How did you Finance your wedding

[VelvetKitty]

Did your parents/family help?
Did you have a special savings account for your dream day?
Did you take out a loan?
Did you put it on you credit cards?
Did you work two three jobs to pay for what you wanted?


Please forgive me if this topic already exist and thank you soooooo much in advance for your response. I also hope this isn't a touchy subject.

~Keisha

[September7bride]

Keisha, it's an important question, that each B2B will have a variety of responses to.

We initially started off booking our vendors and setting up a payment schedule with each one. Every month they were paid accordingly and when able, paid extra. Blessings were added when our parents jumped on board, paying for our reception site and honeymoon. :bawling: We could not have asked for a better present.

Had they not assisted, we would have still had the wedding of our dreams but on a slightly smaller scale.

My advice to any bride and groom planning is to be realistic about your budget and prioritize your list of wants according to what's most important. For us the church, reception site and photographer were at the top of the list, I wasn't a huge flower person so silks were just fine for me and my mom told me she wanted a corsage she could keep, so that made having a DIY project to keep the wedding stress down just what I needed.

Be savvy in your planning and in your saving. Do what's most important to you and your groom, not what's expected or not because everyone else is doing it. You want your wedding day to reflect all there is about you as the couple.

I don't advocate taking out loans and bending credit cards for bank rolling your wedding. After the wedding is over the marriage begins and having wedding debt hanging over your head is more stressful than anything for a newly married couple.

[VelvetKitty]

Thanks for the feedback Mo :)

[September7bride]

One more thing ... well I have a ton more to say, but this one thing in particular. When folks hear "wedding" everyone wants to help, which is fantastic to your ears vocally, just make sure they are "reliable" people because when crunch time rolls around you don't want to be searching for folks. I know there are some AMENS somewhere on this board.

[AlsWife]

AMEN Moe :yesyes:


NO CREDIT CARDS IF YOU CAN HELP IT.!!!!!!! You do have to live after the wedding ok.....

Like Moe said, don't advocate taking out loans and bending credit cards for bank rolling your wedding. After the wedding is over the marriage begins and having wedding debt hanging over your head is more stressful than anything for a newly married couple.

Know what within your budget you and FH and afford, Set those $$$$$ now, weather you have a$5,000 budget or a $50,000 wedding

Now, starting early is always a good thing. Al and I paid for our wedding with help from from my parents (Reception site and my dress).. (We started putting monies away (special acct) soon after he ask me to marry him.

But paying off your vendors who you know you are going to use. Al and I did payments on a monthly or every other month depending on how our monies was flowing Set this up with our vendors (Photographers, Videographer, Florist, Limo's, Honeymoon (Travel Agent) and the Biggie "Reception Hall").. But coming together with you FH is so important with the MONIES, you both must agree together on this matter.

Bargain shopping was a biggie for me, Ebay, $1 store and few other places over a period of time of 8 months I had purchase a lot of things I needed for the wedding until waiting until the last minute...

That's my 2cents for now.. I think:)

Smooches
Phyllis

[DaWright1]

we will be using cash (no charging whatsoever)...we are setting up an account..putting our income tax and some one of our 401k to pay for it ....our buget is 5000....and I think we may be way under that....I am determined.....

Moe's comment about everyone wanting to help is so true and they are ususally the one;s with the big ideas....but we see no money

[Ronni]

Be savvy in your planning and in your saving. Do what's most important to you and your groom, not what's expected or not because everyone else is doing it. You want your wedding day to reflect all there is about you as the couple.

I don't advocate taking out loans and bending credit cards for bank rolling your wedding. After the wedding is over the marriage begins and having wedding debt hanging over your head is more stressful than anything for a newly married couple.

I can't agree with anyone more than I agree with Moe and I am "in the business".

Decide what is important to you. Prioritize. I splurged on flowers and invitations. Nothing else was important to me, but I was determined to pay cash for just about everything and I did.

Ok, now for your questions:

Did your parents/family help? At the very last minute, my Mom paid the balance for my flowers, which was a great help b/c they were one of my most expensive items, but it wasn't planned.

Did you have a special savings account for your dream day? Yes! It was kind of like a travel/christmas club. At least, that's how I was able to save. I put a set amount in every week and by the time I had to start paying folks, the money was there.

Did you take out a loan? No

Did you put it on you credit cards? Only the deposit for my dress, but I paid it as soon as I got the bill then paid the rest in cash as I went for fittings.

Did you work two three jobs to pay for what you wanted? No, I refused to.

[VelvetKitty]

Thank you ladies for your feedback. Andrew and I are trying to see how we're going to do this. So far no one has offered to help us and we are trying to see ho we are going to pay for this. Thank you once more

[shamma]

Roger and I saved for 16 months and paid for everything in cash. We decided what was important and those things we splurged on. The food, the photo, the music and of course my flowers. The place was great too. I Would do it the same way if I had to do it over and of course with the same groom :brow:

[raina]

We were like Moe. We set up monthly payment plans. We had everything paid for 30 days before the wedding. My mother paid for our flowers. Then at the wedding my mother and step mother paid for the extra 75 people that did not rsvp for the wedding. :rolleyes: Gotta love family.