How to Plan a Wedding Under $1,000
Planning a wedding can be stressful. It's supposed to be a joyful occasion celebrating the new couple, not an event that saddles anyone with crushing debt just to impress others. With today's economy, many couples and parents find themselves with limited finances to fund a wedding. Can a wedding be financed for under $1,000? With a little bit of creativity, yes!
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Things You'll Need
- phone
- Notebook
- Guest-list
- Mom's Wedding Dress
- Attendants
- Creativity
- crafting supplies
Instructions
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Pick a free venue for the wedding and reception. Many churches will waive the charges for members, so ask if you belong to one. Another option is to have a backyard wedding at a relative or friend's house, if they are willing. For a low-cost option, some city and state parks offer their facilities for rental for less than $100. Call around to find your best opportunities.
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Wear your mother's, or another relative's, wedding dress. If your mom saved her wedding dress, you can either start or continue a family tradition of passing the dress down. If it needs to be altered, that's still cheaper than buying a new one. Other friends or family may have wedding gowns available for you to borrow as well.
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Use silk flowers, purchasing your faux blooms craft stores when they have sales. Creating simple bouquets will take you only an afternoon. If you want real flowers, purchase them at a discount or grocery store with a florist stand the day before and bundle them together with streams of ribbon.
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Scale back on the food offerings and have a cake and punch reception. There's no rule that requires a wedding to be followed by a large sit-down meal. Cut costs even more and ask a talented friend to make you the cake, as her gift to you. If your invitation list is small, consider asking close friends and family to bring items for a simple potluck after the wedding.
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Make your own invitations. For very little money you can create invites tailored to your own preferences. Visit a craft store and buy colored card stock and ribbon, then print and decorate the invitations. Get your attendants together to help and make it into a fun project. Another option is to upload a photo of you and your fiance to an online photo company, then create wedding invitations using the company's card features. You'll likely find your favorites among the wide variety of styles, fonts, and graphics.
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Skip hiring the photographer and ask friends or family to do the task for you. With the vast capabilities of digital photography, it's simple for nearly anyone to point and shoot a great photo. The more people taking photos, the better your chances are of getting some truly memorable shots.
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Make your own decorations for the ceremony and the reception. Scour the shelves of dollar stores for inexpensive candles, vases, faux flowers, confetti and other items that can easily dress up a table. Check with your church or relations to see if anyone has items you can borrow or rent for a low fee.
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Tips & Warnings
When possible, make your own decorations for the ceremony and the reception. Also check to see if the church has their own stock of wedding decor and themes. Often times you can simply use the church's for free.
Stick to your budget. Its only one day, and entering marriage with a bag of debt from the celebration will not get it off on the best foot.
Don't let money come between you and your fiance. Financial problems are the number one cause of divorce in America. The wedding is only one day and not worth arguing about unrealistic expectations.
Don't become a bridezilla -- enjoy the planning and the day!
References
Resources
- Photo Credit Comstock/Comstock/Getty Images
