Should you put yourself in debt to throw your dream wedding?  You would be amazed at how many normally smart, levelheaded women have no problem putting themselves into debt to finance their elaborate weddings. When the average wedding in America costs $27,690, many brides end up singing the wedding bill blues to pay for their weddings.  While $27,690 could be better spent on practical things like a down payment on a home, most women still leave no expense spared when it comes to planning their wedding.  Although you vow to stay together for richer or poor, doesn’t mean you should start your married life out in debt.  

You don't want your wedding done on the cheap.  I remember once I went to a wedding where halfway through the wedding the bar turned into a cash bar and guests were asked to pay for their own drinks.  That was tacky.  At another wedding, the steak tasted like it was made of rubber, and even rubber would be easier to chew.  At another wedding, there was a different wedding going on simultaneously. That wedding party had questionable taste.  Every man, woman and child in the wedding party was decked out in their finest zoot suit in an array of primary colors taken directly from the Crayola crayon box.  There would be a man in an electric blue zoot suit, with a matching blue hat and cane, next to a little boy in a red zoot suit.  It was like they all stepped out of the movie Dick Tracey.  There was the wedding with the ugly fake plastic flowers.  There was one interfaith wedding with a minister and a rabbi where the rabbi was cracking jokes during the ceremony like a stand up comedian and the minister was wearing Birkenstocks and cutoffs and looked like he was dressed for a Grateful Dead concert.  


What do all of these tacky weddings have in common?  They are a bride's worst nightmare.  You don't want to cheap out on your guests and have them think you were raised in a barn and have no manners.  However, you don't need to blow the bank to have an elegant affair.  Some couples spend every penny they have on their dream day.  Others actually take out loans and go into major debt to pay for their weddings.  With a third of all couples footing the bill themselves, wedding debt is an increasing phenomenon.  Paying for a dream wedding can turn into a debt nightmare if you aren’t careful.  
Weddings are a $125 billion per year industry, according to Money Magazine. So how do you have an elegant affair without blowing the bank?  Getting married in peak seasons like spring and summer is a great deal more expensive then fall and winter. Trimming guest lists is an easy way to cut wedding costs.

Most florists cost about $10,000.  If you buy flowers from a wholesale florist shipped overnight, you can save thousands of dollars.  Look up wholesale florists like onlinewholesaleflowers.com.  They feature "Wedding in a Box" packages for less than $500 that are just as elegant as hiring a florist.  Just make sure to have someone on hand at the catering hall to set up the flowers on your special day.  For brides on a budget, the Wedding Package #1 includes 100 stems of roses, 2 bunches of baby's breath, 2 bunches of tree fern, 1 bunch of Ivy and 1 gallon bag of rose petals, with instructions on how to make a hand tied bouquet, all for $159.00.

Designer wedding dresses cost thousands of dollars.  Many dresses cost as much as cars.  At Vera Wang, most dresses cost between $3000 and $15,000.  Many designer wedding gowns cost upwards of $10,000.  How can you get an elegant wedding dress for less?  Check out bridal samples sales.  Many dressmakers need to get rid of excess inventory and have sample sales where designer gowns are sold at a fraction of the retail price.  The following brands have semi-annual bridal sample sales at different times each year:  

Mark Ingram Bridal Atelier
127 E. 56th Street off Lexington Avenue, 3rd Floor 212-319-6778
bridalatelier.com

Paula Varsalona for the Bride
762 Madison Avenue off 66th Street, 2nd Floor 212-570-9100
paulavarsalona.com

RM Designs
10 W. 18th Street off Fifth Avenue, 4th Floor 212-372-2804
revadesigns.com

One of a Kind Bride
20 W. 20th Street off Fifth Avenue, Suite 603  212-645-7123
oneofakindbride.com

Vera Wang
991 Madison Avenue at 77th Street 212-628-3400
verawang.com

Michelle Roth
24 W. 57th Street off Fifth Avenue Suite 203  212-245-3390
michelleroth.com

The Selia Yang Sample Shop
328 E. 9th Street near First Avenue 212-254-9073
seliayang.com

Destination weddings are an easy way to save money.  If it is just you and your loved one, you can take romantic “wedding-moon” and get married in paradise.  They can be as simple or as elaborate as you want.  Sandals has some really elegant wedding packages designed by Preston Bailey, celebrity wedding planner to the stars. Choose from the Floral Elegance Collection, the Water Lily Collection, the Seascape Collection or the Crystal Collection.

Just remember: getting married should be about the love between the bride and groom.  Although wedding planning is undoubtedly fun, brides tend to get caught up in the clarity of the diamond, the style of the dress, the flavor of the cake, etcetera.  The groom becomes one insignificant cog in the whole big wedding machine.  Just keep focused on your relationship and realize that there is no reason to go into debt for a wedding.  It is one day and it goes so quickly you can blink and miss it.  You can have the wedding of your dreams and start out married life without wedding debt.  Just focus, remember why you are getting married and what really matters to you, and you will find a way to have the wedding on your dreams without breaking the bank.