1. Send your invites & save the dates by emailWedding stationary can be an extremely expensive affair if you go for a tailor-made option. You could end up paying as much as 2 euros per card excluding postage which means for a 100 guest wedding you could end up paying as much as 300 euros on invites and postage or double that if you have decided to send out save the dates too. If you are computer savvy, you could create your own invite using adobe Photoshop, illustrator, Microsoft’s Publisher, Powerpoint or Mac’s iwork Pages programme that you can either send as an attachment or paste into the body of an email. You could even get a professional invite made for you by a graphic designer for around 100 euros.
2. Hold your wedding on a week day
Saturday is the most popular wedding day as it does not necessitate guests getting a day off work. Due to the fact that it is the most demanded day, Saturday is also the most expensive. There can be considerable discounts to be had in certain wedding venues on week days.
3. Have your wedding off season
Between the months of October and April, venue prices will be considerably less than during the summer months of May to September. An Autumn, Spring or Winter wedding can be as beautiful as a Summer wedding and you can theme your wedding to match the season. In addition, both flights for guests coming from abroad and accommodation will both be cheaper off season.
4. Be your own DJ
With an ipod or computer and a decent sound system, you have everything you need to be your very own DJ at your wedding reception. For song ideas why not ask guests to each request a song in advance and integrate them into your wedding play list. You can even ask guests to bring their own ipod and organise an ipod battle. An ipod battle is when two people compete to play songs that they will believe people will be most receptive to. The winner is the one who gets the most people up dancing.
5. Hire trainees
By contacting educational establishments you can source a load of different suppliers. For hair & beauty, contact a beauty school, get in touch with a catering college for food at your reception, for photography contact an artistic establishment, for filming a school with an audiovisual department, a music conservatoire for a string quartet, a college with a florist course for your wedding flowers… Hiring a student will be considerably less expensive or even completely free and you will be giving a young person a step onto the professional ladder.
6. Play on the shabby chic, vintage look
Vintage shabby chic is so in right now and can be a brilliant money saver as a wedding theme. Go to second hand stores for fun fabrics, decorative objects or even furniture. The possibilities can go as far as your imagination. For a total vintage look, customise your mum’s old wedding dress or look for one in a thrift store.
7. Abandon the seated dinner for a cocktail & canapé party
If your guests are predominantly a young crowd then you should consider going for a cocktail and canapé reception rather than the traditional seated dinner. With a choice of cold and hot, savory and sweet options, allow approximately 15 canapé pieces per person. Include a cheese, cold meets and bread buffet and a pasta bar to provide more substantial options.
8. BYOB
To make sure that your food and drink budget does not get out of control, you could think about asking guests to bring either a bottle of wine or champagne to your wedding reception (1 for each couple). Depending on the type of venue you go for, you may however have to pay a corkage fee.
9. Rent it
Renting at your wedding does not have to stop at the car and the mens’ tuxedos, on the internet there are load of companies who specialise in the rental of bags, jewelry and accessories. You can even rent a designer wedding dress that you would never to be able to afford normally.
10. Utilise your entourage
If you have an opera singer friend, if you know an amazing cook, if your future brother-in-law is a budding photographer, your cousin is a hairdresser or your sister is fantastic at handy crafts, then use the talents of the people in your entourage to help you organise your wedding.
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