Hosting a picture perfect wedding is every individual's dream. You start looking around and saving photographs and videos of weddings from Instagram, Pinterest or from all over the internet way before the actual preparation of your wedding. And it is natural to look for ideas and inspiration as this will be one of the special moments of your life. Apart from these ideas, you also need to keep in mind the budget of your wedding. An obvious thing is to spend on your wedding but spending too much is not something every person likes to do. So, you can spend less on many things easily, without compromising on your dream wedding. Deciding a budget and sticking to that is significant for spending less on your wedding. A little preparation with lots of planning will go a long way for a budget friendly wedding. Considering different aspects of the wedding is a smart move for decreasing the expenditure on your wedding. Here is a complete list of things to keep in mind for a cost-effective wedding:
Although we have already mentioned this before, people often don't know how to decide a wedding budget. So to know your budget, look at your bank account. Then separate a few months' salary for any kind of emergency. Also, you must know how much your family is willing to spend on your wedding. The resulting number will be what you should be spending on the wedding. You can add this money to a separate account so that you won't end up spending it on other expenses. So, now that you know your budget you can easily skip or add things to your wedding.
Indian weddings are not just about the D-day but the events leading up to the big day. Ganesha Puja, Haldi, Mehendi, Sangeet along with others, make the list of pre-wedding events. And you will have to spend a portion of your budget on these ceremonies. If you are thinking of booking a venue for these comparatively smaller ceremonies as well, then you need to think again. These events can be easily organised at your own home. If you are lucky enough to have a relative or friend who has a huge garden, you may request them to allow you to arrange your pre-wedding ceremonies.
Try to organise as many events as you can in the outdoors, during daylight. This will result in low electricity use, better photographs and videos. Doing this will also help you in creating an eco-friendly wedding.
The need for a wedding venue may arise due to the ever increasing craze for a destination wedding or if you simply want a bigger place for your guests to enjoy your wedding. You can easily reduce the wedding cost by simply choosing a venue which is situated nearby. It will save you on your rental expenses. But at the same time a venue on the outskirts of the town will be less expensive than one in the city. A five star hotel will cost the most when it comes to a wedding venue. The price will also vary according to the location if you are going for a destination wedding. Weddings on a weekday will cost you less than on weekends as some venues charge more on weekends. The wedding venue will cost from INR 700 to INR 3,000 per plate in Delhi. The factors deciding the price will be the location and type of facilities provided at the venue. So, a variation between prices is obvious. Finalise a venue considering everything and then book it immediately as the cost of the place will increase with each passing day.
All the expectations of a picture perfect wedding rest on the shoulders of the decorations. From choosing the type of mandap decoration to coordinating the decor with the colour of the wedding day outfit, couples, especially brides give huge attention to this part of the wedding and they should because it's their wedding day. Moreover, you can wisely choose the decor used for the wedding.
A classic thing used as wedding decor is flowers and you will be surprised to know that even flowers can cost you a pretty penny. Opt for seasonal local flowers rather than some fancy exotic variety,as the transportation of these flowers will add up to the final cost of these flowers. The ones which are locally available will be cost effective. Also, directly contacting the flower vendor will again help you save a little more.
Adding non-floral props is a wise alternative to flowers. You can use leaves, which offer a thousand varieties in terms of shape and size. Additionally, dried leaves can give a vintage appearance if you want something like that in your decoration. Adding stones or geodes will also not cost much. Lights also make a cheaper option for the decoration and if the event is going to be held in the evening then it will make the venue look wonderful.
You can also incorporate some DIY decors for photo booths. Make use of that old rusty chair or those cassette reels which don't work anymore. The possibilities are endless.
Don't try to add a lot of decoration in the venue, instead opt for a venue which already offers in-buit decoration. It could be the scenic surrounding having trees, plants and greenery all over. A minimalistic wedding decor is not a bad option too.
You can always try to find a local craftsman for buying the decor items as it will cost you not more than INR 1.5 lakh; while buying traditional decorations (flowers) from the vendor will cost you INR 2.5 lakh. This will save you about 40%.
There is a lot of debate when it comes to buying or renting wedding outfits, mainly for the D-day attire. A bride usually likes to preserve her wedding lehenga as her trousseau and it holds many special memories for the bride. But one cannot easily repeat this attire. It will be a huge investment and after using it once, it will be preserved in some box or trunk. So, spending too much on your outfit will only increase your overall wedding budget. You can instead try to create a statement with your final wedding look. You can create a bold look by choosing fabrics (silk, velvet, chiffon, etc.), designs and cuts by yourself for your wedding attire. So, stitching is a better option which will almost cost INR 50,000. At the same time a designer outfit will cost you no less than INR 1.5 lakh. You save 67% on clothing.
Renting wedding day attire is also great if your budget doesn't allow you to go for buying it.
When it comes to jewelry, Indians tend to be attracted towards gold whether it goes with the outfit or not and buying gold jewelry is not a budget friendly thing. So, buying artificial jewelry which matches your outfit will be a better option. Or you can go for gold plated jewelry which will give you the feel of gold and will not be heavy on your pockets as well. Try to buy some versatile pieces so that you can use them again in future. You can even rent your jewelry if you don't think that you will wear those heavy necklaces or jhumkas again. The cost of gold bridal jewelry is estimated to be INR 2 lakh while renting will only cost INR 50,000. A saving of 75%!
Catering services will take a substantial part of your budget. This is an integral part of the big fat Indian weddings. But cutting the long list of the wedding menu will result in cutting the cost of your wedding. Many times guests don't even eat everything in the menu so try to create a list which includes the best dishes.
Opting for a desi menu will never go out of style and will be a budget friendly option. Including an international dish will increase the cost of the plate so it is better to skip it. An international cuisine will cost INR 4.8 lakh compared to Indian cuisine which will cost INR 3.2 lakh (for two hundred guests), saving you 33% from the traditional wedding expenses.
People also add more than one dessert in the menu which again results in spending more money. Try to limit it to one or two at max. Over that will create unnecessary expense.
Limit the quantity of the food. Discuss this in advance with your caterer or banquet hall manager so that you will get an idea of the quantity of the food that will be sufficient for the guests.
At the end of the day you will only be left with the memories of your wedding. Photographs and videos of your wedding will make you go down the memory lane so you can loosen up your budget here. Also, you can hire an assistant photographer as your wedding day photographer because they will cost less than the experienced wedding photographers. And the same goes for a videographer as well.
A professional photographer will cost at least INR 1.5 lakh while the one having less experience will cost you INR 75,000. You will save almost half of the money.
These simple tricks will help you create a budget friendly wedding. It's great to spend on your wedding but over spending is something one should avoid. A sustainable wedding will not only be great for your budget but will be equally important for the environment as well. With these points in mind you can create a grand wedding without completely sidelining the budget!
