Okay, I’ll start with the minor fact that I’m not yet married and I’m certainly not an expert, regardless I’ve found the topic of Wedding Planning more interesting than I anticipated. I’m primarily interested in how to get the best out of what’s going to be one of the most important days of my life and I don’t want to waste money along the way.
With this kind of mindset, you won’t be surprised that I reached out to the wonderful folk of Twitter and Facebook to ask the following question:
Hi, I’m crowdsourcing for a blog post – What is the one thing you felt that you ‘wasted’ money on or could have cut for your wedding? Maybe it’s £700 shoes? that hopeless DJ? Fancy Agent Provocateur pants? Please share with me!
What I was hoping for is to hear from some ‘Real Life Brides’ and share the advice/opinions of those who’ve been married before, with the intention of this being a practical post full of first-hand advice. On the other hand, if you’re planning a wedding, remember it’s your day and it should be filled with whatever you desire, not what the internet dictates you should or should not include.
Oh, the agony of the ‘perfect‘ invite, what type of font? what kind of card? what is our ‘theme‘?
“I decided I didn’t want to waste money on stationary and made all of my own, from invites to order of service to menus and seating plans. Saved a fortune and got exactly what I was as after. Same for makeup did my own best decision!” @katsav
Wedding Favours were mentioned a lot, and not favourably…
@labelsandloveuk “Bespoke invites, cake, shoes and wedding favours alone cost almost £3k the first time I got married! 2nd time around we focussed on guests comfort and making the party fun…spent more on air con for marquee, fire pits, lighting and entertainment x”
“I didn’t do favours because consider them a huge waste of money! No one seems to care about them and they are such a drain on time to prepare!I always feel sad for favours when people have spent hours making them and drunk guests just leave them lying around! “ @TheLarns06
How can you make favours work for you? Options include: spending less and considering if they are something that could be homemade or try focusing on something small and edible? I’m currently loving these ‘Thank You – Teabags’ at least there’s a good chance the tea will be enjoyed.
“Not married but a cake is a complete waste of money from a guest’s perspective. Usually, I don’t get any or it’s average at best. Also, non-edible favours always get left on the table, my clutch is too small for tat I don’t need.”@notquiteenough
“I didn’t spend anything on favours but they are really are a waste of time and money 🙂 And lots of people spend loads on a cake that usually gets left uneaten.” @BeautySwot
“I was quite thrifty for my wedding but I did waste money on the cake. I wanted it to look amazing but nobody ending up eating it as I also had a sweet buffet. I was going on my honeymoon the next day from the venue so couldn’t take it home!” – Jenna, The Bloglancer
It would appear that sometimes a deal isn’t all it appears to be…
“I didn’t bother with favours as I thought it would be a waste. Also, the cake I got mine on a deal for £250 although that’s still expensive! Turns out my cake was hollow inside, I was so angry. I’d rather have gotten one from M&S for less.” Natasha, from Natasha’s Thoughts
There I was, worrying about cake and many guests told me that they often don’t get to eat any cake, despite the fact it is such an important centrepiece and I don’t want to miss this out.
Solution – We’ve agreed with the venue that once we’ve cut the cake the chef will take this to the kitchen to slice and it’ll be served with our BBQ to hopefully reduce waste.
Sophie’s first pair, I love these…
Shoes? I’ve been agonising over the fact I’m tempted to say ‘I do, in Choo’ and this is where the lovely Sophie came in and educated me to the fact, it might be a waste of money. I think if you are considering investment in a pair of fancy shoes, keep in mind: ‘Can you wear these again?‘ – ‘Are they comfortable?’ – ‘Will they be seen?’
“haha oh, man. I bought 2 pairs of £500 shoes, one of which I wore on the day and the other I used to take pictures of because they looked cool, a total waste of money.” @abeautride
Sophie’s second pair, the lady has style!
Some people get married in black, some people like to eat fish and chips as the ‘Wedding Breakfast‘ and many people feel it’s important to hire vintage cars. Whilst an attractive vehicle will always catch my eye, it’s not worthy of the cost, in my opinion, it would appear that others feel the same way too!
“A vintage car. I didn’t want it anyway but my mum was paying and I thought it would be nice.”@CarolineGsbM
“We booked an old bus which broke down so our guests were late to the reception. Whilst it’s a good story as they helped push it up a hill it cost a fortune maybe a modern bus would have been better, or no bus at all.” – Joseph – Thrifty Chap
“My husband insisted on hiring a 1960′ Roll’s Royce which cost around £500 / £600 and was really uncomfortable to sit in and hard to get in and out of in my dress.I had to adjust how I sat so I could breathe.”– Melanie – Melanie’s Fab Finds
The good news is, many people came back to me and told me that there wasn’t a single thing they’d change. I’ve smiled, I’ve also felt completely tickled by some of the stories shared with me after all this is a celebration of love and joy, not peer pressure. Sometimes we need to be reminded that it’s a marriage, not a wedding and doing what makes you happy should come above anything and everything else.
Is there anything you’d add?
Katie
x
