Hey guys!! I just have a couple of budget tips for planning couples!
The most difficult part of wedding planning is creating a budget and staying within it! I hope these pointers help you keep your wedding finances in line!
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| Photo courtesy of blackvoices.com |
1. Talk to your spouse-to-be about what kind of wedding you both want. Discuss what kinds of flowers, colors, venues, clothing, invitations, music and food you prefer.
2. Make a list of what you'll need: a wedding consultant if you're using one, a ceremony location, a reception venue, food, beverages, cake, flowers, photography, entertainment, attire, invitations and so forth.
3. Prioritize this list. What means the most to you? Is the cake more important than the music? Where can you pinch pennies without sacrificing your vision?
4. Meet with both sets of parents to find out how much money, if any, they are willing to contribute. Be gracious, grateful and understanding, no matter what their responses.
5. Calculate how much money you currently have available, how much you think you'll need and how much you will have to save. Keep in mind that the average wedding in the United States costs about $15,000.
6. Make a plan to save what you need, using a savings account or certificate of deposit. Consider selling stocks or mutual funds if necessary.
7. Divide your budget according to your priorities. For example, if your top priority is the dress and your second priority is the venue, you might plan to spend 20 percent of your budget on the dress and 15 percent on the venue.
8. Divide your budget according to your priorities. For example, if your top priority is the dress and your second priority is the venue, you might plan to spend 20 percent of your budget on the dress and 15 percent on the venue.
9. Visit at least four vendors or suppliers in each category (florists, photographers, caterers, consultants, etc.) and compare prices
10. Use a checklist to make sure you ask all of the vendors the same questions. Note their answers in your budget notebook and review your notes before making a decision.Keep a record of the estimated and actual costs of each item in your notebook.
11. Keep all contracts, agreements, receipts and vouchers in the notebook.
12. Review your budget after each purchase to make sure you're on track. If you're $50 over budget on the cake, maybe you can save $50 by cutting the cost of favors or eliminating those electronic turtledoves.
Info borrowed from www.ehow.com
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| photo from blog.mymusicbydesign.com |
LETS START RIGHT HERE!! Below is a link to a really cool wedding budget spreadsheets that you can use in Microsoft Excel! Click on the button next to the first paragraph that says "Download Now"! This budget allows you to add or delete any categories you dont need and add categories that are not present. Let me know what you think about it! I love it!
Did you and your fiancee' have a hard time setting up your wedding budget?? Do you have any words of wisdom you would give planning brides on how to build a budget??
Stay Beautiful My Loves,
Memi
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2 comments:
I'm surprised that you said that the average American wedding is $15K. From what I've read, it's somewhere around $21K and that's not including the rings or honeymoon.
Hey Hun! THanks sooo much for commenting!! When we talk about wedding averages I think it's important to consider guest counts! Average American weddings have about 75-150 guests. Anything over that will be considered a "big wedding". SO the 15k average mentioned in the post could be skewed by smaller wedding guest counts! THanks again for commenting!
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