If you have other links, drop them below so we can add them to this list!

75 tiny paintings, each 7×7 cm, about 150 hours in total. I wanted our guests to take home something personal, so I painted every favor myself. Each one is unique, and watching people pick theirs at the wedding made all the hours worth it. Around 150 euros in materials without the time included ofc,haha.

I'm here to vent. WHY TF do so many venues not allow self catering? My wedding is ETHNIC af, and I don't want someones dry unseasoned chicken breasts. This is such a foreign concept to me and my fiance. We're from different cultures, but in both of our cultures, the families cook the food for weddings, and there is NO serving, you get it yourself and you get as much as you want, in our cultures, we expect you to leave the weddings fat and happy. Ngl I've never been to a catered wedding that tasted better than a family cooked one. Also, ALSO, we can do the food for a quarter of the price that these caterers want per plate. It is SUCH A SCAM imo.

Anyone else in this predicament, and if so, how are you handling it?

Hi, I am trying to source printables on Etsy for our fall/boho/nature themed wedding for a welcome sign, table numbers and possibly other signage. There is just so much AI now and I really don't want that at my wedding. Anyone have any vendors they have used for signage that don't use AI? I could probably also find inspiration on Etsy and use Canva to make my own as well, but with two little kids at home and full time job looking to make a few things easier. Thanks!

Hi guys! My family keeps asking for my christmas list and my fiancee and I are trying to ask for only wedding items to help with our budget. What’s some good things to put on my list for family to gift me for christmas but it’s actually a wedding expense?

Hey, I'm looking for a cellist or violinist for my 2028 ceremony. I love supporting the arts so if you're a beginner or know any artists just starting out please send me their way. My wedding is taking place in Brooklyn, NYC and the ceremony will only be an hour long. We also have an untraditional ceremony with no wedding party besides flower girls so we'll probably need less than 5 songs.

Hi all, I keep going back and forth about getting my hair and makeup done. I dont usually wear much makeup, and I am bad at hair. Almost all my friends, nor mom or mother in law, wear much makeup, so I dont have anyone to really ask for help. I think I could probably figure out my own, but my mom has parkinsons and probably needs help with hers since she would need brows mostly drawn on, which might be outside my expertise.

I found a local salon who does wedding hair & makeup if you go to them for cheaper than other spots (we are in a high cost of living area). For bridal hair and makeup including a trial it is 450. And then my mom's makeup would be 80 (no hair wanted), and my MIL's hair + makeup would be 140. They dont have a minimum if we go to the salon, so we could pick and choose what services we want.

Is that reasonable? If you ended up getting yours done, how much was it? Are you glad you had someone do it? Or, alternatively, are you glad you did it yourself?

If I do it myself, I would mostly just need to buy foundation, lashes, and primer or a setting spray, plus some hairspray and bobby pins.

Conseils de préparations pour un mariage cérémonie + repas sur la plage en DIY ?

Je prend tous les conseils 🙂

Je vois beaucoup les cérémonies laïques sur la plage puis la table des invités exactement au même endroit mais où vont les invités pendant que les tables sont installées entre la cérémonie laïque et le dîner ?

Hello beautiful budgeting brides! I attended the LA Wedding Expo about a month ago & I was fortunate enough to win a $1000 dress credit at a local bridal shop in Los Angeles called Lucky Brides (feel free to visit their Yelp page for more information). This past weekend, however, I fell in love with a dress at a different location, so I will no longer need the dress credit coupon. I’d love to be able to gift it to someone who needs it.

Please leave a comment if you’re an LA Bride who hasn’t gotten a dress yet. I’ll be putting everyone’s username in a random selector wheel and selecting a winner this Friday at 8:00PM PST. Once a winner is selected, I will send you a direct message & work on mailing it out as soon as possible.

Best of luck!

I'm looking for a simple / elegant wedding dress from a reputable site that won't kill my budget. My perfect dress has a low back, and simple front with maybe a square or scoop neck (+ straps that sit wider on the back look best on my frame). I'm struggling to find dresses that aren't from (what I've read to be) scammy sites, have cheap material, or totally break the bank. Does anyone have recommendations for trustworthy sites?

Here are some inspo photos

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Photos have been sourced from the venue website!

Would love some advice on which types of colors would look good in the ceremony venue. I’m particularly having trouble with the bridesmaid dresses.

The string coloring in the wood grain and the deep green are beautiful but my original vision isn’t panning out the way I hoped (collage and swatches that kind of fit)

We’re thinking mismatch cuts and colors, semiformal, chiffon from Azazie!

How much is everyone spending on their wedding photographer and videographer? The prices I've been seeing are high, I'm trying to keep our overall wedding budget around $10K.

I'm willing to splurge a little on photo and video since it's such a special day and I want to capture those memories, but ideally, I'd love to find someone who can do both photography and videography for around $2K–$3K.

Has anyone found a great vendor in that price range? I'd love to hear what you paid and any recommendations! 😊

Hi everyone! As someone who really enjoyed reading wedding budget breakdowns while planning my own wedding, I wanted to share ours!

We spent approximately $7.5k on our intimate October wedding in Boston (yes, everything is expensive), with around 10 guests in attendance. We spent one hour taking couple portraits (including first look), one hour on the ceremony, and family formals, grand entrance, first dance, toast, and cake cutting, and another 1.5 hours eating afterward. Note that it was a weekday.

Venue & On-Site Requirements — $1,600
Restaurant venue: $1,600
Ceremony and reception spaces: Included
Venue coordination and setup: Included
Tables, chairs, linens, and tableware: Included

Catering, Food & Bar — $189 (plus venue package)
Wedding cake: $189 (including delivery fee $35)
Reception food and beverages: Included in venue cost
Bar service: None (drinks were served at the table)

-I really appreciated the venue’s event planner! Thanks to her, I didn’t need anyone else for venue setup, decoration, day-of coordination, music, etc. I just brought our deco stuff, decided floor plans with her, and when we arrived, everything was perfectly set up! I was super lucky!

-The wedding cake is just a white cake. But once "wedding" is added as a prefix, suddenly the cost is twice. So, I found the beautiful signature cake of a local bake shop, no wedding premium. I loved the cake!

Attire & Beauty — ~$3,247
Bridal gown and outerwear: $567.00
Groom’s suit: $834.12
Groom’s tie: $340.00
Three additional dresses purchased during wedding planning: $412.00 (sunk cost)
One-time beauty supplies, accessories, nails, veils, shoes, and styling purchases: ~$218.00
Reusable makeup, skincare, and hair products: ~$840.30
Additional attire accessories for moms: $35.60

-I did my own hair and makeup for the wedding. HMU artist must be cost-saving at the end of the day, but I wanted a specific style. So no regrets.

-I intentionally spent more on the groom’s attire than on my wedding dress. I know that might sound a little unusual, but my reasoning was that he could wear his suit for the next 10 years, while I’d only wear my wedding dress once.

-I initially looked for a simple dress for a civil wedding and ordered a few options online, but none of them worked out. :( Eventually, I went to a bridal shop and found my dress! Luckily, it didn’t need any alterations.

Photography & Videography — $1,450
Wedding photographer: $1,200
Videographer (raw footage only): $250
Wedding planner: $0
Day-of coordinator: $0 (venue coordination included)

-We had two hours of coverage for both photography and videography, and we have plenty of beautiful photos and videos! We’ll turn them into an album and a short cinematic video.

-I carefully reviewed photographers’ portfolios and experience to find someone whose style I truly loved. I think a photographer’s skills are especially important because they need to capture fleeting moments, while video captures events more continuously. (No disrespect to videographers, of course!) I’m really happy with my decision because I absolutely love how our photos turned out!

-I found an early-career videographer for a short time of coverage. It was one of the best decisions. Recorded our vows, first look moment, first dance, and the moments that photography couldn't capture. Also, until the photos came, I got screenshots of raw videos and shared the stills with people.

Music & Entertainment — $0
The venue played background music, and for our first dance, a family member played our song using a Bluetooth speaker. We played Perfect (Ed Sheeran), edited it to 2 mins and uploaded on Youtube. We didn’t have any dancing afterward.

Florals, Decor & Extras — ~$674.67
Florist (bridal bouquet, boutonniere, two centerpieces, and delivery; no installation): $585.00
Faux flowers: $38.99
Small decorative vases and greenery: $9.00
Ring boxes, engraved ring case, ring-sizing tool, and jewelry care supplies: $41.68
Photo display frames: Prepared by a family member

We kept the decorations simple, with two floral centerpieces, a small photo display telling our story as a couple, and a memorial display honoring loved ones who had passed away.

Stationery, Signage & Paper Goods — $9.95
Wedding vow book: $9.95
https://a.co/d/0gLRSmK1
Seating chart and escort cards: DIY by a family member
No guest book, no gift box.

-Vow book was a photographer's idea. It made our pictures romantic and cute!

Legal, Ceremony & Transportation — $370
Officiant fee: $260.00
Marriage license: $50
Wedding transportation (Uber): $60

We didn’t book a hotel and just stayed at home the night before the wedding. On the wedding day, the groom left home first, and I changed into my wedding dress after he left. Our first look was romantic and successful. We also skipped the traditional getting-ready photo session. (No bridesmaids or groomsmen.)

Total Wedding Expenses — Approximately $7,500

Not included:
Wedding rings: Approximately $2,000

Overall, we prioritized good food, photography, videography to document the day, and spending meaningful time with our immediate family rather than elaborate decorations, entertainment, or traditional wedding extras.

We were engaged in early July 2026, and we started the preparation in early August. So, only two months for preparation. It was possible due to family only wedding, no external guests.

All of our vendors were fantastic. Beforehand, I thought about all logistical details (for example, how far the photoshoot place to the venue, the meeting point with photo and videographers, who bring the bag etc), decided it, and shared all my vendors. (officiant, video and photographers, the venue event planner) as well as each family (e.g., the ceremony will happen here and then you should move there). So for the wedding day, I didn't worry at all and just enjoyed the entire day.

I’ve attended quite a few weddings as a guest, and when I think back on them, what I remember most are the happy people, the smiles, and the love shared by everyone, as well as the good food. I don’t remember exactly how the venues were decorated or how elaborate the centerpieces were. That perspective really helped us decide where we wanted to spend our money and what we could comfortably skip. I understand that everyone’s values are completely different. I just wanted to share one person’s perspective. It was the happiest day of our lives.❤️

How much would you all expect a wedding to cost for 20 people total? Ideal world it’s on a Thursday or Friday, restaurant where we do food and drink, partial buyout, in Colorado. I know it’s not a lot to go off of, so ball park answers help!

Other details:
- plated or family style dinner
- open bar
- ceremony and reception in the same place

Hi all, looking for some insight about a school bus shuttle price. I was quoted $1,200 for a school bus to travel approx 5 miles each way. Pick up at 330, return trip at 10pm. 30 people.

All my friends (married in 2024 or earlier) said they all paid $800ish. Is this just a price inflation thing? Am I looking at the wrong thing??? Just curious if anyone else has been quoted the same as me recently.

Hi!! Has anyone had a restaurant wedding reception in the Triad or Raleigh area? We’re planning a wedding with around 70-80 guests and I’m starting to look into restaurant options for the reception. We’re hoping to keep food and drinks under $4k, but I’m having a hard time finding places that I like and would work for that many people without spending a fortune. We’d love to do a nice dinner, ideally somewhere with a pretty atmosphere, but I don’t want to do anything rustic/country. I’d love to hear about your experiences, pricing, and any places you loved (or didn’t love)!!

Hey! We have quite a tight budget so looking for recommendations with that in mind. We want as much of a candid feel as we can for photos! Any recommendations?

I’m having a micro wedding in 2028 and I’m looking for a photographer that won’t break the bank for just 2 hours of photography. I only want to capture the ceremony and then some photos after. If anyone has suggestions. I’m 100% open and even prefer students or beginners my husband and I always want to support the arts!

My fiance and I are tying the knot on 7/17/27. We applied for a permit to hold the ceremony at Central Park and we put our deposit down for the ballroom at HI NYC but I’m having second thoughts on the venue. We may end up hiring a Day of coordinator but we’re looking for a space that’ll hold about 90-100 guests, allows outside catering and can provide tables, chairs & linens if possible. Any ideas?

To share our experience on using Macy’s, the TLDR is they took our money & gifts from us.

We made our registry on Macy’s online, simple enough. Guests purchased gifts for us that were shipped directly to us. It was great. BUT one of our guests got us an item and didn’t mark it as purchased, and this happened twice so we ended up with double of 2 items. They didn’t leave a card or anything so we have no idea who left those two without asking about 150 different people… awkward and not happening. Naturally we went to Macy’s to return them for store credit, gift card, whatever you want to call it so we could purchase other registry items that were not gifted. We were told by the manager in store that sorry these are third party items that we cannot take back, but don’t worry you can call this number that I’ll write down on a post it note (??? Seems legit??) and they’ll initiate a mail return for you. We confirmed not with her THREE TIMES that if we do this we would still receive store credit directly to us, and she confirmed yes they will email a gift card.

We called the number. We were told by the employee on the phone that we will have to package the items, print the label we were sent (don’t have a printer), and ship them out. We were assured not once, not twice, but THRICE that don’t worry yes you will receive a gift card via email, we won’t automatically refund the original purchaser. Since these were indeed GIFTS as shown on the registry and therefore WE should receive the funds to use. (We returned the gift that the 2 guests HAD marked as purchases since those could be tracked as a purchase on the registry.) We even received an email confirmation for each item that we would receiving a gift card in exchange for returning these items. This totaled out to around $300.

We manage to package and ship the items as directed. Weeks go by. No gift card. I contacted Macys via customer support chat. They stated “I can confirm that we received your return.
Refunds are typically processed within 10 business days, and you'll receive an email confirmation once the refund is completed. At this time, we just need to allow a bit more time for our warehouse to complete the review.”

Another week goes by. It’s been 10 business days. No email confirmation that the refund was completed. No gift card.

I again contacted Macys via customer support chat. Their response, if you can believe it: “I can see that a refund for *** was issued for ****.
Please note that refunds typically take up to 10 business days to reflect on your original payment method statement.”

I responded clarifying about a dozen times within this chat that Since these were indeed GIFTS as shown on the registry and therefore WE should receive the funds to use.

I kid you not, their exact response: “I request you please place an e gift card order.”

They recommend I purchase — PURCHASE — a gift card. At this point they’re just rage baiting.

After more back and forth, this is the best they can do: “I'm extremely sorry about this about this but it looks like the refund has not ben issued to the gift card and has been processed to original payment mode. Unfortunately since it has laready been issued we won't be able to process the refund on a gift card instead. I completely understand how unacceptable this is, but we the refund has gone to original payment mode.”

I call Macy’s customer service. I’m given the same response, and am told to ask the guest who purchased the gift for the funds back. This is a joke.

Macy’s, you’ve forever lost customers in us in the way this was handled. Absolutely no. We’re considering speaking with those guests about it, but leaning towards not doing that since we believe it would be rude to ask them for money at this point.