Wedding Tips 101: How to Have a Fabulous Wedding at a 200k Budget Only
As what you have read in the title, yes, it is true and no joke! Some say you will be spending more and some think that it’s an expensive investment and you will need to spend more than 400,000 pesos. To lower the budget and able to afford an awesome wedding, you’ll need to be wise because it’s all about being practical to have a fabulous wedding. Here’s how you should do it.
Coordinator
Hire only an on-the-day coordinator, not a coordinator that will fully do everything from start to finish. It should be a good team with great reviews from their previous clients. Doing this will mean that you will have to do a lot more planning and scouting, but it should not be much of a burden of both the bride and the groom, or even members of the entourage, split the tasks.
Price range: 10,000 to 15,000 pesos.
Photographer
If you don’t need prenuptial photos and SDE, and only want the wedding day service only, that’s a good choice. What really matters is that you can save and spend the rest of your money on good investments. If you really like to have a prenup/engagement session, you can find a photographer that has the inclusion for just 20,000 pesos. Just like one of my packages. If you really don’t need the prenup, avail a photo album, one of the best investments.
Price Range: 15,000 to 20,000 pesos.
Videographer
If you want a video for your wedding, hire a supplier that you can get for a reasonable price. Be choosey with this one or you will end up hiring a bad videographer with ugly output or ditch your wedding. Choose a package that will only cover your wedding only with 15-20 minutes of cinematic wedding story.
Price Range: 15,000 to 20,000 pesos.
Flowers
Try to inquire from florists if will they accept from a tight budget. A flower that is good for Bride’s bouquet, 2 bridesmaid, maid of honor, 2 mothers and a very minimal design for the church and reception.
Price Range: 20,000 to 30,000 pesos.
Church
For the church, the amount you will spend will depend on which church you will get married in. Many churches operate like businesses these days and the fee to get married will go above 15,000 pesos. Some are very expensive because of air-conditioning and their prices are around 30,000 to 50,000 pesos. To be practical, a small chapel can be a good idea because all 50-100 guests are not really in the ceremony. Maybe around 20-30 people will be there to witness your vows.
Price Range: 5,000 to 10,000 pesos.
Reception Area
Find a good place that can be rented for a reasonable price. It is also best if the reception area is good for 50 to 100 people. Look for a place that isn’t hard for your guest to visit, otherwise; you’ll be renting a mini-bus for transportation of your guest that doesn’t have a vehicle. For my wedding on April 2013, we didn’t rent a van or a mini-bus for transportation because our reception was just a 5-minute travel starting from the church. And as you can see, all the guests do not really go to the church; they all just went straight to the reception to eat.
Price Range: 5,000 to 10,000 pesos.
Guest Lists
One of the most important when you budget your wedding. Invite only 50 to 100 people to your wedding and don’t forget to leave a message why you can’t invite the rest. So it won’t be painful for them why they were not invited. The guests are one of the expensive investments because food can be expensive. If you go to an expensive reception area with expensive food, you will end up paying more than 70,000 to 100,000 pesos. Just prepare yourself of being strict with the number of guests because it’s not really easy for people who have loads of friends and relatives. And remember, if it’s your own money for paying all the suppliers and no one in your family will be helping you with the investment, it will always be your absolute decision who to invite.
Food
Look for an affordable caterer that will only cost you 270-350 pesos per head. And make sure it’s a good one so your guests will be fully satisfied.
Price Range: 25,000 to 35,000 pesos.
Wedding Gown and Suit
To rent is the best option! You will save a lot and it is better to rent because you won’t be able to wear it again. This is just to be practical and it will help you in your budget.
Price Range: 8,000 to 15,000 pesos.
Entourage Gown and Suit
Same for this one, to rent is the best option. Look for an entourage dress from any boutique and you will find some good one that will really fit for your entourage. Don’t invest too much on this one since it will be hard and will take time if you want it done from scratch.
Price Range: 8,000 to 15,000 pesos.
Hair and Makeup Artist
Do not be too tight for this one. Invest for a good makeup artist or you, the bride will look like a clown and same goes for your entourage. Make sure to check the portfolios of the artist before hiring them.
Price Range: 10,000 to 12,000 pesos.
Wedding Emcee
Need an affordable emcee? There’s one here in Cebu! There’s only one here that is really good and knows very well on how to make your wedding program look awesome.
Price Range: 5,000 to 8,000 pesos.
Lights and Sound
With this service for your wedding, it creates a nice mood light in your wedding during the reception. You can either go for minimal light or lots of light. That just depends on you.
Price Range: 8,000 to 12,000 pesos.
Show-band
Every wedding needs a show-band, why? A good music on your wedding can create a good mood to your guests.
Price Range: 5,000 to 8,000 pesos.
Bridal Car
If you have a friend with white car, that would be a good option. Try to ask if he/she can let you borrowed or rent it for a cheap price.
Price Range: 2,000 to 5,000 pesos.
Wedding Cake
A wedding is not complete without a wedding cake. Right? So invest in a small one that won’t cost you a lot. Remember, there are already lots of pastry chef in Cebu. Don’t mind if they are famous or not. Just think of your budget.
Price Range: 5,000 to 8,000 pesos.
Invitation Card
No need to invest too much on invitation card, guys. Just use facebook and print 5 to 15 cards only for the old relatives. Bring one copy with you in your hotel room; it will be used for taking photos.
Price Range: 1,500 to 3,000 pesos.
Preparation Room
This one can be complicated and there’s only 2 option, to avail one or two rooms. That’s up to you, so if you’re on a budget, one suite room only and both of you couple will be seeing each other during the preparation without following the same old culture. If you want to have 2 rooms, go for the lowest rate and use it for one day only.
Price Range: 2,500 to 5,000 pesos.
Wedding Ring
This is the most complicated if you don’t know have knowledge about the business. Everyone will always end up visiting Suarez Boutique and other store that offer rings. Their prices are so high, it’s around 20,000 to 50,000 or more! Crazy, isn’t it? So if you want to save a lot for a wedding ring, you look for gold by yourself. Or if you have some that isn’t in use, that would be the best. And the last thing to do is look for a source where they create wedding rings. Even Suarez and other stores outsource their projects. Mostly of them, so go and find one! You will be able to save a lot! The price range below are your own gold, if you want to buy gold right from the main source the who really create the rings, not sure how much would it cost.
Price Range: 5,000 to 8,000 pesos.
Conclusion
Computing all the maximum rate from the suppliers will cause you more than 200,000 pesos. If you want to budget your wedding wisely, you can spend below 200,000 pesos. This is no joke guys, it’s the best wedding budget I’ve written here and help couples think on how to properly plan a wedding. If I were you, to reach that goal, you need to plan your wedding very early. 8 months is a good idea but 1 year would be the best planning. You should book early for the Photographer, Videographer, Coordinator and Florist because we increase our rate without any notification.