Planning Your Dream Wedding On A Budget!

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Weddings, weddings, weddings! Weddings everywhere! Wedding fever has taken over the world due to the latest Royal Wedding, and if you have a wedding planned it may fill you with excitement and ideas!

Sadly though your budget maybe a little short in comparison to Harry and Meghan’s! That shouldn’t stop you having your dream wedding though. So, if you’re prepared to plan thoroughly, shop around and get creative then here are my top tips for your perfect day, the wedding of your dreams and your happily ever after.

First, make your guest list and check it twice!

Yes, check it twice just like Santa! Make a list of all the family and friends you’d like to invite, thinking of the ones close to you and those that are a big part of your life. Then add the ones you need to invite, like the family members your Mum will insist on to avoid a falling out. Then sit down with your parents and strip the list down. 

A good rule is to only invite those that you have seen within the last year. This is a little easier to do if you’re planning a wedding a couple of years ahead of time, as you can make a list and whittle it down gradually. Cutting down on guest numbers will definitely help your budget! 

Get crafty with your wedding favours

Putting the word wedding in front of anything makes it instantly double in price and this definitely comes into play when considering wedding favours. You’ll find items marked ‘wedding sweets’, ‘wedding biscuits’ etc, will be a lot more than your average treats. To save money you can consider putting the wedding favours together yourself. When we got married in 2007 traditional sugared almonds were all the rage, but there was one problem with that. My husband and I hated them. There were plenty of alternatives available. Handmade chocolates, personalised candles and heart shaped biscuits to name a few, but in the end we picked something we loved! Our favourite childhood sweets! 

We visited our local cash and carry and bought a selection of our favourites. Together with a ream of ribbon and a stack of plastic bags we made up our wedding favours to be reminiscent of the old 10p mix bags!

Shop around for your wedding rings

I spent ages looking online and in very expensive shop windows at wedding rings. Ones that were way out of my price range, to the point that some cost more than our cake and my wedding dress……..put together. 

During a visit to a wedding fayre we saw some unique hand craft wedding rings and it opened our minds to looking elsewhere. In the end we bought our wedding rings at a high street store for a tenth of the price of the others we had seen! They were exactly what we wanted and we loved them! 

Always take a look at cashback and voucher code sites too! Dealsdaddy and dealsplanet both offer wedding ring deals and codes!

Pick a theme

Having a theme, whether it be a colour or style, doesn’t have to be expensive. Especially if you go for something with a little boho or vintage style. Think burlap and lace, candles and fresh flowers. The end results can be stunning but your budget doesn’t have to be huge to pull it off. Plenty of budget stores offer burlap bunting and you can also buy it by the ream from places like eBay, if you want to make it yourself or make table runners too. You can also save up glass jars and upcycle into candle holders or vases. Places like Pinterest and Confetti.co.uk are full of ideas.

Weddings can be stressful, especially when you have your heart and mind set on certain things, but hopefully with a little planning and budgeting you can have your dream wedding. Most importantly though, it’s likely you will only have your dream wedding if you have what YOU want, so don’t feel you have to accommodate everyone! Pick and choose what you and your partner want and have the best day ever.

Enjoy your happily ever after!

Mummy Snowy Owl

xx