How can people on a low income have an expenisve wedding?

Question

I have seen people who do not have the best jobs have these huge weddings 20,000 to 90,000 for weddings.How do people do it/

Answer 1

They shouldn't. I have never understood why anybody, rich or poor spends so lavishly on one day of their life and then paid for it for years. I have a dear friend who was still paying off debts from her wedding 2 years after the divorce was final.

Answer 2

Examine your budget and see what you can do on your own (invitations, favors, flowers...). See if you have any vendor contacts that can perform services for you (cousin that is a photographer, aunt that bakes cakes, mom that sews...).

Remember that if you do hire vendors, everything is negotiable. From the dress to the hall to the caterer.

And then see if you can cut out some traditions that could end up adding costs to your budget. Maybe only have 1 or 2 attendants each will cut costs on flowers, rehearsal dinner, and attendant gifts. Maybe go without a ring bearer and/or flower girl. Instead of booking a restaurant or catering rehearsal dinner, have a cook-out instead. Veils are optional nowadays, and so DJ's (thanks to the iPod!).

One big cost cutter is to do a cash bar or not serve alcohol at all. Your guests might be a little disappointed, but it's your party! Maybe just have a champagne toast. That will save you a bunch of money!

One last thing to consider is your day of the week. We got married on a Sunday, and we got a discount on the venue and DJ. Saturday weddings are most popular, so having your wedding on an off day will really open up your options.

Let me know if you need anymore advice! I had such a great time planning my own wedding, that I'm considering getting into the business. Best to utilize me while I'm still free!! :-)

Good luck!

Answer 3

Parents...
My fiance's friend got married last year. The groom was 24 years old, work at a grocery store as a meat clerk that pays him about $10/hour. The bride was 20 years old, work at Walgreens as a cashier. They had a wedding at a local church and had a reception at a banquet with about 80 people. She had a $1000 dress and engagement ring bigger than mine(me and my future hubby are both college graduated engineers) and they went to Bahamas for honeymoon. They also bought a house together and of course everything that goes in it. But all those furnitures and stuff weren't the cheap ones either. They just had a baby a couple months ago. So I was asking the exactly same question that you were asking because even as an engineer couple, it's so damn hard to have a nice wedding. The answer was....their parents paid for the whole thing..mostly her parents. Most of my friends make less money than we do, but they still have bigger wedding, 2 ct ring, nicer house...all thanks to their parents!

Answer 4

if you ever find out, pass that along ot me, id like to get into that deal.
As it is mine is 15,000 which really isnt much for a wedding i kniw, but thats more than a used car. So, now I ogtta wait til after wedding to get a new one. Gotta make sacrifices though, and 15000 is even a hard number to hit out here for weddings.
Im also thinking of picking up a second job, thats why we are waitting two years we both make about 9 grand a year, so neither one of us have money right now, well except the 2 grand i had saved for a car that im putting in money for wedding................

So if anyone knows, you should tell the restof us on yahoo, im sure we would all be eternally grateful.

Answer 5

They either save money for a very long time or - more likely - take out loans or build up credit card debt. (really bad idea!)

My fiance and I are both engineers, and we're still having to budget everything very carefully so that we don't build up any credit card debt. If I were getting married straight out of grad school it would probably have to be at the courthouse or in a friend's backyard! Ours is going to be very nice, but not extravagant. Weddings are expensive, and I think it's a very bad idea for people to go into debt for a wedding.

Answer 6

My fiance and I have friends that have been married for 16 years. They are still paying off their wedding if that tells you anything.

Something else though to keep in mind - knowing people in the right places doesn't hurt. My aunt works for a catering company and I've occasionally helped her out with catering jobs in the past. My DJ is one of the best in the area, but I've used him for company functions and he's also the husband of a girl I graduated with. We know plenty of cops so don't have to pay extra for security at the reception hall. My fiance is good friends with the photographer. I also look for discount on things. Basically what I'm trying to say is that a wedding may not be as expensive as it looks if you know some details.

Answer 7

All of the above posters are correct- people go into debt. And whatever you do, don't think for a second that the gifts you receive will even come close to recouping your costs. The gifts we recieved at our wedding were about 25% of what we spent on the event- and we got some very nice gifts. Spend what you can afford, it is only one day.

Answer 8

They go into debt and pay for their wedding long after the divorce is final.
Seriously, there's a 50% chance they won't be together in 5 years, so why not just have a small wedding and spend little money, regardless of your financial situation?

Answer 9

How are they able to do it? Simple: they go into debt up to their eyebrows before their actual marriage even begins all for one day of festivities. Personally, I think people who do that need to have some sense slapped into them. Literally. I'm all for getting what you want for your big day, but if you can't afford something scratch it off the list! I mean, what's the point in spending $2,000 on flowers when in reality you can barely afford $100?!?
I think the reasons for this are (1.) Bridezillas are becoming more and more common, and (2.) celebrities are more in the spotlight today than ever before; brides-to-be see their dream weddings being played out on TV and think "Hey! If THEY can do it, I can too!". The only problem with that is, THEY can actually AFFORD it!

Answer 10

credit cards, loans. Some do save up for their weddings. Sometimes others help out with getting things or paying. The may find corners to cut, etc.