It is always the goal to have fun after the wedding ceremony and throw a great wedding reception party, but without breaking the bank. A wedding reception is an investment just as is the wedding ceremony, but starting off on the right foot financially when walking into the life of marriage is extremely important.
Search For An Affordable Location for Your Wedding Reception
The first place most brides tip the budget scales is when booking a wedding reception venue. Look for alternative locations for hosting your wedding reception when beginning your search. Common wedding reception venues such as flashy ballrooms, concert halls, hotels, and enormous event spaces can shoot you into debt before you get to picking out your wedding cake! Try planning your reception at a park or local outdoor attraction area that your city is known for. See if friends and family have a large yard or space to hold your reception. Most churches have halls and large rooms useful for having a reception. Choose a wedding reception location that saves you money but still is functional and welcoming.
Cook It Yourself (Or With Help!)
Everyone knows that the food is one of the biggest elements in creating a happy and successful wedding reception. Think about what kinds of food you want to serve at your reception and see if these choices are possible without using a wedding caterer. As talented as wedding caterers are, they can shoot your budget sky high! Ask friends and family if they would help out and cook for the reception in advance. See if the venue you are hosting your wedding reception at offers a discounted party menu that might work to serve your wedding party. Suggest the idea of having a potluck wedding reception. This sounds against the norm, but try having guests bring a favorite dish to the wedding to serve at the reception. Of course, serve it buffet style and tell everyone to eat up!
Narrow Down Your Wedding Reception Guest List
It is never easy deciding who is important and who is not because in all reality, everyone is important, right? Remember, the number of people that you invite will definitely determine how much cash you are going to invest. Narrow down your guest list to 100 people or less and you won’t need a large wedding reception venue space or nearly as much food to feed the crowd.
Cut Down The Alcohol For Your Wedding Reception
Many couples feel that having an alcoholic bar at their wedding reception is important for that social interaction dynamic, but remember that it does greatly influence your budget. You might want to eliminate the bar completely from your wedding reception. However, if you truly wish to have a bar included, try limiting it to only serving after dinner is over. Choose two different wines and two different beers for guests to choose from. Limiting the choices that guests have can do away with the more expensive, and budget-breaking, beverages.
Make Your Own Wedding Reception Playlist
Yet another added cost to a wedding reception, professional disc jockeys can be expensive and pricy. As an alternative, write down all the songs close to your and your fiancé. Choose songs you and your wedding party all know by heart. Make a personalized playlist yourself that shows what is important to you. Designate a close friend or relative that is tech-savvy to run the show for the night. Have that person do his or her magic on your iPod and shake it with all your friends and family!