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Bride Tip • Budget Saving Hacks


The Budget.


The budget is a HUGE deal when it comes to wedding planning. It dictates everything. How fancy your dress can be. Where you will be married at. What ring will be on your finger. The pictures that will hang in your home for the rest of your life. It’s your budget that is going to  say yes or no. So the question is: what is worth spending the money on and where can I save? These Budget Saving Hacks will give you your perfect fairytale wedding at a price you can afford.

 


My Top 3


Not only have I been married and had my own wedding experience, but Kylee Ann Photography has been with hundreds of weddings and they all say the same thing. The top 3 most important wedding details that are worth spending extra money on are:

  1. The Rings
  2. The Photographer/Videographer
  3. The Venue

Rings

After the wedding day, you are going to go through the rest of your life and the new people you meet will only get to see one thing from your wedding: the ring. These diamonds are going to be passed down from generation to generation as heirlooms. They signify love and the circle of forever. They are so important and you will be wearing these for the rest of your life. Making sure that you get exactly the ring you want is a priority.

Budget Saving Hacks:

  • The diamond. There are many different qualities of diamonds. This can depend on the size but also on if there are black or white spots, how visible they are, the cut, and many other technicalities. If you are looking for a better price but still want a great diamond, choose one with smaller white spots. They cannot be seen with the naked eye. Perfect diamond for you and at a great price!
  • The next question is, are you for sure you want a diamond? There are so many unique and gorgeous gems like opals or sapphires. They now offer raw diamonds that haven’t been cut which are another beautiful option. Not only would they be less expensive, but you wouldn’t have the cookie cutter ring that looks like every other ring out there!

Photographer/Videographer

Of all of the places to save money, this is NOT it. Am I biased because I am a photographer? Absolutely. Does that make my advice any less true? NO!

I have had brides come to me after their weddings and ask to reshoot bridal pictures. Like sweet Kelly pictured below. Why? Because to save money she chose an inexperienced and therefore cheaper photographer. But after a few years of looking at the low quality, blurry images hanging in her home – she knew she had to do something! Almost 10 brides have reached out to me since I began my photography business and have begged to please give them better images than their first photographer gave them. This makes me so sad because I can retake the bridals, but we cannot recreate her entire wedding day to give her the bright and creamy timeless photos.

Your photographer and videographer are the ones who capture all of the memories and moments. These are what will be in your living room for the rest of your lives and will then be passed down to your grandchildren and great-grandchildren. You pay for what you get in photography. Don’t make the mistake of using that friend who just bought a camera a month ago.

Budget Saving Hacks:

  • However, there are things you can do to get the most out of your quality photographer. At Kylee Ann Photography we offer a FREE proposal session for all of our Kylee Ann Brides! There are other photographers who will also offer something similar. Talk with them and see what options are available for you. I would also have a schedule of your day ready and your MUST have shots written out to make sure they know your priority photos!

Venue

And last but not least on my top 3 most important wedding details: the venue! The surroundings – whether an industrial buildings, green meadow, or snow capped mountain – is what will create the entire atmosphere for your wedding. Modern, rustic, fresh, tropical, adventurous – whatever you are looking for, its in the venue.

This does not have to be a 10,000 expense. Decide on a theme that describes you and your fiancé then go on a venue hunt. Last month we even made blog posts about the best wedding venues available in Logan, Salt Lake, Ogden, and Utah County. Check them out for quick and easy shopping!

Budget Saving Hacks:

  • I cannot stress this enough: SHOP AROUND. There are high quality, beautiful venues at reasonable prices. Don’t get your heart stuck on one until you have viewed multiple options.
  • Also, venues tend to be a LOT cheaper depending on the day and time you place your reservation. Generally it is cheaper Monday – Thursday instead of on the weekends and earlier in the day instead of an evening reception.


Where & How to SAVE


Now for the good stuff 😉 So that you can afford the best rings, photographer, and venue around – sometimes you may need to cut back in other areas. But this is YOUR wedding day. You deserve to have everything be what you have always dreamed of. And these Budget Saving Hacks will give you your dream wedding in your budget.

Cake

One of the yummiest parts of the reception… CAKE! There are SO many ways to save money with this sweet treat.

Budget Saving Hacks:

  • After all of the partying is over, most brides are left with more cake than anyone could ever possibly eat! To still make your cake look grand and luxurious without purchasing 100 extra pieces of cake, go for a great stand. Most cake vendors have these for rent or as part of your package! The taller platters really give cakes that extra nudge to look amazing.
  • Another fun way to save, instead of just one large cake, have a mini cake for cutting and pictures then add other, less expensive treats for the guests. Some of my Kylee Ann Brides have chosen to do donuts, cinnamon rolls, cupcakes, or even Costco cheesecakes! Fun, elegant, you can have it your way. And for those brides who don’t LOVE cake this is a great alternative.
  • Don’t add a cake topper. These can range anywhere from $20-$50 (or more) and actually just makes everything seem more busy. The simple and clean look so much better in person as well as photographs.
  • My last tip. There is a tradition to eat the top of your cake on your anniversary. I admit, I was SO excited to do this! So let me just say, this will be the grossest and most expensive cake you will ever eat. When a cake sits in a freezer for an entire year it gets freezer burned, loses its taste, and frankly is a little soggy. Skip the extra wedding cake. Go for a Chili’s Chocolate Molten Lava for your anniversary.

Dress

Your dress is the fourth most important wedding detail and will probably cost the fourth most amount of money. But there are ways to squeeze around this cost.

Budget Saving Hacks:

  • Rent instead of Buy. There are some brides who want to have their dress forever, and if that’s important to you then make it happen. But for those don’t care, renting is SO much cheaper than buying. The problem lies in alterations. It will be more tricky but shop around, ask suppliers what options are available for you. You can also ask friends, sisters, or in-laws if they have an old used one they don’t want or need. Get creative and save!
  • Simpler will be less expensive. The lace detailing and beaded buttons down the back will be more expensive. Find out what is important to you and what you would not mind leaving out. I recommend going to Pinterest for inspiration! You can see my page ||The Dress|| here to see what my Kylee Ann brides have worn as well as my favorite styles I have pinned.
  • SHOP AROUND. Yes, it will take more time. But go to wedding vendor fairs in your area and hit all the sales. When I was shopping for my dress I tried one on in Logan and fell in LOVE but it was double what I had budgeted. So, I kept shopping hoping something else would catch my eye when I found the EXACT same dress in Ogden that was on sale for half off! It was a few sizes too big so I did have to pay for alterations, but ended up saving $400 on my dream dress. All because I kept looking.

Veil

Do NOT spend extra here. This is the place to SAVE. Veils will only be worn once in your life and I cannot tell you how many of my brides buy a stunning veil and we take a great picture during bridals. And then the wedding day comes and they don’t even end up wearing them.

Budget Saving Hacks:

  • BORROW. You are going to have a friend, sister, or someone else you know who own a $500 veil they wore for 20 minutes and have kept in a plastic bag in the back of their closet ever since. It will still be stunning and you can have those dreamy veil pictures, at a $0 cost.
  • If you are purchasing a dress, many vendors also include a free veil. Ask around and see what offers are available!

Flowers

Flowers are the icing on every wedding day. They are fresh and really bring the entire scene together, but they can also be pricey. I recommend spending the extra money on your personal bouquet from a professional florist. There are a lot of photos that will include these flowers in them. And besides, YOU are the center of attention today. Which means the bride’s bouquet in your hands will be too.

Budget Saving Hacks:

  • This is probably the coolest hack and best kept secret of them all. Costco Bulk Wholesale. That’s right, I am recommending you go to Costco to buy your wedding flowers. Do you think I’m crazy yet? 😉 Trust me! They have so many options and you can hand pick exactly what you want. These flowers literally last TWICE as long as many professional florist arrangements I have seen. Fresh. Tropical. Beautiful. They have my recommendation.

Decor

Decor does not need to be a place where you blow all of your hard earned cash. It is important to remember that the Pinterest worthy details will look absolutely stunning, but they will not be what you, your future husband, or your guests really remember about your day. If you have been dreaming about a certain decor piece for years, absolutely make it happen. But if comes down between rose petal vases and floating candles or a ring, make the choice that you will get to see everyday for the rest of your life!

Budget Saving Hacks:

  • It is likely that you, your parents, or your fiancé’s parents, have some great decor in their home that they would let you borrow for wedding decorations. Ask permission and I am sure they would be SO excited to get to help you in any way they can.
  • A “two for one” hack – at your bridal shower have all of your girlfriends help you make decor! This will give all of your bridesmaids a way to really help with the wedding and feel involved while also saving money on expensive details.

Beauty

If you have the budget for it, a professional hair and makeup artist is trained to highlight your best features and give you the makeover and pampering of a lifetime. It makes such a difference! They have the highest quality products that you would have to pay hundreds for if you were to try and do everything by yourself. I wrote a blog for all Logan brides with tips and the best vendors that you can access hereThe hair and makeup below was done by thee incredible Tiffany Johnson located here in Logan, Utah!

Budget Saving Hacks:

  • I’m a broken record. Shop, Shop, Shop around! There are incredible artists just making their way in the bridal beauty world who will be offering great prices. Don’t skip out on the practice session so that you and your artist will know exactly what you want and what to expect.
  • If you really don’t have them in your budget, do not worry! There are hair and makeup tutorials splattered all throughout the internet that you can rummage through and find the best ideas for you. Practice a LOT before the actual day to make sure you have everything the way you want!


Budget Saving Hacks – Complete!

I hope you found some new ways on how and where to save money on your wedding! Please comment below with any other tips you have found – I would LOVE to hear more ideas.

Aaaaand… Wednesday morning I have a special blog post for you on how to budget out your wedding! Complete with a downloadable excel spreadsheet where all you have to do is type in your overall budget and you can see how much of it will need to be spent where. Don’t miss. I’m so excited for this!!!

Enter your name and email below then: Download the doc., type in your overall budget, and let the hard math be done for you. And don’t worry, we promise to keep your information safe!

February 6, 2017

Katelyn Taylor

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