Too Poor toPay for Weddings?

Question

How are poor college students supposed to pay for a wedding? The families on both sides will pay for neither college or the wedding.

Answer 1

I paid for my own wedding, we had an evening wedding so it cut down on food costs, we had a cocktail buffet, (hor'derves) all my friends pitched in (most were frozen and we got them at Costco), we used the same room for the ceremony and reception, I ordered my dress from a wedding catalog without the hand beading ($200. vs $1000.) and my mom hand sewed all the beading. My two bridesmaids got together and picked their own dresses, ( they were lovely suits that they could wear again) we chose a beautiful room so the only decorations we needed were centerpieces and my friend made those out of fresh flowers and candles... everyone said it was a very nice wedding... simple but nice. hope that helps a little. Good Luck and Congrats!

Answer 2

I know how you feel, I just got married a month ago and there was basically no help from the family. We we very limited on money. But in the end is was very personal and I loved it. We had it at the college in the gardens which was beautiful and was FREE and they also provided all the chairs. We only had us and his best man and my maid on honor with us, we didn't need 10 people on each side. since it was outside and relaxed anyway, we didn't need to rent any tuxes and just wore springy dresses. Since it was already outside, we didn't need to do much as far a decorating goes, the flowers were already there. All we had was the bouqhes and boutiners (sp) which we just bought the flowers and made ourselves, and the preacher was an old friend of my husband's so we tried to give him some money and he wouldn't take it anyway.
We did get the traditional cake, but since we only had like 30 people there anyway, we didn't need a very big on (if you want a big one, only get 2 or 3 layers and add risers and your flowers between the layers to give it the illusion of being bigger, which is what I did). For decorations at the reception we used some flowers but we used a lot of helium ballons in our wedding colors, which was pretty cheap. And we opted out of getting a professional photographer, we had lots of disposaples and digital cameras there so we got alot of unique shots from alot of different angles and they are great to look at.
Hope the ideas help and congrats.
But I wouldn't elope, not if you have always wanted a wedding, a small wedding is better than no wedding at all.

Answer 3

Think about what is important to you. If you want a big wedding and you want to have that experience of a big dress and your family and a fancy reception - just save up. Be engaged for several years, eat Ramen and just keep saving pennies.

But if you don't really care about all that, get a small group together, have a little ceremony at a church and you can do it all for almost nothing. My uncle had a potluck ceremony, that's how casual it was. He just requested that people bring dishes for X number of people in lieu of presents.

You could also have a Costco wedding...go to Costco and get all those little cheap snacky things that you just put in the oven and serve...not to mention really cheap flowers. Go over to someone's house (your friend or family member with the nicest yard perhaps) and just set someone by the oven in charge.

You don't have to have the fanciest or most elaborate wedding to have a nice wedding - but you also don't have to get married this second. You CAN however, do either one, or choose something in the middle. Good luck!

Answer 4

If you can't afford it, then you need to start thinking of different ways of dealing with it or wait until you *can* afford it.

Have a destination wedding. You pay for the vacation and the resort will usually pay for the wedding.

Have a small Vegas wedding. Some casinos have nice packages starting at under $1000. Even the Bellagio starts at $1500.

Have a very small local wedding. Have the ceremony be your direct and local family and then have the reception at a fun restaurant like Buca Di Bepo (if you have one nearby). Or, have it catered in your (or someone's) home so that no one has to do any work.

If that's out of reach, buy some catering trays of food from a local restaurant and hire a few servers from a local restaurant to serve. Offer to pay them $100-$200 each for the evening. Hire a bartender from a local place as well. You buy the alcohol, he mixes the drinks, pay him like $150 + tips. I'd buy beer, wine, and mixers for a signature drink (like a mojito, cosmo, lemon drop, etc).

Nothing says that you have to have a big wedding, or any kind of too-doo in order to be married. You simply get a license, go to the justice of the peace, and get married.

We waited until after college so that we could do things as we wanted and actually have a good party. It was worth the wait.

Answer 5

It depends on where you are. If you're near someplace like Las Vegas or Reno, you can get really good deals, even at the nicer hotels. You can have a decent wedding for not much money. You can find great dresses online for super cheap. My sister bought one that way. It was fabulous and only cost about $200. It was worth about $800. City hall is always a possibility. Or depending on the laws of your state, you can have one of your friends go online to the Universal Life Church and become a minister in about 5 minutes and you can get married in a park or something. For a reception, you can just have cake and punch. If you have your heart set on a fancy cake, get several store bought cakes, each one smaller than the last, and just stack them up. It will look like a tradtional wedding cake, but it will be a fraction of the cost of one that someone stacked up for you. There are lots of options.

Answer 6

ok - you've needed to be conscious this question fairly otherwise so human beings weren't so mean - yet I do comprehend what you assert. it is taken into consideration mandatory to me that any centred visitor at any social gathering (even if a dinner social gathering, birthday or wedding ceremony) experience protected and characteristic a sturdy time. The bride and groom (or the father and mom often times) are the hosts and it is their resposibility to cater to the needs of the visitors that they invite. i imagine countless human beings imagine the marriage is merely for them and that is all that concerns - yet when it fairly is the case they ought to not invite any visitors... because what's the point in case you at the prompt are not likely to throw a perfect social gathering? I even might want to consider yet another poster that it's not 'undesirable' those that do merely this - it is wealthy to boot. i in my opinion do not see the point in inviting more desirable than 100 and fifty visitors to a wedding ceremony besides. it is in basic terms too many human beings and also you do not even see 0.5 of them... so why invite them? It merely would not make experience to me (I in basic terms had eighty at mine and that became a lot). i wager the different aspect is that individuals's priorities are different. some human beings gained't care about the meal and corridor the position they carry the marriage and in basic terms care that their acquaintances and relatives are there. yet - besides the undeniable fact that - I nevertheless do not imagine absolutely everyone has three hundred those that are quite acquaintances and relatives, even once you've a tremendous relatives I wager there are likely 100 human beings out of that three hundred that you'll not in any respect even see lower back. (and that i will claim that because I have a huge relatives and am very on the fringe of lots of my 2d cousins and more desirable distant kin to boot) besides it fairly is my rant for the day and folk can take it or depart it - it fairly is merely my opinion from my observations and adventure! And out of your question i have self belief i'm no longer the in basic terms one which feels this kind.

Answer 7

First, I'd wonder if it's wise for someone still in college to get married, to add the pressure of a new household and a difficult committed relationship to the pressures of study.

However, if you're still determined to get married, go cheap. Gather a few friends and relatives in a small church, and have a simple party afterwards, such as a picnic. If the group is small enough, you might even go to a restaurant after. Keep the white cake simple--one or two tiers--but have that bride-and-groom topper, to keep it special.

(Maybe a home ec major can give you some ideas! A theater major might have some creative ideas, too.)

Save the bulk of your money for rent, groceries, and textbooks!

Answer 8

Don't get married so soon....leave time to plan and everything. Besides marriage is about uniting 2 people who are in love with each other, not the price. Big weddings are no longer the thing anymore, today in society people get married in the courthouse for less than $100.

So my advice is simple, you could either give enough time to save up money for the wedding or get married in the courthouse. Sorry :(

Answer 9

Go to Las Vegas and have a wedding in a beautiful chapel there for little money. It will cost about $1000.00 for everything, including the trip, hotel accomodations and look how much fun the honeymoon would be with all the glamour Las Vegas has to offer!
Or wait until you both graduate and have good jobs and you are able to provide your own wedding.
My husband and I eloped to Vegas and had a terrific time!

Answer 10

Go to the local justice of peace or wedding salon. My ceremony cost $90 and I was able to have about 20-40 people in attendance. I had my reception at a relatives home and the family made the food. It was great and it was not stressful. We even got our weeding cake from the local supermarket. It was very inexpensive but very memorable.