Your wedding is one of the most memorable moments in your life. This is the day that you pledge your love, life, and commitment to the one person who you want to spend the rest of your life with. Your wedding day is suppose to be fun, exciting, thrilling, nerve-wrecking, and all around a great time is had by all. However, the days, weeks, months leading up to that special day will be spent worrying about the wedding budget. Here are a few cheap places to shop for wedding supplies that may possibly help you relieve some of that pre-wedding stress.
Monetary Budget Dilemma
Nearly every bride has to work within a monetary budget with it comes down to her wedding day. You have the dress, veil, accessories, shoes, make-up, bridesmaid dresses, flower girl’s dress, all their accessories, and that’s just for the actual ceremony. Then there’s the reception with all of the table centerpieces, guest favors and gifts, wedding cake, cake serving set, toasting glasses, napkins, and numerous other items depending on the size and location of your wedding and reception.
Prices can get out of hand very quickly if you go out and purchase everything brand new, and that’s where shopping thrifty can come in handy! There will always be brides out there who look around after their wedding and realize that they have fifty snowflake-themed centerpieces, that they bought brand new, and nothing to do with them. So why can’t you learn from their mistake and take those lovely centerpieces off their hands?
Online Auction & Used Wedding Sites
You may not think of auction sites as your first choice for wedding supplies, but it’s true! eBay.com has a large selection of wedding-oriented auctions available. Everything from wedding dresses, shoes, and veils to decorations, lights, and candleholders. You never know what you’ll find if you don’t look, and you certainly don’t want to miss out on getting that $600 dress for only $200. There are also sites like BravoBride.com where you can buy or sell your previously used wedding dress and supplies. Check it out and see what’s waiting!
Local Traders/Classified
Check out the classifieds in your local newspaper and/or trader magazine. Someone may have purchased a lovely bridesmaid dress in just the color you want, only to have the wedding cancelled when the
groom was caught with the bridesmaid in an embarrassing situation. Oops!
Thirft/Resell Shops
What about that bridal resell shop that you drive by twice a week on the way to the grocery store? Yes, most of the dresses were previously worn, and what bride doesn’t want to feel like her dress was made only for her, but is that worth it in the end when you have to decide between a $600 dress or an extra day on your honeymoon? What if you could find that dress for half the price because another woman had the same style as you, and only wore the dress for two hours? However, you don’t have to buy your dress there, you may be able to find your flower girl’s dress, tiaras for the whole bridal party, shoes for your mom, or even cummerbunds in just the right color for the groom’s group of guys.
Do-It-Yourself
If you’re wedding is months away, why not take the time to save some money by making some things yourself? Really, how hard can it be to buy some small fishbowls, put sand in the bottom, and snuggle a votive or tealight candle down into the center nicely? Say you need twenty-five centerpieces and they cost you less than $2 to make each one, but $10 to buy them. Which would you prefer? I know I’d rather spend a little time shopping and putting them together rather than paying someone else five times the price to do it for me.
Rent
If you’re working with a wedding planner or party company, they may offer rentals for your ceremony and reception that you didn’t think of. Of course you know the normal stuff like tables and chairs, but many that offer this service will also have tablecloths, silverware, stemware, dishware, the archway for your ceremony, and many other supplies. By renting you don’t have to worry about bringing supplies with you or what to do with them afterwards.
Sales
Sales on wedding sites are a big way to help stretch that wedding budget. Sites like David’s Bridal and InkyPink.com always have a “sale” section on their website. David’s Bridal often has gorgeous wedding dresses on sale for around $100. You may have to order it online without ever trying it on, but sometimes it’s worth it just to get the dress you want for the right price. If your wedding is planned for a year or more into the future, and you know what theme/season you’ll be having it, then you can definitely rack up when the season you want goes on sale this year. If you’re having a spring wedding next year, why not do some shopping when this year’s spring wedding supplies goes on sale? Yay for sales!
When you start planning your beautiful, perfect, fairytale wedding, start off by using the more expensive stores and websites to get ideas, see what you like, create an idea album, and then move onto the secondhand shops, auction sites, and sales to see if you can get as close to your ideas as possible without emptying your wallet and busting the wedding budget. You can be frugal and still have the wedding of your dreams by shopping for wedding supplies at the cheaper, more budget-friendly places. Have fun and congratulations!