The average spend on weddings these days continues to be sky-high at tens of thousands, and many people put off getting married or put a financial strain on themselves trying to “keep up with the Joneses.” However, there’s no need to go all out splurging on every element of your special day to have a wonderful, memorable day.
Instead, you can cut costs and still have a fantastic day. In particular, it pays to look for ideas to get a complete bridal look you love without breaking the bank. Here are some tips to consider.
Set Yourself a Maximum Budget
The first step is determining the maximum budget you can afford and feel comfortable spending on your complete bridal outfit. It’s easy for us to get carried away in the moment when we’re shopping and see lots of beautiful goods out there. Put a specific number down on paper that you know you need to stick to in order to avoid splurging more than you should.
Create a detailed budget broken down into allocated funds for the different components of your bridal look. For example, there’s your dress plus a veil or headpiece, shoes, jewelry, bag, and undergarments. Plus, don’t forget to allocate money to pay for makeup and hairstyling, beauty preparations (such as facials, manicures, pedicures, and tanning) in the lead-up to your big day, and even dry-cleaning and preserving your dress after the event.
Give Yourself Plenty of Time to Shop and Plan
Don’t leave everything until the last minute. Not only is this stressful and can mean you don’t find the items or can’t get the stylists you want, but it tends to cost more money. If you give yourself plenty of time to shop and plan, though, you are more likely to find exactly what you want for a more affordable price.
Take the date of your wedding and work backward from there, developing a suggested timeline of when you need to tick tasks off your list or have made certain orders or purchases. For example, if you want to get a dress custom-made or tailored for you, this takes time, often many months. You don’t want to have to pay extra costs to get express shipping or faster turnaround times. It’s wise to allow at least six to nine months to find a dress you love, plus three months or so to source all the other elements of your look.
If you allow enough time, you can check out various dress styles, narrow your preferences down to your perfect option, and then have someone create this for you at a much lower price than if you were to buy a couture option in-store. You can also get shoes or other accessories hand-dyed to match fabrics or make other choices more affordable than if you’re rushing everything to make your wedding deadline.
Planning well in advance will enable you to snap up the makeup artist and hairdresser that are budget-friendly rather than having to book with the most expensive people because everyone else is unavailable by the time you get around to locking dates in.
Shop Wisely
Another way to save yourself money yet still get a bridal look you love is to shop wisely. For example, sign up to newsletters for your favorite bridal stores so you find out when they’re having sales or offering deals, and try to learn about outlet centers where you might find discount versions of dresses you adore. You might like to try new and upcoming designers rather than the more expensive creations of well-known names, too.
It pays to shop online, too, as this provides you access to a broader array of products than those you’ll find in your local area, and you can often find cheaper options as a result. Check out online stores not just for dresses but also for affordable, quality lingerie sets to wear under your outfit, plus shoes, a bag, jewelry, headpieces, or hair accessories, etc.
Other ways to save include buying second-hand items, hiring goods from rental service companies, or choosing a dress in a color other than white or ivory, so you can buy from non-bridal stores and pay much less. You might also borrow items, such as a handbag or veil, from a friend or family member, which can then work double duty as your “something borrowed” on the day.
Plus, it pays to take advantage of gift opportunities. Save yourself some money by asking for bridal pieces, like jewelry, lingerie, a handbag, or shoes, for Christmas or birthday presents.
A wedding is an expensive undertaking, but you don’t have to outlay ridiculous amounts of money on what you’ll wear and carry on your big day if you don’t want to. As you can see, there are plenty of clever ways to save some cash and use it on other things, such as a romantic honeymoon.
