Last year, my wife and I got married after a lengthy engagement of 3 and a half weeks.
While we only had a few weeks to prepare, the wedding and the day itself ended up being very memorable for both of us. There were no feuds over where we'd sit this guest or that guest, who we'd invite or not invite or how much we'd spend for the wedding planner.
It was a small, intimate setting and we chose to invite only immediate family and a couple of close friends. Neither of us regrets the size of it or how little money we spent.
Here's a few things we did – that might encourage you to go cheap(er) on your wedding too:
- Chose a friend to do the photography. I'm all for great pictures. And, granted, this is a very special day. But I can tell you that you'll be going over the memories in your heart/mind more so than any photo album. Plus, our friend did a fantastic job on our photos. And, she gave the photos to us as a wedding gift.
- Invited those we really wanted to share our day with. Like I said, we chose to include only immediate family and a couple of close friends. All total we had about 18 people there. I would have loved to have everyone I knew at the wedding, but I also didn't want to go into debt trying to feed them all.
- The iPod worked great for music. We picked a beautiful rendition of Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring playing as my lovely wife walked up the “aisle”. Worked great.
- Made our own programs. Didn't take a lot of time. And, we only needed to print about 20 of them.
- Cake donated as a gift. By a relative who decorates cakes. Everyone loved it – and it was probably better than one we could have gotten at the fanciest of stores for lotsa money.
- Married in a town hall after Sunday church service. Since the church I was going to rented out the town hall, we asked if we could do it right after the service on Sunday. The town was willing to let us have the time afterwards, free of charge.
- Had the reception at a restaurant. Right after the ceremony and photos, our family and friends went to a restaurant. They were all ready for us – the food was great and everyone seemed to enjoy themselves. Yes, we paid for everyone's meal – but most of that was covered by the gifts we got.
My wife and I do not regret our thrifty wedding. What was most important that day was the promise we made to God and each other.
Did you have a cheap(er) wedding?
2 Comments
Well, we got married at the courthouse by a justice of peace. My sister-in-laws mother got a discount on community center since she lived in town & paid for it. My mom & dad made lasagna, salad & breadsticks for immediate family. My husband & I rented a hotel for one night. Honeymoon was spent at a friends cabin up north. Very inexpensive & no regrets :)
That a way Andrea! Might have been cheaper than ours!