The average wedding today costs $25-30,000. The average
wedding in 1950? $250.
Even accounting for inflation, that’s a huge difference.
Yesterday, however, my brother-in-law and now sister-in-law managed to tie the
knot in 2015 on a 1950 budget. Now, they
plan to take their savings and buy a house in Pike County. I couldn’t be
more excited about them moving closer.
Wondering how they managed to pull it off? Here’s
a breakdown of how they did it.
Ceremony: They chose to have the ceremony at the courthouse.
Nine of us were present, including both their parents. Ten, if you include the
judge. Twelve, if you include them. Any way you figure, they kept it intimate,
and meaningful. And got their license all at once.
Average cost for ceremony:
$1,400
Their cost: $60
Attire: Danielle wore her mother’s
dress, which she paid to have altered. Steve wore a suit, sans the jacket, that
he already owned.
Average cost for
attire: $1,600
Their cost: $50
Beauty: Since Danielle’s mom is a beautician,
she did the hair and make-up at a professional level, without the high cost.
Average cost for
beauty: $130
Their cost: $0
Entertainment: They had “Marry You” by
Bruno Mars playing off a cell phone while waiting for the judge at the
courthouse. It was enough to add some romance and beauty to the moment. I’m guessing
the cost of a DJ is one item they didn’t need in 1950 to say “I love you”
either.
Average cost for entertainment:
$1,300
Their cost: $0
Flowers and Decorations: Obviously, at
a courthouse wedding you can’t come the night before to decorate. They did,
however, go to a park afterwards to get some really nice pictures. You can’t
beat the beauty of nature for a background, and you can’t beat the price
either.
Average cost for
flowers and decorations: $1,800
Their cost: $0
Stationary: The invite was word of
mouth, and no place cards were needed.
Average cost for stationary:
$800
Their cost: $0
Photography: Cameras on phones are
amazing today. I’m sure everyone on a budget in 1950 would’ve loved more nice
pictures. It’s also not hard to get some nice pictures that capture the moment
with a cell phone in the right lighting. Outside in a park was the perfect
place.
Average cost of photography:
$2,800
Their cost: $0
Wedding Planner: It must go without
saying that they didn’t use a wedding planner.
Average cost of wedding
planner: $1,250
Their cost: $0
Transportation: Although there was
discussion of walking to the courthouse, since they live close enough, they decided
to drive and save time. No fancy limo, though. Steve drove, while Danielle and
her dress took up the back seat.
Average cost of transportation:
$400
Their cost: $1
Venue and Catering: After the
pictures, Danielle’s parents took them out for sushi. They got free fried ice
cream for coming on their wedding day, and the restaurant played a song for them. Although I’m
not sure what song you sing to someone for getting married.
Average cost for venue
and catering: $10,500
Their cost: $200
TOTAL AVERAGE:
$25,000
THEIR TOTAL:
$311
I actually believe our wedding was even cheaper than that, most gifts from friends and family covered the cost (even if they just gave $20. Like one friends gift was paying for my alterations. Even if it may not sound right to have others pay for parts of the wedding it actually makes your friends and family feel more important and invested in your life :)
ReplyDeleteYeah, I wasn't sure if I should include the total cost of everything, or just what you paid for out of pocket yourselves, so I tried for a happy middle. Either way, it's awesome..
DeleteSo, like I said total out of pocket for us was under $50 which is awesome since we not only got gifts as well but even made a profit off our wedding to contribute to our home :)
ReplyDelete