Walk down the aisle for less

by CCCS on 24 November 2010  |  4 comments
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Find out how you can save money on your wedding day and prevent yourself from getting into masses of debt...

It’s about time that we had some good news amongst all the doom and gloom of the current economic climate. The recent announcement that Prince William and Kate Middleton are to be married next April has certainly put a smile back on a lot of people’s faces.

It has ended months of wondering whether they will ever make it down the aisle as they have been together for eight years since meeting as students at St Andrews University.

Anti-monarchy group Republic said taxpayers should not have to pay any money towards the event and we’ve been told that the couple will consider the current economic times in their wedding planning.

Buckingham Palace have said that they will be "very sensitive" to the economic climate when making its plans and it will not be on the lavish scale of Prince William’s parents’ wedding in 1981, despite the Westminster Abbey location.

(On a positive note, the forthcoming royal wedding is expected to boost our economy with the demand for souvenirs and memorabilia.)

A big day can be frugal

For most of us, if we’re hoping to get married, we don’t have the luxury of wedding planners or the pressure of making it a national celebration. However, Weddingplan estimated last year that couples can expect to pay £21,089 on their big day. And as a result, many of us can end up in a lot of debt.

However, it doesn’t have to cost so much with careful planning and savvy know-how.

Here are nine tips for a thrifty wedding that won’t break the bank:

• Reduce the costs of your stag or hen do by keeping it to an evening rather than a whole weekend
• Ask friends or family to offer their services. Can Auntie Madge bake the wedding cake or has Uncle Fred got vintage car in the garage?
• Use charity shops such as Oxfam to look for designer wedding dress bargains
• Don’t have hordes of bridesmaids, best men, ushers and flower girls – each one adds a dress/suit cost (and might also expect a present for helping out)
• Consider using Facebook or email to invite friends to the evening celebrations to save money on extra invitations
• Instead of paying for a wedding album, ask for a CD with all the shots so you can get creative and make it yourself, or use an online photo-sharing service such as Flickr.
• Give a personal touch to your ‘favours’ by shopping on eBay
• Don’t pay for a cheesy DJ – create your own playlist on your IPod
• Instead of wedding presents, ask for money towards the cost of your honeymoon

And finally, think carefully before tying the knot, because if you think weddings are expensive divorce can cost even more. It can be prudent to consider divorce insurance!

Here’s hoping that Prince William isn’t thinking about this at this happy time,  but we’d love to know your stories – have you got any tips for a budget wedding or have you been a guest at a particularly frugal one?