Jeff and I have, to the dismay of others, set the goal of paying for our wedding without any assistance from either of our families.
For those who have been wondering about our wedding date (on the Details page - Fall 2014), that's part of the reason why - money.
Budgeting is never a problem for me, but figuring out good ways to cutback and/or save usually is.
Here's what we've got so far:
1) A penalty jar - things like, whenever we call each other boyfriend or girlfriend, $2 goes in the jar
2) Cutting back on 'excursions'...go for a monthly date instead and save up for it
3) Limit our travel - this one will be tough but with the dream of a great honeymoon as our light at the end of the tunnel, we think we can spend the next 2 1/2 years doing short weekend trips to places within driving distance.
4) Run a betting pool - going for a 50/50 split of profits with the winner, we'll take bets on things such as 'How many times will we threaten to elope?'; 'How long will Jeff's speech last?'; so on and so forth. Name your bet here or on Facebook and we'll try to get others in the pool with you!
5) And of course, old faithful, regular deposits in our T.F.S.A.
All the same, I'm still anxious about saving enough and so, turn to you, our friends and family for tips and suggestions. What did you do to save for/pay for your big day? If you haven't had a big day, what do you think might work?
Thanks for the support!
From one wedding planner to another, I am sure you have already thought of these....
ReplyDeleteStart a high interest savings account. You usually need a minimum which wont take long to save....then you are making a lot more than your regular bank account. It doesn't sound like much but when Khem and I were saving for our wedding that account was making like $75-$100/month in interest alone!
When you create your budget for the wedding put actual quote/numbers beside them....then when are tempted to spend money you will have something to compare it too....someone’s dinner, your cake, wedding favours etc. The guilt method works!
Don't start buying this for the wedding unless you are 100% positive they will be used for the weddings....too many time you see something you like and you buy it and then your whole vision changes.
Come up with how much you think your wedding will cost.....as close to real as possible. Divide that by how many months you have to save and work on the smaller number every month...its a lot easier to meet the small goals then to worry about being consumed by the big one.
Lastly, hire a professional wedding planner, our jobs are to help you create a budget and stick to it... (hehe I had to sneak that in there)
The sheets I used for my wedding were very helpful. If you want a copy I can send it to you! Just let me know. :)