Singaporebrides | Weddings 101
January 2021
10 Surprising Ways To Keep Within Your Wedding Budget
You can have the wedding of your dreams on a budget with these easy-to-follow tips.
Weddings are costly affairs, as you may have already learned if you have started on your wedding planning journey, and the more elaborate it is, the more expensive it’ll be. Unless you have been saving up for many years, or simply have the extra cash to splurge on a dream wedding, chances are, you’ll be looking for ways to cut down on your cost and save as much as you can on your wedding budget without sacrificing on the aesthetics.
Well, guess what? We have just what you need – 10 surprising ways to keep within your wedding budget you may not have thought of so you can have a memorable and beautiful wedding without breaking the bank.
1. Avoid Popular Dates and Saturdays
Calista and Christopher’s Beautiful Wedding at Tirtha Uluwatu Bali by Iluminen
Popular dates such as Valentine’s Day and double numbered dates are usually favoured by couples, which means there may be a higher demand in bookings for popular venues and that may translate into higher booking costs.
You may also want to avoid booking a wedding on a Saturday as well, as venues tend to charge more for a celebration on this day than any other day of the week. Some venues also charge more for Friday night weddings, so be sure to check with your preferred venue on their rates for Fridays as well.
So, do consider booking your wedding outside of these dates and days if you’d like to save on your wedding budget. You can check out the rates of these venues in our wedding banquet price list for the latest pricing before you make a booking. If you really want to get married on a weekend and still wish to keep your costs low, you might want to consider a wedding luncheon instead. Some, if not most, venues charge lower for wedding luncheons on the weekends than wedding dinners.
2. Look out for all-inclusive packages
Ivy and Julius’s Epic Mountaintop Pre-Wedding Shoot on Trolltunga, Norway by Juanmoley Fotologue
One great money-saving tip for wedding planning is to opt for vendors who offer all-inclusive packages, such as bridal boutiques, photographers and venues. Venues often partner with a variety of wedding vendors and include some basic essentials such as wedding decor and favours in their wedding packages. You can cash in on these all-in packages to cut down on your wedding budget, as it is often cheaper than engaging these vendors separately on your own.
You can also find all-inclusive packages at bridal boutiques and from wedding photographers. Most bridal boutiques offer packages that include two to three bridal gowns and wedding suit for the newlyweds, hair and makeup services, bridal flowers and photography services, covering most of the essentials you’ll need for your wedding at a better price point than if you were get them ala carte.
Some wedding photographers might also have all-inclusive packages for pre and actual day wedding photography that are more value for money than if you were to book them separately or with different photographers. So, do take note of these.
3. Choose a venue that requires little to zero work
Cindy and Stan’s Stunning Wedding at Changi Cove Hotel’s Command House by Ivan Seah Photography
You would realise that a large portion of your wedding budget goes to decorating your wedding venue, and one great way to cut down on this area of spending is to pick a venue that is already beautifully decorated as it is. That way, little to no additional decor is needed to spruce the space up, allowing you to cut costs or focus your budget on other areas.
4. Go for a few areas of statement decor instead of decorating everything
Michelle and William’s Beautiful and Intimate Botanico Wedding by The Beautiful Moment Photography
A great way for couples to cut down their wedding costs without sacrificing on their wedding decor is to set up statement decor at selected areas at their venue. Rather than spreading your budget thin trying to get every corner of your wedding venue decorated, why not focus your resources on sprucing up a few areas where your guests are bound to notice and linger around?
An excellent area to focus your decorations at is the reception because it will be one of the most visited spaces at your wedding venue. You can consider setting up a lavish set-up at the reception area for a statement look that your guests can admire and take beautiful photos of themselves and their ootds. You can also maximise the set-up by requesting for your photographers to take couple shots of you and your husband at this area, as well as family shots for your families.
Another area where you can consider focusing your decorations and budget on is the VIP and guest tables, since it will be where you and your guests will be spending most of their time at during the wedding celebration, and where your photographer will be taking most of the photos of them at as well.
5. Repurpose Your Wedding Flowers
Calista and Christopher’s Big and Gorgeous Wedding at Raffles Hotel Jakarta by Iluminen
Flowers are another item that tend to take up a big portion of your wedding budget than you’d think or expect. You will need them for your bridal bouquet, bridesmaids’ bouquets, solemnisation, dinner hall, and VIP and guests tables, so you can imagine the amount of flowers you’ll need and its cost.
However, that doesn’t mean that you have to give up on having a beautiful floral set up at your wedding if you’re on a tight budget or trying to cut down on your wedding cost. One great way to reducing you spending without sacrificing your floral aesthetics is to repurpose the flowers used in your wedding.
Flowers from your solemnisation and bridesmaids’ bouquets, for instance, can be repurposed for the floral decor for your VIP and guest tables, and even for your wedding hall, when they are no longer needed for their initial purpose. This will help you cut down your floral costs while still maintaining the look that you wish to achieve for your wedding.
6. Opt for off-the-rack/ready-made outfits instead of customising
Shiyan and Sean’s Magnificent JW Marriott Singapore South Beach Wedding by Lightedpixels Photography
While it would be a dream if you could customise your wedding gown or suit for your big day, it would also be the more expensive choice and if you wish to keep your wedding costs low, then this may not be the most suitable option for you.
Instead of customising a wedding outfit, you can consider renting an off-the-rack wedding gown or suit from a bridal boutique. Not only will you have a sea of options to choose from, you’ll also have professionals advising you on the style of dress that will best fit you and your wedding. Don’t worry about the off-the-rack dress being ill-fitting on you; bridal boutiques have their own team of seamstresses who are able to alter the dress to fit your measurements.
For the grooms, if you prefer not to rent a suit from a bridal boutique, you can consider getting an off-the-rack suit of your liking at major department stores and trendy menswear shops located islandwide.
7. Let Your Bridesmaids Pick Their Own Outfits
Janice and Gerald’s Magical Harry Potter Wedding in Orchidville by Click! Photography
Paying for your bridesmaids’ dresses might be a nice touch for your girls, but if you are running low on budget, then you can consider letting them pick their own outfits. If there is a certain look or colour that you are going for, you can give them a colour palette to stick to. Otherwise, you can give them full autonomy in the style and colour of their dress.
They can either purchase a dress or outfit that suits your colour palette or wedding theme at their own expense, or re-wear an item of clothing in that they already have in their closet for your big day. Whichever option they go for, it is a win-win situation for you and your girls – you’ll get to cut down on your costs while they get to wear something they like and that flatters them.
8. DIY Your Own Invites or Opt for E-Invites
Cleo and Paul’s Minimalist and Ethereal Art Gallery Wedding by Iki Company
It’s a nice touch to have your wedding invitation and stationery designed in the wedding theme or colour palette of your choice, but as most customisation goes, it may cost more than going with the ones your hotel provides or designing and printing your own, especially if it involves special artwork or materials.
You can get equally beautiful and meaningful wedding invitation and stationery designs by creating your own with the help of design apps such as Canva, or purchase affordable artwork by artists on Etsy, and printing them out locally at a printer. Doing so will help trim your wedding budget, and allow you to use the funds on an area that is more important.
Alternatively, you can choose to leave out physical wedding invitations and send out e-invites to your guests to save the earth and your wallet! While sending out physical wedding invites may be a rite of ritual for most soon-to-wed couples and their family, e-wedding invitations are just as sincere and formal.
9. Create your own Photo Booth
Linette and Joshua’s Autumn-Inspired Bohemian Wedding at Hotel Fort Canning by Androidsinboots
Photo booths are a great wedding activity for your guests. It’s fun, keeps them entertained and gives them a keepsake from the wedding to bring home. If you are watching your wedding spending, you can consider creating your very own photo booth instead of hiring one. Setting up a DIY photo booth will cash in cheaper than hiring a professional wedding photo booth service, as all you’ll need are polaroid cameras and films, and some photo taking props, which you can either loan from friends and family, or purchase them online at a cheaper rate.
Set up your photo booth against a nice looking backdrop with a table filled with sufficient polaroid cameras and films, and props, and a signage inviting your guests to make use of these items on the table to take as many photos of themselves against the backdrop as they want. They can choose to take home these photo keepsakes of their time at the wedding, or gift them to you with their wedding wishes. You can also use a smartphone with a good quality camera function to snap photos of your guests and print the photos out for them using a portable printer, instead of using polaroid cameras.
10. Opt For a Single-Tiered Cake
Lalu and Chris’ Bright and Colourful Sapa-Inspired Backyard Wedding by Alvelyn Alko
Let’s face it – your guests don’t expect you to order a three-tier cake so that you can serve a slice of your wedding cake to each and every one of them. Besides, dessert is already included in their meal. So, if you are looking for an area where you can cut your spending without sacrificing too much on the aesthetics you want, you may want to consider downsizing your cake to a single-tiered cake.
Tiered cakes often cost more than single-tiered cakes because it requires more work, materials and effort to put them together. Now, don’t think for a second that just because your cake is single tiered, it cannot be beautiful. It can be as lavish and detailed as any two or three tiered cake, or it can adopt a trendy, minimalist look, depending on your preference.
If you would still like to serve your wedding cake with your guests, you can consider getting a single-tiered cake that is big enough to feed your VIP table and then some.
Feature Image from Cleo and Paul’s Minimalist and Ethereal Art Gallery Wedding by Iki Company
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