Recently I received a phone call from one of my many nieces ( I have 10 of them) announcing her recent engagement and upcoming wedding. Once we dispensed with the excitement and congratulations we got down to the real reason for the phone call; she’s a new bride, doesn’t know where to start, is already feeling overwhelmed and needs help, so she did what all brides do (or should do), she contacted someone with experience, someone she could trust, someone who would listen to her concerns and steer her in the right direction. She called a professional bridal consultant – her aunt. Sound familiar (except for calling the professional part)? So I started with my niece in the same place I start with all our bridal clients. The beginning.
The beginning – sounds simple doesn’t it? But if you don’t know where the beginning is you just might miss it and end up feeling overwhelmed early on and unable to “catch up” later on; like my niece. So just where is the beginning? Glad she (and you) asked. You see many brides confuse getting the ring, setting a date and selecting the bridal party members as the beginning and think that they’ve started the planning process when truthfully they haven’t. Don’t get me wrong, the wheels are in motion, but until a solid plan is in place, those wheels aren’t taking you anywhere. So where do you begin? Easy – with a wedding day budget! There I’ve said it, the “B” word – BUDGET.
Sounds like a “bad word” doesn’t it? Budget. Well it shouldn’t be. A wedding budget IS your friend. Think of it this way, a budget is the boundary line of your sovereign country – Your Wedding Day. It’s borders should be protected, and respected. Travel visa’s outside it’s boundaries, like any other country in the world, are permitted, however not without thought, planning and permission.
By defining a wedding budget in advance, you, your fiancee, and parents are, to quote Dave Ramsey “telling your money where to go instead of wondering where it went”. It’s no wonder that so many bridal couples are stressed out about finances on the eve of their wedding day. They forgot to tell their wedding money where to go and are now having to sacrifice in other areas to make amends for not having more control of the wedding budget from the beginning.
A wedding budget will help you to make decisions about who to hire, what venues to use, the style and theme of your event, and even help you to pare down your guest list if needed. A well thought out wedding budget is your first line of defense, aside from hiring a professional wedding coordinator, for peace of mind on your wedding day. Instead of trying to fit a square peg in a round hole, a wedding budget will ensure that all the pieces fit together seamlessly and beautifully.
So do yourself, your groom AND your parents a favor by defining your wedding budget. You’ll all be glad you did.
