Wedding expenses add up quickly. Fortunately, there are lots of tips that can be followed to assist in reducing the cost of a wedding. Here are five little known tips that will save you money on wedding expenses. Even if the bride and groom only use one of these tips, they will save on the cost of the wedding. However, if they are able to use two or more tips, they stand to save quite a bit of money on their wedding expenses.
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Select a Florist Near the Main Drop Off
Since florists usually charge for delivery, select a florist near the location where the flowers will be delivered. The delivery fee is often based upon the distance from the florist’s shop to the first drop off point. Therefore, the closer that your florist is to the drop off point, the smaller the delivery fee is.
Unless all of the flowers are going to be delivered to the same spot, you will need to pay additional charges. This is especially true if you need to have flowers delivered at the venue, the church and at home. Therefore, arrange to have all of the flowers dropped off at the primary location. You can then arrange for someone else to complete any further drop offs for the flowers.
Insist on Children’s Prices at the Reception
Most venues and catering services will include the cost of the alcohol served to wedding guests. Therefore, it is important to insist upon a children’s menu in order to save money. A children’s menu usually includes chicken fingers and French fries or spaghetti and meatballs. However, most caterers are flexible on the exact type of meal that is offered. The cost for such a meal is usually 25% of the cost of an adult meal. If it's a buffet meal, the child's price is simply reduced and the meal itself usually remains the same as the buffet.
Additionally, the bride and groom should insist on an under-18 price, This makes it cheaper for those who will order from the adult menu but who cannot legally drink. Typically, banquet halls and catering services will cut the per-guest cost in half for those guests who are not going to be served alcohol.
Cluster the Events
It is important to think about scattering wedding events around the city or even in more than one city. Transportation costs will be high if you decide to move the bridal party around quite a bit. Typically, each of these services charges by the hour unless you are renting from a company that offers a daily rate. Even so, daily rates are usually cut off after a certain number of hours.
If you schedule the events close together, you will be able to save on transportation costs. Too often, this point is overlooked until everything has been scheduled and then it's too late. Therefore, it is important to schedule the events as close together as possible in order to save on travel time.
The locations of the wedding ceremony, where photographs will be taken and the reception are all going to come into play. Additionally, you might want to consider the final drop off point of the bride and groom as well.
Typically, you cannot ask the transportation service to go away during the reception and come back later. Most services require you to hire the service for the entire time. Therefore, you should cluster the events as close together in time as possible.
Additionally, if the flowers are to be delivered at more than one location, limit the travel distance. This is also true if you need to pay for the travel time of your videographer and/or photographer.
Forego Hiring Musicians and Singers
Although you might have to receive special permission from the church, synagogue, etc not to use the musicians provided, you should reconsider. As well, you can ask a close friend of the family to sing or play for you at the wedding ceremony.
If you invite a family member or close friend to perform, you can suggest that this will be their wedding gift to you. Obviously, it is a wedding gift that could save you quite a bit of money. Plus, making arrangements such as this will help to create a more memorable occasion for the bride and groom.
Ribbons and Material for Bouquets
Since most gowns and dresses will need to be altered, quite a bit of material is trimmed from the gowns. This material can be used to create the bows for the bouquets. Ask the seamstress ahead of time so that she trims the excess fabric as a usable piece of cloth. Moreover, you should pick this material up at the first fitting after the alterations have begun.
Most florists are flexible and willing to work with the bride on a project of this nature. Typically, it does cost less than using satin or silk provided by the florist even if the bride has to pay a small fee for the work that is done.
Your wedding day is a once-in-a-lifetime affair and you'll likely want it to be as grand as possible. However, there are limits to everyone's wedding budgets and by following the tips above, hopefully you'll be able to save some money on your wedding expenses.
For more cost conscious ideas, read 10 Clever Ways to Save Money on Your Wedding.
