13 Ways to Save Money for Your Wedding

Have to pay for the wedding yourself? Here are some ways to save money:

1. Make your own invitations, save the date cards, and thank-you notes. It'll take a lot of time, but it's definitely worth it.
2. The cost to have calligraphy printed products is ridiculous, so I highly recommend learning calligraphy on your own. I've seen sets for as low as $5.
3. Ebay has everything. Seriously. While you're at it, you might as well sell some things too. This way, your old junk can help pay for the most memorable time of your life.
4. Is there another wedding occurring before/after your wedding? If so, try and make a deal with the bride. Maybe you guys can borrow/buy things from one another for a small fee (i.e. decorations, flowers, aisle runner, etc.)
5. Let one of your friends give you the essential wedding manicure/pedicure. Not sure which friend is good enough? Have a bridal shower and convince each friend to paint at least one of your fingernails/toenails. Try to convince them to take turns styling your hair too.
6. Don't have a sit-down catering reception. Rather than that, have a cocktail reception (which serves only wine and beer, shhh…) with a buffet. Sure, you can have a couple of tables and chairs, but imagine the money you can save if you only use 5 tables and 30 chairs instead of having 25 tables and 150 chairs. This will also exclude the cost to make place cards.
7. I for one am a huge fan of Etsy. It's a large site of people making handmade items for a reasonable price. In fact, you can even request items that you'd like to have made for you, and within the week, you'll receive plenty of “bids.” Try it out. There's no fee.
8. Avoid bands! Disc jockeys are much cheaper
9. Decorate with faux flowers
10. Renting is cheaper than buying
11. Remember that a cheap honeymoon doesn't necessarily mean a bad honeymoon, so don't stress if your honeymoon doesn't entail a trip to Venice
12. Need babysitters? Ask the twins in your neighborhood if they want to make some cash. Any money is good money to them.
13. Wedding favors are far from cheap, so make your own. Buy clear tubes, fill each one up with some Foldgers, wrap a ribbon around them, and ta-dah!