5 Important Tips For Getting Married On a Budget

in #life6 years ago

I have never been much of a party planner.

To start with, attending the party itself is a lot to ask of me, not to mention planning it.
Do you know how much goes into what may turn out to be just two or three hours mini trip outside one’s house? All that traffic wading and flawless look goals we are made to aspire to these days? 

God forbid one doesn't apply the right shade of lipstick or that you use the kind of foundation that doesn’t match your complexion. How about the many uncomfortable dress styles just to ‘slay’ (everything has to be on point for nice ‘shareable’ pictures for Facebook and the gram).


See, don’t even get me started. I can state a thousand reasons why I will rather stay back at home being tugged on both ends by my energetic toddler and infant, while I try very much to focus on the 100th rerun of ‘The Fighting Temptation’.
Realistically though, parties are a big part of the Nigerian society and there are some of them we cannot even escape like weddings, funerals etc. I must also add that parties are actually capable of releasing some really cheerful hormones that can make one forget one’s worries in the moment. Parties make long lasting memories like I remember the velvet puffy gown I wore to my Uncle’s wedding when I was seven. In my small mind, I felt I pulled off looking like a royalty but I digress.


Forget hiring a planner or whatever works for you, the best you can do for ‘unwilling guests’ such as myself that sacrificed their ‘solitude’ and many other things they could have been doing to turn up at your party is to throw a really good one.
I am yet to watch the wedding party 2 (please, no spoilers, I’ll get to it soon as I can psyche my lil sis to babysit for one night while I go to indulge) but I can tell from the trailer that throwing that kind of party isn’t cheap.
If you follow our posts here , you would have read a couple of articles that advice for one not to spend all of one’s life savings on the wedding, because there is life just after that and money is a very important aspect of that life.
There are ways you can cut expenses but you need to understand that that the most important thing is to have a plan.

These are other thrifty ideas that you can employ while preparing for your wedding.


1. Your wedding gown: My mum’s wedding gown sits in one inglorious corner of her wardrobe looking like a waste of much needed space and if it wasn’t for the subliminal hoarding spirit she possesses or that extra sentimental nature most of us possess, I am sure that gown would have been disposed by now. Mine also suffered the same fate. Bottomline, these piece of clothing are not worth all those hundreds of thousands we spend on it and if you just rid yourself of all those sentimental reasons, you should consider renting one or looking for a much cheaper one.
2. Invites: I was watching The Real the other day when Adrienne Baillon mentioned that she opted for invites via email for her wedding as opposed to the traditional way of using paper cards. This is a really smart move and a lot of money can get saved this way too because I remember spending a decent amount getting packets of those kind of cards for my wedding. In retrospect, that money could have been spent on other things and we could have saved the earth by being more ‘energy’ conscious(let’s face it, we thrash those cards, even the very artistic ones). There are e-invite sites that do great jobs of reminders and helping to keep track of guestlist.
3. Venue: Oh please! Don’t get me started on just how much money this can consume, you should consider using an outside space at little or no cost. If you have a really large compound, all you would need is a tent .You can also carry your local councillor along to see if you can extend your tents on the roads around you in case your compound isn’t large enough. It is really the experience that matters; there is nothing cool about a venue if the food and entertainment is rubbish, so save some money and concentrate on other things. Take the weather into consideration before taking this decision.
4. Shoes: this can be worth a sum and people might not even notice it, making it a waste of cash. Adrienne on The Real mentioned that she didn’t have to buy shoes because she had a very long gown on, making the shoes invisible. So, since most wedding gowns are long and flowing, thereby concealing one’s shoes, you might save yourself some cash by just using an old pair.
5. Encourage your friends to give gifts that can be used towards the wedding e.g if you have a really chatty friend that can hold a crowd down, why not ask him/her to be the MC. I am not saying to compromise your standards but there are some things that can be crossed off the list if you look in your circle of friends.
I can’t exhaust this really; I would love to learn from your experiences. Kindly share what you did differently that saved you or made you some extra money towards your wedding. 

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I like this post. You said it all. Why do I need all those people, mc, some big expensive venue. Nah, I don't need that.
As for the gown I would rather rent one than buy or sew one. Is just for one day, except am gonna keep it as some form of antique.
Oh no, you don't want know that feeling about having to go to parties. I don't do parties and do not have to invite people because I know no one will come to mine as I don't go for others.

Hahahaha... you will be surprised some people hold no grudges when it comes to attending parties. They will be there.

I love the funfare and all though but i think most things are highly unnecessary

nice post

thank you very much

recently I've been fantasizing about doing the registry thing then just taking over a nice restaurant for the day with family and friends, and that's the wedding. Who say's I can't do that?
What immortal figure set the rules and standards of what a wedding should be!?

We both agree you are from Planet X so yeah the dinner after wedding seem apt for u.lol

very informative post, people spend unnecessarily during weddings and some even get into debt. some things are just not necessary

I am withbyou on this. Thank you for commenting.

I read this post with great interest, but I want to say it is not easy to see a lady that will agree to some of these things you mentioned.
I even have a friend that does the business of wedding gown rentage, but I dont know if she will love to rent such. Also, in this part of the world, such is seen as a "taboo" kindof.

The e-invites seems pretty witty to me. I have never thought of that before. I think that is a good insight. Since it is people that loves you that will come. A friend told me he will put his wedding on weekday too. Lol.
People spend alot on venue. But it is not common to celebrate wedding at ones father compound. However if such is available the money for renting the hall can be put to better use.

And for the ladies shoes, many ladies wont agree to using an old shoes, in my opinion though. But it takes a non-material ladies to agree to all these.

I like your understanding and opinion.

Thank you Turpsy.
My wedding shoes were worn only on that day and any time i see how worn out they are . I ask myself why i spent so much. Same goes for tge gowns.
There are some rental outfits that ptovides very lovely styles too and many times as good as new.

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