DJ $aving$

When it comes to hiring a DJ for only a few hours at the reception, it can cost anywhere from about $900 to $1,800. Why throw away these precious dollars? We have a bright idea!!! A friend of Huni's (Devy) is getting married in August. She went to all of the professional DJs and priced them. The price range is as I mentioned already. She’s on a budget and wants to make the most of her money. She actually got a DJ for $450 for 5 hours; the entire reception. Isn’t this amazing? Yes, it is!

This is what she did. She spoke to a few of her friends and found out that one of her friends knew someone that is an aspiring DJ. The person DJs different occasions at times. So she took the person’s name and called him up. Her and her fiancé visited him and discovered that he is great at what he does. He will entertain the guests and keep them happy. So they bargained with him and made an agreement at $450. That is a great saving! She did not have to pay the high figures!

This is to show that not only professionals have talent. Also, this reveals to us that a little bit of researching and networking can reveal excellent deals that are under our noses. In this way, we can keep those hard-earned dollars in our pockets.

Other Shopping Concerns

Others may wonder where to get the bridesmaid dresses as well. As a continuation from yesterday, Ebay offers many other bridesmaid dresses for cheap as well. Some can be bid on and others have a “buy it now” option. Trust us when we say that you will save a ton by utilizing an online marketplace. You will be paying half of what is charged in the physical retail stores.

What about your glass slippers? Again, you can find shoes of all sizes that can be purchased online at a fraction of the price. Why not look like a million dollar and not have to pay for it? There is nothing wrong with that. Be smart and save, save, save. So what’s stopping you? I have used Ebay plenty of times and saved a lot of money. You worked hard for your money. Now let your smarts pay off. You don’t have to be a computer expert to use online marketplaces, such as Ebay. It’s simple and fast. So go on and start saving on dresses, shoes, veils, slips, headpieces, and the list goes on….

Real Wedding Dress $aving$

When it comes to the fairy tale dress it becomes very expensive. But we have an idea that will help everyone. Why pay thousands of dollars for a fairy tale dress when you can get it for a fraction of the cost. Ebay offers many wedding dress ranging from $20 to thousands. It’s very easy. Go to http://www.ebay.com/ and type in “wedding dresses”. You will literary have thousand of dresses to pick from. Some of the Ebay sellers even tailor the dresses to fit the dress of your choice. All you have to do is send them your measurements and they will customize it to fit you perfectly.

Don’t believe us? We discovered an actual dress found on Ebay. It is a beautiful dress that only cost $65. Wow! I couldn’t believe my eyes. It is new with tags attached to it. There is no catch. It cost $65 plus $20 shipping and handling. Isn’t that amazing? A beautiful wedding dress for $85 and it cost a few hundreds. The actual retail is $699. What a saving! I couldn’t believe my eyes and I’m sure that you will not. Don’t throw money away unnecessarily; take our advice. Don't wait, start saving today!

Catering 101 – Food $aving$

We did not forget about the cost of food for the company. When it comes to the food and snacks offered to the guest, there is a low cost solution to that as well. Family members can pitch in and cook a few dishes each. They are the ones that will go all the way and support you. We have seen this done and it works out very well.

The bride can pull this off without her breaking a sweat. All that is needed is time! Time is money but in this scenario the cost can be kept to the bare minimum. The only things that need to be paid for are food materials, whether it is from chips to raw chicken. But remember, having a plan is essential! You must know what food and deserts that you want to be able to make available for the guests to eat. Once this is decided, one can move on to the second part of the plan. One can do this part by calling everyone together that volunteers to make a dish. Usually close friends and family will be willing to give a hand with no problem at all. When everyone is together, read out the dishes that you have decided to have at the reception. Do this one at a time so that you can assign people for each of the dishes and the quantity that you decided. This is pretty simple and confusion can be ruled out. This time taken to think and plan will be worth a lot of savings that you will endure in the long run. It's worth it!

Wedding Budget Work Sheet

Before discussing wedding ideas and planning, I just want to congratulate you (and me) for achieving the hardest part of this process... "You have brainwashed your significant other to propose...."



As ideas go through yours and my head about how our weddings will be... let's be realistic... we need to budget things so that we don't end up $100K in debt. Unless your dad's last name is Trump or the guy you are marrying is a movie star, in which case why are you planning this, you need to budget your plans.

There are tons budget sheets available on the Internet. Here are couple of links to some budget sheets I liked after my research.... Hopefully these will help you out with the budgeting process.

http://www.blissweddings.com/wedding_planner/budget.pdf

http://www.eventageous.com/planning_guides/wedbudgetcalc.htm

Two in One-Ceremony & Reception Saving

Both of us, JinHee (Choco) and Devy (Huni) are planning our weddings. We are both engaged and finishing up our MBA at Binghamton University. We are business majors, and you know what that means. We try to get the most of our money’s worth. Therefore, we will present you with excellent ideas on how brides, like ourselves, can be smart about our wedding and not spend a fortune!

One advice that we can give everyone when it comes to booking a hall is to book a historical site or a church that has an additional area that the reception can be held. A historical site can be used as the place where vows can be exchanged as well as for the reception itself. My church located in Queens, NY is a house that was broken down and built into a church. I can easily use the upstairs for the wedding ceremony and then use the downstairs for the reception. I can fit 120 people very comfortable. Most preachers and church officials would not mind having two people become one in the sanctuary. But out of the good hearts of the couple, they can make a small donation to the church since they were able to use it. At least, they are saving a great deal of money instead of paying for a church plus the reception hall. They may just give a couple hundred bucks as a token of appreciation to the church. This is way better than spending thousands of dollars in a hall.

This is an excellent idea that will help people save money who are on a budget. Once the place is secured for the wedding ceremony, all one has to do is buy the decorations. One can purchase the balloons, banners, etc. at a party discount store where the decorations are sold at a low cost. This will help to minimize cost.

Here we are... Somehow, we got lucky and met the true love and we are planning to spend the rest of our lives together. But WAIT!!! there is one major planning you need to do before planning the life together.. yes! Yes!

The WEDDING!!!

Who knew wedding planning can be bit confusing and EXPENSIVE! Ok, well we all knew wedding was expensive... but we are here to find ways to save some cash...