What is the cheapest Amount Anyone has spent on a Wedding?

Question

I want to do a decent yet not too expensive wedding. Is a 5000 dollar wedding attainable?

I live in California and my hubby is in the army in Korea. We got married at the court, but are still planning to do a traditional wedding under a budget. I'd really like to have a sit down dinner and dance.

Answer 1

Go to Las Vegas and get married on the stripe.
It cost anywhere from $50.00 on up.

I got married through the drive through and even used one of their workers as a witness.

The place is called "The Little White Chapel".

Answer 2

I think once the reception is over (we went away to be married, and are having a reception next weekend), we will have spent right around $2000.

That includes the marriage license and ceremony fees, the rings, our clothes for that day, the cabin we rented for that weekend, travel expenses, food and drink for the weekend, food and drink for the reception, cups/plates/forks/whatnot for the reception, porta-potty rentals (because the reception is at his parents house, and we've been having a near-draught and there well could go dry at any minute), wedding favors, flowers, a cake, and all sorts of little 'extras' like a garter and a sixpence.

If you're careful about where you spend your money, and check around for the best prices (remember, some vendors automatically charge more when they know its a wedding and not just a party), you can defiantely do a very nice wedding for $5000.

Answer 3

It can absolutely be done ... but it depends on quite a few factors. Namely:

* Where do you live? It'll be much easier to have a $5k wedding in Oklahoma than it will in New York City. Metro areas are usually more expensive than rural ones.

* How many guests do you plan to invite? It's very possible to give 75 guests a gormet meal for under $5k, but if you want 200 people there, all you might be able to feed them might be cake and punch.

So take these two factors into account, and start planning accordingly. Here are some other tips:

* Order flowers wholesale, either from the Internet or from a supermarket/farmer's market, and make your own bouquets and boutonnieres. Make simple centerpieces with flowers stuck in thrift store vases, or don't use flowers at all (try lanterns, candles, photo frames, etc.). Flowers like roses and daisies/gerbera daisies are usually quite inexpensive.

* Look into halls that only charge you a small fee to rent it - churches, recreation centers, public park buildings, college rec. rooms, firehouses, Bingo halls, museums, etc. - and that will let you bring in any vendors you want. This will probably end up being cheaper than a standard reception hall that has everything included.

* Instead of a "Wedding caterer," get the food from a local restaurant, deli or supermarket. Pick up their catering menus and price it out. Even Boston Market does wedding catering for under $20 a head.

* If you're the groom, wear a suit you already own. If you're the bride, look for your gown at a department store or Jcrew.com, or a thrift shop, or on eBay. Or preownedweddingdresses.com. Wear shoes and accessories you already own. Buy a cheap veil on eBay, make your own, or go without.

* Ask local bakeries what a simple cake would cost ... or just get a small cake for the ceremonial first cut, and then offer the guests a dessert buffet - pies, cookies, brownies, ice cream, fresh fruit, etc.

* Look into the Print Your Own invitation kits from Target or Staples. Or get very basic invites from a Web site (try americanweddingalbum.com). They go right in the trash anyway.

* You won't need limos if you have a car. Maybe a friend has a cool car they can loan you ... Mini Cooper, Beetle, convertible, classic car. Or call a cab.

* You don't need favors, programs, an aisle runner, bubbles, pew bows, or bathroom baskets.

* Ask a friend with a camcorder to tape the ceremony, instead of hiring a pro videographer.

* Don't cheap out on photography if you can help it ... even if your wedding cost $100K, a crappy photographer will make it look awful. But if you can't spend that much, check out craigslist.org for inexpensive photographers who are just starting out. Also, try calling colleges with photoography departments, and ask the chairperson to recommend a talented student. Or call a local newspaper and ask if their photographer will do it.

Answer 4

A $5000 wedding is attainable. You need to ensure you're not expecting too much fanfare and insist you stick to the budget when booking & buying etc.

A wedding is about the vows, the pledge that you make to each other in front of God, your family & friends. It is entirely up to you how much or little you want to spend on this scenario.

Do the little things yourself. Make the placecards and decorate the reception centre. See if you can get fresh cut flowers from the markets instead of paying for table bouquets, these can even work for your bridal & bridesmaids bouquets.

Enlist all your friends & family to brainstorm on who they know who could offer assistance at a reduced rate or voluntarily ~ eg. do you know a hairdresser or a beautician? Someone who owns a fancy car? Who's a DJ or musician in a band? etc.etc.

You get the gist ~ you can do it for $5000 ~ you just have to put in more work. Good luck ~ I hope it's a beautiful wedding!

Answer 5

My wife and I got married for under $500.00.

One of my aunts made the wedding cake.

We spent about $125.00 each on wedding bands, and about $100.00 for flowers from Kroger's floral department, and less than a $100.00 for food.

I wore a suit, and Marcia wore a dress that she already had.

We decided to marry on Tuesday, we got our license and rings on Friday, she got the flowers Saturday while I was at work. She decorated the church after services Sunday, and we were married Sunday afternoon after I got off from work.

It was not fancy, and other than inviting a few friends by phone, and issuing a general invitation at church, we sent no invitations. But it was a nice simple wedding.

The marriage has lasted over 18 years so far.

My first marriage cost about $5,000.00 in 1980, and only lasted 6 1/2 years.

In my opinion spending a large fortune on a wedding is senseless. Far better to spend most of the money on getting the new couple properly started with a decent place to live, and no debts to pay.

If you do things yourself, and get family and friends to help, you can have a really nice wedding for lots less than $5,000.00. And you can spend the balance of that $5K on a kicking honeymoon!

Doc

Answer 6

Yes. We spent $8500 in 1988 and that included everything (dress, tux, church, invitations, string quartet, flowers, $350 cake, champagne, buffet for 125 people, DJ, B&B rented for our whole family to stay with us on our wedding night and breakfast in the morning together). Oh and the pictures cost $1000 over and above that, sorry.
You can do it ~ if you budget but still get what you want-it is a once in a lifetime day so make it special. Oh yea, we only had 1 attendant each and didn't go on a honeymoon.

Answer 7

My parents in 1970. My dad wore his father's suit. My mom got her dress ata resale shop. They eloped to a small town 90 miles south of Chicago (where they live). THey found a church in the middlw of nowhere, asked the priest if they could get married the next day, and he obliged. The organist and his wife were witnesses and she had made a wedding cake for them the night before. The priest took pictures in his study. The whole thing (w/o the license) was $29!!! They have been married for 37 years!!!

Answer 8

My first wedding was planned in a week, with me being 8 months pregnant, and I managed to do it with $500! It is possible, if you are willing to do a lot yourself, like make the food, bouquets, decor. Plus it helps to have very few attendants and have them wear something simple. My MOH wore one of my old Prom dresses that was the perfect color for the wedding, and the best man wore his nice suit. Finding a place for the ceremony and reception outdoors is the cheapest. Parks and beaches are great for that!
Ask family and friends for help...see if anyone has any talents, like cake making, flower arranging, decorating, or maybe even someone who has a lot of tables stacked in their garage. If you want the cheapest wedding that is still a decent wedding, be ready to work your butt off and to ask help of everyone you know!
Best of luck to you both!

Answer 9

$5000 is my budget and we're having an elegently rustic affair with money to spair. 'Course we've pulled in a lot of favors. My sister did her entire wedding for under $2000. It really depends on how many people you're planning on having. We're having 80.

Answer 10

Where in california are you located? I'm down south and my wedding is only costing me about 6500 and no one believes me. Everything looks like it's out of a magizine. So if your in southern cali, send me a message and I'll let you know where to go for some good deals. If not, good luck