My boyfriend and I have been wanting to get married and feel we deserve a nice wedding, nothing extravagant, but nice. However it seems that our paychecks just go to bills so we can't save.Does anyone have creative tips on how to save money for it, and ideas to have a nice inexpensive wedding?

Coupons…i saved $58.00 with coupons last week at the grocery store. You can print them off the internet, or from the newspaper; first Sunday of the month has the good ones. You can join a coupon train online and exchange ones you don't need for ones you do. For all the money you save, put it away.

Plus extravagant doesn't need to mean expensive. It's the low-key, private weddings that are the most beautiful and memorable!

My boyfriend and I have been wanting to get married and feel we deserve a nice wedding, nothing extravagant, but nice. However it seems that our paychecks just go to bills so we can't save.Does anyone have creative tips on how to save money for it, and ideas to have a nice inexpensive wedding?
When I say nice wedding I don't mean big and ridiculously expensive. I wouldn't spend 10k on a dress, and we'd only have about 50 guests.

Also, wedding location (in SoCal) ideas would be appreciated. Thanks

You'd be surprised at how much money we all waste each month without realizing it. Try the following and see how fast the $$ adds up.
1. Rent a movie instead of paying big $$ to the theater (don't forget how expensive snacks are)
2. Don't purchase beer, wine etc…. when you go out to eat.
3. Don't eat out very often.
4. Look at the grocery flyers and see what's on sale. Plan your menus around what's on sale.
5. Take your lunch instead of buying out.
6. Before you actually buy something ask yourself if you really, really need it.
7. Zero in on racks that say "Sale", "Reduced", "Clearence" etc….
8. Drink water instead of soft drinks at home. Water instead of tea or soft drinks when eating out.
9. Resist the impulse to grab a drink and bag of chips when you go to the corner store. Resist the impulse to go through the drive through window.
10. Plan your errands and your route so you can save gas.
11. When you've decided on something you want for your wedding let your friends and family know so they can be on the look-out for it at the best prices.
12. Get a note book and keep a daily record of where and how much $$ you saved. Deposit your saved $$ in a piggy bank or something that has to be broken to get to the money. (You'll be far less tempted to cheat if you have to break it!!) Don't make an excuse for not putting the money in. Do it as soon as you get home.
13. Turn off lights when you leave the room. Use timers on your lights if you don't want to come home to a dark house.
14. Cut back on the amount of water you use.
15. Use the dishwasher/washing machine only when a full load is to be done.
16. Make a game out of who can save the most money each week. Compare your lists. Who ever has saved the most money gets something. A massage, to pick the movie, not have to wash dishes, foot rub what ever is fun for you and your guy.

Try what the others have said about saving off the top of your paychecks along with what I've suggested above.
Best wishes on your forthcoming marriage and good luck in the money saving department.

Um…… one last thing you might could do. I really hate to suggest this because it might not be possible but could either of you take a week-end job, a tutoring job etc….? If that's possible then any $$ made goes straight into the wedding fund.

Any tips on searching for wedding dresses? Places to shop vrs places not to shop? Which websites that say they are inexpensive are really decent?

I HATED DAVIDS BRIDAL! they are sooo the wal-mart of wedding dresses, mass produced over-priced non-personal crap is what they have and the service is HORRIBLE!

My reccomendation is go to privately owned boutiques and enjoy, if you shop around enough you can get good deals, and alot of them are negotiable on prices…plus the service is always SOOO much better, you really get your money's worth when you go to people who know the business of brides, not chain stores!

All brides and grooms to be that are traveling to Vegas…would you use a website that shows tips on how to save money on your wedding in Vegas?

I am thinking about creating this site after marrying in Vegas.

You don´t buy anything at the site, but instead, I refer people to places that are inexpensive, but most importantly, very professional.

The places then pay me a commission, so everyone is in a win-win situation.

Let me know your thoughts…

That's a great idea for a site. There are so many options in Vegas. People tend to ask that questions like that in the Weddings section. I for one would love to have a reference site with such information. Could come in handy one day.

i'm a college student and i'll be getting married in december so i'm in a supper tight budget cuz i don't want my parents to pay for anything, so i need all of ur help ladies/gents any ideas tips n stuff to make my wedding elegant but inexpensive also any idea on how to make a veil, i can't quite find one i like along with its price ha so i wanted to make my own but i don't really know how or where to start. i'll post a picture of one i really like thank you sooo much all of ur help will be greatly eternally appreciated!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/aileenparsons/494133204/

That's a beautiful piece of lace. You can get some lace material and gather it at one end, and work it into a simple poof or a tiara, or add some flowers to your hair where the veil meets. I think an up do is a must for all weddings.

You can use Google to look for how to make a veil. You can probably buy your shoes at Goodwill or Salvation Army. Shoes hardly show anyway.

Sounds strange you don't want your parents to help. That's part of their pride, to help with the wedding.

Catering, food, is the most expensive item, so look for deals, maybe get married after lunch, so only finger foods are served. Flowers are also costly, and you can save a lot by making your own bouquet with either real flowers or silk flowers you can get at the dollar store. I had silk flowers, no one knew they were not real, and they actually looked good in pictures, because they didn't fade or get limp. I made my own favors. You might be able to find a veil at a second hand store too. You could consider the reception at a hotel banquet room, and have a deal with the catering there also. Chapels are cheaper than churches.

Good luck and best wishes!

My boyfriend of three years and I have talked alot about marriage, but due to the fact that we are now in the same town, at the same college (he used to be 2 hours away) this has become a more realistic posibilty- our only problem is money. He has a disease (CF) that enables him to work but makes his health insurance insanely high, and we are concerned about money because there is no garantee that our parents will continue to pay for college (they are currently paying minimally, as I have many scholarships) after the (small and inexpensive) wedding. Any advice from someone who has been there and done that would be appriciated- we would love to get married as soon as possible, and this is our only stumbling block. Have not yet talked to parents- Dad is very wary of me marrying in college.

I think I'm the girl you want to talk to.

I am getting married this June. I am in my sophomore year of college right now. I have fibromyalgia and a whole list of stinking problems that drives my expenses through the roof. I can only work part time and even that is difficult.

My fiance is working full time (and getting overtime sometimes too) AND going to school full time.

As of now, he is paying his way through and my parents are paying my way through, though scholarships have helped me out.

Once I marry, my parents will no longer pay.

That is a choice I made and am willing to live with.

I have been dating my fiance for almost 5 years now. We have been talking about marriage for more than 4 of those. This is the first opportunity that we have to finally get married.

I know people say that if you really love eachother you can wait. They haven't been in our situations though. They don't understand.

What I want more than anything is to be married to the man I love. If I'm going to struggle, I want to struggle with him by my side, as my husband.

Here's the deal: The best thing for you to do is WAIT. Wait until it would be easier. Wait until you are out of college.

Now that I've told you what you SHOULD do, here's the real me:

It is going to be extremely hard. You will probably have months where it will be hard to put food on the table. Your marriage will be strained to the point of breaking. You will cry your eyes out because you just don't know what to do sometimes. The world will seem like it's against you.

But if marriage is what you want, what you REALLY want, it will be worth it. In the end, you will be able to look back and see how you made it through, making you stronger for it.

There is no magic advice on how to get through it. This is what you will have to do: Take out loans for school, be the one to work your butt off because he can't (that means full time at at least one job), and deprive yourself of anything that you don't need.

I decided it was worth it.

Now you have to decide for sure.

But when you make your choice, whatever it is, don't ever regret it. Just DO what needs to be done either way, go forward, and DON'T look back.

And hey, if you want to talk to me more, or share problems, or get advice, or just write back and forth for support or something, email me. Seriously. Sometimes people just need other people to talk to and sometimes strangers are the best listeners.

I am thinking about creating this site after marrying in Vegas.

You don´t buy anything at the site, but instead, I refer people to places that are inexpensive, but most importantly, very professional.

The places then pay me a commission, so everyone is in a win-win situation.

Let me know your thoughts…

This is a VERY good idea.
What you could do then is do a blog or add to your site giving hints and ideas for various parts of the state, country. It would require research & travel. And you would need to work up a reputation.
You could work this into a rather good business like restaurant reviews. The businesses wouldn't pay you because that would be like buying your opinion or support; but Advertisers would be what would support you & your work.
Good luck!

If you got married in Oregon, where did you hold your event? I am looking for something inexpensive that needs only a little decorating. Maybe something unique?

Any other wedding tips?
Caterers you loved? Cake designer you had a good experience with?
Any inside hints would be great!!
Thanks!!
Right now, I am really open as to where in Oregon. I am from the Eugene area and I think something in either the Willamette Valley or maybe the Southern part of Oregon would be nice. Like I said though, I am open….

Oregon is a big place. Are you planning to get married in Portland, on the coast, in the desert?

A good starting point is http://www.myportlandwedding.com or check out the local boards at http://talk.theknot.com where real brides are exchanging info about vendors and such.

I need it to be a larger venue with room to hold 300-400 people. I prefer outdoors but a chapel would also be great. If you have any other wedding tips I would appreciate all the help I can get. Its planned for 07/07/07.
I am planning on having a larger wedding, only because both of our families are very large. There could easily be 300-400 people there and that would only be close family. I know this isn't going to be cheap but I do need it to be affordable, so I would love some real advise contrary to the smart comments posted before. I just need some ideas of locations in Western WA that could handle this sort of thing. Thanks for ANY REAL help or general tips on how to start planning.

Have you visited the state website yet? Access.wa.gov is the Washington state web portal, and from there you can find lots of great info on state parks, recreation facilities, and historical sites, many of which are capable of hosting large groups.

July is usually a lovely time of year here, so an outdoor wedding would probably work just fine. The only problem might be booking, since summer is the busiest time for most places. How set are you on a summer wedding?

I got married in October and saved a bundle because it was the "off season" for weddings. We invited 300+ people, had about 250 show up, and spent less than $5000 all together. We used artificial flowers which my attendants and I arranged with help from a family friend who does floral arranging as a hobby. We found photographers who were just starting out and trying to build a client base- got 2 photographers for 4 hours for $300. We had an afternoon wedding and served cake (made by a friend as a gift), punch, coffee, mints and nuts. The ingredients for the punch, and the nuts and mints were purchased at a discount club, saving us money.
We honeymooned in Westport, WA, and got a darling romantic beach cabin for $500 for the week because it was the off-season. The weather was nice enough to go out to the beach if we wanted (Washington beaches in the fall are stormy and gorgeous) but chilly enough that we didn't feel we were missing anything if we *ahem* stayed in all day. The locals were glad to see some new faces, too, rather than being all pissy about the tourist invasion.

Good luck!