guests, but those wedding expenses can sure be expensive.
And while everyone enjoys dressing up and having a great time with friends and family, wedding expenses can sure get a couple into debt fast.
Weddings have become very expensive and as all the details are selected, the total price can quickly become the price of a car or even a large down payment on a house.
You will be presented with items that you didn’t know existed and so many options and upgrades that can quickly skyrocket the price of your wedding.
So let’s keep that wedding budget in check with these wedding expenses list of items you can choose to skip at your wedding so you can save more money.
These wedding items you don’t need or you may find a more frugal option so you have that extra cushion for emergencies.
Plus, when you cut back on your wedding expenses, you can breathe easier that all your bills and vendors will get paid when the party is over with.
If your budget has a limit, then you may want to read over some of the wedding details we have chosen to skip, to help plan your celebration and save some money for your wedding celebration.
Save The Dates
When you send your invitations out to all your guests, you don’t need to include save-the-date magnets, key chain, or photo cards and add to your wedding expenses.
Printing your invitations and paying for postage is going to be an expense already.
The date is posted on the invitation and if they are planning on being there, they will.
If you want to send out a reminder then just do it through social media or email for free.
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More Frugal Ideas:
- Print your own invitation. If you know how to use Microsoft Word, you can print your own invitation. You can go as simple or as extravagant as you want even with printing your own invitation. You can buy the card stock or a kit! Check out this 50 pc wedding Invitation kit for around $26!
- Go Paper Free! Many couples these days are trying to be even more environmentally friendly and forgoing the paper invite. Set up an email invite especially if you are having a smaller wedding.
The Guest Book
Truthfully think about how many times you will open the guest book and look over all who was there.
More than likely it will end up on a shelf collecting dust over the years and a big waste of money added to your wedding expenses.
Instead be creative and have the guest sign an item that you can display in your home: such as a decorative plate, the front of a photo album where you can display your wedding photos, a wooden letter to represent your last name, or a plaque for your wall.
Or create a photo booth to capture all the guests smiling faces. These can be framed or included in your photo albums which is something you will actually look at!
Keep cutting these wedding items you don’t need so you can save more money!
Aisle Runner
Every girl dreams of walking down the aisle when they visualize their wedding, but you don’t need to have a white or red aisle runner. And doesn’t it get thrown away anyway after the first use? Talk about a waste as a part of your wedding expenses. Skip it.
If your wedding is indoors, you can skip the runner, which will save you the scare of possibly tripping, and instead just walk down the aisle.
Even if you are having an outdoor wedding, you can line the aisle with flowers or petals. I think it’s even more beautiful!
This is one of those items to cut back on your wedding expenses so you don’t waste money.
Full Bar
Since my family doesn’t drink alcohol, we didn’t have it at our wedding. We just didn’t feel it was necessary and it saved us hundreds, if not thousands on our wedding expenses!
But if you do drink, don’t think that you need to have a full bar of every type of drink your guests would potentially enjoy.
Instead, choose just a few drinks that include wine, beer, and a cocktail. This is one of those wedding expenses list items that really isn’t necessary.
You can also limit the number of drinks per guest or have them purchase their drinks at the bar.
Champagne
At the wedding, there is the tradition of the champagne toast, but this can become expensive when you are trying to come up with the alcohol for all the guests as part of your wedding expenses.
As an alternative, you could use wine and just let the guests fill up their glasses.
Just so you know, James and I toasted with our non-alcoholic punch. Again, no alcohol needed and one of those wedding items you don’t need. A toast is a toast and it doesn’t have to be champagne.
Menu Cards
Typically at a wedding, the dinner choices are limited to just a couple options to help keep the wedding expenses down.
Instead of having a menu printed up for every guest, you can have a few choices to save a little money.
- You can have one list displayed at each table.
- You can have a board with the menu posted at the entrance of the reception.
- Or, you can have the waiter present the choices verbally to your guests.
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Create A Plan For Your Money
These FREE Budgeting Spreadsheets will help you keep a pulse on your money (from the palm of your hand).
Instead, just create a menu board for where the line starts for the buffet or posted at the entrance of the reception. It’s one way to cut back on your wedding expenses without your guests noticing it.
Chair Covers
Including the chair covers, along with the other decorative table linens, might give the pretty effect of a room draped in cloth but you honestly do not need them to create a beautiful reception.
Examine the chairs that will be provided at the establishment where you will have the event or, if your renting the chairs, then choose ones that you will be comfortable with presenting.
These wedding expenses you can surely do without and it will save you hundreds of dollars.
Expensive Centerpieces
The centerpieces for all the guest tables can become costly very quickly and add a small fortune to your wedding expenses.
When designing your centerpiece keep in mind that every item you choose will have to be multiplied by the number of tables you will need.
Instead of dropping hundreds of dollars on vases and bouquets you can create a romantic setting with candles, or petals floating in the water.
These DIY ideas will cut your wedding expenses list while still creating a warm and beautiful environment for your guests.
Large Wedding Cake
When planning the wedding, sometimes the cake tends to take center stage with its massive size, but that also comes at a cost, a huge cost to your wedding expenses.
In fact, my cake cost more than my actual dress! And it wasn’t even from a professional bakery!
Focus on how many guests will be attending the wedding and go for a size that will fit the guest list.
To make it look bigger than it is you can have the baker place it on a tier separator.
Many brides have gotten smart and will do a cutting cake with either sheet cake or cupcakes for the guests. This will save you hundreds and help to cut back on your wedding expenses!
The Bride And Groom Cake
It is now becoming popular to have separate cakes for the bride and groom.
Cake can be expensive, and personally, this is just more cake that is unnecessary and will take a huge chunk in your wedding expenses.
In fact, the last wedding I went to that had two cakes, the groom’s cake wasn’t even cut and there was plenty of cake left from the first one. Talk about a waste of money!
BONUS FREE DOWNLOAD
Create A Plan For Your Money
These FREE Budgeting Spreadsheets will help you keep a pulse on your money (from the palm of your hand).
If the groom and bride can’t decide between the flavor of the main cake, this is when different flavored cupcakes will save the day.
Wedding Favors
Many married couples want to make their guests feel appreciated and thank them for attending their wedding ceremony.
But buying a favor for each guest to take home can become ridiculously expensive, especially when you have over a hundred guests.
This can be done by a simple thank you announcement.
If the guests want something to remember the wedding, then you can offer to send them photos from the ceremony.
At another wedding I went to, the bride labored over honey jars with a cute little saying. She made over 100 of them…and at the end of the party she had forgotten to give them out. All that time and money was wasted.
Your wedding is the first stepping stone towards building a life together with your future spouse.
To start off on the right foot, you will want to begin with the least amount of debt so make sure you watch your wedding expenses.
Use these money saving tips to keep your wedding within your budget while still having a beautiful ceremony.
As you can see, it can be easy to keep that wedding budget in check with these wedding expenses list of items you can choose to skip at your wedding so you can save more money.
These wedding items you don’t need or you may find a more frugal option so you have that extra cushion for emergencies.
Plus, when you cut back on your wedding expenses, you can breathe easier that all your bills and vendors will get paid when the party is over with.
YOUR TURN: What extravagant wedding expenses have you seen at a wedding? Let me know in the comments below!
