As most people know by now, Ben and I are getting married. Yeah! We decided on a short engagement and now have less than 4 months to get the ball rolling. Thankfully, I'm a stress-free kind of girl, and am trying to approach planing a wedding the same way. However....
I can't believe how much weddings cost! The average U.S. wedding costs $29,000. $29,000! In most places that will pay for four years of college, or is a substantial down-payment on a house. At first I thought this was outrageous, until I started to learn more about wedding planning. There is a reason wedding planning is a billion dollar industry.
When you first get engaged somewhere along the way you will receive a planning book with checklists on all the things you must do in order to have the perfect wedding. After looking it over, I crossed about half of them off. But even by not doing most of the things recommended, items start to add up. Cake, photography, rental space, food/drink, flowers, attire, etc. etc. etc. People are starting to make adjustments in order to combat the cost, such as presenting a styrofoam cake and serving sheet cake, or plugging in the Ipod, however things still add up quickly. Ben and I are extremely fortunate to know some fabulous people who are helping out, and without them we wouldn't be able to have the wedding that we are planning, so as an upfront...thank you thank you thank you, with many more to come.
Just for fun, here are some general wedding pricing (the key is not to say "wedding" to anyone, because I swear it bumps the price up).
Wedding Gowns: I tried on a whole bunch the other day, and my two favorites could be mine for a mere $3,300 or $4,600 with a $500 veil...yikes!
Cakes: $1,000
Wedding Photography: Nothing less than $1,500, and if you want your photos, more like $2,500
Anyways, the moral of the story, get into the wedding business...just kidding. The moral that I have learned so far is not to feel pressured on doing everything the wedding business says you have to do to have a perfect day. The day will be lovely no matter what, and as long as you're happy, everyone will have a fantastic time.
When you first get engaged somewhere along the way you will receive a planning book with checklists on all the things you must do in order to have the perfect wedding. After looking it over, I crossed about half of them off. But even by not doing most of the things recommended, items start to add up. Cake, photography, rental space, food/drink, flowers, attire, etc. etc. etc. People are starting to make adjustments in order to combat the cost, such as presenting a styrofoam cake and serving sheet cake, or plugging in the Ipod, however things still add up quickly. Ben and I are extremely fortunate to know some fabulous people who are helping out, and without them we wouldn't be able to have the wedding that we are planning, so as an upfront...thank you thank you thank you, with many more to come.
Just for fun, here are some general wedding pricing (the key is not to say "wedding" to anyone, because I swear it bumps the price up).
Wedding Gowns: I tried on a whole bunch the other day, and my two favorites could be mine for a mere $3,300 or $4,600 with a $500 veil...yikes!
Cakes: $1,000
Wedding Photography: Nothing less than $1,500, and if you want your photos, more like $2,500
Anyways, the moral of the story, get into the wedding business...just kidding. The moral that I have learned so far is not to feel pressured on doing everything the wedding business says you have to do to have a perfect day. The day will be lovely no matter what, and as long as you're happy, everyone will have a fantastic time.
