Having the wedding of your dreams can be a reality no matter what your budget is.  The first thing you need to do is prioritize what is most important to you and your fiance.  One of the most important things you should do is realistically sit down and plan a wedding budget before you start shopping for your wedding.   Planning a budget can save you time, money, and alot of frustration.  There is nothing more frustrating then falling in love with a band, reception site, or even flowers and then finding out that they are not even close to your price range.  Even worse, if you start shopping for your wedding without creating a budget you may end up spending more money on things that are not that important to you and then you may find that you have to cut out things that you may really have wanted.  This being said, here is a wedding budget worksheet to help you plan your budget. 

 

 

 

 

Just because I used the word splurge doesn't mean you have to spend a ton of money.  I simply means these are the thing you may want to spend a little more money on or that you may want to add to your budget to make your day more enjoyable.

 

Here's the reality.  A wedding takes months even years to plan and it is over in one day.  You don't want all of those months of hard work to be forgotten.  You photographer is the key to all of your wedding memories.   Take advantage of wedding packages to help save money and don't be afraid to ask for substitutions on items you don't want.  Most importantly, make sure you pick a photographer you are comfortable with.

 

Your wedding day is one of the most special important days of your life.  You don't want to spend it stressing out about all of the last minute details.  You need to ask yourself  "Do I want to be the wedding planner or do I want to be the Bride?"  The fact of the matter is that you cannot be both on your actual wedding day.  Hiring a wedding planner doesn't mean you have to turn over complete control and coordination of your wedding.  You can plan of the the details and if you are a do-it-yourself bride you can still do all of the things you wanted to do.  Wedding planners offer packages for all types of brides but the most important thing a wedding planner does is ensures that the actual wedding goes off without a hitch.  It is the planners responsibility to coordinate all of the last minute events so you can truly enjoy your wedding.

 

Have you ever had one of those day where your hair just didn't look good or you had on an outfit you really didn't feel comfortable in.  I would be willing to bet you didn't feel very pretty or confident that day.  You don't want that to happen on your wedding day.  Your wedding day is your fairytale day.  You are the princess and you should feel like it.   Your dress doesn't have to be the most expensive dress but it should be a dress you feel comfortable and beautiful in.  Make sure you schedule a test appointment with a hairdresser to and makeup artist to make sure your hair and makeup looks the way you want it.  This is time you can make little changes and adjustments to get the look you want.  Make sure you take a picture and bring it with you on the day of your wedding to remind her of what you want.  The best part of this is you get to have an extra pampering day at the salon and who doesn't love that!