Photography: Corey Conroy Photography
With the holidays right around the corner it is now officially considered engagement season! During the early stages of your planning process the total cost of your special day probably crosses your mind pretty often. While there’s a ton of different factors that comes into play when figuring out the overall expense, our good friend Britny from Coastal Coordinating has broken down the FIVE best tips to creating your budget and making sure you stick to it!
- Have an open and honest conversation with family members (and even friends)about whether or not they would like to contribute something for the wedding. Keep in mind that it is extremely important that you are clear about what you are asking them to do. If you want them to give you the contribution so that you may be the one to place any payments and have your name on the contract so that you work with the vendor directly – say that! If you are okay with them paying the vendor directly but you make all the decisions on the contract – communicate that! OR if you want to be completely hands off and are okay with them paying and communicating with the vendor make sure you let them know that is what you would like to do!
- Set Your Priorities! Talk with your partner and ask them what the top 3 things that are important to them on the day are! This gives you both the opportunity to allocate your budget and can also help your planner cater your day so you can actually experience them! Once you know what is important it allows you to cut your budget in other areas that may be less significant to you.
- Only order RSVP cards for those specific guests who may not be tech savvy! More and more individuals (partially because of COVID) use their phones to access menu’s at restaurants, or confirm appointments! Feel free to make your RSVP process virtual and then only order a few actual RSVP cards for grandparents or older family members.
- Favors! While these things can be fun or feel necessary to thank your guests for coming…more and more brides are cutting these out because they can become significantly expensive and are often untouched or left behind by guests. A new trend is for guests to be given a glass of champagne before the ceremony or right at the start of cocktail hour in addition to the bar. You can find ways to thank your guests for coming by telling them face to face, giving a “thank you” toast, or sending a thank you card when it is all over with a personal note. Bonus Tip: you can buy thank you cards in bulk from the dollar store!
- Guest Sign In! Most of the time you know everyone there! Well at least you should, that’s why you or your partner invited them! Sure, there may be a distant relative who you haven’t met yet but you do not have to have them sign in. Even though there are some really cute and trendy sign ins out there (pizza stones, frames, and signs for your home with your new name on it) they can cost upwards to $300 or more depending on the custom design. If you are looking for a way to slim down the cost but want to know who was there on the big day…have your photographer grab photos of you at each table! OR utilize that hashtag to see the selfies!
When it comes to planning your wedding the overall budget will always be a significant factor. We always recommend for couples to figure out their ideal price point early on, that way they aren’t left grinding their gears later down the road. Of course, if you’re still unsure of what you should and shouldn’t spend money on, make sure to reach out to the experts in the field, such as Coastal Coordinating, and see what they can do to help you!