To think it's impossible to have a wedding on a budget?

[SicknessStillness]

Long time lurker, first time poster. Currently going through fertility treatment so don't want to spend a lot on the wedding as hopefully at some point we'll have a baby to spend on... Tips on how you saved money on a wedding? I thought £2000 would be fine but it seems impossible!

Thanks

[80sWaistcoat]

Think of it as a big party after the church rather than 'a wedding'. Cut the photographer, people will take loads of photos. If you have a friend who likes taking photos ask them if they'll take 6 or 7 specific group shots if you want them.

Have a hog roast, pot luck, pizza van or similar.

Honestly, the less like a wedding it is the better and cheaper!

No swagging or chair back tying or favours!

[goddessoftheharvest]

Our wedding was about that and people still go on about it.

Everyone is sick of the formulaic wedding costing 20K by now

We got married in the town hall, stuck a marquee up in my parent's garden, hired a chippy van and an ice cream van. We didn't ask for gifts. Friends donated things like alcohol, musical talent and decorating skills as "gifts". I got my dress second hand. From eBay. It was fucked by the end of the day, I climbed up an apple tree with a pint of wine in my hand

[BoxofSnails]

Basic church wedding feed = £400 ish (I do some church accounts)
Leaving £1600 to feed and clothe people.
Afternoon tea or even a decent buffet is doable.

That said I had 2 witnesses and an off the peg non-weddingy dress. I wanted to be married, much less fussed about the wedding as I hate people looking at me.

[BoxofSnails]

feed should read fees

[MidniteScribbler]

Mine was pretty cheap (about $1.5k Australian, which is about 900 pounds). We booked a gazebo on the edge of a lake ($50 to council for the exclusive use and power for the day), did it on a Sunday afternoon (drinks and nibbles only, no sit down meal). Music was a CD player with a few disks of songs I'd made up. Some friends of friends acted as wait people. Food was either cooked by myself and we had some platters made up. Most of the cost was the celebrant, the booze. My dress was just a nice white formal dress from a dress shop (about $200AUD I think). Photographer was a friend who is an excellent amateur photographer and has a good camera. We had about 60 guests I think.

Everyone said they had a lovely time, we didn't have to worry about the kids/no kids argument, there was a kids playground next to the gazebo to keep the kids entertained, and everyone was home early enough to get ready for work the next day. There was very little clean up as well.

You can have a cheap wedding, and still have a great day.

[mrsvilliers]

OP if you are strict on budget but want to invite a lot of people then I'd suguest the pot luck approach to food. Book the church and church hall, work out your budget for dress and then see what you are left with for booze and entertainment. On the invites say you'll provide booze but each guest should bring a dish (whatever they like but should be shareable and can include easy stuff like sandwiches etc). You could always add in lieu of gifts if you are not entirely comfortable with this idea. Flowers can be bought from local flower market and assembled the night before. You can pick up kilner jars etc from charity shops.

If you want anything more than a small DIY wedding then yes, YABU. But if any use, small diy weddings are MUCH more memorable and personal.

[MsColouring]

We had reception in community centre - price included the dj. Wedding was at my church so they waived the charge. We asked people to bring a plate for the buffet instead of a wedding present and food was amazing! My dress was monsoon sale. Dh bought a new suit but has used it since, kids outfits were next and bhs. I made the flowers and decorations. My brother did the photographs, friend whose husband has a nice car stuck a ribbon on it and drove us. Friend on do dh my hair for mates rates, did my own make up. We got Cava from Asda for the toasts. Think it worked out about 2k. We are happily married and everyone had a great time.

[Lesley1980]

My brother got married in a church for £80 & they kept the flowers. He was lucky the council owned a old house they rented out for functions & he got married on a Thursday to reduce the hire fee. He had a sit down meal for 100, a band & buffet at night. He used caterers & it was £12.95 a head. Because of the venue he did his own buffet so made sandwiches & bought cans, cakes & other stuff from Costco. He found a charity bar. They don't charge but all the profits go to charity - I think service men??? Other bars wanted a few hundred to turn up. His friend had a fancy Volvo in silver & he played chauffeur for the day. She didn't have bridesmaids but I was unofficial & signed the wedding certificate.

His wedding was under £3000.

[MrsMozart]

Me n hubby: registry office with immediate family, then all along to a nice pub for tea and cake. Still together twenty-odd years later.

Friend: big church, thirteen bridesmaids, reception for nigh in three hundred folks. Sadly only lasted a year.

Friends: various big weddings, put of which only two still together. All happy in the lives.

Point is, the cost doesn't guarantee the outcome, so do what you can afford and are happy with.

P.S. I was nearly at full term (beat her by two weeks!).

[WhooooAmI24601]

We spent a fortune on our wedding, hired a great big castle, loads of guests, kept the MIL and DM happy. Total waste of our money. If we did it again I'd bugger off with a couple of witnesses and just have a party afterwards. The flowers and dresses and favours and invites and all that stuff mean nothing. The only thing I set any store by is the person you marry. The rest is just flowery detail society tries to make you think you need.

[OptimisticSix]

Mine came in at about £3k including the honey moon and dresses for nine bridesmaids (lots of neices). Got all the dresses, including mine, off eBay. Men's suits from Sainsbury (during 25% off); titanium rings (eBay); a fried made heart shaped cookies for favours; MIL made the cake (cupcakes); had the reception in the church hall (really cheap and only allowed beer and wine to be drunk so stocked up on that using offers); flowers were fake from Dunelm Mill (jazzed them up a bit with diamonds); hair and make up by me; tiaras from eBay; found a newly qualified photographer and got a really cheap deal; best friend drove me to the church.... think that's it... oh had a friend who did the DJing too :D Had to pay for the church and the catering but that wasn't too bad. I only had around 60 guests. If I was doing it again I'd invite everyone and have a buffet :D

[OptimisticSix]

Oh and made the invitations myself.

[XiCi]

It's only CofE churches that charge I think. We got married in a Catholic Church and they just asked for a small donation

Photographer - do you have any friends that are keen amateur photographers? I've done a couple of weddings for friends for only cost of materials (album etc) because they couldn't afford a professional

Food - do you have any friends or family that would help with doing your own buffet? DH family have done their own for all of their celebrations over the years and they are much more delicious ( and cheaper) than those from a caterer. Afternoon tea and pizza later sounds like a fab idea though

Dresses - there are alot of Chinese sellers on eBay and Ali express selling wedding and bridesmaid dresses incredibly cheaply

[noeffingidea]

Regarding a buffet for the reception, it's always worth looking at supermarket prices, for party platters (meats, seafoods, sandwiches, etc). Marks and sparks seem to do particularly nice ones, though probably the most expensive, lol.

[AngieBolen]

Our catholic church charges loads... Hundreds. I can't remember how much but I was . When the priest saw my face he asked how many people were coming (we were having a convalidation) and as it was just a few he knocked it down to £80.

[phillipp]

Some Catholic Churches ask for donations. Some make it clear it shouldn't be a 'small donation'. Some charge a set rate.

[OrlandaFuriosa]

There is a standard rate in the COf E because they also act as registrar.

If you want the choir, then that's more, ditto bells, those are for the individual guise to decide, I think.

[BusyBeez99]

Ours was £2k including dress, car, photos and meal. It's possible to do but depends on how many people you want and what sort of wedding

[Camembertie]

We got married at a registry office and then had our do at our local labour club that has a hall and lovely garden attached. Hire was free if we guaranteed an amount behind bar, surpassed that easily. We paid for a company to do a bbq and salads but you could easily do that yourself.

I felt v strongly, and still do, that whilst I was doing it on a budget I wanted abundance, thus flowers for me, bridesmaids, buttonholes and boxes of gladioli to decorate venue (in metal buckets that cost £3 each from b and q) cost £150. I asked what would be cheap and plentiful at the time of wedding so could have lots of them, rather than small amounts of something smarter-posher.

Table cloths and tea lights are your friend, as are places that offer free glass hire with booze (we did Sainsburys).

I would be really tempted to see if a good take away/fish and chip shop could cater for you, our chippie does fish/sausage/pie and chips in a box for events for under a fiver.

Dress was £90 monsoon sale, make up myself, and got lots of bottles of a decent cava in special rather than fewer of champagne.

Good luck, it is fun organising, just don't mention it's a wedding as as others have said bumps up the cost

[CuppaSarah]

2k is plenty for a wedding! loads of under £100 wedding dresses ex sample or second hand on ebay. Go to a bridal sample sale to find what suits you(that way if you do fall in love it's not too much of a budget breaker.

Buy plain tesco value cupcakes and ice them yourselves(Can be the hen party activity a couple days before the wedding)

Rent a village hall type place, fish and chip supper, a lot of chippies do catering and this will be less than 400 for 50 people.

Couple hundred for a registry office.

Photography student, they will just want travel expenses.

Local technical college worth a call for flowers, you might be able to get them for cost only or less.

Half price vista print sale for invitations, or skip them entirely.

You can hire bars for free if there's no bar at the hall.

Ebay wedding decorations and list by nearest first. People will sell their wedding decorations off cheap as they've collection only. I managed £40 for all of ours.

You can make a photo booth or selfie station with pound shop bits and bobs and a white sheet.

It's not easy to do a low budget wedding, it's tough and you need to be disciplined and not buy into the consumerism crap(which is surprisingly tough with weddings) but you can have your dream wedding with very few compromises if you are able to put the time, research and effort in.

[CuppaSarah]

Oh I forgot to say if you want any advice or help or support, pm me! I freaking love the challenge of a low budget wedding, it's so much fun.

[RunnyRattata]

sickness it's our 25th wedding anniversary today. Our wedding cost less than half of yours and I've never once regretted not doing it 'properly'. Everyone said how relaxed and happy it was. We already had a home so we asked people to contribute skills and effort instead of wedding gifts eg in laws provided the cake as their gift, DSis did my flowers, a group of friends did athe buffet etc etc. It was a hoot.

[Iloveowls2]

Church wedding aren't that expensive. For me that was the important part think tge standard CofE fee is around £450 (choir,organist,bells will be extra) try having it late afternoon with a buffet in the church hall. Our friend did their own play list and used their speaker system instead of a Dj.