From the moment you become engaged, you’re probably envisioning your beautiful wedding day with the love of your life alongside family and friends. Sooner or later, you’re going to wonder how you can begin to afford everything you want involved. With some adjustments and financial resources added to your daily life, you’ll be closer to getting the wedding you’ve always imagined followed by a perfectly care-free honeymoon.
Think about how you can start making the most of your wedding budget and plans now. These ways to fund your dream wedding are perfect for the go-getter, budget-savvy groom and bride:
1. Cut Back on Certain Spending Habits
One straightforward but smart way to save for your dream wedding is to simply lessen your regular spending. Every dollar adds up! Think about it: a month’s worth of going out to eat, daily coffee, transportation costs, a gym membership, cable services, monthly box subscriptions, and more can all add up quickly in a year to total hundreds of dollars. Cutting back some of these expenses could be used for printing wedding invitations and additional stationery such as thank you notes, or even getting a bigger wedding cake. Consider what activities may be unnecessary to spend money on for the time being in order to set aside more savings.
2. Tap Into Your Home’s Equity
Couples planning to tie the knot have become more aware of the rising costs of having a wedding, especially during uncertain times of the pandemic as events are continually being postponed. However, when it’s safe for everyone, you still want to have a unique wedding to your own preferences. Borrowing may be your answer to staying financially stable in the present and future rather than splurging at once.
If you own a house or live together with your partner, you can leverage the equity you’ve built up in the home to cover a significant part of the wedding or all of it in its entirety. An advantage of doing this over borrowing through another avenue, such as a personal loan, is lower interest rates. Because it’s using your home as collateral, you have the ability to pay off the loan in steady and predictable monthly payments. On top of that, it can also give you a limit to avoid spending more than you can afford when you decide how much you want from the home loan. As long as you take out the loan with full intention and capability to pay it back efficiently, there will be no financial hardships after your big day.
3. Start a Side Hustle
Since your personal budget may be tight already with prior financial commitments, it may be in your best interest to start a side hustle or get a part-time job. With bills to pay and a wedding to save for, there are a variety of ways you can start earning extra income as soon as today. Look
online for available local job opportunities, reach out to friends and family in communities like Facebook to let them know you’re available for babysitting or pet sitting, be an Uber or Lyft driver, or you can even start your own Etsy shop online for free. If you love being crafty and creating jewelry, floral arrangements, clothing, artwork, or other handmade items, these items sell incredibly well on Etsy to people all over the world. This is a great way to keep yourself busy and perfect a talent at the same time.
4. Be Thrifty
There are many solutions to decreasing the total cost of your wedding, and that starts with the rings. There are consignment stores that offer the same brands, stones, diamonds, bands, and more, with all that shine and quality you’re looking for but with a smaller price tag. Just because it’s preowned, doesn’t mean it’s lost value. The next big thing is your dress, and believe it or not, Etsy is an excellent place to find a gown tailored just for you — just like any other popular store! You can also be lucky enough to have it completely handmade as an original. If you favor in-person transactions, check out designer trunk shows where dresses are discounted. And it
doesn’t stop there; you can rent decorations including flowers, silk or real, or find them crafted on Etsy. You can additionally learn to create your own decor and DIY everything making it truly one of a kind!
5. Plan Accordingly
To wrap everything together, one of the best things you can do for your wedding is to plan early and accordingly. As you’re exploring options, keep your eyes out for the best deals and research the best times to schedule a wedding throughout the year. There are benefits you may not think of, even the fact that having a wedding during the wintertime can get you decorations for free since most churches and venues are already decked out.
Ask yourself if you’ll have your wedding and reception at the same venue, if you’ll book a 3-hour event instead of a 4-hour event, if you know any friends or family members who can help with photography or music and so on. Don’t forget to get creative with saving! Make the whole wedding planning process a fun and easy journey that you’ll remember enjoying.
The most important thing is to have your special wedding day memories free of any limitations that set you back or financial restrictions that could start your marriage off with debt. If you have friends or family members offering help, take them up on it! They can help make things a lot easier for you to plan. With a plan of action and helpful resources, you’ll be able to focus on the wedding you want and have it all fall in place as you dreamed with the love of your life.
