Wedding Budgets: Where to Save

Now that I've talked about where to splurge in your wedding budget, it's only fair to discuss where we saved to make up for it. Here goes:

1. Favors. We scrapped 'em altogether, and as far as I know, no one noticed. Frankly, I've never received a wedding favor that made me go YES I MUST HAVE THIS. Instead, we spent a little more on food and cake, and that was the right choice for us. 

All photos by Melissa Manzione Photography.

Crab balls > favors, in my book. ALWAYS. 

2. Wedding bands. This is probably controversial and many people don't even include it in their wedding budget, but if you're looking to cut costs, it's a great place to trim the budget without anyone noticing. Here's my take: you only have xx months of an engagement to plan and pay for a wedding. But, you have your whole life to upgrade a wedding band, IF you so choose! We spent very, very little on our wedding bands and it has never bothered me. If anything, I feel better knowing that they can be easily replaced if lost. And honestly, we shopped around a TON for the perfect wedding band for me, and nothing looked as great next to my vintage engagement ring as a thin, inexpensive band does. 

Love this shot of our rings together.

3. Decor. Think back to the last wedding you attended and name five details that you can remember. It's hard, right? Now imagine you aren't planning your own wedding, knee-deep in Pinspiration and taking copious mental notes at every wedding you attend. That's how your average guest will feel - they might remember the general vibe of your wedding (formal, relaxed, etc.), but mostly, they'll remember whether they had fun and ate great food or not. By all means create your vision, but get creative and find ways to do it without breaking the bank. And who knows - you may even uncover a passion that you never knew you had!

We had this bushel in our shed - perfect for a nautical wedding. Banner personally made.

4. Flowers. Flowers were tied for dead last (along with favors) on my wedding priority list, but I wasn't willing to scrap them entirely. I considered a few different routes for affordable wholesale flowers, but I ultimately went local. One of the perks of rural life is living near an Amish flower farm! I wish I could link you to them, but of course, they don't even have a phone number, let alone a website. For anyone within driving distance of southern Maryland, I highly recommend checking out Weaver's Cut Flowers in Mechanicsville, MD. Our flowers turned out beautifully, and we paid a fraction of what it would've cost at a florist. Of course we had to arrange the centerpieces ourselves, but it's really not difficult!

Speaking of floral savings - my bouquet was artificial! I think it held its own next to the real deals.

There you have it! Again, these are just my suggestions for where to cut costs. Every wedding has different priorities. Happy planning!