How to Plan a Wedding on the Cheap

Your wedding day is supposed to be one of the single most important days in your life. For me, it was just that. According to Weddingcostaverage.com, the average wedding costs over $27,000. That is more than I make in 1 year of work. Despite it being such a memorable occasion, I could not justify spending that amount of money on one day. For many of us, this is the case, and I needed to figure out how to plan a wedding...on the cheap.

There are many ways to save money on a wedding, and still make it beautiful. The first things you do when planning a wedding are to decide where, when, and who's coming. My husband I chose a free location that suited our needs. Yes, free. Our date was set for February 3^rd, a cold month, but it offered the chance to have a white snowy wedding and a cheaper venue in the off-season.

I am a member of a local church; therefore, the church was free to my husband and I for our special day. If you are not a member of a church, consider other locations where you or your family have some connections and use it to your advantage. Many locations, especially churches, will offer their facilities for a $100-$500 rental fee for the day.

Figuring out the who's who of who's coming is difficult. Should you invite your Great Aunt Bess or your third cousin twice removed? No. As much as we want to be a "nice bride" and invite everyone we have ever met, keep in mind it is you and your future husband's day and no one else's. Although our wedding list consisted of over 225 invitees, we knew about 90% of my husband's family could not attend due to living over 2500 miles away in Canada. We expected just over 100 to reply attending, and you should do the same. 100 is great number where there are plenty of people to join the celebration without being overwhelmed.