marriage-and-debt_OCCA-resized-600.jpgCongratulations – you’ve met “the one” and are now preparing to plan the wedding of your dreams. Start off your marriage right by sitting down with your partner to discuss what you both want for your wedding. After discussing what you would like included in your big day, determine a budget that you both agree on. Make sure you are both comfortable spending the amount you agree upon and stick to it. It’s very easy to get caught up in the wedding hype and spend your pennies on lavish touches.

Once you have a budget in mind, consider these money saving tips to help you get the best bang for your wedding bucks.

1. Instead of mailing out your “Save the Date” cards, email them! Save your postage for the official wedding invites – you’d be surprised how much postage can cost (including overseas postage!) If you’d prefer to print and mail them, negotiate a deal with a printer to print both your “Save the Date” cards and official wedding invitations.

2. Keep your invites down as much as possible. Decide if you’d like an adult only wedding or one where children are included. Eliminating children will save you some dinner plates. When it comes to couples, invite spouses, fiancés, and live-ins only. The more ruthless you are with your invitations the better!

3. Recruit your friends and family to make the table sitting name tags. You don’t need fancy calligraphy writing to impress your guests. Choose those with beautiful handwriting to help you make the tags legible and attractive.

4. Choosing a date that is off-season can save you 10-15% or more off your wedding costs. Venues can be expensive to rent and if you’re booking one for a wedding it’s even more so. Booking your wedding in November, January, February or March will be less expensive than in the summer months like June to September.

5. When considering venues, there are many options out there besides the typical convention centre or golf course. There are some beautiful restaurants, museums and libraries that offer the decor and ambiance you are looking for at a much less costly rental.

6. Do you hire a wedding planner or not? The costs in hiring an expert should be considered as well as the expert advice that comes along with hiring a wedding planner. A planner can keep you organized, on track with your budget and help with negotiating deals with the venue, DJ, florist and even dress boutique owner. Wedding planners have many contacts that offer expert service at a discount. Alternatively, if you feel you’re already a haggling expert perhaps you can forego the wedding planner and plan your own wedding. Decide together as a couple what would work best for you.

7. Make your own wedding invitations. Retailers such as craft stores and photography experts offer a variety of wonderful wedding invitation packages to purchase. Choose free fonts online and style your invitation with your own creative touch. Take a picture of you as a couple and upload to your invites. Some retailers offer print along with the wedding invitations. Negotiate the costs of printing in bulk quantities.

8. Bargain hunt for your guest takeaways. For a nice gift idea, buy small mason jars in bulk as well as candles in the colour that matches the theme of your wedding, tie a ribbon around them with a note from you to your guest. Simplicity is always a nice approach and usually the least expensive.

9. When it comes to the bouquets, choose seasonal flowers and buy local. Look for flowers with bigger buds and fewer stems. You’ll save a bundle this way.

10. Don’t get carried about with table centre pieces. They don’t have to be extravagant. Remember to include the personality of you and your partner. A simple tray of wheat grass with a candle or two suggests simple earthly elegance.

It’s your day so make it personal to make it a day for you both to remember fondly. More wedding tips to come in another blog. Stay tuned and stay on budget!

For more on how to manage personal finances and debt management as a couple, read “Don’t Marry debt: Know your partner’s spending habits from the start”..

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