Five Ideas For Saving Money On Your Wedding Budget

Most brides-to-be are looking for ideas to make their wedding budget stretch a bit further - unless you're an A-list celeb and money really is no object.

So to help with your planning, we've put together five easy ideas for saving money on your wedding budget. Nothing that will make your big day feel cheap - but inspiration to help with your spending.

Five Ways To Keep Your Wedding Finances Flowing Further

1. Instead of getting married on a Saturday in the middle of summer, why not consider a weekday during the winter months? For a start, venues and vendors are more likely to be able to accommodate you with shorter notice. In addition, wedding venues tend to be less busy during these times so you're more able to negotiate a room hire rate that's affordable. The same goes for caterers, photographers and transport. During the times when business is leaner, suppliers will work harder to get yours. That's good news for you.
2. If you fancy a big five tier cake but think you can't afford it, think again. There's nothing to say that you must have five actual cakes made. Show your cake maker what you have in mind - go to town on the icing and the decor as you wish - but not every layer needs to be real cake. The other layers can be just for show. You can have false cakes made from cardboard iced and no-one will be any the wiser. Not everyone eats wedding cake anyway - it often goes to waste - so just cut up the bottom layer and hand that out. It's a secret between you and your caterer!
3. If you're dreaming of a designer wedding dress but know that the gown of your dreams will burn a big hole in your wedding budget - well don't give up. Many wedding dress designers have fabulous sample sales throughout the year where you can buy a display dress at a reduced price. The shop will clean it so it looks like new and you can have it altered to fit (which you'd be doing in any case). This is a good tip that many brides forget about - and it's worth remembering.
4. Don't feel you have to follow the crowd and have items like wedding favours. If you've invited 100 guests and each favour costs even just £1 - then that's still £100 off your budget that could be spent elsewhere. If people don't find a favour at their place setting when they sit down, few will mind. They might not even notice. And if they do notice and they do mind, why would you want them at your wedding in any case?
5. Don't feel you must have a formal, sit-down three course dinner. They are expensive and may not suit your style in any case. A buffet gives people a greater choice of food so they're more likely to get something to eat that they enjoy. But don't scrimp on food either - you need to feed your guests handsomely. If that's a budget problem, then consider having an afternoon wedding and serving delicious afternoon tea with sandwiches, cakes and scones instead. Far better to do a lovely job of something less expensive than to skimp in the wrong places and have an indifferent reception.

Have you any ideas for saving money on your wedding budget you'd like to share with us?