If there is a simple fact of life, this is one of them: Weddings cost money.  A lot of money.  So when I got engaged at 25 years old, I recognized that fact.  But I don’t think I comprehended just what weddings cost until I began to actually search.  And I should probably also mention that I am luckier than a lot of people my age.  I have two parents offering to foot the bill for my wedding.  But that is within a strict budget.

I do a lot of reading online about other people’s weddings.  I’m a female, it’s what I do, get over it.  I got in my head that I wanted to have my wedding at the Please Touch Museum in Fairmount Park (Philadelphia).  Then their wedding coordinator sent me an email.  I could literally see my wedding dreams going up in smoke.

I don’t know what you’re throwing in your chicken parmesan if you want me to pay you $250 to serve it to my family.  Do you make it with gold?  Does Channing Tatum himself prepare, cook, and serve my dinner? Because if you are charging me that much money per plate, after asking me to give you $5,000 to rent your hall, there had better be a Magic Mike reenactment somewhere during my reception.

After touring seven different venues, I finally found somewhere that gives me what I am looking for within my budget.  I then began to search for photographers.  Holy hell! Everything adds up quickly.  But, I should probably mention that I am not willing to compromise on this either.  I dabble in photography, so finding a good photographer is a top priority for me.  I’ve spoken to three different photographers to date, all with prices starting at $3000.  Let me try and get that past my parents.  I can hear them already… “Do you know what I could do with three grand?!”

Pictures are not JUST pictures!  They are all you have left from the day, pictures matter.  And trust me, I’ve seen some jacked up wedding photos.  I don’t want to be the memes that Kate laughs at later when she’s on her break from work.

But since the theme of Kate’s blog is shopping on a budget, I will also share the few savings I’ve had so far!

My venue is including flowers for our center pieces, and ceremony site, which saves us a ton of money to begin with.  But they also work with the same florist that we wanted to use anyway and they will give us 20% off of any additional flowers we order, so bouquets, boutonnieres, etc are discounted! Score!

Here’s another tip for those soon to be engaged: pay attention at any weddings you attend for vendors you might like. I’m choosing a DJ from a previous wedding that will offer us a photo booth and his DJ services as a package deal, and discount for a repeat booking.  Plus my brother-in-law knows his wife, so we’re hoping for a little magic there too!