One of the smaller costs of a wedding is invitations but all those small costs do add up. Here are some suggestions on how you can save on the cost of wedding invitations.

The first thing you can save on is not buying them from a wedding invitation catalog. You can find cute ones but you can also do the same or similar cheaper by doing them yourself or having a friend who is great with graphics and print.

Don’t buy the inner envelope or blotter paper. Chances are your print job will not smear and you can eliminate the weight on the invitation.

Instead of having a RSVP card, have your guest RSVP by phone, email or set up a Facebook event page for the wedding and have them RSVP there.

Find Wedding Kits from Michael’s or AC Moore’s and wait for a Sunday Insert coupon for 40% – 50% off and get a pack of 20 reg. $19.99 for $10.

You can have them printed at Staples or OfficeMax for as low as 20 cents each if you do black only.

Often times Target, Party Co., or any party store will have wedding invitations on clearance typically in August which is roughly the end of the High Wedding Season.

You can also print at home but be sure you get extras so you can handle messing up on a few. You can also have them printed at Walgreens, Wal-mart and CVS. Just be sure to wait for a sale to get them 9 cents or less each printed.

If you are really needing to save every cent you can, you can always check out Family Dollar, Dollar General and Dollar Tree who have some great invitations. Dollar Tree has the generics for $1 and do have some really nice ones you can print on yourself.

I hope these suggestions will help you save some money.

When I first got engaged I was really overwhelmed.  Excited…but overwhelmed.  I was not the type who had her wedding planned since she was a little girl – in fact growing up I promised myself I’d never get married!

I mean, who would marry this fool?  

I learned after a lot of blog reading that the first thing I needed to decide on was the venue – and that was supposed to take half of my budget.  But just as weddings are expensive

VENUES. ARE. EXPENSIVE.

So how do you cut down on costs for a venue?

1.  Have a country wedding!  Now this doesn’t mean get married in a barn (though if that floats your boat do it!).  This means choose hotels and venues that are outside of major cities.  For instance, go 30 miles outside of even a small city and your venue prices will be cut in half.

I live in the middle of nowhere so this was going to be inevitable. In order to get married in a vineyard in the closest city it would cost me at least 5,000 dollars, just for the VENUE! A similar venue costs $1280 only a few miles away!

2. Check out local parks – a lot of parks and rec centers have indoor venues that people rent out for dirt cheap.  These can be very inexpensive – and include tables and chairs!  (Or you could just get married outside.) Check your local parks and rec center for information. One of my friends had an amazing wedding at a parks and rec center for much cheaper than a traditional venue!  [Tip: Some even have cabins your out of town guests can rent!]

 How beautiful is this one? I had the honor of attending their wedding.   The parks and rec center had this very inexpensive venue and it was GORGEOUS!

3.  Use non-conventional or new venues!  Botanical gardens, urban garden centers, museums, art galleries, etc. Sometimes you might find a deal – though as these are becoming more popular they are becoming more expensive.

4. Keep your ceremony and reception in the same place – this can save you hundreds of dollars

5. Use your connections!  Have a friend with a barn and giant field? Ask them if they’ll rent it out!  Have a family member with a gorgeous backyard?  Beg Aunt Mildred to let you invite 100 people for a party 😉

6.  And lastly, use your backyard!

**BIG CAVEAT HERE!  It’s not always less expensive to use your own backyard or a friend’s house or a field.  These can be cheaper than venues in the city – but many of them come with hidden costs.  Sometimes it is MUCH cheaper to use an all-inclusive wedding venue!!! Why?  Well that’s the subject of my next blog post!

Remember to keep on budget no matter what! What inexpensive wedding venues have you found? Any other tips for brides out there?

Mary

Topic: Venues on a Budget

Here are some tips that I have done or will be doing when my
DH and I renew our vows on our 10 year anniversary.

Part 1- Photography

-In this day in age everyone has a digital camera or cell phone with a camera. Ask your guests to take pictures of your wedding and have them upload to a Facebook group or fan page you create. Sure beats having to pay for a professional also most photo developing places you can now load pictures directly from Facebook to your account to print off. Also if you wait for a great sale on picture prints you can score some free or very cheap prints. Also have them sent to the store and wait the extra hours so you don’t

pay for shipping!

-In case you want some of the more professional looking pictures ask around your friend you are bound to find one of them or someone they know who has an SLR camera or its equivalent who will take picture for you or at an extreme low rate. The average cost for a basic package of wedding

photos costs around $935. Who has that kind of money?

-Start your planning early because often times the disposable cameras go on sale at Walgreens and Rite-Aid for B1G1 Free and if

you use your Register Rewards or +UP Rewards you can score them even cheaper.

-Also do your research and get a list of possible pictures you would like. Putting a list together and giving it to your photographer helps insure you get the pictures you want. Get ideas for those fun pictures. It is hard to think of posses when you are the bride even when you are renewing

your vows.

-When asking your guests to take pictures place a gentle reminder on the program and invitation. Also offer an incentive for every person who loads pictures to your fan page they get an entry to a drawing to

win a $10 Gift Card to a local store.

* Hope this helps save some money and if you have any tips
about photography please post in the comment section.

Topic: Save money on wedding photography

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If you are planning a wedding I suggest you take a look at Dollar Tree for the goodies you can find.

But here is something I found, walmart will discount wedding items in February and July.

I just found 2 different packs of wedding favor boxes at Wal-mart on clearance for $3.50 each originally $24.99 for 50ct.

I was also able to pick up wedding invites for $1.50 originally $19.99 for 50 ct (they are pretty basic and I will use them for my nieces Graduation party invites).

See how else you can save on Wedding Favors.

Topic: Wedding Party Favors

Yes this is still one small cost of the whole wedding but
you can still save a few bucks by being creative. Programs can be very simple.

If you don’t have to worry about cost then go ahead and order from a wedding program site but do make sure you have everything spelled

correctly or it can get costly for reprints.

Only order enough that you know you will need. Order the amount of guests confirmed plus ten. Not everyone who confirms attendance will show up but you will have a few who come who didn’t RSVP and you want to make sure you have some for your scrapbook or wedding album. You will also want some for those guests who are unable to make it that are dear to you like

grandparents, etc.

One way to have nice programs but not costing too much consider getting programs from Michael’s or AC Moore’s and printing them yourself or taking them over to Walgreens or Wal-mart and having them printed.

Be sure to shop around for the best print per copy price.

Be sure to start early and plan, plan, plan so you won’t
stress out later.

Hope this helps giving you some suggestions on how to save
some money.

Topic: How to save on Wedding Programs

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Hello Everyone!

I suppose I should introduce myself.  My name is Mary and I am not a mom saving money…but I am a bride saving money!  Or a future bride that is.  I became engaged a little over a month ago to Rebecca’s brother in law and have been thrown head first into the wedding industry.

The very first thing I learned was:

Weddings. Are. Expensive.

I mean, I suppose you could figure that out on your own.  But seriously, weddings are ridiculously expensive.  And, as any good bride will tell you, when someone hears it’s a wedding the price goes up.  So in a world of 20,000 dollar weddings, how do we keep both our checkbooks, and ourselves, sane?  Well whether you’re a mom saving money or a bride saving money…

Budget. Budget. Budget.

I could say it again, but I won’t. Decide on a strict budget regardless of how high or how low it is.  And leave some wiggle room for extra expenses that may arise.  I have created over 4 different wedding budgets in less than a month and I keep editing them as I go along.  Each venue that I’m interested I create a column on an excel spreadsheet and budget out money for.   It looks something like this:

Wedding Venue and Budget

This also helps decide on where I want to have the venue!  For instance, if photography is SUPER important to me but one of the venues is too expensive to allow me enough for high quality photos, I nix that venue. You should talk with your partner to figure out what you want to spend the most money on, and work your budget around that!

Once you’ve figured out your venue/budget outline, keep track of all (and here I mean ALL, those little purchases add up!) the money you spend with Rebecca’s template: https://momssavingmoney.com/free-wedding-planning-budget-checklist-printable/

[Hint: After while I got sick of writing out the cost of separate bouquets and chairs, and tents, etc, so I just group those together.  If you get an estimated budget/quote to rent all the tables, chairs, tent, dance floor, etc., than you can just put that in one of the rows and keep the others blank]

Clearly if you’re reading this post you want to budget – the question then becomes how you cut costs!  Well, I hope to share with you cost cutting tips and tricks as I go through this process.  I have read all the wedding blogs and every website in the book dedicated to weddings, but even then I’m learning things that no one seems to tell you (like that a backyard wedding can actually be MORE expensive than a venue)!  And that is what I’ll be sharing with you!

So how about you?  What are your biggest concerns when budgeting for a wedding? What topics are the most important to address?

Until next time!

Mary

Part 3 – Wedding Cakes

– Your cake doesn’t actually have to be a wedding cake. Consider making it yourself or have a friend make it for you. Also consider ordering a sheet cake for about $20 from the nearest grocery store.

– Most brides or family or even guests will not remember what your cake tastes like so why not forgo the traditional cake and get something fun and tasty!

– Live a little and make your own. With coupons you can get several Duncan Donuts or Betty Crocker Cake Mixes for free with the right sales. Butter crème frosting thickens well and molds nicely into shapes.

– If you make your own make sure you practice so the real one comes out really nicely.

– If you do go with a traditional wedding cake consider asking for the window displays which get thrown out anyway. Also check to see the week of if any cancellations have come in, often time you can get the cake for half the original price.

–  Be sure to plan out what kind and what type you want. Collect pictures and make a notebook of them all so you can see a theme arise and helps you be more selective.

*Hope this helps save some money and if you have any tips about Cakes please post in the comment section or email momssaving1@gmail.com

Topic: How to Save Money on Wedding Cakes

How to Save on Flower Girl Dresses

Flower Girl Dresses do not have to be expensive and the reality is they only need to last a couple of days! Perhaps if you are

sentimental you may want to hold onto them but keep in mind little girls are just as active as boys and they will make a mess of their dress by the end of the day. Think realistically that yes you want the flower girl to look fabulous but its doesn’t have to cost you an arm and a leg. Spend your wedding budget wisely and put it somewhere else.

Here are some ways to Save on Flower Girl Dresses

1. Sales. Look for sales around Easter and Christmas.

2. Clearance Racks. The best place to save a ton is checking out clearance racks at Macy’s, Kohl’s and many other department stores. If you have coupons that will make for even better deals.

3. Outlet Stores. Some outlet stores run their highest sales at the beginning of the year and during the summer.

4. Yard Sales. We found my little princess dress for my sister-in-laws wedding at a yard sale. It was originally a $100 dress and bought for $15.

5. Online. There are many places like DressFirst.com that you can find rather inexpensive dresses.

6. Consignment Shops. You will be surprised by the great deals you can find at consignment shops. Check out Once Upon a Child or ask around what other consignment shops are in your area.

7. Thrift Stores. Thrift Stores can be such a blessing when you are looking for cheap Flower Girl Dresses. Remember if you find a dress a bit to large you can always take it in and adjust.

8. Friends. Ask your friends someone might have just gotten married and their flower girls are not going to wear the dresses again or they might have one from previous Easters or Christmas. You might also find out from a friend that they know someone who has a dress to sell.

9. Renting. Have you thought about renting? It not uncommon to rent the boys tuxes so consider renting a flower girl dress. Here are some to consider renting.

10. Make your own. Not the most cost effective but if you are good with coupons and have the time along with knowing how to sew you can make a dress of your own exactly how you want and for a cheaper price.

Topic: How to Save on Flower Girl Dresses

– Take time to write a list. It is important to be realistic as to what you want your wedding to be like so setting the venue is one of the most important choices you will make for your wedding that sets the stage for all the other aspects of the wedding. I’m not much for the Disney fairytale princess wedding but I do like elegant and warmth. Write out a list of places you would consider having your wedding at regardless if you can afford it or not. Having this list will help you understand what you can feasibly do and who knows you might be able to afford that fantasy wedding of your dreams. The perfect venue will make it a perfect wedding.

-Consider your guests. Not only does the venue need to be big enough to hold everyone you invite but it also needs to be small enough to have that intimacy feel you want to create for your special day. Keep in mind if you are renewing your vows you are likely to have fewer guests than you did at your wedding. Consider handicapped accessibility and guests health issues. You want your wedding to be stress and worry free and considering these few

things now may have less hassle later.

-Consider the location. The location will determine how many guests you can invite and expect to come but also the location may be too far

for many to come. It’s your wedding day but many places are not handicapped accessible.

-Consider the time of the year. The time of year you plan on having a wedding will also play a major role into deciding your location. Many brides want to be a June bride but remember June in many places is the hottest or close to the hottest month of the year so an outside venue may not be the best. If in the dead of winter a beach wedding would not be the best either. If you do an outside wedding consider a tent or providing ponchos, umbrellas to guests just in case it rains. But the better idea is to keep the costs down

select a venue you can minimize these extra possible expenses.

-Ask around about possible venues. When it comes down to it places will charge you more if they know you are having a wedding then a graduation party. So it you plan on renting a tent for an outside wedding ask the costs for a regular rental and have a friend or family member ask for wedding rental prices. You will be surprised at the price difference. Friends can have great

ideas of places you may not have thought about.

The ultimate cheapest place unless another venue is FREE is your own home or a friends or parents home. Especially if you are renewing your

vows, why not have a much smaller intimate ceremony at your home? Remember Father of the Bride the wedding was

beautifully done at the Father’s home or even Meet the Parents which was held at a friend’s home.

-Also consider having your Wedding and Reception at the same
place often the rental price is cheaper this way.

As always if you have any suggestions to add please feel
free to comment below or email me at momssaving1@gmail.com