At the top of your list are the items which you’ve deemed most important, which means they are the last parts of your checklist to be trimmed. Even if you are within budget for your wedding, there are always ways to trim the budget.

As part of my wedding planning I made certain decisions which seemed to be beyond reach of a budget of $10,000. For instance my Calla Lily theme. One of the most expensive wedding flowers available, and out of season during my wedding in July. My dress was shipped from New York to the small town in Sweden where I live. We bought, not rented, my husband’s tuxedo, also from New York. We had an outdoor wedding in a remote area with a rented tent. We had nearly 55 guests and 45 of them from out of town. We rented cabins and a special hotel for my parents. We had flower centerpieces and table centerpieces. We had chair decorations and table decorations. Everything I wanted for my wedding. The point, as you may be wondering about now, is that you can manage the wedding of your dreams within your budget or even less. I got exactly what I wanted and so can you, if you’re willing to put in the work!

You can view my wedding pictures here for our wedding pictures.

Ceremony
Location fee

officiant fee

marriage license

musician’s fees

ring pillows

Reception
Reception Site

Food

Drinks

Rentals

Cake

Favors

Clothing
Dress

Headpiece/veil

lingerie

hosiery

shoes

accessories

jewelry

hair and makeup

Groom’s Tuxedo or Suit

shoes

ties/ashcrofts

cumberbuns

cuff links or studs

suspenders

Rings
His and her rings

engraving

Flowers
Ceremony

bride’s bouquet

maid-of-honor

bridesmaid bouquets

corsages

boutonnières

centerpieces

flower-girl basket

Music
Ceremony Musicians

Band and/or DJ

cocktail hour musicians

sound system rental

Photography
Photographer

Videographer

albums

additional prints

disposable cameras

Transportation
Transportation for wedding party.

Stationery
Invitations

response cards

thank you notes

postage

calligraphy

guest book

Gifts
Bridesmaid

groomsmen

parents

giftsfor out-of-town guests.

Extra costs:

Before/during wedding:

Flowers for flower girl baskets

Wedding night hotel suite

Tips for staff at hotel

room service

Rehearsal dinner if not paid for by family

Extra clothes for reception or after reception

taxis, if not driving, to and from venues

Honeymoon

Hotel suite

Flights

Food on flights or in airports

Taxi to hotel/s

Food costs (3 meals a day and snacks)

Alcohol

hotels the night before

Tips for hotels, drivers, maids

Taxis

Special outings (ex diving school, horseback riding, musicals etc)

The best way to start planning for your wedding is with a budget. While many sites offer a list of wedding budget information, I have yet to find one which helps keep a bride and groom to their budget. When planning your wedding it is essential to keep as close to your budget as possible, not only to avoid stress, but also to avoid eventual arguments stemming from the cost.

1. Make a list of wedding expenses and order them from most important to least important.

Begin your budget planning with a list of the expected wedding expenses and use this list to order expenses from most important to least important. This is a crucial step in your budget to make decisions on trimming expenses.

1. Write down the actual costs of the most important items on your list.

There are a few guidelines to the percentage of a wedding budget each itemization will cost. For instance most brides spend approximately 10% of their budget on attire (dress, tux, shoes etc), however, by ordering your list from most important to least important you may effectively alter any “normal” budgets. The most important part of my wedding was my dress and jewelry and my husband’s tuxedo. Our total budget was $10,000 and my dress alone was $1200 dollars, quite a bit above 10%. Ten percent will be a good base start if you are unsure of certain other aspects, but if you have your heart set on certain parts of your wedding, its best to use actual numbers. I wasn’t prepared to get married without that particular dress, so when planning my wedding I included the cost of my dress first. When planning a wedding make sure you write down the cost of anything which you know isn’t negotiable irregardless of price. Research the items so you can find them for the least cost.

1. Find out and include the list of costs over which you have no control.

There are certain things which a bride and groom have no control. The marriage license, for instance, is issued by the city or state and is a fixed cost. Unless they are at the bottom of your list , this part of your budget list will include the officiants fee, location fees etc. Remember if these are unimportant than they are not a fixed cost.

1. Set a number of guests and stick to it! Try and approximate the maximum for each food plate.

This is very important in your budget. Whatever your guest list will determine the cost of nearly 50% of your wedding. Anyone, outside of the bride and groom, that wishes to include certain guests needs to include funds for the wedding. This includes parents. If they want to invite your twice removed Cousin Mac from Nova Scotia whom you haven’t seen or heard from since the age of 3 months then they will pay those expenses ie; catering cost etc. Food costs are very malleable, depending on how much work you’re willing to outsource or DIY.

1. Copy 1-4 on another sheet and add additional expected costs.

A second sheet which lists all the expenses of the first sheet should now include what you want for the rest of the wedding. If you wanted certain flowers or bouquets for example. This second list will include the cost of the least important items on your list. Research the cost of each item and highlight the least important. These will be the variable costs.

1. Total the second list and prepare to discuss the budget costs.

Approach your relatives with the total wedding costs and subtract their contributions. Once you know what your relatives are able to contribute you can decide, if needed, how to pay for the rest of the wedding.

7. Make a list of possible items your friends might be able to help pay.

While it may be crass to expect your friends to pay for anything on your wedding day, there may be expenses which friends wish to contribute. A dinner on your honeymoon, your hotel suite on your wedding night, a special outing on your honeymoon, the champagne for the toasts. There is no easy way to ask people for money, however having your friends read this site might help =). They may be planning these parts already but wanted to surprise you. Note to all friends: best not to surprise too much as it might end up being paid for twice!

8. Be sure to include the costs of important events surrounding your wedding day.

I read so many articles prior to my wedding my head was spinning. During the first 4 months of planning I had a set cost which I realized wasn’t really the cost. I hadn’t included the honeymoon or wedding night hotel room, the rehearsal dinner, flowers for the flower girl basket and so on and so on. When planning your budget close your eyes and picture your wedding from the bachelorette/bachelor parties to the rehearsal dinner, the day of and the weeks after. You’ll find hundreds of things which most budgets do not list.

There are hundreds of ways to trim the budget costs when planning a wedding. In future articles I will detail how to save money on your wedding, or where to get money to pay for the extra costs.

Incidentally, many brides spend a significant amount of time in wedding planning and most have to live within significant budgetary constraints, when they plan their weddings. You can even find useful financial planning spreadsheets on the web to assist in keeping track of wedding expenses and staying within your budget. Since the wedding is just the beginning of a long life together as a couple, financial planning doesn’t stop with the wedding ceremony. Instead it is just the beginning of being financially responsible and preparing for a home, a growing family, and responsible lifelong personal financial management. You might want to take a look at financial budgeting software to start learning more about home financial planning, investment savings accounts, and how to keep your personal information safe. ”