Fabuless Weddings

Many of us want the wedding of our dreams with Cristal fountains and horse drawn carriages. Unfortunately, in these recessionary times, most budgets are more likely to support a keg of Budweiser and a hay wagon.

But don’t despair. The good news is if you are flexible in your planning, there are a lot of luxuries you can obtain at budget prices and still have a memorable and spectacular event.

Here are some key ways you can reap major savings and hold a fabuless bargain wedding:

• Book Off Season

You don’t have to have your wedding in the high season, do you?  There are plenty of times of the year with pleasant weather that don’t fall between May and October, the peak wedding season.  If you choose to have your fabuless nuptials in say, April, or early November, you will save yourself a bundle.  And if you’re extra-flexible and are willing to have a Friday evening or Sunday brunch wedding (which I always thought was just the most fabuless and romantic idea), then you could save up to 50% off what you might pay for a Saturday night.

• Find a Venue That Allows You to Bring Your Own Liquor

Unless you’re a teetotaler, it’s a good idea to have something for your guests to drink.  And I don’t mean Kool-Aid.  It’s just more chic and classy to pay for the liquor folks, let’s just be honest!  But the cost of providing alcohol can be prohibitive.  One way to get around this is to only offer wine and beer.  Another option is to find a location where you can BYO.  Purchasing the liquor from a wholesaler and bringing it to the venue, which may not seem like a bargain, can save you thousands of dollars.  Some locations charge a cork fee per person to serve the bottles, but there is still a considerable savings to be had.

• Locate Vendors In Non-Traditional Ways

You can find budding, artistic florists at your local universities or community colleges, where they are studying the art.  And they are going to be much, much cheaper than going to your brick and mortar corner store and purchasing your decor.  Some of the instructors freelance as well, but won’t be as inexpensive as the students. Tip: Contact a professor who teaches floral arrangement and ask if they can recommend one of their top pupils!

Sometimes the florist you book may be able to source inexpensive flowers for you, but if not, or if you don’t like the price, there are tons of flower wholesalers on the internet who offer buds for a discount, including Costco, which is a good place to start.

You can find photographers and videographers in the same way – locate schools in your area that offer journalism or photography programs. Call them up and let them know you’re looking for freelancers. You can usually post some sort of ad at the school as well. Another great resource is Craigslist (my favorite site!) Under the “gigs” section, you can advertise for the type of vendor you’re looking for and name your price. You’ll be surprised at how many people are willing to work for what you offer – which will definitely be at a discount!

One word of caution: Be sure to check out the portfolios or videos of the vendors you’re booking, especially in the photography/video fields.

Suggested Reading

Every budget bride’s bible should be the book Bridal Bargains by Denise and Allen Fields. This handy guide is chock full of great ideas on how to cut corners for your nuptials, from flowers to gowns to liquor (which will be your most prohibitive expense). Consulting a good book like Bridal Bargains will help you identify potential discounts when you deal with vendors and wedding planners. It also points you in the direction of discount merchants on the internet and across the country.

The good part is you can just skip around to the sections you find most useful and take from it what you need.  If you decide to be your own wedding planner, it’s invaluable to understand the wedding-industrial-complex for what it is. You need to be willing to make compromises if your plans are too grandiose (read: expensive), but know that you have extensive negotiating and bargaining power on every planning aspect, particularly in this economic market.