You are having the time of your life, emotions are running on an all time high and it is such fun that the easiest thing to do is blow caution to the wind and overspend without a care for the wedding budget. Do not do it! After the gorgeous wedding you fly off on your honeymoon and when you return true wedded bliss begins. Sharing daily life, collecting mail, sharing chores, chatting through your respective days over a glass of wine and opening mail together…

 

A great big credit card bill is the last thing either of you wish to have looming in the beautiful first days of marriage. To avoid this requires communication, planning and commitment to a budget plan. Budgets do not take the fun out of life, they guide us and help us to be accountable and responsible.

 

Weddings can be exorbitantly pricey if you get too carried away. So plan, with pen and paper or other technologically advanced gadget. Chat through the finances with your respective parents separately and then review their input together.

 

Traditionally the bride’s parents will pay for newspaper announcements, the bridal outfit, reception venue, flowers, invitations, catering, wedding cake, brides transport, music, photography and video. The groom’s parents pick up the tab for drinks, corsages, buttonholes and bouquets as well as costs incurred for the ceremony.

 

The bride pays for any personal requirements like hair, make-up and spa-treatments as the grooms ring and gifts for her bridesmaids. The cost of wedding rings for the bride, wedding licence and contract fall on the grooms shoulders.

 

This is a guide and totally flexible. Once you have an idea of your total spend it is prudent to set aside up to 15 percent for any unforeseen expenditure. Thereafter keep a record of all you spend and all future bills to be expected. A simple excel spreadsheet is useful to track the budget.

 

Remember to get prices in writing once you select a supplier. This prevents tears later on when the big day arrives and you find yourself short a deposit paid and without a caterer. The stories we see on Carte Blanche are not fantasy, unscrupulous scam artists come in all guises. Be discerning.

 

There are cost cutting tricks like having your wedding on any day other than a Saturday. Focus on a specific elaborate aspect and perhaps forfeit flowers or wedding favours to have the most unforgettable menu. Choose a date that is out of season if you plan to use a hotel. Utilise family resources for transport, photography or even a venue wherever possible.

 

Some of the most awesome weddings have been the simplest. Yet if elaborate is your desire you can still cut costs by shopping around and always, always get at least three quotes. Do the groundwork and by the time your big day arrives you will take more pleasure in it and feel way more relaxed knowing it came in on budget. With some good fortune you may even arrive at a total below the wedding budget and have some extra cash for the honeymoon.

 

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