8 Wedding Planning Tips on a Budget

The average couple in the UK spends thousands on their wedding, so it will come as no surprise that more and more brides and grooms-to-be are planning their perfect low budget wedding and cutting costs where they can.

The trick with planning a wedding on a budget is to follow cheap wedding ideas, but whilst still keeping everything stylish and beautiful. This way, you can have your dream day, without needing to take out a second mortgage to pay for it!

Here are eight tips and tricks for planning your low budget wedding. Oh, and congratulations from all of us here at B&M!

Don’t invite every Tom, Dick and Harry

When choosing who to invite to your special day, it can be tempting to just invite everyone you know. However, doing this will end up costing you more. Only send out full day invitations for the people you REALLY want there - we’re talking just family and close friends. Everyone else can join in your celebrations at the evening do.

B&M Top Tip: if you’re really struggling to whittle down your guest list, wipe it completely and start again. Start with immediate family members, bridesmaids and groomsmen and then see how many guests you’ve got left after that.

Make your own invitations

If you or anyone you know has a good quality home printer and some decent paper, you can actually make some very classy and stylish invitations, without forking out a ridiculous amount.

There are plenty of templates that you’ll be able to download from the internet that look brilliant. Or try professional printing sites like VistaPrint - their invitations aren’t particularly fancy, but they look fine and won’t cost the earth.

Tell guests you’d be happier with money...

Many newlyweds have already lived together for a while prior to their big day, so chances are you’ve already got many of the bog-standard wedding gifts: toaster, set of knives, coffee-making machine etc. In this case, it’s absolutely okay to put on your invitation that you’d rather have money than another gravy boat.

B&M Top Tip: for a nice way to ask for money instead of gifts, use a poem. You’ll find quite a few pretty poem templates online.

...or help with the wedding!

Do you know someone who’s an amazing ameteur photographer? Fantastic! Put their skills to good use and ask them to photograph your big day as their wedding gift. Know someone who’s in a band? Or who DJs in their spare time? Ask them to be the entertainment at your wedding reception. Most friends will be more than happy to help out!

Do the catering yourself

You’d be surprised at how easy it can be to do your own catering for your wedding. Just keep it in the family! Does your mum cook a mean lasagne? Buy her the ingredients and ask her to make it in bulk.

Spend a couple of hours the day before your wedding and go to a local marketplace. Buy lots of fresh cooked meats, delicious salads, smoked salmon, mini pies, quiches, cheese boards, finger sandwiches, chutneys and whatever else you’d like to include on your buffet table.

B&M Top Tip: add a pudding table - cupcakes, sweets, choccies and fruit!

Don’t go overboard on the decorations

Decorations are a huge part of most weddings, but they don’t need to be expensive. Before heading off to your local wedding fayre armed with more cash than you can afford to spend, take a look at some of the cheaper stores. Many home stores have a wedding section, with items that are just as nice as those from proper wedding vendors.

Here at B&M, we have a wide selection of wedding items, including the ever-popular heart LED tea lights and rose candle ring - perfect for decorating your wedding tables.

B&M Top Tip: add a personal touch by writing your own table place cards, just get some coloured card, a sharpie and you’re good to go! For a rustic effect, use pinecones or leaves. 

Buy cheap but gorgeous bridesmaids dresses

There are loads of absolutely stunning dresses out there from high street stores, which can be used as bridesmaids dresses, so avoid spending a huge amount on dresses from wedding shops. Plus, you could even enlist the help of your bridesmaids to choose the dresses, and say they can keep them as your gift to them.

With tuxedos, rent them as a group. Unless you think they will be worn again, there’s no need to buy them, and many tuxedo rental places will offer group discounts, so shop around.

Plan a special honeymoon, not an over-the-top one

We all know someone who jetted off to Dubai or The Maldives or somewhere equally as amazing / expensive after their wedding day, and good on them, but that doesn’t mean you have to get yourself into debt trying to keep up with the Jones’.

When planning your honeymoon, choose somewhere that you’ll both love - whether that’s a weekend in Paris or a night in Prestatyn. This is YOUR honeymoon, so enjoy spending this time with your other half and don’t stress about where anyone else went on theirs.

 

We’d love to hear about how you planned / are planning your wedding on a budget. Let us know by sharing your ideas on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram!