10 Ways to stretch your Wedding Budget (Cheap wedding ideas)

Unless you’re Meghan Markle and marrying into the royal family, you will more than likely have to put a budget on your wedding. If you are looking for cheap wedding ideas that are not too tacky, we will show you how to plan a great wedding. Whether that budget is $2,000 or $50,000 is completely up to you but if you are looking to make your money go farther, then read on for our 10 ways to stretch your wedding budget.

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We have come up with creative cheap wedding ideas you can try to save more money.

Have a very long Engagement

Having a long engagement before your wedding is a really good way of being able to not only stretch your budget but to expand it as well. If you are looking for cheap wedding ideas but still want an elegant wedding, get more time to save more. 

You can also look around for the best deals without too much pressure and negotiate the best prices when your wedding is a couple of years away.

Related: 

How to create a Frugal yet fashionable Wedding

Tips for luxurious wedding decor on a budget

Change your wedding date

By picking an off-peak date for your wedding is crucial if you want cheap wedding ideas. You can get the best deals from venues and other wedding essentials, and at the same time make your wedding different from everyone else’s by having less traditional Decor that fits into the offseason you have chosen.

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Be Flexible

Don’t be set in stone with all your plans if you are searching for cheap wedding ideas. It’s good to be able to give a bit of wiggle room for your vendor if you’re looking for the best prices. Look at a different couple of options for flower arrangements or 2 or 3 different dates for your venue location.

Don’t Travel

Think about having your ceremony and reception in a dual purpose venue. If you are not too fussed about the actual ceremony location i.e. a church setting, you can stand to save a bundle on travel costs not having to transport yourself and your guests to the second reception venue.

It also allows for a much more fluid rhythm to your big day.

All-inclusive Wedding

A lot of places offer all-inclusive package deals now where everything like flowers, live band/DJ, catering, and photography are all included in one deal. Now, these can save you a lot of stress and potentially money. 

But make sure to do a bit of research before jumping in with both feet to make sure you are getting the best deal possible.

DIY your Wedding

If you’re a Pinterest lover then you will have already mapped out exactly what you can do yourself and it’s a great way of being able to save a few pennies and stretch the budget. DIY is ideal if you are looking for cheap wedding ideas.

Things like decorations, invitations, and favors can all be DIY’d at a fraction of the cost of buying ready-made.

Read this:

5 DIY Homemade wedding decorations for couples on a Budget

6 Unique beautiful DIY Wedding receptions ideas on a Budget

Save the trees

A good way of helping your budget and the ecosystem is to avoid printing anything. So instead of having a printed menu for each table have a large chalkboard with the available food options. 

And if you have to print something, for example, your wedding invitations, take out some page inserts by having a website page with all the details that guests can visit.

Quality over quantity 

As they say, less is more, and taking those words of wisdom through to your wedding plans is a great idea. Whether that’s to cut down on your guest list or decorations it can really help stretch your budget without sacrificing the luxurious feel of a wedding.

If you are planning and looking for cheap wedding ideas, be sure to look at the number of guests you have. 

Happy hour

Everyone wants to celebrate with a drink but this can really affect your budget if you allow for an all-night free bar, so think about having a happy hour where your guests are welcome to drinks but also helps keep the drinks tab under control.

Hire rather than buy 

Hiring is a good way to keep costs down and it can include everything from the wedding party dresses/suits to the decorations. If you’re not likely to re-use or want to keep a part of your wedding, this is the best place to start at looking to hire rather than buy.

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