http://boards.weddingbee.com/ Weddingbee Boards Tag: money en Mon, 13 Feb 2012 17:39:43 +0000 http://boards.weddingbee.com/topic/big-budget-brides-i-need-some-advice-on-spending#post-3223197 Mon, 13 Feb 2012 08:55:01 +0000 reebee 3223197@http://boards.weddingbee.com/ <p>I'd suggest you put your budget on paper with a $50K target - it adds up really quickly - example:</p> <p>$5K Venue<br />$20K Food &amp; Beverage<br />$6K Band<br />$3K Flowers<br />$1K Invitations<br />$5K Photography<br />$2K Videography<br />$4K Attire/Accessories<br />$2K Planner<br />$2K Favors/Gifts/Misc</p> <p>Boom - you're at $50K without anything that looks unusually high, some lines&nbsp;actually look a bit low to me :)&nbsp; If you are aiming for $50K and you&nbsp;find something that you simply can't live without&nbsp;(like a photobooth or something)&nbsp;you will have no problem spending a little more knowing that you can go over.&nbsp;</p> <p>When&nbsp;you meet with vendors you don't need to tell any of them the budget for your entire wedding (I never told anyone - not even my planner), just tell them what you have budgeted for that particular service (and fudge a little lower than, because they will inevitably come in higher than whatever number you give them).&nbsp;</p> http://boards.weddingbee.com/topic/dallas-brides-help-please#post-3222864 Mon, 13 Feb 2012 07:38:47 +0000 BookGirrl 3222864@http://boards.weddingbee.com/ <p>I found an AMAZING new venue, and my fiancee and I booked it immediately.&nbsp; For some background, we have a somewhat sizable budget, BUT he and I are two different religions, so we are now having 2 days of ceremonies and 2 receptions, plus a rehearsal dinner, so that means we are now paying for 3 dinners for many, many out of town-guests.</p> <p>Which is when I decided I was going to have to scale down my wedding venue ideas....when we first got married, and we'd decided to try to have 1 "fusion" ceremony and reception (the logistics didn't work for a variety of reasons), we were looking at these venues:&nbsp; City Club Fort Worth, Petroleum Club Dallas, Belo Mansion Dallas, and Four Seasons Las Colinas.&nbsp; When we realized we were going to have multiple ceremonies and receptions, those places started quoting us prices like $50,000 for the food and drink alone for 2 days, nevermind the decorations, music, etc. etc. for 2 nights.</p> <p>So then it was back to the drawing board and I started looking for cheaper options--and I found a brand new venue in Las Colinas, Irving.&nbsp; It's called Noah's, and it is brand-spanking new.&nbsp; It's actually a small, family-owned chain that started in Utah, apparently.&nbsp; The website is <a href="http://www.mynoahs.com">www.mynoahs.com</a>.&nbsp; The Irving location is not even fully built (well, it may be now, but it wasn't when we saw it), but their open house is Feb. 25th.&nbsp; You should definitely come and see it.</p> <p>What's awesome about this place is that although the base rental price for the space isn't *cheap*, it is totally reasonable and the best part is: You can bring in outside catering and booze!!!!&nbsp; You could have Mcdonald's cater it, if you wanted.&nbsp; You can have your aunts serving martinis, if you want.&nbsp; Not that we will be doing any of that craziness, but the options are there and you can find many ways to save money in the food and drink arena.&nbsp; The best part is, unlike the few other venues I had heard of in the DFW area that allow outside catering and booze, the space is not butt ugly and is actually quite modern and pretty.</p> <p>All the floors are wooden, the chairs in the Irving location are actually even better than the ones in the pictures used at other locations, and they do include basic tablecloths and napkins in white, ivory, or black (although I think we will be renting some in a different color).&nbsp;</p> <p>They do not have an outside wedding location, but they have several rooms that can be used flexibly, and one is an 'atrium' type room that gives you an indoor-outdoor feeling without having to worry about weather.&nbsp; I was also set on having an outdoor ceremony, so if you really want one---after a lot of searching, and I mean a lot, I found a secret, hidden pavilion behind Williams Square (where the Mustang statues are) overlooking the lake---and I called every place in town to find out who owns it, and how I can rent it.</p> <p>I'm passing this information along, because I think it's pretty much Dallas's best-kept secret---the pavilion is owned by the Irving Chamber of Commerce, and only 2 places can rent it out-- La Cima Club (who won't rent it unless you have your reception there), and a small place called Glory House, whose owner was unbelievably sweet and said that she would rent it to me even without me having her cater my reception, for $2500 (that's including white garden chairs).&nbsp; If you are having a sunset ceremony, this place can not be beat.&nbsp; THere is a FREE parking garage nearby for your guests, and you could have your pictures in the beautiful Williams Square.&nbsp; Here are pics of the pavilion:</p> <p><a href="http://gloryhousecatering.wordpress.com/2011/03/29/glory-house-catering-receptions-offers-new-venue-pavilion-at-williams-square/">http://gloryhousecatering.wordpress.com/2011/03/29/glory-house-catering-receptions-offers-new-venue-pavilion-at-williams-square/</a></p> <p>Hope this helps!&nbsp; We visited a LOT of other venues too, so if you have a higher budget I can give you other recommendations.</p> http://boards.weddingbee.com/topic/big-budget-brides-i-need-some-advice-on-spending#post-3222816 Mon, 13 Feb 2012 07:25:02 +0000 Gemstone 3222816@http://boards.weddingbee.com/ <p>No matter whether you have $5,000 or $500,000 to spend on a wedding, it'll probably be really helpful for you to set a budget. Wedding costs add up quickly and can be overwhelming. It'll be helpful for you as your plan to know how much you want to spend in each different area.</p> http://boards.weddingbee.com/topic/big-budget-brides-i-need-some-advice-on-spending#post-3222792 Mon, 13 Feb 2012 07:19:33 +0000 yellowshoe 3222792@http://boards.weddingbee.com/ <p>I'd have to agree with everything the PPs said. My budget was in your range and in NO WAY did I consider myself to have a big budget. In fact, I would say my wedding budget was average for the area and the group of friends and family we come from.</p> <p>Yes, you absolutely still have to set a budget since you really don't have unlimited funds and the cost of a wedding can snowball REALLY QUICKLY. And as you said you don't want to be dipping into your savings or going into debt so you most definitely need to set a budget to keep on track. We just had a ball park figure of how much we wanted to spend for each item, it was mostly what we are comfortable spending and that the grand total stayed within a certain range. You also want to decide early what exactly your wedding fund is going to include, like the wedding bands and honeymoon.</p> http://boards.weddingbee.com/topic/big-budget-brides-i-need-some-advice-on-spending#post-3222766 Mon, 13 Feb 2012 07:11:50 +0000 plantains 3222766@http://boards.weddingbee.com/ <p>It is amazing just how quickly wedding budgets get out of control. Do not tell anybodythat you have no budget, you do have a budget. Based on what you have told us, I'm not even sure you can gurantee that 80K as your FI has said anywhere fro 25-40K which is a massive range. Start by deciding what is most imporatnt (venue, catering etc) do some research into general costs typically associated with teh type of wedding you want to have and then go from there.</p> <p>Even if you are not looking to buy a house, you don't absolutely have to spend the money if the things you want end up costing less. Allow yourself an extra 10k withinn whatever budget you set for the unforeseen. Things like increase in fuel prices, bad weather etc can really have an impact on your expenses. For example, when I was planning my wedding I got raw bar quotes included in my catering. By the time I got married, the prices of oysters and shrimp had more than doubled because of the oil spill in the gulf. I still went with it, but only because I had factored a buffer into the budget.</p> http://boards.weddingbee.com/topic/big-budget-brides-i-need-some-advice-on-spending#post-3222756 Mon, 13 Feb 2012 07:09:58 +0000 CallmeC 3222756@http://boards.weddingbee.com/ <p>Have you thought of not taking the $12k out of your savings since your Dad is now offering $15k? That would be my first cut right there, but I am also a crazy saver so savings is incredibly important to me and I'd hate to touch it for a wedding. I will echo the others that you DO have a budget- a max amount you *can* spend. However you seem not too cozy with spending that much so you need to sit down and decide: what am I willing to spend? What can I take out of savings and be okay with it down the road? Just because you can spend 80K doesn't mean you have to. In the same breath if you have the means to spend it and feel comfortable doing it then there is your budget. Good luck!</p> http://boards.weddingbee.com/topic/big-budget-brides-i-need-some-advice-on-spending#post-3222730 Mon, 13 Feb 2012 07:03:59 +0000 MissBananaBread 3222730@http://boards.weddingbee.com/ <p>Even if you are willing to spend $80k, that doesn't mean that you have no budget. &nbsp;$80k is well over the national average, but it's not unheard of. &nbsp;I know people who spent much more than that on their weddings and still had to cut back on some things they wanted, so it's all a matter of expectations. &nbsp;Things add up quickly. &nbsp;</p> <p>You definitely shouldn't tell a vendor that you don't have a budget, or even what your total budget is. &nbsp;You should find vendors you like and find out how much they cost. &nbsp;If I were in your position, I would add up the approximate prices for the venue, food, dress, flowers, etc. that we wanted and see where it comes out. &nbsp;If it's under $70k then you will have a lot of comfortable wiggle room. &nbsp;I wouldn't go for more expensive things just because the money's there, but it's nice to know you have a lot of financial flexibility.</p> <p>Is any of this budget also going towards the honeymoon?</p> http://boards.weddingbee.com/topic/big-budget-brides-i-need-some-advice-on-spending#post-3222712 Mon, 13 Feb 2012 07:00:28 +0000 MidwestBride2012 3222712@http://boards.weddingbee.com/ <p>If you can bring in your own alcohol, then you'll save a ton over the places where you must use theirs. If that's the case, I wouldn't mind splurging on the food itself.&nbsp;</p> <p>I would make a list of the things that are most important to you. Have FI do the same. Take the top things from both of your lists, and then plan to "splurge" on those items. For the rest of it try to keep the prices very reasonable. (If you need to see what reasonable is, get a few quotes and see what the median seems to be).</p> http://boards.weddingbee.com/topic/big-budget-brides-i-need-some-advice-on-spending#post-3222661 Mon, 13 Feb 2012 06:51:18 +0000 TwoCityBride 3222661@http://boards.weddingbee.com/ <p>Thanks for the responses so far. You guys raised good points I don't want to come out with a 200,000 dollar bill. I will check out The Knot.</p> <p>@Regberadaisy</p> <p>We both are planning on putting lump sums into the account sometime next year.I'm putting my tax return in there,&nbsp;and am also going to dip into my savings for another 12,000. Fi is&nbsp;willing to put in anywhere from&nbsp;25 to 40 thousand(at this point we are saying 40,000)&nbsp;in there. Plus&nbsp;if we&nbsp;take the gift from my&nbsp;Dad&nbsp;it adds up&nbsp;to over&nbsp;80,000.&nbsp;</p> <p>I guess our issue at the moment is we have a range in mind&nbsp;with no solid numbers. We also both own condos at the moment, and have no plans to buy a house anytime soon.</p> http://boards.weddingbee.com/topic/did-you-spend-money-on-something-you-look-back-on-and-feel-was-a-waste#post-3222585 Mon, 13 Feb 2012 06:33:44 +0000 chasesgirl 3222585@http://boards.weddingbee.com/ <p>Mine was a waste, but it wasn't something I could have predicted. I had this awesome hot cocoa bar/ cider set up, it was the dead of winter and who doesn't like cocoa?? Well, it was 70 degrees that day... Sometimes I really hate Texas weather so after having spent a nice chunk of money on it, hardly any of it got used because no one needs hot drinks when it is 70 in December.</p>