Getting Married....and the cost scares me!

[curlygirl]

We had 130 people in NYC in FEBRUARY, 2006. Cost was approximately $40,000. Yes, having a February wedding was a huge cost cutter for us!

 

[largirl]

...and that''s why I couldn''t afford to get married in New York! $40,000 would quadruple our budget, not be a cost-cutter!

 

[omieluv]

Date: 11/1/2007 3:16:45 PM
Author: curlygirl
We had 130 people in NYC in FEBRUARY, 2006. Cost was approximately $40,000. Yes, having a February wedding was a huge cost cutter for us!

I have toyed with the idea of getting married during an off-peak month. The trouble is, the weather is just terrible in Chicago when you get past October and it is not nice until May/June. I suppose that would be why it is cheaper to get married from Nov-April. I wonder how people pull off off-peak weddings, I guess an outdoor theme would be out of the question.

 

[largirl]

My friend had an indoor wedding in December and it was gorgeous. Of course, you risk being blizzard-ed out if you do it then!

 

[scarlet16]

Date: 11/1/2007 3:16:45 PM
Author: curlygirl
We had 130 people in NYC in FEBRUARY, 2006. Cost was approximately $40,000. Yes, having a February wedding was a huge cost cutter for us!

We''re having a 200+ person wedding in NYC for August 2008, on a Friday night. All said and done, we''re looking at just above $60,000 (not including rings/honeymoon), with many DIY projects (ie. invitations) and a lot of research on reasonably priced vendors.

And like Curly...yes Friday night was a HUGE cost cutter. NYC prices are outrageous. The majority of the cost is devoted to the reception (nearly $38,000 including price per person, tips, etc.). Luckily (and I use this term sarcastically) we booked with the venue nearly a year and half in advance so they gave us 2007 rates.

 

[kbela1]

Including rings and dress, I''m at 100K for 130 people at CT''s shoreline.

 

[~*Alexis*~]

Date: 10/14/2007 1:50:19 AM
Author: partyjewels
We budgeted ours for $10,000 and we are confidant we can stick to it, we have wiggle room to go to $15,000 if necessary, however thats our max.


Ours is approx 200 people and it''s located in Wisconsin.


You''re not the only one to have wedding price sticker shock I''m sure I certainly did when I first started looking around, but then we talked to lots of friends/family who recently tied the knot and found that it is doable to get what you want for a lot less as long as you''re willing to compromise sometimes.


ETA: Our reception is in a very nice, great food restaurant that is very us, and FI is very excited to have it there as they brew their own beer, so he gets to have Micro brew at the wedding for a very low cost The beer is less expensive than the soda! But we did source a couple of caterers that still would be within our budget and have great food.

Where in Wisconsin? I am from there!!

 

[pennquaker09]

The cost does quickly add up. My problem is that I know what I like and I didn''t really want anything else. The major expenditures for us have been the reception and accommodations for out of state guests. Our parents are going to split the costs evenly. Some of the numbers that I have:

Flowers: $7400
Rings: $3100
Suits (including alterations): $6800
Food (not including alcohol): $25,000 (paid for 185 people)

That''s pretty much all I can think about, my mind is in another place. I suppose we''ll find out tomorrow!

 

[Asscherhalo_lover]

i live on long island and my total wedding budget for 125 guests (which i actually managed to keep) for everything but the honeymoon and jewelry is 12,000. i consider myself very very lucky and we actually cut out a lot of things we didnt really need in order to save money. no limos, no video person, sunday wedding, buffet, limited bar...the average wedding around here starts at 25,000 so i feel pretty good about it!

 

[swimmer]

Largirl,
Sounds like you have a good head on your shoulders! Was thinking of your post when I ran across this interesting website while planning my own southern wedding: 250 people for $10k as compared to my sister''s last year on Long Island for over $300k. yeah... Sap483 I feel for you so much! Just keep telling yourself that at least you got to pick your FI!

Just to put it all in context (and it might be perfect for some seeking a destination wedding), but on this site the cheapest wedding package is $200 and includes a minister! My FI said "too bad we''re Jewish!" http://www.smokeymountainwedding.org/w_western.htm
Also interesting is the page on that site for a "redneck wedding" show that will be coming soon to CMTV. I will just have to get cable for that one!

I''m totally not making fun! I think this could be perfect for some and entertaining for the rest!

keep on smiling, worst case scenario, you are still in love.

 

[rainbowtrout]

Hm. Well, FI and I will probably end up spending about 3k. That includes all the rentals, our outfits + hair/makeup, DIY invites, photographer, and ceremony music. We may end up going slightly over that, but not much.

My mother is paying 1k for the flowers, grandparents are paying 400 for the cake + about 1400 or less for the catering, and the rabbi wants a whopping 1800 donation to charity. Woof. Ironically, FI's rabbi is paying half for our rabbi! (he says he knows and respects our rabbi and just sees it as a transfer of charity funds from his synagogue's charity fund to this rabbi's fund). FI's dad is picking up the other 900 for the rabbi.

Apparently Boston rabbis are expensive, this ends up being far and away our single greatest expenditure. Other than that, the rentals were the most expensive ticket item.


Anyway, all in all everyone's expenditures come to around 8-9k for a 70 person tent wedding in the Boston area.

Cost saving tips--order plain stationary on sale from Cranes that does not say "wedding" in the description. We ordered from their open stock line and will spend around 100-150 on ALL the wedding stationary. That's save the dates, invites+reply cards, place cards, programs, and ty notes. We're printing them on his laser printer at work and may use their bulk mailing stamp (we're paying them back for it, just using their rate).

We're also doing a buffet, and serving only enough alcohol for the toast. The cake was a splurge, you could cut way down from what we spent.

 

[anchor31]

PS ate my looong post!

Anyway, I realized that I'd voted, but hadn't posted a breakdown of our budget... Taxes and service fees are included. Of course, we're 8 months away so not everything is done and paid for, but I have approximate prices for everything.

Budget (not including rings, honeymoon or bride's attire): 8,000$
Reception venue (8 hours, cocktail, food, wine and bar for 77 people): 4200$
Photography (professional, 8 hours, full album, Hi-Rez CD of all pictures and thank you cards): 1230$
Videography (student with production company): FREE
Cake (by a friend): 200$
Stationary (STD magnets, invitations, menus and programs all DIY, postage included): 200$
Reception entertainment (2 live signers w/ music they recorded themselves, 8 hours): 850$
Ceremony (all included): 300$
Ceremony music (professional brass quintet, friends): FREE
Flowers (bride and bridemaids bouquets, bouts and corsages): 150$
Decor (centerpieces and linen rentals): 450$
Gifts (favours, attendants and parents): 200$
Groom's attire (rental): 100$
TOTAL: 7,900$

Rings (his cost 1,200$!!!): 1500$
Honeymoon (2 nights/2 days at the spa, we'll be saving up for a bigger trip): 800$
Bride's attire: 800$
Grand total: 11,000$ (which isn't so bad either!)

FI and I will be paying for half of the 7,900$, the rings and the honeymoon, for a total of 6,250$. My parents will be paying for the other half of the 7,900$ for a total of 3,950$. Finally, my grandmother (bless her heart) will be paying for my attire, for a total of 800$.

It took a lot of vendor research, negotiating and DIY-ing... But we're doing pretty good!

ETA: We're in the Montreal area, but not in Montreal... It would cost us twice as much if we did it in the city!

 

[erskavates]

I recently met someone who paid $5,000.......................just for invitations. And yes, I nearly choked when I heard that.

 

[UCLABelle]

So, just an update on the cost of mine, which I wanted to be around $5000- After alterations on my gown, and a bit of custom work on it, it alone cost $4,900...

So the rough calcs now put us (without honeymoon and rings about $8,000 together) at over $15,000 for 25 people.

 

[shigidigi]

Yikes- did I read that correctly??? Nearly 5k for a dress!! I hate that we all have to spend so much money to have decent weddings... the markup is incredible!!

 

[partyjewels]

Date: 11/16/2007 4:08:35 PM
Author: ~*Alexis*~

Where in Wisconsin? I am from there!!

Hey Alexis! Didn''t mean to ignore you, I just haven''t checked back in on this thread in a while. FI and I are from the Milwaukee area (we''re smack in the middle of Greenfield and West Allis) and the wedding is going to be in the Delafield area. Where in Wisconsin are you?

 

[swimmer]

Sweet Jesus!
1,800 for a Rabbi in Boston! Our Rabbi in Tennessee is charging $200, you could fly her up to Boston, put her in a swanky hotel and still come out saving almost a grand. I''m only partly playing, she is fantastic...but you might not be Reform. Yeah, I live in Boston and couldn''t imagine having a wedding here. I thought doing it down south and making everyone travel would cut down the guest list, but it really isn''t.
best wishes

 

[rainbowtrout]

Ye-ahhhh. We asked around to make sure we werent getting ripped off but apparently that''s what a Reform rabbi will charge if you aren''t part of his congregation (FIs normal rabbi is busy the weekend of the wedding)