You Can Save Big and Still Have an Amazing Wedding

Here are some creative ideas on how to save big on your ideal Boston wedding without giving up what you want. You may also find some fresh suggestions that will make for a truly memorable event. Plus, the money you save can go toward a more amazing honeymoon, a new home for you and your spouse, or a nest egg for your future endeavors.

We combed the internet to provide you with the best of the best in innovative ideas that will help you save big. These ideas include do it yourself solutions (DIY), where you can find the best discounts, how to enlist friends and family to help and lots of other ideas that will make your wedding not only easier to afford, but more enjoyable to plan.

A good place to start is with your big-ticket items. It is entirely possible to knock hundreds of dollars (or more) off of your biggest wedding expenses such as:

• Venues (ceremony as well as the reception)
• Food (per-person plate prices vs. buffet, depending on the location as one can be more expensive than the other)
• Alcohol (specify a time for free drinks, then have a cash bar for the rest of the reception)
• Photography
• Flowers
• Gown and tuxedo

When you find the right discounts and use these tips to find the best deals, you can almost cut your wedding costs in half. Consider the intangible as well, such as your wedding date. If you shorten the timeline to your wedding, you may actually save more money. Booking more than six months out can tie up large deposits for bigger ticket wedding items and reduce any potential discount you could negotiate with a venue.

Don’t forget to plan for the items that are often missed in a wedding budget, such as accessories (jewelry, gloves, undergarments, shoes, fancy veils), hair and makeup, stationery, gown and tuxedo alterations, post-wedding albums, cake cutting and corking fees, just to name a few. Click here to read the list of common wedding expenses you can account for in your budget.

Be aware of the expected costs and planning your wedding will flow much easier and you will have more fun while you’re doing it. Now, onto more ideas on how to save big on your Boston wedding.

One of the best ways to discover creative solutions to cutting wedding expenses is by reflecting you and your fiancé’s personalities, interests, style or vocational focus. For example, if a couple both grew up on horse ranches in Utah, consider having your reception in a barn or at an apple farm outside of Boston. Or, if you’re both die-hard Red Sox fans, consider having an after party (or even your reception depending on guest count) at one of Boston’s best sports bars or venues.

Not only will you have something very creative that you can use as a theme for your wedding, but the unique location will be a nice departure from the typical wedding reception venue. Seeking out distinctive spots for your wedding can save you a bundle and take you to some of the most scenic places around the Boston and Cape Cod area. (There are quite a few listed in our “27 Top-Rated Boston Wedding Venues 2018” guide if you haven’t read it yet, get it here for free.)

Artsy or creative couples can have some real fun with color and non-traditional wardrobes. Go simple. Have fun—wear sneakers instead of dress shoes—and invite your guests to do the same. You can still look amazing while reflecting your personal style through the choices you make for your wardrobe, venue and decor.

A very special and memorable way to pull your wedding together on a budget and save big is to borrow from friends and family, or even from your own stash. Have your wedding at a friend’s or relative’s house. Set up a casual, inviting reception area in the backyard with holiday lights and heirloom linens from your grandmother’s attic.

For couples on a super tight budget, consider a potluck reception with BYOB drinks as opposed to pricey catering. Your reception will be more relaxed, casual and family-friendly. Make it fun by asking people to share their favorite recipes. You may need to spend a little extra time coordinating who brings what, but for the right wedding couple, a potluck reception could be the perfect cash saver.

Who do you know that could be your photographer? Have a super organized friend who could act as your wedding planner? Are there any musicians or DJs in your network? You can invite friends with wedding-related skills or businesses to do their thing and help them promote their service to your guests. It can be a win-win for everyone by saving you money and giving them more exposure.

Many couples drop elements of their wedding that they just don’t have the budget for or really don’t feel they need. These “dropped” items may include favors, place cards, wedding planner, limousines (try shuttle transportation for your wedding guests instead), a musical trio, flowers at the ceremony and/or reception (but still have bouquets for the wedding party), valet service—some are even ditching the cake!

Here’s another thing you could drop: having your wedding on a weekend. If you schedule your wedding during the week, you could save quite a bit and also open up a variety of potential dates. Make sure to plan in advance, however, so your guests can make arrangements to attend a weekday event. This also goes for having your wedding off-season. In New England, weddings are very popular in the warmer summer and early fall months. Because of demand, many venues and wedding vendors increase their prices during those times. Schedule your wedding during non-peak seasons and reap the savings.

By evaluating what is most important for your wedding and reception you can find opportunities to eliminate items that just don’t make sense for your style or that you feel your guests wouldn’t miss.

When planning your wedding, consider simpler ways of doing things. What do you have that you could repurpose? How about having your reception at your home or a friend’s home? Do you really need to have 200 guests? What about creating a much more intimate experience by inviting only fifty of your very closest friends and relatives? Consider having a small intimate wedding and later throwing a more informal and inexpensive post-wedding party for a larger group of friends.

Take photography as an example. Cut back on investing in a formal wedding photographer and invite your guests to use their phones to capture stills and video of your entire day. Provide them a website to upload their content such as a closed Facebook group. Some of the best candid moments can be captured by those attending your event—you can take photos as well and add them to your online album.

What about designing and crafting your own place cards, invitations or thank you notes? Why not have a pizza night and invite your crafty and creative friends to spend an evening creating favors or decorations for the reception? Capture it on camera and it can be another fun memory planning your wedding with people you love.

One tip we hear over and over from brides is that when looking for ways to save on your wedding items, always ask. It never hurts to inquire about a discount or a bundle to get more of what you’d really like to have for your wedding. Because you’ll be working with a budget, be upfront and honest with your vendor. Tell them what your budget is and ask them if they can do anything with the price.

Many vendors also extend discounts if you use one of their preferred partners. For example, if you book their venue for your reception, they may have a photographer or caterer that they could bundle into your booking to save you even more.

If you don’t ask, you may be leaving money on the table or turning down a better alternative. Remember you and your vendors are there for a business deal. They would rather try to accommodate your budget than lose the business altogether. Communicate with them so it’s a win-win all around.

When asking vendors to improve their pricing, you can leverage your network by sending them referrals as a result of doing business with them. Talk them up on social media. Tell them you’ll post pictures of you enjoying their product or service and link to their website. Coordinate a coupon deal with them—become a marketer for your vendor and you may get an even bigger discount because you’ll be helping them with future sales.

If your wedding is far enough out, shop season-end, year-end or post-holiday sales. When stores are clearing their shelves, you can stock up on items you can use for decor such as candles, napkin rings, gifts for your bridesmaids, stationery—even bottles of wine are cheaper after the year-end holidays are over.

Search for items online that you may have found at a retail store. You may find the same or better online for much cheaper. Remember to include enough time for customization (if it’s something that requires engraving or custom printing) and delivery.

In this digital world, just about every wedding-related vendor will have some sort of email list they want you to register for. Whether it’s a website like The Knot or Brides magazine or a local restaurant you’re considering for your reception or after party, if you sign up to receive their newsletter, coupons or a rewards program, you may be surprised at how much you can save.

Go online and search “wedding coupons” and “wedding prize drawings”. You can also attend bridal shows and toss your info into fishbowls for drawings to win prizes or to receive larger discounts from wedding vendors. You can learn more about the biggest Boston wedding expos by visiting their respective sites or searching “wedding expo”. Here are a few to get you started:

• Massachusetts Bridal and Wedding Expo (usually in January)
• New England Bridal Affair (several events throughout Mass)
• Great Bridal Expo (usually in the fall)

Hate spam? Here’s a trick: create a separate, generic email address (like pamswedding@gmail.com) you can use for all of your wedding planning. After your wedding, you can delete the account and not worry about getting an endless stream of marketing emails.

Remember that in the end, this is your wedding. Yes, there are traditions and norms for typical weddings, however, you don’t have to follow them. You don’t have to blow your budget, either. You can design a gathering that reflects you and your fiancé’s style and save money by being creative. You’ll have a memory to last a lifetime and still have money in the bank.

Congratulations and all the best from your friends here at TransAction Corporate Shuttles.

We’d be thrilled to help you with any transportation needs for your wedding or any of your other wedding-related events.

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