by Akua Hinds

Created on: April 07, 2010

In today’s economy, many people are carefully watching their pennies and thinking twice before spending money lavishly.  There are many reality shows on television depicting brides who are determined to have expensive, splashy wedding ceremonies that they can’t afford.  Many times on these shows, the engaged couples argue so much about the cost of the wedding that a huge strain is put on the relationship.  Weddings can be costly, but they should not cost more than a person’s entire salary.  The main purpose of a wedding is to publicly declare love for your future life mate.  Sadly, many people are too busy trying to perfect and glamorize the ceremony instead of focusing on the stability of the relationship.  Over half of marriages end in divorce, some ending before the entire cost of the wedding was paid in full!  Big weddings are usually not worth the cost and the amount of money spent on large ceremonies is usually regretted by the bride and groom after the wedding ceremony is over.  A wedding isn’t tangible; you can’t hold it in your hand once it is over.  All that will be left are memories and hope for the future.  However, some couples are so insistent that a large expensive wedding is necessary for them that they delay getting married until they can afford an expensive wedding.  People who think this way are missing the point of being married.  Many couples break up because of financial troubles, and going in to debt or using all of your life savings on a wedding ceremony can cause future financial disaster. 

Most wedding expenses are spent on food and beverages for the reception, entertainment, photographs, flowers and hiring a videographer.  If your guest list is over 300 people, shop around for deals from various vendors to get the most reasonable price before hiring workers for your wedding.  If there are people on your guest list who you rarely speak to, regardless of the relationship, save your money by considering taking them off the guest list.  If they are real friends of yours, they’ll understand being taken off will save you money and make you happier in the long run.  You can always show them the wedding pictures later to make them feel better.  Making your wedding an alcohol free affair is highly recommendable if your family members and friends get out of control if they are intoxicated, but if you must serve alcohol, use common sense.  Having a cash bar policy will keep more money in your wallet because one of the worst things you can do is pay a $3000 bill just so your friends can drink at your wedding. 

A wedding day should be the day you get to spend showing people how much you love your partner in a religious or civil ceremony.  A successful marriage is not based on how expensive the wedding day was.   Some successfully married couples had weddings that cost less than $500 total.  If you are forced to have a small wedding ceremony now because of finances, you can always renew your vows in front of a larger crowd of loved ones on your tenth anniversary.  Your wedding day shouldn’t be turned in to a circus, and the smaller the guest list and the lower the cost of the festivities, the more likely that the wedding will go off without a hitch. 

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