Your wedding is one of the most beautiful and memorable events in your life. However, it can also be a very expensive affair that could cause unnecessary stress for you and your new spouse almost immediately.
According to the wedding magazine “The Knot,” the average cost of weddings in the United States in 2020 was $19,000, with couples spending as much as $244 per guest.
If you want to get married but don’t want to shell out thousands of dollars, there is a way you can have a cost-affordable wedding. Don’t spend a fortune renting a fairy-tale venue and have your wedding at home instead. This can help you save thousands and be more flexible with arrangements.
Below are five ways you can have a beautiful and cost-affordable wedding at home.
1. Consider Flow
One thing home wedding planners always consider is the flow of the event. You don’t want gets congregate in certain places and you want food and drinks to make it to them quite easily. Therefore, you need to map out your house and see where you should put cordons and where it’s easy to set up stations for food and drinks.
For example, if you’ve recently improved the interiors of your garden room, you could direct guests there as a staging area before they proceed to the garden. See if your kitchen has easy access to both indoor staging areas and the yard so waitstaff can ferry trays without delay.
Finally, you must have a bathroom that can be easily accessed from the first floor. This will prevent guests from traipsing upstairs and not be an imposition on people with disabilities or older adults.
2. Spruce up the Garden
Your garden is the ideal place for your home wedding. Unless you have a mansion or a particularly small guest list, it will be almost impossible to hold the ceremony and reception indoors comfortably. There is also an added health benefit to hosting your wedding in the garden. Despite vaccination programs, the risk of COVID-19 is still pretty much there. However, this risk is significantly decreased outdoors, as multiple medical studies have confirmed.
You will need to set up a place for the ceremony to happen, usually signified with an arch, and set out as many chairs as needed. String up some fairy lights or lamps if you are holding the wedding in the evening. It might also be a good idea to have the reception lunch or dinner out there as well so rent a few tables and set up the flatware.
3. Make Your Own Material
Another great way to cut costs is to make your own programs, gift bags, and other knickknacks you plan on handing out during the wedding. There are plenty of guides you can consult online if you want to come up with creative and unique gift bags. There are even plenty of free templates for DIY wedding programs you could browse while you’re at it.
Even other items, such as table decorations and flower arrangements, can all be made by you and a few trusted friends. You could make an event of it yourself. Invite members of your wedding party, be it, bridesmaids or groomsmen, over for brunch and light drinks while they assist in making the small details that could make your wedding even more magical.
4. Whip Up a Playlist
You will need to provide entertainment for your guests but you may not have room in your budget for a DJ much less a whole band. Luckily enough, you can still ensure you have the right music for dancing and the ceremony if you have a speaker system and a laptop.
You don’t even need to have a particularly expensive system since your event will be held in a small space a microphone will be unnecessary. Simply make a playlist with the music you need for the march down the aisle, the wedding ceremony itself, and for dancing afterward.
You can delegate a member of the wedding party or a family member to play the appropriate music at the right time. You’ll be amazed how this can work effectively in giving your wedding the tunes it needs without setting you back hundreds of dollars.
5. Fill Up on Canapes
You need to feed guests even before the reception because wedding ceremonies tend to take a couple of hours at most. You don’t need to break the bank with expensive treats like caviar and fondues, but you also shouldn’t skimp on the food. A great way you can ensure people are satiated without becoming too expensive is to come up with a selection of delicious canapes to serve beforehand.
Canapes are small bread or pastry morsels you can eat with a couple of bites, loaded with toppings. Affordable but delicious toppings include slices of ham with cheese, cream cheese, and herb combinations, and spicy tuna on top of baguette circles.
Your wedding can be beautiful without breaking the bank. Having your wedding at home removes unnecessary stress, costs, and complications from your happiest day.
