Weddings are expensive. Obviously. Our budget was an important aspect of planning our wedding, even though I wasn’t always filling out spreadsheets the whole time. But when choosing the big things, budget was always at the forefront of my mind.
However, it was the little things that snuck up on me. Once the big things were done and planned, I found myself in the time crunch of needing to order everything for the wedding if I wanted it to all arrive on time.
It was so easy to rationalize purchases. You only get married once. And a lot of times this would be the only occasion to be able to rationalize those purchases.
Do we need personalized thank-you notes? No, but if not now, when?! I had to have them.
What if it rains? We need umbrellas!
Do I need one of those cute hangers for a wedding dress photo? Of course!
I started to feel like I was hemorrhaging money… fast. So as the day comes up, I’m trying to limit these impulse purchases as much as possible. I didn’t want a traditional guestbook, so we’re not getting one. Sure, an aisle runner would look nice in the photos, but I think after the wedding I would rather have $100 bucks to spend on something else.
I’m a pretty practical girl, and hopefully when I look back on this period of time I think of how much fun those purchases were to make and how I loved receiving packages every day.
{they weren’t all as pretty as this though!}
Do you have anything you regret spending money on when you were planning your wedding? Or did it all turn out to be worth it in the end?
I was really glad that I spent a chunk of money on the photographer. I was glad I cheaped out on the cake (just bought out of town, stayed simple) and stayed simple with the flowers. I barely decorated the actual church and was glad I did that.
I think buying matchbooks, setting up my candy bar, and making welcome bags with custom booklets and snacks were things that I was really excited about but practically NO ONE has mentioned. I spent my own money (not Mom & Dad's) and this is something I think I could have cut back on. Maybe done 1 favor – not these crazy other things.
Thanks Katie! That's kind of what I'm afraid of… you work so hard on planning this stuff but if no one tells you they noticed it seems like it's for nothing! Obviously you want it to look good for yourself, but that's only so satisfying haha.
I also agree that I am so glad I spent money on a photographer! and since we did that, she included a guest book with photos from our engagement and bridal sessions as part of our photography package! Photos and picture frames are what I spent the most on, but that's what I wanted the most.
I cut back in a lot of ways – such as no boutonnieres, corsages, aisle runner, no real flowers at all, etc and no one even noticed! So, don't worry about cutting back anything because more than likely, no one will be the wiser.
I did notice that the little things sneak up and end up putting a dint in the budget!! Best of luck with the wedding! I can't wait to see pictures!!!
Thanks Amber! That's neat that your photographer included a guestbook as part of your package. And I'm counting on no one noticing the cutbacks! haha