How much is your wedding?

[tberube]

Just wondering how much people on these boards are spending on their weddings?

We''re paying for our wedding ourselves, in the same year we buy our first home, so our wedding budget is around $10,000. Thank God we have lots of friends in the wedding industry (and getting free photography, invitations and deep discounts on music) and my aunt paid for my wedding dress. So all in all the wedding will be "worth" closer to $20,000.

 

[cdt1101]

We are also paying for our wedding ourselves. My mom did buy my dress though. Our budget is $25,000. That however doesn''t include the honeymoon. We are going to Italy for 2 weeks, so it won''t be cheap. I''m still sick over the flight prices right now

But we are going for it no matter the cost since neither of us has been to Europe.

 

[mimzy]

combined our parents (3 sets) have contributed 17k and we are putting in an additional 6k which includes the dress, honeymoon and rings. we''ve got a guest list of just over 200....but hope to get only 180 (FI''s family won''t likely attend).

 

[Shannon72781]

We''re paying outselves as well and our budget is $28k My mom said she would buy the dress, though. For our homeymoon, my father is giving us a week of his timeshare in Hawaii and I have tons of frequent flyer miles from my previous job.

We''ll also be buying our first house together, but will mostly likely rent a 1 BR apt our first year to save up more for a downpayment. Between the two of us, we do pretty well financially so I''m hoping we can save money for our house and save money for our house at the same time. Our wedding isn''t until 4/25/09.

 

[aljdewey]

TB, we spent about $7k in 2004 to host a 30-person wedding. As you know, we didn't have many of the traditional expenses that most weddings do, and I think that helped us keep the costs down a bit.

Many wedding costs are fixed (i.e. gown, licenses, rings, site rentals, DJs, etc.) regardless of # of guests, so economizing usually has more to do with making less than traditional choices more than anything else.

Sounds like you'll be doing quite well to do that much for your budget....YAY!

Sometimes, having free 'extra' help is a good thing too. My friend married in October and spent a decent amount on her photographer. Since I'm a hobbyist, I also shot a TON of photos at her wedding.

Turns out that her 'paid' photographer took woefully few pictures (only 250 proofs total!), and most were mediocre. She actually prefers the album I put together for her and said it captures the essence of the day much more than her 'professional' pics.

 

[musey]

Our budget is $20,000, my dad was very insistent about paying for the event. We're picking up the "smaller" expenses (save-the-dates, invitations, favors, etc.) in order to stay in budget, the "big guys" are quite expensive here in LA. The supposed average LA wedding costs $33,700. Right now our costs look like:

$11,000 Reception
$ 1,850 Dress
$ 3,600 Photographer
$ ...600 Musicians/DJ
$ ...300 Flowers (minimal)
$ ...300 Wedding party attire (MOH, flower girls' dresses (DIY'ing), tux rentals)
$17,650

We've still got a few "major" things left: officiant, cake and reception decor to take care of. I'm really hoping we don't go over, but we have a little flexibility with the budget.

 

[bee*]

Our budget is €20000 which is about $26000. It''s a good bit lower than what people are spending on weddings over here, but I''m going to do a lot of DIY projects on invitations and flowers to save a bit.

 

[Independent Gal]

In US dollars, the combined cost of our 2 part wedding will be about 23K Part 1 (30 guests) will be about 6K, Part 2 (80ish guests) will be about 17K. That includes rings and travel costs, but not the honeymoon.

 

[mjso]

We don''t really a have a budget yet. My mom mentioned "well now we have to save for a wedding" and when I was on the phone she was asking my brother (our resident wedding expert as he is invited to six this year...none of which are mine) who said most weddings that he''s been to cost around $25,000. So I guess that''s sort of our budget.

I''m going back home (to NJ) in February to look at sites and get some other stuff done, hopefully that will help us settle on a date (our prelim date is 4/25/09 - Shannon72781
I guess we''re date twins for the time being!) and also allow me to have the "budget" convo with my parents.

I''m hoping to save some money on the dress and minimal flowers (I never was that into flowers). I''m not sure if I''m talented enough to DIY, but I am going to take on as much as I feel comfortable with.

 

[sap483]

My parents have been very generous and have contributed 30k to our wedding. FI and I are planning on spending an additional 15-20k, so our budget is around 45-50k. Our venue is the bulk of that, it's $285 pp including the ceremony fee, food, open bar for 4 hours, our lodging the night of, and all taxes and gratuities (a whopping 28%). We just bought a new home last year, so we've had to be very careful in our spending on other things.

 

[sumbride]

My parents paid for almost all of our wedding. We paid for our honeymoon, most of the attendant gifts, and a few other miscellaneous things. We had 400 guests in attendance and it was a "cocktail buffet" reception, not a plated dinner, but we did have an open bar. I don't know the cost of all of it, but here's how it mostly broke down:

Catering/bar: $19k all in (no site fee)
Cakes: $2500
Flowers: $6k (included Rehearsal Dinner)
Photographer: $3k
DJ: $600
Day Of Coordinator: $250
invitations and accessories: $2k
my dress, veil, hairpiece: $2k
hair and makeup for me: $100
hair for bridesmaids: $300
wedding jewelry: They were gifts from hubby and mom
Chair Rental: not sure... we got a discount because they were mean to my mother
drinks for the groomsmen day of: $400? they spent a lot of time at the bar!
Grooms Lunch day before: $500 (I had a bridesmaid lunch and we didn't want him to be bored!)
Bus for Rehearsal Dinner: $500
Rehearsal Dinner: $2k (My parents paid, not his)
Out of town bags: $300?
Officiant: Free!! She was a friend of my mom's and it was her gift.

What we paid for:
MOST important: Marriage License!!! $65 in Arkansas! CASH. And they ask if you're sober.

honeymoon: $5k (my mom gave us the airfare vouchers)
Bridesmaid gifts: $1k
Groomsmen gifts: $1k
dance lessons: $300
his ring: $600
my ring: $300 (for the setting)
Undergarments for my dress: $200
shoes: $80 (I bought 2 pair)
flower girl baskets(4): $65
ring bearer box: $20
Lavender toss: $35
guest book: $40
fancy pen for guest book: $20
Gifts for parents: $400
Gifts for event hostesses (showers, etc): $500
Gift for my Groom: $600
his Gift to me??

I'm sure I left some stuff out, but it adds up fast!

 

[Shannon72781]

mjso- Yay, the first person I''ve encountered with our date!!

I''m in NY, fairly close to NJ. it seems our budgets are very similar- that seems to be about the average cost in our area.

I HAVE been surprised with some price tags attached to certain aspects for the wedding since I am a novice in planning. i.e. $550 for an officiant, $950 for a string trio for 2 hours...I was not expecting THOSE prices! We may need to be flexible in some areas to accommodate more expensive areas. I do plan on getting faily simple and low cost invitations and DIY flowers for the reception (only callas; however I will have a florist do bouquets and bouts).

It''s surprising when you delve into the cost of wedding planning how expensive it can get!!

 

[musey]

Date: 1/9/2008 2:40:54 PM
Author: mjso
We don''t really a have a budget yet. My mom mentioned ''well now we have to save for a wedding'' and when I was on the phone she was asking my brother (our resident wedding expert as he is invited to six this year...none of which are mine) who said most weddings that he''s been to cost around $25,000. So I guess that''s sort of our budget.

Out of curiosity, how would your brother know? Just guessing?

Even after very thoroughly comparison shopping for vendors, I still would have to give a $10,000 leeway range for most weddings I''ve attended (minus very obviously low-budget ones).

 

[designchica]

This hasn''t been discussed in detail since we are not even engaged yet, but I suspect our budget will likely be around $20-$25K not including our honeymoon. Approximately $15K will probably come from my mom and we will come up with the rest. We both make very good money but neither of us have a burning desire to spend a huge amount of money on a wedding. However, I tend to have pretty expensive taste and so does he so something tells me once we start planning, we will find that we are more willing to part with our money than we initially thought.

 

[mjso]

Date: 1/9/2008 3:36:26 PM
Author: musey

Date: 1/9/2008 2:40:54 PM
Author: mjso
We don''t really a have a budget yet. My mom mentioned ''well now we have to save for a wedding'' and when I was on the phone she was asking my brother (our resident wedding expert as he is invited to six this year...none of which are mine) who said most weddings that he''s been to cost around $25,000. So I guess that''s sort of our budget.

Out of curiosity, how would your brother know? Just guessing?

Even after very thoroughly comparison shopping for vendors, I still would have to give a $10,000 leeway range for most weddings I''ve attended (minus very obviously low-budget ones).

I''m not exactly sure how he''d know. A few of the weddings are very close friends and/or Fraternity brothers, so they may have discussed costs during the planning stages. I''m sure some of them are just guessing, he''s a CPA, so money things are right up his alley.

 

[Erin]

Date: 1/9/2008 3:00:16 PM
Author: sumbride
My parents paid for almost all of our wedding. We paid for our honeymoon, most of the attendant gifts, and a few other miscellaneous things. We had 400 guests in attendance and it was a ''cocktail buffet'' reception, not a plated dinner, but we did have an open bar. I don''t know the cost of all of it, but here''s how it mostly broke down:

Catering/bar: $19k all in (no site fee)
Cakes: $2500
Flowers: $6k (included Rehearsal Dinner)
Photographer: $3k
DJ: $600
Day Of Coordinator: $250
invitations and accessories: $2k
my dress, veil, hairpiece: $2k
hair and makeup for me: $100
hair for bridesmaids: $300
wedding jewelry: They were gifts from hubby and mom
Chair Rental: not sure... we got a discount because they were mean to my mother
drinks for the groomsmen day of: $400? they spent a lot of time at the bar!
Grooms Lunch day before: $500 (I had a bridesmaid lunch and we didn''t want him to be bored!)
Bus for Rehearsal Dinner: $500
Rehearsal Dinner: $2k (My parents paid, not his)
Out of town bags: $300?
Officiant: Free!! She was a friend of my mom''s and it was her gift.

What we paid for:
MOST important: Marriage License!!! $65 in Arkansas! CASH. And they ask if you''re sober.

honeymoon: $5k (my mom gave us the airfare vouchers)
Bridesmaid gifts: $1k
Groomsmen gifts: $1k
dance lessons: $300
his ring: $600
my ring: $300 (for the setting)
Undergarments for my dress: $200
shoes: $80 (I bought 2 pair)
flower girl baskets(4): $65
ring bearer box: $20
Lavender toss: $35
guest book: $40
fancy pen for guest book: $20
Gifts for parents: $400
Gifts for event hostesses (showers, etc): $500
Gift for my Groom: $600
his Gift to me??

I''m sure I left some stuff out, but it adds up fast!

I''m having a $50,000 sticker shock... maybe we''ll elope.
However I must say, the pictures of it I''ve seen are g-O-O-O-O-rgeous

 

[sumbride]

Date: 1/9/2008 5:10:48 PM
Author: Starset Princess

I''m having a $50,000 sticker shock... maybe we''ll elope.

However I must say, the pictures of it I''ve seen are g-O-O-O-O-rgeous

I wanted to... but my mom and my DH wanted a "WEDDING" so that''s what we had. Boy DID we. It was fabulous, wonderful, so much fun... but we didn''t come close to sticking to our budget. We did, in fact, DOUBLE our original budget, entirely by not really paying attention. I also didn''t include the "night after dinner" but my mom had her friend''s restaurant open for us on Sunday for a steak dinner to celebrate further. I''m sure that was another $2k or so. Maybe more. It was awesome though.

And the food was REALLY good. I guess for $19k for a buffet, it had to be!

seriously, you don''t have to spend this much!

 

[gtn]

according to this article the average wedding cost is $23,360.

We haven''t starting nailing down the budget (I know huge mistake), but I am trying to keep it down as much as I can. Not including OOT family, we are expecting 300 people. We both have large families that live locally and then we have our friends (those will be the only OOT guest.) I am hoping to keep my budget as low as possible, but i know it will be at least $30,000. I am hoping to find a dress that my aunt can purchase for me since she has connections , but I can''t count on that. I am also keeping the cost down by keeping everything local. I don''t have to pay for the church or officiant since the wedding will be held in my church and the priest is his families priest. Of course, I will have to give the church and priest a donation, but that is nothing compared to other peoples fees. If we had smaller families, I would have had the reception at the church too, but the church can only handle a 125 people. I am keeping and eye out for cheap vases to use with my centerpieces. I really need to jump into the planning as our wedding is less than 9 months away now!

 

[tberube]

Date: 1/9/2008 2:32:52 PM
Author: musey
Our budget is $20,000, my dad was very insistent about paying for the event. We''re picking up the ''smaller'' expenses (save-the-dates, invitations, favors, etc.) in order to stay in budget, the ''big guys'' are quite expensive here in LA. The supposed average LA wedding costs $33,700. Right now our costs look like:


$11,000 Reception

$ 1,850 Dress

$ 3,600 Photographer

$ ...600 Musicians/DJ

$ ...300 Flowers (minimal)

$ ...300 Wedding party attire (MOH, flower girls'' dresses (DIY''ing), tux rentals)

$17,650


We''ve still got a few ''major'' things left: officiant, cake and reception decor to take care of. I''m really hoping we don''t go over, but we have a little flexibility with the budget.

Musey thanks for that breakdown - it''s interesting to see where the price differences lie. For me it''s more like this (estimated, of course):

$7,500 Reception
$FREE Dress
$150 Photographer (I''m just paying for rental equipment)
$750 Musician and DJ
$450 Flowers
$0 Wedding Party attire (no flower girls, BM and MOH buying their own)

$8,850

If you add in all the rest of the "little stuff" i.e. ceremony hall, Justice of the Peace, table decor, etc. it comes to just under $11,000. And I make great money but I''m still freaking out about the cost!! Seriously I have a mindblock when it comes to spending that much money on one day. Heh.

 

[tberube]

Date: 1/9/2008 3:00:16 PM
Author: sumbride

his ring: $600

Good LORD! I really hope his ring had some diamonds in it or something, because I am having TROUBLE finding a ring for FI that is over $200!

 

[Selkie]

I kept a running tally in excel, and those numbers started to get to me pretty quickly too, even though ours was in the $11000 range. My parents ended up contributing a lot more than I had thought they would, because they were totally sneaky and went around paying final balances on things behind my back. And I LOVE them for it!

For about 45 people, our (major) costs were:
$2175 for 3.5 hour sailboat charter
$1300 for catering and drinks
$2800 to rent entire B&B for weekend for us and families
$800 additional to use B&B as alternate rain site

$420 for dress
$170 for flowers-I made my own bouquet using flowers from freshroses.com, and had silk corsages and bouts (because of allergies) for moms and dads.
$3200 for photography-it was the biggest splurge, but SOOOO worth it.
$300 (approx.) for groom''s tux, decorations, random accessories.

I think our second reception in CA for 40 people cost around $500, but that all went toward food and drink because it was also on a boat and we didn''t have to pay any site rental fees. Yay!

 

[gtn]

Date: 1/9/2008 5:36:34 PM
Author: gtn
according to this article the average wedding cost is $23,360.

We haven''t starting nailing down the budget (I know huge mistake), but I am trying to keep it down as much as I can. Not including OOT family, we are expecting 300 people. We both have large families that live locally and then we have our friends (those will be the only OOT guest.) I am hoping to keep my budget as low as possible, but i know it will be at least $30,000. I am hoping to find a dress that my aunt can purchase for me since she has connections , but I can''t count on that. I am also keeping the cost down by keeping everything local. I don''t have to pay for the church or officiant since the wedding will be held in my church and the priest is his families priest. Of course, I will have to give the church and priest a donation, but that is nothing compared to other peoples fees. If we had smaller families, I would have had the reception at the church too, but the church can only handle a 125 people. I am keeping and eye out for cheap vases to use with my centerpieces. I really need to jump into the planning as our wedding is less than 9 months away now!

Sorry guys, I just realized that the article is a little old. I thought it sounded "low"
ths articleis more current and it says the average cost of a wedding is $28,800 and $50K in SF (yikes!) where I live.

P.S sorry I didn''t ETA, I couldn''t edit my last post

 

[musey]

Date: 1/9/2008 5:52:41 PM
Author: tberube

Date: 1/9/2008 3:00:16 PM
Author: sumbride

his ring: $600

Good LORD! I really hope his ring had some diamonds in it or something, because I am having TROUBLE finding a ring for FI that is over $200!

If it''s platinum, $600 sounds pretty affordable! Even the higher-end tungsten designers can run in that range.

 

[Pandora II]

I''m hoping to come in at around $26k - not including rings, honeymoon or my dress/FI''s morning suit (he''s bought one).

At $26k, I''m still coming in at $20k less than the average wedding in the UK, so that''s not too bad. My parents are paying for most of it - although I''m paying a lot as I go along that I''m not telling them about, so will probably end up 65/35.

That said, I''m DIYing the Cake, Flowers, Bridesmaids Dresses and all the decorations. Also DIYing all the stationery except the invitations.

I must admit I am spending a lot on them. I am going for ultraformal hand-engraving. It''s a silly thing to spend money on, but I have always wanted them - and I get to keep the copper-plate. I''ve decided it''s the only time in my life I get the opportunity and I will really regret it if I don''t. My parents have said they will pay the price for the thermographed and I can pay the extra (around $350) if I want the engraving. I get 150 invitations plus envelopes for that in a beautiful box.

It''s my only big frivolous extravagance - and I''ve saved $$$$ by making my own wedding cake (4 tiers of marzipanned fruitcake with marzipan waistband and enormous amounts of brandy, iced in royal icing) so I''m trying to convince myself that it''s okay to spend money so rashly!

 

[Dutchgirlll]

I think we'll be spending around $30000, but our budget may seems a little awkward (as the rings are a huge part of our budget):

6000 upgrade ering
5000 wedding bands (his &hers)
3700 wedding dress (2500 refunded by my parents)
FREE his outfit (gets the suit, shoes etc form his parents)
900 wedding jewelry
150 bridal shoes
290 cocktail dress for rehearsal dinner

2500 photographer
3000 total wedding costs in Bali (papers, legalisation, wedding ceremony etc)
900 extra balinese orchestra during dinner
2000 dinner and reception drinks
300 flowers (and bridal bouquet)
800 DIY design invitations (but letter pressed)
150 wedding favors
150 OOT bags
300 FG outfits (3 times)
2500 rehearsal dinner/extra activities day before/brunch day after
2000 hotel reservations (minimum stay at the hotel venue)
2200 tickets to Bali
???? honeymoon (probably gonna spend another 5k)
1500 miscellaneous
----------
Total:

Let's say I'm glad that the euro is very strong against the dollar, so in euro's it's sounds less lol

At least we (are going to) spend a huge amount of our budget on stuff that doesn't go wasted entirely, as we're going to have a nice photographer, great jewelry and a great DW, that will stretch our wedding over 3 days in stead of just 1. And because of the long travel, we might save some extra on food/drinks as we count for 30 attendants, but could easily be 15 too. I might wanna sell my dress once the wedding is over.
1 note: unfortunately I probably gonna loan some money from my parents in law, as I just lost my job and might not be able to save up all the money in time.

edit: average Dutch weddings costs are 18k

 

[cellososweet]

RE: EXPENSIVE FLIGHTS TO EUROPE!!! (didn''t want you miss this

)

cdt. . . if you are state-side go to airfarewatchdog.com. They had a flight to Rome from LAX for $598 last week roundtrip. I always use them when i''m trying to get a deal. Or, if you have a little extra time, it''s great to fly into a lesser-known not so popular spot (different airports in england, scotland, etc) and then take ryanair or one of the cheap intereuro flights to Italy. Might save you a bundle. Also, travel agents are usually free but find great deals.

Cheers!

 

[Pandora II]

Date: 1/9/2008 6:42:39 PM
Author: cellososweet
RE: EXPENSIVE FLIGHTS TO EUROPE!!! (didn''t want you miss this

)

cdt. . . if you are state-side go to airfarewatchdog.com. They had a flight to Rome from LAX for $598 last week roundtrip. I always use them when i''m trying to get a deal. Or, if you have a little extra time, it''s great to fly into a lesser-known not so popular spot (different airports in england, scotland, etc) and then take ryanair or one of the cheap intereuro flights to Italy. Might save you a bundle. Also, travel agents are usually free but find great deals.

Cheers!

Definitely check that idea out.

FI and I are planning of going over in Italy to choose the wine for our wedding and see my best friend. I checked Ryanair tonight and the flight out is 4.99 GBP and coming back is 0.01 GBP each - plus taxes - which works out around $80 each for a return ticket.

The train from London to Stansted Airport will probably cost the same as the flight!

 

[mimzy]

I know it is a sin, but i am seriously envious of some of you (or at least your budgets)!

 

[cellososweet]

Here''s my breakdown

We are renewing our vows in an Orange County Cultural Arts Center that used to be a large residence. It''s a Saturday night in May and though it''s a vow renewal, I''ve been jipped just as bad. But. . . I haaaaaggled. Big time!

Ok. . here goes, I''ll put in the budget and actual spent:

Ceremony and Reception Site Fees: $2800
Food, Alcohol (beer, wine, and a signature drink, tea, coffee, and reg/club sodas): $8,800
TOTAL PAID TO THIS VENDOR (after taxes and gratuities): $12,000

Dress: $1,500 (paid $1,500)
Veil: $75 (paid $45 online and it''s fantab!)
Earrings: $150 (paid $90. again. fantab!)
Alterations/Misc:$425 (not sure yet)
Shoes: I have retarded amounts of shoes and love shoes, so this isn''t in the budget. It will just come out of my monthly shoe spending fund. I''m not kidding. Haha.

Photographer: $3,000 (paid $2,415)
Save the date magnets: $180 (paid $13. thank you photoshop and kinkos!)
Invitations: $180 (the ones i''m eyeballing are $125)
Thank you cards, postage, rsvp cards, menu cards, programs, etc: $250 (I think they will be about $80. DIY. I already have the materials)

Floral vases: $120 (paid $75)
Flowers/candles, bouquets: $655 (not sure. DIY at flowermart. But pricing looked to be around $500)

DJ and lighting (uplighting to wash walls in color): $1,500 (paid $1350)
Tux Rental: $250

BM''s gifts: $500 (ones I want are only $250)
GM''s gifts: $500 (same as above)
Mother''s Dress: $500 (she likes on that is $250. but, we''ll try them on)
Misc: $500

Honeymoon: Not part of our budget. Coming out of our yearly vacation savings. Would''ve been spent regardless of the vow renewal.

Wedding Rings: We''ve been married for a year and our new rings will come out of my self-imposed shoe budget for the summer months. About $1,000. Who needs more sandals?

So. .. . about $22,000. But, so far with my discounts and such we''re looking at about $17-18,000. I like to overbudget and then scale back.

 

[cdt1101]

thanks ladies for the suggestions!!! We will definitely check them out. Because right now on orbitz, etc. we are looking at $1500/per flight. ouchie!

i haven''t looked into the options you are speaking of though. I was just searching flight from NJ to Rome, then from Venice back to NJ. We may have to enlist an agent for this...

thanks again!