Planning A Wedding For Dummies. Sarah Lizabeth BarkerЧитать онлайн книгу.

For example, you’re a lover of food so the food must be top notch; you don’t really care if you have a video so a videographer is low on your list; you want an amazing dress that makes you feel incredibly beautiful; you’re not a fan of stationery and want simple invitations; you want your guests to dance all night long so an amazing DJ or band is a must-have. We’ll customize your budget soon to fit your needs and desires for the big day.

Determining what’s most important and least important to you is a key factor in determining your budget. Our focus now is to put most of your money on the pieces that are most important to you and save on those that are least important. There’s no need to spend a ton of money on something you don’t care about. That’s what’s wrong with the standard formulas. If something isn’t important to you, why spend the money they tell you to spend on it? Why not apply that money to something that really matters to you?

I had a client who wanted simple flowers and must have told me that a thousand times during our planning meetings. She didn’t even like flowers and would often break out because she was allergic. Somewhere along the way, someone in her life told her she needed extravagant florals. But why would she need elaborate flower arrangements if she didn’t want elaborate flower arrangements? Was it to impress the guests? Why do we do that?

Of course we’ll keep your guests in mind when planning your big day, but if you’re planning something to simply impress your guests, remove that as a motivation right now. If I’ve learned anything in life, it is that you cannot and will not make everyone happy. Additionally, your friendship shouldn’t be about who’s impressing whom. This is a special day in your life and those who are invited should love you no matter if you serve filet mignon or chicken.

How did it end up for my client? She overspent on flowers and ended up with a lovely case of hives on her wedding day. All to make someone else in her life happy.

Focus on who you are as a couple, and budget together. In your marriage, you will have to budget. You’ll also have to have conversations about what you’ll spend your money on. Use budgeting for your wedding as practice for money management in your marriage.

Figuring Out Who’s Paying

If I was a gambler, I would bet on the fact that talking about or asking for money isn’t your favorite thing to do. Most people don’t want to ask for financial help, which makes you normal. When planning a wedding and determining your budget, it’s important to have those sometimes uncomfortable conversations so you know exactly what you have to work with.

The first step in determining your budget is to consider all your options regarding financial contributions. Traditionally, the bride’s parents pay for the wedding, but that may not be your situation for any number of reasons. In this section we’ll explore a few options for who pays the bill.

Parents of the bride: If the parents of the bride are financially able to pay for the wedding, sit down with them and determine how much is too much. They may or may not be able to tell you an actual number because there are moving pieces to any wedding budget, but they should be able to let you know the max they can financially commit to. When you receive that number, you can determine how many guests you’ll need to fit into that budget. The total amount they’re willing to pay should include everything that we’ll discuss in the next section.

Stepparents: If you’re part of a blended family, it’s appropriate to discuss with all parties involved and seek financial contributions for your wedding. Each set of parents will be able to tell you what they can financially commit to and that will give you your total budget. If this is your situation, consider opening a wedding checking account where you can deposit all the funds into one account. This way you won’t have to keep track of which parent contributed what and you’ll have all your wedding funds in one place.

Parents of the groom: I have worked with several clients who resource the groom’s parents to pay for the wedding expenses. Whatever the situation, it’s perfectly appropriate for the groom’s parents to cover the cost of the wedding if that’s what works best.

Close relatives: If you have a close relative who wants to contribute to the wedding, consider factoring this into the total wedding budget. Often there’s a bonus mom or dad who wants to contribute as a mother or father would, and using those contributions toward your wedding or honeymoon can absolutely maximize your budget.

The couple: Nowadays, it’s very common for the couple to cover the cost of their wedding themselves. The typical age where someone gets married for the first time is later in life, when they have already established their careers and have a nest egg in place. If you’re planning to pay for your wedding yourselves, please do not go into debt over your wedding. Stay within your means and accept any contributions from family or friends. Save your money for future projects when you’re married.

What Does Your Budget Include?

Now for the fun part well, talking about money isn’t always fun, but I’m going to try and make it fun. After you have determined what’s most important to you, it’s time to create your custom budget. Don’t worry — everyone has one. In this section, we’ll discuss what items should be included in a wedding budget, what percentages they should have, adjusting the percentages to fit your needs and forming your own budget.

Let’s start with what’s included. The right column of Table 3-3 lists items typically part of a wedding budget. In the left column, put an X, a check mark, or a smiley face (whichever you prefer) if you need that to be included in your overall budget.

TABLE 3-3 What’s Included in Your Wedding Budget?

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Do You Need This In Your Budget?	Budget Items
	Wedding dress & accessories
	Tux
	Bridesmaids attire
	Groomsmen attire
	Flower Girl attire
	Ring bearer attire
	Ceremony venue fee
	Ceremony musicians
	Officiant
	Guest book
	Florist: Flowers for the ceremony
	Aisle runner, candles, accessories for the ceremony
	Marriage license
	Reception venue fee