Wedding budget. Save or splurge! -

Wedding at The Lothersdale Hotel Morecambe

Planning a wedding at any time means lots of tough choices. With the cost-of-living crisis, making good choices about what to save on and what to splurge on in your wedding budget is even more vital. As a wedding venue, we spend the most time ‘in’ weddings. We are present from prior to your ceremony through to when your guests leave, and you turn in for the night. This gives us an intimate and unique insight into what is worth spending your money on and what isn’t. What goes to waste or always wows? What money-saving ideas end up costing more? This is our guide having experienced countless weddings from start to finish to help you tie the knot and not blow the budget. We are based in Morecambe in the North of England, so our advice is based on typical UK weddings.

SPLURGE ON PROFESSIONALS. We’ve all got a friend who’s a great photographer or a Gran who bakes great cakes. However, think twice before involving family members in these important jobs on your wedding day. Professional photography is something we always recommend allocating some of your budget for. In years to come other than your memories these pictures are all you will have left of the day you’ve invested so much into. A professional like Chris at Bay Photographic understands how a wedding day runs. They know which shots not to miss, how to get the best candid’s and how to get the most out of all conditions. Cakes are also best left to the experts. A lot of skill is involved in baking and decorating a wedding cake. Each year we have to tell a small number of couples that we cannot serve their cake as the sponge is undercooked. Your wedding cake is central to your decor and ensuring that yours lasts for a long day being the center of attention is a skill that takes a professional to understand. We would also make the same observation of larger items of decor like backdrops and balloon arches etc. Firstly, there is a lot of time and skill required to get a good effect. Secondly, you also need to consider when and who is going to install it. You and your bridesmaids do not want to be spending the early hours of the morning on the wedding day setting up your decor. Involving friends and family with wedding preparation is great but we’d advise you leave them free to enjoy your day with you and leave the big jobs to those that will make your day one to remember.

SAVE ON CAKE. Having said always use a professional baker we would also make the observation that SO MUCH cake goes to waste at every wedding. Honestly the average couple could take half their cake home with them. Wedding cakes are a fabulous center point to the day, make great decor and are a great dessert for guests later in the evening. We would however advise erring on the conservative side when it comes to size. Maybe go a little smaller but have some cupcakes or donuts instead and always make sure your venue has a plan for slicing and serving it. We always take the wedding cake away and slice and serve it as dessert after the buffet in the evening. We also speak to couples about if they want a layer saved to take home with them. Make a plan to get the most out of your cake and don’t go overboard on size.

SAVE ON ALCOHOL. Like most venues we include drinks where relevant in our main packages. In the UK for most weddings an open bar is not the norm so don’t feel the need to add on additional drinks or personalised cocktails for your guests.

SAVE ON THE DATE. Get married outside of the main May to October period or midweek and you can find great savings. Our Complete package is £500 cheaper if you have it on a Thursday than if you have it on a Friday. Likewise, if you go for November instead of October. If you can be flexible with days and dates, there are great savings to be had and not just with venues. The registry office has cheaper ceremonies mid-week and many other vendors offer discounts too.

SPLURGE ON THE VENUE. Well we would say this wouldn’t we! However, it is important to get your choice of venue right. This means making sure that you find the most appropriate venue for your budget. Your venue will be an integral part of your wedding. We will work together over many months to plan and organise your day. Your guests will experience your wedding though us and the food and services we offer. It’s important you have a venue and venue coordinator you can work with and trust. Although we recommend spending on your venue we would also point out that great venues can also be great value. Our complete package for example is just £5545 in 2023 which includes food for your guests. The average price of a venue and food in the UK is currently £12280 so shop around there are good deals to be had on quality wedding venues.

SPLURGE ON FOOD. Food is central to a guest’s experience and your guest experience should be top priority after your own of course. Make sure you are feeding your guests often enough. If they would be skipping a meal to be present, you need to schedule some appropriate catering. For example, if you get married at 1pm bacon butties at 10pm is not going to cut it! An experienced venue or caterer will be able to advise from their vast experience and there are always choices available that can help you stay in budget whilst making sure you and your guests eat well.

SAVE WITH DIY. Small items of DIY decor and personal touches can really elevate the aesthetics of your wedding day without blowing your budget. Simple but effective centerpieces, sweet carts, name cards and table plans are all great things to DIY. You can even make a night of it with a bottle of wine and your friends getting crafty together. It can cost hundreds to hire a sweet cart but arranging an extra table with your venue and then getting crafty with some pretty glass storage jars, scoops and paper bags is much cheaper and looks just as good. You can also use your jars as storage in your kitchen post wedding. Set aside an evening to make your table place cards, there are lots of options online then get to work with a nice pen. Chalk boards make great signage and can be reused at home afterwards. We’d recommend purchasing items that can be repurposed or sold on after your wedding day. Most venues are happy to help setting up these small items of decor and centerpieces. Don’t be tempted to DIY larger items or items that are needed to dress the room e.g. backdrops. These items are usually provided by a professional who will also take responsibility for set up on the wedding day, so you are likely to have to pay someone to install on the day.

SAVE BY DOING THINGS YOUR WAY. This is not your grandmothers wedding or your best mates. It’s your wedding and your budget so the first thing you need to do is think about your priorities for your wedding. Make a realistic budget and do a bit research to see what that gets you. Do you need longer to save to have the dream wedding you want, or would you rather stick to the budget you have now and compromise. Do you want a full traditional wedding day? You may prefer to have a later ceremony and just an evening do. This is often way more cost effective meaning more money for you to spend on that dream dress, a house deposit or honeymoon. Don’t be swayed by others go with what you really want and what works for you both. There is no one way to get hitched so do it your way.

SAVE ON WEDDING FAVOURS. Honestly a good proportion of the pretty boxes with sweets inside are swept into a black bag at the end of the day. Don’t feel the need to provide favours at all, you’re already treating your guests with food, drinks and entertainment no one will notice if you skip the sugared almonds! Either save the money or do something else for your guests like hiring a magician or caricaturist for example.

SAVE THE PLANET. Making choices that benefit the environment will also benefit your wedding budget. A wedding is one day so it shouldn’t cost the earth in any sense of the phrase. Look at purchasing once used items from couples after they have used them for their weddings. For example, items of decor like signs. You can then sell them on afterwards. Rock my wedding provides a marketplace to buy and sell wedding decor so check them out here. You can also look on your local Facebook marketplace, Ebay and local community notice boards. Also, think of items of decor which you would also like to have in your home as a permanent reminder of the day or that might just come in handy around the house for example chalk boards, jars, signs and ring cushions.