How to save money

I saved for the wedding by usually putting money on a side account, like for around 15 months I would just put $200-$250 in there. I also took and accepted any help we could get.

View Quoted Comment Me and him decided to put $150 every two weeks when I get paid. And he’s going to put money up weekly when he gets paid. And he also gets tips so he’s going to put half up from his tips. And when we get “change” or ppl donate anything we’re going to put it towards the wedding as well.

A brunch reception costs half the price of an evening dinner and if you have your wedding any day of the week other than a Saturday, it is also cheaper.

I got a good side hustle where I was making about $1k a month, FH and I stopped going out to dinner and cooked at home (we made nicer food at home for date nights because even steak at home is cheaper than chicken out, at least where we are), I got into grocery shop coupons, I always made coffee at home, I stopped buying new clothing and only bought thrift. Those were all really helpful for me. Just in general being mindful of money helped, so I always saw opportunities to save, like always taking free giveaways or hotel soaps to use later (which I doubt saved us that much, but it's the mindset that was big for me)

Done eat out as much and put a specific amount in savings every paycheck that you get

View Quoted Comment These are really good ideas ! Thankyou

View Quoted Comment Great idea. Thankyou

Take your goal budget of 15k, divide it by the two years and that shows you how much you need to stash away each month. Think about your expenses already and see how you and your fiancé can get that money saved together. It’s a smaller amount than looking at the total. Sometimes an extra job is needed, like previous posters said. But not always! Just re create your budget for saving x amount of dollars if you can! Thankfully, my husband was able to pay bills (aside from my own car loan and insurance) while I saved up the money.

View Quoted Comment Yes we are on the same boat as you and your now husband was on.. haha we did do the math and we figured out how much we need to put on the side

We both picked up extra jobs and cut out all extra expenses. We didn't go on our yearly trip and stopped eating out and going to the movies. Every bit helped! We also set up a joint savings account to dump money into.

View Quoted Comment Yes we did think about this. Thanks

A few unconventional options:

1. Take a look at your checking account and see what cash back offers may be available. (For example, the Game Stop in my city closed down recently so we went there to grab some cheap games before they were gone. Chase was offering 10% cash back on purchases so we bought our games with my card and then got $7 back. I'm not sure who you bank with, but I believe Chase and Bank of America and Wells Fargo all have cash back options.)

2. Set up a separate checking account for just wedding expenses. We opened one with Capital One. At the time they were doing a promotion where they'd give you $150 if you spent $500 in the first 3 months or $250 if you spent $1500. We've spent that $1500, so we'll be getting the extra $250 within the next 2 months (yay processing times). That account also accrues interest, so we gain a few cents each month. It's not much, but every little bit counts.

3. Consider a cash back for groceries app. I've been using Ibotta and it's for sure helped save up a bit. Just go in and unlock the offers for things that you're planning on buying at the grocery store anyway. When you get home scan the items into the app and you'll get the rebate in your account usually in the next couple of days. You can request a payout via Venmo or PayPal once you've reached a certain amount and they usually have sign up bonuses as well.

View Quoted Comment Thankyou this is great advice !

Hi, Ebony! Congratulations on your engagement! So much of the cost of a wedding has to do with where you live. I was told by my wedding coordinator that the average cost of a wedding in my area (West Georgia, about 1.5 hr outside of Atlanta) is only $8K. Our budget is $10K with a guestlist of 130 and so far we have been able to stay within budget. My FH and I are also relatively young, 23 and 24, and have been living like we did in college and saving TONS. We only go out to eat for road trips and rare occasions, and don't really go out for much else other than visiting family. I looked at my bank statements from a couple of years ago and realized I spent hundreds (if not $1000+!!!) that year on coffees and convenience store food! We both get paid monthly, so we keep enough money in checking to pay our bills and have a little spending money to do what we want, and throw all the rest in savings ASAP. Then we just make whatever is left work for that month. Use your "fun money" for whatever you want- clothes, Starbucks, date night, video games etc. But just make sure you limit it so you can still meet your savings goal. It is so motivating to watch the numbers in your savings account move up over time!

View Quoted Comment Thankyou so much ! Your situation sounds a lot like ours 😂I’m scared to see what I spend on shoes and clothes ! I know it’s bad haha. I live in Ohio and it seem like everyone is so expensive!

View Quoted Comment I was seeing that and it’s amazing how much cheaper it is thanks

You could do a money saving challenge like this

https://www.pinterest.com/pin/2814818506994929/

or this

https://www.pinterest.com/pin/1337074882404034/

My husband and I didn't do these for our wedding as we created a new household budget and set our normal "fun money" to the side for our wedding. We stopped going out to dinner with friends as often and we stopped making unnecessary purchases while we were planning our wedding. I will say, although we did not use these two links to save for our wedding, we've done the envelope one (the second link) for the last 3 years. If you're able to do it, it will help you save money in no time.

I also saved money for my wedding by DIY-ing as much as I could. I bought our wedding invites and save the dates when they were on sale, made my own RSVP, Accommodation & escort cards, and used Etsy & Hobby Lobby to find decor I wanted really cheap. I was lucky in the fact that my venue allowed us to use outside catering and bartending (which is something you could ask venues if they allow while you're touring them). We saved a TON on our food b/c we used a chain restaurant to cater that gave us a great deal & we got all of our liquor from Total Wine which we also got a huge discount on b/c we were able to buy in bulk & we were allowed return any unopened and unchilled bottles (I HIGHLY recommend using total wine if you have one near you and are stocking the bar yourself). I got the rest of our drinks; like waters, soda, beer and mixers for the bar from Sam's Club. Our DJ was a friend of friend and gave us a discount and our bartender was a friend of my sister's and she only charged us $100 for 5 hours of service b/c we let her put out a tip jar (and she made over $2500 in tips from our guests - not including the extra tip my husband and I gave her at the end of the night).

You can make your wedding affordable and still make it the wedding of your dreams! It takes a lot of research and time but it is possible!

View Quoted Comment Great idea. Thankyou

Every paycheck my FH and I put a fixed amount into our savings solely for our wedding. And any extra income that we got (stimulus and taxes eventually) will go straight into saying also. Its so hard because I love buying clothes and eating out at restaurants but its so worth it in the end having a beautiful perfect wedding day!

View Quoted Comment Yes I feel you on this one. Thankyou