Singaporebrides | Inspirations

November 2018

These Beautiful Real Weddings Cost Singapore Couples Less Than $30K

By Tansey Tang

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These 20 real Singaporean couples tied the knot in beautiful celebrations, and kept their wedding cost under $30,000. Some spent less than $5,000!

There are many heavy questions weighing on a young couple’s minds before they decide to get married. “Are we ready to commit for a lifetime?” “Can we really manage on our own?” “How much will a wedding in Singapore cost?” “How will we afford our house after a wedding?”

Most of these questions can only be answered by yourselves, in a heart-to-heart with your partner. There is one pressing concern we can help with—the wedding cost. For couples who are on a budget, it can seem difficult to hold a wedding that doesn’t compromise their personalities and aesthetics. To inspire you, we’ve rounded up the stories of 20 real couples who held beautiful celebrations in Singapore for under $30,000. In fact, some couples tied the knot for less than $5,000!

They prioritised the things most important to them, whether it was the vibe, the venue, or the food, and focused their efforts to get the most bang for their buck. Most of them kept their wedding guest list well under 200, so that they could create the best wedding experience for their nearest and dearest. Read on for more inspiration!

Wedding Cost of $30,000 and Below

1. Sarala and Kelvin–$30,000

Year of wedding: 2017
Number of guests: 150
Wedding venue: Masons at Gillman Barracks
Venue type: Western restaurant

Sarala and Kelvin had a wedding stylist and a florist to help with their vintage wedding décor, wedding reception set up, candy bar, wedding backdrop for solemnisation, and fresh florals and garlands. By limiting their guest list to 150, they managed to keep costs down. The couple share, “We chose Masons at Gillman Barracks as our wedding venue because we liked the monochromatic colours of the restaurant. It also has a little of the colonial feel to give it the rustic wedding vibe that we wanted.”

2. Geraldine and Kenny–$29,000

Year of wedding: 2017
Number of guests: 162
Wedding venue: The Chapel at Imaginarium
Venue type: Event space

Geraldine and Kenny’s beautiful wedding used organic green and white décor that highlighted the space’s elegant and minimalist aesthetics, with the help of a stylist and florist. The couple also had a wedding band for their guests, which they limited to 160. They say, “We chose to wed at The Chapel at Imaginarium because we loved their clean, high-ceiling, pillar-less, and minimalist look. For our theme, we chose to go with the organic and earthy look, with a natural white and green colour palette for the overall theme. We love the simplicity, the romance and softness of it all.”

3. Germaine and Li Xing–$28,000

Year of wedding: 2016
Number of guests: 300
Wedding venue: The Chapel at Imaginarium
Venue type: Event space

Germaine and Li Xing had a huge guest list but managed to keep their wedding cost under $30,000. They chose a beautiful venue with elegant trussed arches and modern chandeliers, so didn’t need to spend much on décor, which they styled themselves. They used those savings to make sure guests had a good time with a dessert bar and a roving photobooth. They also made their wedding favours themselves with sunflower seeds. “We wanted a wedding that reflected us in every step of the way, instead of one with a set theme like whimsical or rustic,” they share. “We opted to focus on details like the type of flowers, colours, and props used. We wanted a bright and happy wedding, so we chose sunflowers as the main flower for our wedding.”

4. Charlene and Jeremy–$24,000

Year of wedding: 2016
Number of guests: 140
Wedding venue: Tin Hill Social
Venue type: Western restaurant

Charlene and Jeremy engaged a planner, stylist, and florist all rolled into one, who took care of the geometric décor and stationery. Everything was cohesive in colour and style to make the most impact, using simple materials like paper for the geometric streamers. “Our theme was Geometric Modern. We wanted something sleek, modern, and creative to break the typical traditional wedding template.”

5. Hildra and Philippe–$20,000

Year of wedding: 2016
Number of guests: 160
Wedding venue: Kult Kafe
Venue type: Bar

Hildra and Philippe hired a wedding planner cum stylist cum florist to create a colourful, festival feel for their wedding, where they had a DJ, a tutu kueh cart, and a catered buffet so guests could relax and mingle. “We envisioned an outdoor festival feel with fairy lights overhead, long, rustic tables, and wild flowers. We wanted a set-up where all of our guests could move around freely and talk to one another without being confined to allocated tables.”

6. Candice and Jiwen–$20,000

Year of wedding: 2017
Number of guests: 220
Wedding venue: Little Island Brewing Co.
Venue type: Restaurant and microbrewery

Candice and Jiwen styled the venue themselves with a fun and quirky tropical theme and a relaxed island vibe. They used simple tropical arrangements with local fruits, and hung bright bunting and colourful paper lanterns that made a big impact. The couple also did their own wedding invitations and stationery, and wedding favours, and had friends as their videographer and live band.“We wanted something simple yet special for the wedding. We were both not very keen on a banquet-style wedding, so we were very happy to eventually hold it at a semi-outdoor, cosy venue.”

7. Lay Hiang and Lester–$18,000

Year of Wedding: 2016
Number of guests: 61
Wedding venue: CulinaryOn
Venue type: Western restaurant

Lay Hiang and Lester engaged a florist, and decorated the venue themselves with garland jumbo balloons. Focusing on creating a fun experience for their guests, they had live cooking demonstrations, and even invited guests to help make ice-cream with the liquid nitrogen. DIY wedding favours added a personal touch. “We seated our guests in two cooking studios. In each studio, they oversaw a live demonstration from the open kitchen. We prepared our guests to expect something different and shortlisted some spontaneous volunteers beforehand. These volunteers would then be called forward to become 10-minute apprentices, helping the chefs with stir-frying spinach, making Ee-fu noodle and of course, ice cream.”

8. Gayle and Marc–$16,000

Year of wedding: 2017
Number of guests: 120
Wedding venue: Wheeler’s Estate
Venue type: Western restaurant

Gayle DIY’d the wedding invitations, her own makeup, and almost all of the décor. She even unpicked and altered her mother’s wedding dress from 1985 to wear for her own wedding! She sourced much of the décor online, and a florist friend helped with the florals and styling. A friend made all the bridesmaids’ outfits, and their wedding cake was gifted to them. “I decided that I was going to plan the wedding myself, and DIY a lot of the things. It was really nice because I found out that I really enjoy doing it. I wanted to keep everything down to earth, and simple, so we went with a rustic bohemian theme. The wedding reception was a buffet, so everyone would get a chance to move around and feel free and easy, like a house party slash backyard wedding.”

9. Shyanne and Raymond–$15,000

Year of wedding: 2017
Number of guests: 60
Wedding venue: Open Farm Community
Venue type: Western restaurant

Shyanne and Raymong limited their guest list to an intimate number of 60, and chose a warm and cosy venue with a relaxed vibe. They engaged their friend for wedding styling, and the bride’s cousin did the invites and stationery. Shyanne bought a simple white gown, and baked her own wedding cake. “We decided to go with an outdoor venue for our solemnisation. The greenery, garden theme is definitely my style and my dream! We wanted it to be a small and intimate party where close friends and relatives can mingle and celebrate our best day with us, and I believe we did it, because they were coming up to us saying they enjoyed themselves, be it enjoying our speeches or the programme, and of course the food!”

10. Peipei and Keat–$15,000

Year of wedding: 2016
Number of guests: 120
Wedding venue: Da Paolo Bistro Bar at Rochester Park
Venue type: Western restaurant

Peipei and Keat handmade most of their décor from LEGO, did their own invitations and stationery, and engaged the same vendor for styling and flowers. They also had a band and dessert bar, and kept their guest list to a cosy 120. “It was meant to be a more relaxed and casual kind of post wedding celebration held at Da Paolo Bistro Bar, Rochester Park that only included friends. As my husband is a LEGO fan (and kind of influenced me after some time), we came up with the idea of having a LEGO wedding when we were planning for this friends only party.”

11. Shaotong and Abel–$15,000

Year of wedding: 2016
Number of guests: 46
Wedding venue: Spuds and Aprons, Mount Faber Peak
Venue type: Western restaurant

Shaotong and Abel’s guest list was limited to family and close friends so that they could celebrate over good food, a beautiful view, and a dessert table. The scenic venue on Mount Faber Peak was already beautiful and the couple didn’t have an external florist or stylist. “Our wedding was small and cosy, with only 46 guests as we wanted to only invite guests we could be ourselves around. Because we had a smaller scale wedding, we had time to enjoy each other’s company, accede to all the photo requests by our friends, and most importantly, enjoy the wedding food!”

12. Syazana and Izat–$12,000

Year of wedding: 2017
Number of guests: 300
Wedding venue: Assyakirin Mosque
Venue type: Mosque

Syazana and Izat spent $12,000 on three beautiful sets of wedding outfits made by two of their friends. For their wedding ceremony in Assyakirin Mosque, they got catering from the family business for a lunch reception for 300 guests in a function hall. “We both wanted a very simple, fuss-free reception that allowed us to mingle with our friends and family.”

13. Prithi and Pravi–$10,000

Year of wedding: 2016
Number of guests: 32
Wedding venue: Lewin Terrace
Venue type: Fine dining restaurant

Prithi and Pravi chose to celebrate with a very intimate party of 30 guests, and focused on creating a special experience with these loved ones. They got most of their services from bridal boutique WhiteLink, and handmade their wedding invitations and stationery for a personal touch. “We decided we only wanted our close family and friends involved in our wedding as it would be a more meaningful event. We wanted our wedding to be in a fairy tale-elegant, minimalist style with a colonial vintage setting, and Lewin Terrace was the perfect place. We also made sure that we had the best food and beverages for our event.”

14. Sherie and Young Leong–$10,000

Year of wedding: 2017
Number of guests: 60
Wedding venue: Alcove at Caldwell House
Venue type: Event space

As their venue was already ethereally beautiful, Sherie and Young Leong kept things simple and minimalist with a wedding theme from the venue and the in-house caterer. They pared down their guest list to include only close family and friends, and didn’t have a bridal party. They also did their own wedding invites and stationery. “For us, it was just about having an intimate setting with the people closest to us. We really liked how intimate the place was, yet the dome felt so open (with its high ceiling, and windows which on a sunny afternoon really light up the room). We also felt that the French inscription “Marche en ma presence et sois parfait”, i.e. “Walk along with me and be perfect”, was very fitting for our relationship.”

15. Mint and Colin–$8,000

Year of wedding: 2016
Number of guests: 50
Wedding venue: Event space in Woodlands
Venue type: Event space

By holding their solemnisation in a simple event space with a small guest list, Mint and Collin could focus their efforts on transforming the venue. They styled their solemnisation with the help of their friends and a florist, turning their venue into a scene from Alice in Wonderland. They took a whimsical approach with ribbons, tea cups, colourful desserts, and a bright colour palette. “Instead of hiring a wedding planner, we planned our solemnisation by ourselves with the help of our bridal party. Our guests were happy to be part of this unique experience and thoroughly enjoyed themselves with the fun-filled time they had during the celebrations!”

16. Hazel and Darren–$7,500

Year of wedding: 2017
Number of guests: 58
Wedding venue: Vineyard at Hortpark
Venue type: Western restaurant

Hazel and Darren both bought off-the-rack high fashion brands for their wedding outfits, handmade décor, and styled and did flowers themselves. They also created their own photo booth, did their own invites and stationery, and baked their own wedding favours. “We both agreed that we wanted a cosy and simple wedding shared with close friends and relatives. We came across Vineyard at Hortpark, paid a visit there, and fell in love with the cosy place instantly.”

17. Lowee and Shaun–$5,500

Year of wedding: 2017
Number of guests: 40
Wedding venue: Grub at Bishan Park
Venue type: Café

Lowee and Shaun kept their guest list intimate, with only immediate family and close friends for their cosy and relaxed solemnisation at a café. Lowee, owner of Keira Florals, did all the flowers, such as her bouquet, a botanical wreath, and dried botanical table centrepieces, while her sister baked macarons for wedding favours. “We wanted the solemnisation to be a really small and intimate event. We thought a café would be good enough and started searching for one that we could feel was right for us. We invited our immediate family members and best friends and gave them a treat to thank them for their support and love.”

18. Doreen and Daryl–$4,500

Year of wedding: 2017
Number of guests: 70
Wedding venue: Picnic Singapore
Venue type: Indoor food truck park

Doreen and Daryl saved by finding a venue that perfectly fit their garden theme, without needing to spend a lot of florals and greenery. They decorated the venue themselves with the help of friends, did the wedding invitations and stationery themselves, and kept the solemnisation guest list to 70 guests for an intimate party. “One day, we stumbled upon this beautiful restaurant, Picnic @ Wisma Atria. We went in and was totally awed by the decoration of the restaurant. A sudden thought struck me – why not consider hosting our solemnisation at this place? It fits my preference for a garden theme and we need not worry about the weather too as it is an indoor restaurant.”

20. Eve and Scott–$3,300

Year of wedding: 2016
Number of guests: 50
Wedding venue: MacRitchie Reservoir Park
Venue type: Park

Eve and Scott held a beautiful and simple solemnisation ceremony on a wooden deck surrounded by the lush greenery of MacRitchie Reservoir Park. They kept costs down with a pared-down schedule, a small guest list, and a buffet decorated by caterer OC Weddings in a pretty, rustic style. “We told OC Weddings the theme I had in mind and they designed it exactly the way we wanted. The florals and styling are amazing. The entire rustic woodland styling of the venue plus the buffet setup is just so pretty. We really love the whole styling of our solemnisation, from the table setups to the chairs, to the florals, to the decor and props.”

Credits: Feature image from Geraldine and Kenny’s Pinterest-Worthy Green and White Wedding at The Chapel at Imaginarium by Andri Tei Photography

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