Congratulations! You are engaged and planning your wedding and wedding reception. You dream of a beautifully decorated banquet hall and live music... but once you start pricing this dream wedding you are left in the state of shock!
If you are like most brides in today's economic climate you are facing a budget crunch. You are looking for a way to make your wedding affordable but not cheap!
Well, according to numerous surveys, about 50% of the total wedding costs are spent on the reception. So if you wish to save money, this is one of the largest places to save.
The reception is made up of a number of individual line items. These include:
1. Basic rental fee for the venue
2. Parking valet
3. Security
4. Decorations
5. Food
6. Alcohol & Bar tenders
7. Linens
8. Snacks for before the actual reception
9. Drinks
10.Servers
11.Cake fees
12.Wedding planner fees
13.Table and chair rentals and/or set up
14.Alcohol
15.Clean up fees
16.Damage Fees
So where can you save money?
Note that most of these fees are in some way associated with the number of guests. Thus, the easiest way to cut costs is to limit the number of guests. Do you really need to invite Aunt Nellie, someone who you have not seen for 10 years and who has not sent even a Christmas card? If you invite her she may just come out of some perceived obligation, guilt or just the need to get out of her rocking chair! Do you invite co-workers who you barely know? What about your old neighbor? These are obviously hard questions, but if you can cull the list to just those who will really make your day special, it will be... well special!
The day of the week makes a big difference in the cost of the venue rental. Obviously Saturdays are in great demand and are the priciest. Friday's and Sundays are becoming very popular because the price can be reduced by as half as much! Also, a popular trend is to hold the ceremony at the same location as the reception. So choose a unique venue and save lots of money by not having to rent the church or synagogue as well as the venue.
The next place to cut is the type of food. Obviously a "happy meal" will not cut it! But, it does not need to be cuisine from the Ritz. There are numerous options to explore. One of the most obvious but not necessarily thought of is the time of day. Early weddings are less likely to involve the more expensive cutting stations, specialty foods and expensive meats.
Also, think of types of food that are different; a grits station is very popular for us southerners or a mashed potato bar featuring varieties of mashed potatoes (I recently tasted a sun-dried-tomato mashed potato dish that was really tasty!)
Drinks are another way to save money. Soft drinks are more expensive than iced tea and coffee. Also, water is a universal drink and typically costs nothing!
Extra snacks or light refreshments are often needed because the bride and groom have scheduled an extensive photo session between the ceremony and the reception. Suffice to say, if you break with tradition and have the bride and groom photos completed prior to the ceremony, it makes this cost disappear.
Valet parking may seem very chic but in reality, I would rather park my own car. That way I am not embarrassed by the food wrappers on the floor and the bags from the last shopping trip in the back seat. Plus, I keep the keys in my pocket and it saves time.
Servers: Having a meal brought to each of the guests is VERY expensive. A venue needs a small army of servers to serve virtually all the guests simultaneously and they need the servers to stay around for hours longer to refill beverages and clear the tables. Although not as elegant, it takes only a few people to help set up and clear the tables for a buffet style of service. These labor costs are passed on to you. Of course, we will serve the bridal table if you wish but serving a dozen people is much less time consuming than serving 150 people!
Lighting: Most event facilities have some types of lighting that is made available. If you desire extra lighting keep it simple. Also, negotiate with the event space. They may have a less expensive alternative than what you have found. A dozen LED "up-lights" and a few spot lights combined with candles on each table really make the banquet hall look impressive and festive!
Centerpieces can be expensive, especially if you demand a whole tropical forest of blooms! Stick with things that are shiny and give off light! A few flowers are great but many places have decorations that can be made available for just the cost of labor and clean up. Most banquet halls will insist that you purchase good quality candles that do not "smoke". Remember that cheap candles produce black soot that can reportedly set off the smoke alarms! Also, plan to "reuse" the flowers from the ceremony if it is not held at the reception venue. Obviously this involves some logistical challenges, but it can be done without disrupting the arriving guests if planned ahead of time.
Weddings are wonderful events. But the costs involve are stressful to many brides and grooms. By doing a bit of planning and choosing wisely, you can have a very memorable wedding and still afford your honeymoon!
No comments:
Post a Comment