Lyra's Bride Guide to Saving Money on a Wedding

The following is my personal experience to budgeting for my dream wedding. Disclaimers: My wedding is still in progress, so definitely more to come and add WITH VISUALS. #budgetwedding #brideonabudget #brideguide

1. All-inclusive resort in another country

Let's get real y'all, living in California/ America for that matter, is expensive. My man and I have saved thousands of dollars by having a wedding in Playa del Carmen, Mexico. And do you really want to spend your future wedded life in so much debt that you're swimming in it up to your eyeballs? So far, we have spent less than $15k on this wedding. As I was speaking to my friends, it seemed that a wedding will often cost $20k at base price. (Unless you're having it in a forest, with like 30 people. More power to you 💪.) An all-inclusive resort includes everything you need to have a wedding (i.e. wedding planner, dj, photographer, food, drinks on tap, ALCOHOL, dance floor, entertainment, chairs AND tables). All you need to do is ask and shop around. You would be doing that anyway, but at a more reasonable price. Another positive thing about an all-inclusive resort, is that although your wedding would be smaller than normal, it would allow you to have a more personal wedding. You'd be able to distribute your time among your guests a lot more frequently. Often, we find ourselveg cutting people/ distancing ourselves from people in order to keep the number of guests down. In another country, that process will often happen itself. It can suck, but if you really want someone there, you can offer to pay for their stay. I mean, you're already saving so much money on your wedding. Although you are spending a couple hundred on plane tickets, depending on where. I chose Mexico to keep these tickets from getting too outrageous. Your guests will be paying for their stay, after all.

Downside: not everyone can make it to another country, but with technology today it would be easy to broadcast your wedding live for those loved ones that can't get on a plane. Or.... just record the wedding, if that is not necessary. Another potential problem, although it's cheaper, you have to pay for the wedding prior to having it. We often had to wire/ dump a couple thousand every month to deal. Balancing the amount of funds you spend every month on bills and outings MATTER a lot... A lot... A lot.

2. Take your time to shop around

It can be easy to pick the nicest, brightest deal out there but it may not be the BEST DEAL. What I'm saying is... take time to compare your options. A lot of resorts tend to have similar packages, but after calculating out how much food and drinks would cost per person.... The deal may actually not be as good as it may seem. Taking time to do some basic math when searching thru the hotel menus helps, literally in the thousands $$$. There are also things like having outside vendors or guests that don't stay at YOUR resort, in which you would have to pay a higher fee to have them attend the wedding. Guest list size may also play a factor. Some resort packages are limited to a certain amount and you may have to change resort location because of that. I had to ask to make sure my count would be reasonable for the hotel. The wedding planner had to alter the package price for my wedding. ( I have around 150)

3. If necessary, give yourself enough time to save money.

As much as I'd love to say I'm rich and flaunt whatever goodies I have.... I'm definitely not. And many of us are not, so let's be real. To be honest, I was shamed for the gap in which we had our engagement and when we're having our wedding party. It actually got me a bit insecure. BUT, I had to ask myself ..."are they paying for your wedding?? Answer: NO." So don't let these inconsiderate comments get to you. You are the master of your own grand plans. Your partner will thank you when you are saving money to own a big, large house that you can have your babies or hundreds of puppies in. Maybe not in San Francisco, but maybe in the Bay Area perhaps.

4. DIY as much as possible

To date, I spent a good amount of change on bridesmaid and groomsmen gifts, invitations, and etc . You may think that invitations and gifts can't be that expensive but..... When you think about it you will need nice, thick cardstock paper, envelopes, pretty printer paper, vellum, quality gifts, decorations, stamps.... So much more. I found that I saved money best by using Amazon, having experience in art, YouTube-ing, buying in bulk, and buying things over time (to decrease the monthly spending impact, ya girl has a lot of bills y'know) I also took A LOT OF time to compare gift value online in my spare time. I'm saying this because... How often will your friend wear a shirt or bring out a bag that says BRIDESMAID on it out? I tried my best to find practical but cute things, specifically with just their name on it. That is just personal preference. If you have money to spend on gifts that your friends won't really use EVER AGAIN... That's totally up to you. They are likely going to be in other weddings that provide similar trinkets. For me, I had to use my personal relationships to determine what style of bag they would often use or how often that friend parties or does activities to determine what I should spend on. If you don't know your friends personal style, take that time to get to know them to determine what to buy. I really try to be considerate and not load my friends up with things that they'll simply throw away. Useful shit is not always... crazy expensive. It doesn't have to be. For example, I found really cute monogram bags for $16. Follow my future posts for more on this.

5. Use your social network

I never did think that I would be looking to maybe BUY a 3d printer... But there I was ... Looking up to see if I could budget for a Glow Forge which has monthly payments.... To make invites, table settings, etc. I was looking at Etsy and Pinterest to determine if adding cute little details would be feasible. They were all SO OVERPRICED. Luckily for me, I found out that my super talented and artsy friend had a 3d printer and was willing to make me calligraphy wood signs, table name plates, and more. I literally thank God that I have friends with awesome talent and love me enough to give me hookups. I also have a very talented friend who takes wonderful pictures and works as a photographer to take my City Hall pictures. I would brag and show off their work, but my wedding is still " In progress." My cousin is a choreographer so he was able to help me come up with some choreography for my entertainment. Anyway, the huge takeaway is that... Friends are truly a blessing. Don't take them for granted because you may need their help.

6. Don't rely on others who will offer to help pay ** very important**

When your engagement comes, you will often have relatives asking where you'll have your wedding and in their excitement somehow come to offer in helping pay.... When asking for help, it starts to take an emotional toll when they tell you they don't have money yet or actually... "something came up". For me, this happens often. I have a large Filipino family who can be somewhat "wishy washy". I love them but it's hard to deal with when there are deadlines to be completed. There may be even times when you ask for help and they turn on you for haggling them for money. I would cry to my fiance and it would take a toll on him to have to step up and work more. Even today, I feel so guilty but grateful to have such a dependable man on my side. ANYWAY, Save yourself from any of these troubles by budgeting for a wedding you can afford. Make a high interest savings account and transfer a good amount of money into it every paycheck. Shop around to compare savings interests rates and try to transfer out money AFTER interest $ has been added to your account. The safety net offered by others may have a few holes.

You may spend more time than you think being worried about how the hell you'll afford any of this wedding nonsense when monthly bills are piling up. Relying on funds that you can't see may be a big, huge slap to your face and your wallet. It may even ruin a few relationships, but hey once YOU are able to finish paying this damn thing off you can thank YOURSELF and your partner for all the damn good hard work you put in. You'll even prevent a few relationships from collapsing. You can really say that you are your own boss and step back and be proud of your work. The day will be ALL ABOUT YOU, after all. You would've definitely earned it.

More to come as my wedding approaches... Stay tuned!