Hey ladies!! Today marks 2 months of being married, so I though I’d share our BAM!
Here’s the general budget breakdown (it’s not including everything we paid for; and we were gifted a lot of decor items and services from friends and relatives):
Dress—360 from David’s Bridal (it was originally 1000)
Alterations—210, +70 for modesty piece material, from a local seamstress
My shoes—30 from David’s Bridal
His Suit—90 from H&M
My engagement ring—200
My wedding ring—200 from Etsy
His wedding ring—160 from Etsy
Flowers—100 from Costco
Sheet cake for guests—40 from Costco
Invites & save the dates & rsvp cards—80 at Office Max
Table numbers, seating chart, and guest book prompts—30 from Office Max
Bridesmaid pearl necklaces—100 from Etsy
Our getting ready robes—45 from Aliexpress
Bridesmaid pashminas—25 from Etsy
My faux fur stole—70 from Etsy
Reception venue—120, the high school auditorium that my mom works at
Ceremony venue—900, a local church
Photographer—500 +100 for tip, Isabelle Grace Photography
Decorations—1000 (thrift shops, Sam’s Club/Costco, Amazon, etc)
Master and Mistress of Ceremonies—50 (my aunt offered)
Officiant—50 (my uncle offered)
I don’t know how much catering or beverages cost us because we forgot to go over those numbers (and my parents paid for it)
All in all, I’d say we spent somewhere between $6,000 and $10,000 on this wedding, with my husband and I contributing around $2,000 (not including our mini honeymoon, which was about $1,000), my grandparents contributing $2,000, and my sister and parents paying the rest.
We tried to keep it at a super low cost, and I think we did alright haha. We went a bit over budget in some areas, and not enough in others.
It was a beautiful day!!
The bad: We were all a bit late; my husband overslept by an hour; my sister/MOH never had her dress altered so my aunt had to do some makeshift hemming that morning; the best man forgot his suit and didn’t get it until an hour and a half before the ceremony; only one groomsman followed our requested attire; one bridesmaid’s dress was a bit too blue (but it was still beautiful); we missed capturing certain photos because we had to rush since we were running behind schedule; we were too exhausted and nauseous to eat much of our food, and we forgot to have some set aside in to-go containers for our honeymoon; our cake was never decorated fully; we regretted not inviting certain people who we at first didn’t think were close enough to be invited; and we weren’t able to greet each guest by the end of the reception.
The good: my husband cried through most of the ceremony (I always wanted my husband to cry on our wedding day); our photographer and her second shooter were phenomenal, everyone loved their presence, they were very efficient and friendly; so many of our out of town friends and family members were able to make it; the food that we were able to eat was delicious; the message from God’s Word that our officiant gave after he married us was so beautiful and really blessed and encouraged us; even though we were behind schedule, God provided peace of mind for me and my husband (we weren’t that stressed about all the things that went wrong); and best of all, I got to marry my best friend!!
