Okay ya'll this is going to be a somewhat lengthy "by the numbers" post, but I'll have the breakdown at the end. Our original budget was $20k; with WW estimating our costs to be over $22k. We came in at $17,788 when we were all said and done. We did not include bridal shower (paid by bridesmaids and my mom), rehearsal dinner (paid by husband's parents), or honeymoon in our original budget.
Venue: We got incredibly lucky with our venue and saved $3450! Over a quarter of our guest list were unable to attend for various reasons and the venue honored their 2018 contracts instead of the 2019 one. I would also like to point out, as part of their gift, my parents paid the $3k deposit.
Photographer: Again, we got incredibly lucky. A friend of mine is a photographer and jumped at the chance to help us out. I don't know exactly how much we saved monetarily, but she certainly saved me from the headache of trying to find a photographer on my own.
Flowers 
: Here we went a little over budget but it was all entirely worth it to me. We chose a local florist who works from home- saving us over $300 compared to others in our area for the same order.
Decorations: This is where my thrifting and bargain hunting came into play. As we only needed minimal decorations (our venue would already be set up for the holidays), I knew this could be obtainable. Between sales, coupons, thrifting, and good ol' fashioned bargain hunting we were able to save over $360! We've also started reselling some of our decorations to recoup on those costs.
Dress: Now this is where we definitely went a little overboard! I always imagined myself in something sweet and simple for a reasonable price. Nope.... $750 before alterations! (thankfully Mom & Dad paid for those haha). I did however get it on sale, saving $100.
Accessories: Another moment for my bargain hunting skills to shine. My hair comb, shoes, and belt were my only accessories in which saved $54 thanks to sales.
FHs Suit: Completely FREE!!! If you haven't already, I high suggest looking into Men's Wearhouse for your guys' attire. When you dress 7+ people in your party, the groom gets his rental for free. This saved us over $190!
DJ: I cannot begin to thank our friends for all of their help in our wedding. My husband's boss, and our friend, is a musician and loves tech. He saved us hundreds, if not thousands, by doing our wedding for FREE! He already had the equipment, and all he asked was that we provided playlists and to keep the drinks coming during the reception haha.
Stationary: To being with, we stuck to just STDs and invitation suites only. No programs, escort cards, menus, etc. With Vistaprint sales, and free postage from work, we saved over $280!
Rings 
: My husband and I are not fancy people by any means; we just wanted to find something that reflected our personalities. Thanks to sales on Etsy, we were able to get both of our rings for only $190.
Chair Rentals: This was something we needed to bring into our venue as theirs would not be able to accommodate to our guest list in the allotted space. They did however provide us with an affordable referral, who came in $300 cheaper than their competitors.
Officiant: Seriously, our friends are amazing! My husband's best friend was so excited to marry us, all he asked was that we reimburse him for the fees he paid to become ordained. $50 to a close friend vs. hundreds to pay a stranger.... that was a no-brainer.
Hotel: The hotel in which we had our room block had no minimums or attrition in their contract; so there were big savings there. They also provided us with a discounted suite for 2 nights, saving us about $130 compared to their normal room rates.
Bridal Party Gifts 
: More bargain hunting here... Thanks to sales and coupons, my husbands and I saved over $320 on our bridal party gifts for 5 groomsmen, 4 bridesmaids, 1 flower girl, and our officiant.
Final Numbers
