We all have our ideas of what happens at a wedding. Often, these concepts are shaped by what’s been perpetuated by movies and bridal magazines.
There’s nothing wrong with adhering to tradition, but these customs can be pretty costly. If a practice doesn’t mean anything to you, don’t feel pressured to include it in your wedding. Here are four wedding customs you may want to omit if you’re on a strict budget.
- The bigger the diamond, the happier the bride.
Tradition dictates that you ought to spend the equivalent of three months’ income on the engagement ring, which has rendered anything under $5,000 to be considered “inexpensive”. Since love can’t be measured by the amount of zeros on a price tag, consider spending less on the ring. According to a 2014 study, spending between $500 and $2,000 decreases the chance of divorce. Check out I Do Now I Don’t for pre-owned engagement and wedding bands sold by divorcees. You can find plenty of affordable rings, alongside expensive examples of money not being able to buy happiness. - Your bouquet is a predictor of love.
Flowers may not be your primary concern in regards to excess spending; you’re probably more worried about dropping a fortune on a gown or a venue. Think of it this way: a bouquet typically costs around $100. If you have some wiggle room in your budget, then feel free to toss an extra hundred bucks at women who won’t think twice about ripping and tearing. Save a little extra by skipping this part of the ceremony. - You have to pay for your bridal party’s attire.
Nope. If you want to cover the costs of bridesmaid dresses and groomsmen tuxes, feel free to do so, but you aren’t obliged to. However, if members of your wedding party are saddled with travel expenses, footing the bill on their outfit is a kind gesture. Help your bridesmaids out: don’t impose a particular boutique dress they have to buy themselves. Let them know what color dress to buy; maybe they’ll already have something cute in their closet! - You need a tall, tiered wedding cake.
If you want to stick to the status quo, you only need the cake topper to cut together and save for your first anniversary. Forego the fondant covered tower and served sliced sheet cake—which you likely won’t spend more than $100 on. You can cut a smaller cake for tradition’s sake and supplement the top layer with iced styrofoam tiers.
