Budget Smart or Cheap?

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"It will only come across as cheap if you spend the money on lots of extras for yourselves but don't for your guests."

Yes on this. An example would be if you had a 10-person wedding entourage and big ballgown, but your guests are fed sandwiches, you would look very cheap. Also, if you get your wedding party dressing robes for the purpose of your pictures, that's not a gift, that's a prop for your own benefit.

The most effective way to save money on a wedding is to cut your guest list. Not doing bridal party gifts is bad form. If you can't afford bridal party gifts, that means you can't afford to have a bridal party. Full stop.

Doing a small wedding that's in your budget is completely acceptable. People will understand if you only have your parents and one or two close friends at the event.

My FH and I made the decision to keep our wedding party very small. Two bridal attendants and two groomsmen counting Man of Honor (my best friend is a guy) and Best Man. That means that we are able to keep our costs down because we only have to get gifts for 4 people and we could be more personal with the gifts without too much trouble. We also went with silk flowers instead of live florals because I'm allergic and also because it kept our costs down on florals so that's an idea

Cake that no one eats? I love cake! There are always lines to get the cake at the weddings I have attended. I've never been to a wedding where people didn't eat the cake.

I also feel that if you have a bridal party, you should thank them with a gift. They are spending their day to celebrate you and have spent money to be a part of your day.