Your Dream Wedding For Less Than $10,000

I married the love of my life in October 2017 in front of about 110 of our friends and family for less than $8,000. According to costofwedding.com, the average cost of a wedding in Memphis, TN is $27,639. Many couples are spending much more than this. Keep in mind that you do not want to enter a marriage with wedding debt. Also, there are people who are still paying for weddings and they are no longer married to that person. Hmmm...

I have a few tips that I would recommend to keep the wedding costs down.

1. Limit your guest list

You do not have to invite every single person that you know to your wedding. You do not have to invite coworkers that you do not have a personal relationship with outside of work. You do not have to invite all of your mom's girlfriends especially if mom is not paying for the wedding. You don't have to invite family members that you do not see or talk to on a regular basis. On your wedding day, you want to be surrounded by people who know and love you and your partner and genuinely want to celebrate that love with you.

2. Consider Alternative Catering Options

Have you ever been at a wedding thinking about where you are going to stop for food when it's over? Sometimes wedding food can be bland and boring.There are so many local restaurants in Memphis with amazing food and yes, they cater. Our wedding food was catered by One & Only BBQ and we didn't have traditional barbecue. We served our guests a good mixture of items, there was something for everyone. There was salad, pasta, smoked chicken drummies, sliders, fruit etc. We only spent about $13.50 per person and everyone was full and satisfied. We also had our rehearsal dinner at Gus's Fried Chicken, another local, affordable favorite.

3. DIY, DIY, DIY

Now I know there are people who are thinking that they are not creative and are not just the DIY type. There are some things that you can do to cut costs on the decor without so much extra work. Now, I did spray paint about 100 wine bottles for our centerpieces (WHEW!). I know that everyone will not have time for that. Do shop around. Michael's and Hobby Lobby have lots of wedding decor items that you can purchase for a low price and they always have coupons. I was probably in Michael's on a weekly basis with a 50% or 40% off coupon buying something for the wedding.

4. Know When To Splurge

Lastly, there are two things that I just would not cut costs on. One would be your photographer. When it is all said and done, all you will really have from the day are your pictures. I personally know people who went with a cheaper photographer and never received any pictures. You can try to negotiate with your photographer by trying to see if they will include an engagement session or maybe a photo book with your package, or may more time on the wedding day.

Also, a wedding coordinator at minimum is necessary. You will always remember how you felt on your wedding day. Having a coordinator will take away that anxiety that can appear on the wedding day when you are not prepared and organized. So of course, please consider 10.7 Events for all of you wedding day planning, coordination and design needs.

#weddingweddingdayweddinginspirationweddingp