Wedding on a Shoestring budget?

catieeb06

Hi,

Me and the OH are planning on getting married around September of this year.

Thing is we have literally got a shoestring budget. Maybe around £1500 for the lot. That's a combination of savings and paying for it from wages between now and September.

I've abandoned all hope of a wedding ceremony in a church as it costs far more than a registry office.

I just don't know where to look for cheaper wedding dresses- i am plus sized it should be said- cheap venues, when we look into everything we can hire a venue for around £300 but then all the decorations and a disco hire is gonna cost a fortune- money we just don't have at this time.

As for the honeymoon, we're asking our wedding guests for holiday vouchers, so that's helping to pay for the honeymoon.

We're currently living at my dad's at the moment so every other spare penny that isn't going to the wedding is going towards us saving for a deposit for our own house. Do I want to be married and still living with my dad though?

Anyway, any help would be seriously appreciated. I don't even know where to start. I'm in Sheffield if that helps?

ellies_angel

try ebay for your wedding dress or visit a charity shop. I'm not sure, but I think OXFAM have charity shops especially for wedding dresses.
Instead of having a venue, why not just go out for a meal after the ceremony with the people who attend and then back to the house for a gathering. If you have a garden someone could do a bbq, or a simple buffet.
I know if me and my other half were to get married I would be quite happy to just pop away and do it, just him and me. Being married before, I now realise that it's about us, not about anyone else. Who do you want to share it with, not who do you think should be there.
There are lots of ways you can save money. £1,500 is a decent budget if you keep it simple. It's when you try and fit a big wedding with all the trimmings it becomes difficult.
I hope you get the day you want

Becles

Have a look on ebay. I got mine on there from a wedding dress shop. It was a previous seasons style and she was selling off the the odd sizes she had left. I doubt your guests will keep up with wedding dress fashions so nobody will know it was a previous years style.

Would you run away to Gretna Green? We had a small budget and were struggling booking local places in the North East. I flippantly said we might as well run away and then we investigated it and that's what we did!

We just took close friends and family, and were married in the Old Blacksmiths Forge, then had a meal at the Garden House Hotel where we were staying. It was really nice and lasted a whole weekend rather than just a day.

It was cheaper booking everything ourselves rather than use one of the many wedding planner services. We travelled up for a short break and went and looked around all the hotels first and you can go in the Blacksmith museum and see where you'll get married and read all the romantic history of the forge.

no-oneknowsme

A wedding doesnt have to cost the earth to make it a memorable day.

Have you thought about trying the likes of Ebay or Gumtree for a dress ? You would also be able to get shoes and accessories there too.

Would you know any friends of friends who could be the DJ for you for the evening a bit cheaper ? I personally know a few people who have all the equipment and do weddings and birthday parties for people at a fraction of the usual cost.

My own wedding was done on a (very tight) shoestring 10 years ago....we had been together for many many years and suddenly one day we decided that we were going to marry. 3 weeks to the very day on which we decided , we got married in our local registry office. We went out for a meal afterwards which was paid for by my Dad . We have a very small family so there were only 20 people there on the day.

I borrowed a suit to wear to the ceremony and my Hubby wore his own suit . Our children got a new outfit . The rings we got from Argos. My Sister-in-law is a florist and made my flowers for me as a wedding gift .

I still remember every detail of the special day.

Good luck and congratulations

faithcecilia

no-oneknowsme wrote: »

My own wedding was done on a (very tight) shoestring 10 years ago....we had been together for many many years and suddenly one day we decided that we were going to marry. 3 weeks to the very day on which we decided , we got married in our local registry office.

Good for you with your quick wedding. My grandparents were similar, but in their case they got married 6 weeks to the day they met!!! It was a full white Church wedding too, and as fabric was still rationed (just) my gran's dress was made out of an old parachute!!

memelalou

As long as your not too fussy;) some pubs do free function rooms for reception venues, or for a small cost.

Are any of your friends great cooks/bakers - can they make a cake or do a buffet at cost instead of a wedding present?
Or anyone handy with a camera or owns a nice car?

For wedding dresses check departments stores such as debenhams they have dress for around £100. Also check on ebay, you be suprised how cheap some designer dresses are.

faithcecilia

catieeb06 wrote: »

Hi,

Me and the OH are planning on getting married around September of this year.

Thing is we have literally got a shoestring budget. Maybe around £1500 for the lot. That's a combination of savings and paying for it from wages between now and September.

I've abandoned all hope of a wedding ceremony in a church as it costs far more than a registry office.

I just don't know where to look for cheaper wedding dresses- i am plus sized it should be said- cheap venues, when we look into everything we can hire a venue for around £300 but then all the decorations and a disco hire is gonna cost a fortune- money we just don't have at this time.

As for the honeymoon, we're asking our wedding guests for holiday vouchers, so that's helping to pay for the honeymoon.

We're currently living at my dad's at the moment so every other spare penny that isn't going to the wedding is going towards us saving for a deposit for our own house. Do I want to be married and still living with my dad though?

Anyway, any help would be seriously appreciated. I don't even know where to start. I'm in Sheffield if that helps?

Do you know what style of wedding dress you are looking for? If you are not worried about the traditional dress, Monsoon do a few bridal dresses (around £300 I think but could be completely wrong) and some beautiful evening dresses too if you fancy a colour.

Again, depending on the formaility or otherwise that you had in mind, many bars do pretty good food plus have music in the evenings. You would probably find it would be a lot cheaper to have a meal there (many have private areas you can book), say £15 a head for 2 courses and not need to pay for entertainment.

As for the Church wedding, are you actually a church goer? If so it is often much cheaper(or free!) to get married in your own church - my brother and s-i-l only had to pay for the registrar. If you are not a regular attender, but still want the ceremony to be religious (as opposed to being in a 'pretty' church (don't mean that to sound off, can't think of a better way to word it:o) it might be worth contacting your local URC, Methodist etc as some of these work on donations rather than fixed cost.

Whatever you decide, congratulations and best wishes.

ellay864

Some really good suggestions here...can I also suggest you pop over and paay us a visit on the weddings board...you'll get all kinds of MSE tips for your wedding, loads of people on there have some really clever ideas, make a lot of their own stuff etc. Plus we're a really friendly bunch and it's great to share in each other's excitement leading up to our big days.
http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/forumdisplay.php?f=142
And congratulations too of course

msb5262

Hello OP,

A couple of ideas spring to mind...my sister chose a bridesmaid's dress as her wedding dress, and it was beautiful and MUCH cheaper than an official "wedding dress".

Some friends of mine had their baby's christening celebration at our local pub, and the food was a Jacob's Join - everyone was asked to bring a dish for sharing (sweet or savoury was specified on the invitation), and the pub just provided bread, butter, plates etc for a minimal price.

Another friend of mine had her wedding celebration at home - they married at the local registry office, then went for lunch at a restaurant in town just with their parents and close family, then returned to their own home where a mostly home-made buffet had been set out by their best friends. Drinks, music, speeches...it was fabulous and very relaxed. It has to be said that this was one of the very best weddings I've ever attended.

Don't forget, your wedding is for you and your OH, NOT for anyone else.
If you're happy, that's the only important thing.

I wish you lots of luck with the wedding and for a long happy marriage.

MsB

JBD

I have seen beautiful wedding dresses in Debenhams, BHS , Monsoon for under £300 [although not the usual strapless type dress].
How about a fish and chip supper instead of the 3 course meal?
Hog roasts, barbecues, picnics, are all quite popular at the moment.
Most large supermarkets sell wedding cakes, also very tasty cupcakes which you can add your own little decorations too.
For table decorations try Wilkinsons or Poundland.

Mrs_Arcanum

There are no rules about dresses especially for a registry office so you might get something far more memorable at an outlook place. Is one of your local pubs approachable to host the do for a nil or low cost? They will be happy to get the people in buying at the bar and may well do you a good deal on the wine. A friend did this for her daughter recently complete with fish & chip supper. Also do you have a friend/relative with decent camera equipment who would be willing to do the photos for you.

We did our whole wedding for £500.00 21 years ago (included dress (I made), suit, flowers, rings (jewellery quarter), cake (I made), catering (Mum & I). Sister in law did photos with DH's camera, Roller was free C/O a friend of my brothers. Pub did the wine for everyone for £50 and gave the room for free (was my local)).

Alternatively you could check out the Wychwood Brewery site as they are running a competition for the "Alternative Wedding of the year" (on 29th April though), but worth £20,000 to the winners.