Just thought I'd share some cost saving wedding tips. It's nearly a year since I got married and we managed to do it without breaking the bank.
There are some really easy ways to save money, please share yours.
- buy chair covers off eBay and then resell them after. (Cost me less than my friend who hired hers and mine didn't turn up with muddy marks on them!)
- for table centre pieces during the day we used orchids bought from IKEA (then gave them away to relatives as presents afterwards and I still have some flowering in my conservatory.)
- second hand dresses for flower girls are fine. I got three dresses for £8, worn once and in perfect condition. My flower girls were so little the dresses came off quickly after the photo and were replaced by something more comfortable for them.
- be creative with entertainment. We hired buskers we found on the streets of the local town for afternoon entertainment. They were brilliant and three lads studying music at the local university.
- our venue was just starting out in weddings so the price was so cheap compared to other places. Shop around and don't be afraid to go with somewhere new. Our venue is now charging at least twice what we paid! They were also amazing and working really hard to make everything right as they needed to build up their reputation as a good wedding venue.
- use the sales. We found my adult bridesmaids dress in the monsoon sale. It was £179 originally and we got it for £15.
- don't pay for a sweet buffet, buy some jars from Ikea, scoops from eBay, personalised bags from eBay and your sweets from an online wholesale retailer. It is about a third of the price.
I'm sure there is more that I have forgotten, I will add more if I remember. Please feel free to share yours