6 Wedding Budget Hacks I Used to Save Thousands | The 3-Minute Guide

Erin from Broke Millennial shares her own wedding budget hacks.

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[Courtney]

I had a Sunday brunch wedding in a botanical garden which saved a ton of money. No dancing and instead of a dj I hired a cellist and violinist to play during the reception. I did my own flower arrangements for the tables and hired a florist only for my bouquet. I also baked my own wedding cake! I found 5 recipes on Pinterest and made mini versions of them and had a tasting with my friends to decide on which one to make for the wedding. It was such a fun memory.

[unleashingpotential-psycho]

I think people sometimes go overboard with their weddings and end up regretting the cost of it afterwards when They spend the next five years paying it off.

[gabi_bird]

I had my wedding for 8k. Consignment dress, no engagement ring, lone matron of honor dress for $20 on Amazon, no flowers (except 2 bouquets we got at the grocery story the morning of), my own books for centerpieces, tiny Whole Foods white cake as our wedding cake (which we didn't even touch cuz we forgot) and cupcakes for guests. It was a dream.

[highlyhp]

Wow! What a great list of tips. I'm not getting married anytime soon but I really appreciate how this video can help people who want to have a more traditional wedding but still save money. Great work!

[marissal]

You can also have a longer engagement so that you save up for the wedding you want. That also gives you more time to DIY stuff or hunt down more reasonable options

[veronica-solomon]

Congratulations! I got married this past August and here are the ways we saved money: booked our venue during their off-season, skipped flower centerpieces for tables (instead we DIY'd something I found on Pinterest), had my mother-in-law bake a wedding cheesecake for us (she's a wonderful baker) and bought cheesecakes from Publix for our guests, bought my dress from a wedding dress outlet, had a friend's relative officiate our wedding for free, skipped save-the-dates and RSVP cards, I used my engagement ring for my wedding band (I'm not really into wearing rings so I'm happy only wearing one, especially since it has an unusual shape, it would've been hard to find a wedding band to go with it), skipped wedding favors which most people would probably forget to take anyway, skipped decorations for the ceremony site since it was set in a gazebo and a beautiful courtyard, borrowed my sister's veil, and had an open wine/beer bar instead of a full liquor bar. So many of our guests told us how beautiful our wedding was and they had such a great time :)

[jess_a_yo]

Or 1 hack: pay $100 for a license filing/notarize and J.o.P. Then have a party elsewhere.

[trinam]

So many ways to save $ on a wedding!! I found a ring I loved, but did not love the price, so my husband found a similar one I liked even better on Amazon for less than 1/4 the price! We rented a brick building at our local state park for $200. Did the decor ourselves. Super simple, we used small fish bowls, w colored marbles and candles. And purple mason jars w dolies and a few roses. Colored streamers and table clothes. We had a couple yards of lace w some pillar vases w candles in them for the ceremony which a friend officiated. Another friend video taped the ceremony bc my grandparents were unable to attend. Yet another friend who was starting her own business gave us a great deal on photos. We got the decor at $tree, the cakes and flowers at our local grocery and hit up costco for fruit and veggies which a friend helped me cut up and arrange on platters the night before. My wedding dress was a clearance bridesmades dress in off white. My husband had to pay nearly $1000 for his suit because he is 6'6". The suit was more than everything else combined, including my ring!

[jadelightsword]

Love wedding savings. I saved thousands by
1. Making and playlist and having special guests do the announcements - no DJ or live band
2. Flower free centerpieces, and we bought flowers from whole foods and made our own bouquets - no florist

[ThePurplenessness]

Another cool thing-a wedding I went to recently had everyone bring a flower from home to add to the bouquet and the flower girl was supposed to pick them up from everyone as she went down the aisle and give it to the bride-didn't go to plan as a bit logistically complicated for her but it added to the niceness of the wedding.

[bluejedi]

I would have added: Be aware the minute you utter "wedding" instead of "family get together" costs go stupid high. Don't buy into the hype of "once in a lifetime" crap.

Prom dresses/cocktail hour dresses are often just as nice as "bridesmaid" dresses and cheaper.

Use seasonal flowers and greenery.

No, you don't need to wear a white wedding dress. Yes, it's "tradition" but the cost of a white wedding dress you are only going to wear one time can be stupid crazy high. Be different, and it's okay.

For the food: No need to go overboard. Or crazy with the add-ons. It's okay to keep it simple like to finger foods, nonmessy/ non-greasy foods. You don't need a full bar or booze, soft drinks and alcohol-free cocktails might be just as a big of a hit. Guests might be just as happy with cheese, crackers, fruit/veggie trays, and finger foods.
The cake: It might be cheaper to have a smallish one or two teir cake you cut in front of the guests and then it wheeled to the kitchen where it's severed alongside sheet cake in place of a fancy $$$$ multi-tier cake.

If you are wanting a photographer or videographer for your wedding, see if a local college has a photography major and/or some film students who would be willing to come in and photograph/film your wedding and edit the video/make up some wedding photo books for some $$ and a reference.

Same with any graphic arts students see if they can do a project for you of making up wedding invites/escort cards/posters whatever for your wedding for the cost of supplies to add to their portfolio/references.

[StefanieOConnell]

Loving all of these tips! I am currently planning my wedding, and the best way I can describe my budget it: less than "average", but more than "cheap"!

[littlemusicx]

I thonk the idea of using the bouquets as centerpieces is really nice. Or just use some plants and greens, because the flower will most likely only last the night. Or maybe succulents and blooming cacti, that way you can at least use them afterwards.

[mintboyd]

for the song "Ain't No Mountain High Enough", you could use the routine from the game Just Dance 😂

[aprildawnsunshine]

For flowers we made everything ourselves (okay hubby made them, I'm not crafty lol) out of fabric flowers from the craft store. Not only do I still have my bouquet but we turned the center pieces into take home gifts for our guests and the archway he made hung over the doorway to our bedroom for years only breaking when it fell over in the moving van. We also did the entire theme wedding for only $500 between using what we already had and getting our family and friends to help out instead of hiring someone to do it for us. Everyone loved having a part to play and said they really felt a part of the wedding, instead of just an onlooker.

[angieinthecity]

Oh i needed this video!!!! Recently engaged and we have no money hahaha

[martah]

We got married as part of the regular high mass which not only allowed us to have as many guests as we wanted but also became a really big party as the congregation served cake afterwards. We then went to a nice Chinese restaurant with the closest 30 which was fairly inexpensive. I think there are so many ways to be creative with wedding planning if you focus on what you want, not what others expect.

[bluejedi]

My wedding hacks? Sheet cake from grocery store, flowers from local florist that were in season, everyone in the wedding party wore the best thing they owned, my dress was a cocktail dress from sears, dinner was potlock family style barbeque. Music? Favorite songs from our itunes list.

[pretelquetzal]

That's awesome that you paid for your bridesmaids dresses!

[camelopardalis]

Wedding budget hack number 7: Don't tell people you buy things from or hire for services/help that it's a wedding. It's always more expensive when it's a wedding!