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Are you getting married soon?

First of all, congratulations :-)

The problem is, this happy event can be particularly costly.

But do not panic ! We have some great ideas for saving money.

We asked our readers to share their tips for reducing their wedding budget.

Here are their best ideas just for you ...

Basic advice

1. Don't get married on a Saturday

« We changed our wedding day to a Friday (initially, we were supposed to get married on a Saturday). Thanks to this trick, we saved a few thousand euros. "- Karine Blanc

“We got married on a Sunday to take advantage of a 15% discount. We chose a bank holiday weekend for the wedding day. As a result, a lot of guests weren't working on Mondays - it went really well! "- Angelique Fizzarotti

« We got married on a Wednesday. It was totally original and it allowed us to make incredible savings! We saved at least € 2,000. "- Jennifer Clément

« We got married on Monday July 13th. As no one was working the next day and our wedding started at 6 p.m., a lot of people came straight after work. "- Deborah Giraut

2. Take your time

“Our engagement lasted 2 years and it saved us a lot of money! We booked the venue and the caterer well in advance to prevent prices from rising. And especially, we had time to do tons of research on the cheapest places and suppliers - without having to sacrifice quality.

“We saved a lot of money on the invitations, while waiting for emails containing promos. The other advantage is that between the date of our engagement and that of our wedding, we had 4 birthdays, 2 Christmas parties and 2 refunds of tax returns. "- Alexandra Muller

“I literally spent hours researching on Google to find the perfect venue. My fiance (who is now my husband) said that I had a crazy look in my eyes when I was doing this research :-)

“But it was well worth it. A little research before visiting a reception venue can help you avoid falling in love with a place that is unaffordable for your finances. "- Marine Thibodeau

3. Get married just before the wedding season

"My husband and I chose us get married 1 week before the start of the wedding season (which is July to August). That is to say at the end of June. As a result, we were able to take advantage of the good weather and, in addition, much more attractive prices! "- Jessica Voisin

For the place of reception

4. Find a reception location that doesn't require you to use their own providers

“My best advice is to find a reception venue that doesn't require you to use its usual suppliers (caterer, bartender, DJ).

I saved tons of money by choosing our own caterer (€ 1,300 for 100 people), our own bartender (€ 500 for the bartender and € 400 for the alcohol - we bought most of the alcohol from a wholesaler and we were still able to have a full bar service), our own DJ (350 € fixed price, and he even took care of the music during the ceremony!) and our own photographer (795 € for all rights of our photos, an online album for 1 year and an external hard drive with all our photos - and in addition, the photographer stayed the whole day, from 3 p.m. to past midnight)!

In all, I paid € 3,345 instead of € 10,700 for the same services at the other reception venue that we were interested in (€ 4,000 for their caterer, € 4,000 for the bar, € 700 for 4 hrs. their DJ and € 2,000 for their photographer). So I saved € 7,355 just by choosing another venue. "- Lydie Marchand

5. Rent a house for the wedding and to house the guests.

« By renting a house, we got three things for the price of one. The house served as the venue for the reception, accommodation for guests who came from afar and, the week after our wedding, as a secluded location for our honeymoon. (Getting married out of season is THE perfect time to take your vacation to romantic places.) ”- Marion Drouard

« We rented a huge vacation home and we had a party! It was understated and intimate - and yet everyone was able to celebrate the moment. Hiring a caterer for an unforgettable menu, designed for a party, was much nicer than sitting around a table to eat a traditional meal.

“Besides, we didn't even have tables - just bars with comfortable bar stools. In addition, we were able to accommodate the bridesmaids and groomsmen in the house - which also allowed them to save a lot of money. "- Isabelle Da Silva

6. Choose the same location for the ceremony and the reception

“We held our wedding ceremony and reception in the same room. The guests were seated at their tables during the ceremony, which allowed them to follow directly with the aperitif while the photographer took a picture of us.

“It also saved us money on guest transportation - no limousines, no time constraints and no worry that guests from far away could get lost. "- Herveline Hammond

“We got married in a hotel. The bouquets from the hotel lobby were transported to the reception hall and no one needed transport between the ceremony and the reception. And since most of the guests slept at the hotel, the manager gave us a discount on the meals. "- Émilie Gardais

7. Consider getting married on a college campus

“I work on a university campus, where there are a superb reception room. This is the place we chose for our wedding and I had a great discount on the room! "- Aurélie Sanchez

“I have an aunt who works at a college in a lovely little town. With her, we visited the campus to find the best picturesque places, to hold the reception.

“We were able to take advantage of a huge discount! So if you know someone who works in a college, park, or other interesting place, ask them if they can get you a discount. You can find MAGNIFICENT reception venues just by calling the people who are likely to be able to help you. "- Charlotte Schmidt

8. Hold your reception in a restaurant

“After much research, I concluded that getting married in a fancy restaurant was by far the most profitable option. Instead of paying over 1000 € (see a lot more) to rent a space and bring all the necessary things, I only took care of the food and the alcohol.

"The room, the furniture, the table linen, the lighting, the elegant decoration, the crockery, the silverware, the small boxes and posters, etc." : everything was included in the service.

“The result: holding our reception in a restaurant was much cheaper than renting a reception area where you have to bring everything yourself (from forks to chemical toilets). "- Julie Blanchard

For meals and drinks

9. Don't offer a sit-down dinner

“We had a little ceremony in the church in my hometown. Afterwards, we welcomed everyone to our house to eat cake, drink champagne and open the presents. Finally, we ended the evening in a bar in our neighborhood, in wedding attire - and we did not pay for a single drink! "- Amandine Weber

“Instead of offering dinner, I chose to hold our wedding in the evening and we only served appetizers - saved us at least € 1,000. Emilie Prevot

10. Think beyond traditional meals

“I saved thousands of dollars by having someone prepare a whole spit-roasted pork and a close friend to prepare all the sides. The chef who took care of the pork roasted it in his kitchen, then brought it to the reception room with several choices of sauces.

“Spit-roasted pork, good country bread, organic green beans and good homemade mash: an excellent meal with a“ terroir ”theme. We welcomed 250 guests for less than 2,000 €!And I still get compliments on the quality of the meal! "- Aline Pelletier

« We asked a local restaurant to cook roast chickens for us, and we took care of the preparation of the toppings. After the ceremony, we made a bonfire in our garden and served the chicken, with wine and beers. "- Christine Woirgard

“We tried to be creative with the meal. We served meat, bought in a restaurant known for its grills, and we fed 110 guests for € 600. "- Émilie Mielczarek

« We served roasted potatoes. Potatoes are inexpensive. Therefore, we were able to let go of the variety of toppings offered to accompany the potatoes. My parents are wonderful: they helped us with the preparation and the setting up of the meal. "

“I baked a cupcake to cut with my husband. For the rest of the guests, I just bought cake from a good bakery: it was excellent. Several people have asked me where I bought it. Result: no catering costs. (And honestly, it was delicious!) ”- Diane Vidal

11. Use a "fake" mounted piece

“The assembled pieces (the tiered cakes served at weddings) are overpriced. Ask a pastry chef to prepare a “fake” cake for you, with decorated cardboard on the lower levels. For the last level of the cake (the one you cut, the smallest), use a real cake. The other levels are purely decorative. Then ask your caterer to serve inexpensive cake to your guests. "- Marianne Besson

"Serve a cupcake or use cake" fronts "on the lower levels of the wedding cake (icing was used on a styrofoam wheel) and, for the guests, serve a homemade cake. "- Nathalie Orsini

12. Think about alternatives to the wedding cake

“We decided to serve a buffet of pastries and coffee for our wedding reception in December. Instead of serving our 250 guests a cake at € 2.50 per share, we bought 300 pastries at the local patisserie.

“For the cut cake, my husband and I used a big mille-feuille :-) Everyone loved the idea and we were able to cut the cost of the dessert in half! "- Claire Lefevre

« Forget the complicated wedding cake. What the guests really want is to eat a good dessert. The watchword is quality. Guests want something sweet, and they want it right after a meal. "- Angélique Bourgeois

“We served small tarts. At 2 tarts per guest, we got it for around € 350 ... To find a good pastry chef, I told all my friends who had just got married, I read lots of blogs with lots of wedding ideas and I asked all my suppliers if they knew anyone. 'a. Through this research, we found a woman who sells homemade pies. She assured: the guests ate ALL the tarts. There was no leftover! "- Émilie Nadaud

13. Limit the different types of alcohol

« We bought two kegs of beer from a craft brewery and offered only one variety of cocktails. That's all. "- Rachel Guillot

“Do not offer spirits during your reception! Trust me, I am a wedding planner. Beer and wine are all you need. "- Virginie Petit

For decoration and floral arrangements

14. Choose a reception hall that requires few decorations

“We are going to do our ceremony and our reception in the same room. The room is in an old barracks that the new owners have completely restored. It is so beautiful that we did not even need to add decoration. "- Catherine Delcasse

“We got married next to a wastewater treatment plant - it cost us a few hundred euros and there was a great garden to take nice pictures ! "- Laure Bousquet

“Ten years ago, we got married in a reception hall that overlooks an interior courtyard, with a garden. The building was a former bank, built in the 1920s. We got married in the courtyard garden and used the hall for the reception. The courtyard has a beautiful garden, so we didn't need any decorations, apart from a few ribbons to decorate the arch under which we got married. "- Vanessa Simon

You could also get married in December as most reception halls are already decorated for the holidays.

15. Consider making your own flower arrangements (Yes, it is possible!)

"If you like to work with your hands, or if you know someone who is a handyman, consider making your own flower arrangements. It saved us thousands of euros! Our flower budget was € 250. We ordered all the flowers on the Internet, from a wholesaler: red buttercups and white roses. With the flowers, we made 7 bouquets, 10 buttonholes and all the floral arrangements to adorn the tables.

“For the leaves, we picked plants from my garden. We ordered the soliflores (the vases intended to receive only one flower) on a website, which offered a reduction of 50%. We put all the vases on small wooden trays (my grandfather made them for us, to avoid unnecessary purchases) and on old books. "- Coralie Vidal

« My mother-in-law and her best friend bought all the flowers, from a wholesaler. They are the ones who prepared the bouquets, buttonholes and floral arrangements. "- Pauline Richard

« Instead of hiring a florist to decorate the centerpieces, we potted flowers in simple jars. Total cost of decorating centerpieces: € 20 for 10 tables, compared to € 20 per table at the florist. "- Jessica Voisin

16. Use artificial flowers (Yes, it is possible!)

« I will be using bouquets and buttonholes made from fabric flowers (which I made myself). The advantage is that you can keep them after the wedding and choose all the colors! "- Mélanie Guillon

« We used artificial flowers. I really wanted there to be tons of flowers in the church, but I knew using real flowers would be overpriced. Results ; there were flowers everywhere and they were stunning! "- Élodie Rousseau

“Instead of calling a florist, I learned how to make crepe paper flowers that I used for our wedding. For a small fraction of the cost of real flowers, I was able to purchase all of the materials needed to make crepe paper flowers.In addition, the manufacturing time was a good time to relax for me (I like working with my hands). After the wedding, you can reuse the flowers, sell them or give them away! "- Catherine Marchal

17. Try the alternative to bridesmaids' bouquets

“Instead of carrying flowers during the wedding ceremony, my bridesmaids carried lanterns! We bought inexpensive lanterns (they were neon orange and yellow) that we repainted in silver color, to match the colors of our wedding.

“We also decorated the handles of the lanterns with purple ribbons! My bridesmaids loved being able to take them home after the wedding, as a keepsake. "- Claire Lefevre

18. Or: don't buy flowers at all

« We chose not to have flowers at our wedding. No one noticed it. "- Léa Pelletier

19. Use second-hand items

« I borrowed 90% of the decorations from the daughter of my mother's best friend, who had married a few years before. Most people who get married have friends (or friends of their friends) who just got married. So, don't hesitate to ask around! "- Aurélie Tessier

"I found most of my decorations in garage sales. Jars, placemats, old letter boxes, glasses, etc. I saved thousands of dollars by asking my friends to help out with decorating! - Deborah Adam

“I spotted an old bookstore that was keeping the key under the doormat. My husband and I love to read. So I had the great idea to use old books as signs to indicate the table numbers. We bought each book for around € 0.15. I painted the table numbers on the books and voila! "- Corinne Gonzales

Even smarter home-made

20. Be your own DJ (or ask a friend to be the DJ)

“Our wedding reception hall had its own professional sound system. We plugged our Mac into the sound system in the hall, asked a friend to prepare a good playlist for us and we danced until the early hours of the morning. We still asked a friend to be the master of ceremonies, to ensure that the evening went smoothly. "- Émilie Mielczarek

“One of our friends is a bartender in the bar where I met my husband. He also took care of the music, with the sound system in the room and my premium account on Spotify. "- Sophie Lambert

21. Make your own photo booth

“We really want to have a photo booth for our wedding next year. The problem is, renting a photo booth is outrageously expensive. Instead, we planned to hang a white curtain in front of a wall that we will decorate with paper flowers. Next, we'll buy a wedding photo prop kit (hats, glasses and lots of funny little props). This way, guests can take their own photos with their smartphones! The total cost of the project? About 50 €. The cheapest rental we found was € 500. "- Émilie Henry

« We bought a Bluetooth remote control and an iPad tripod for less than € 50. This is what we will use for our photo booth! Besides, it is very easy to make your own accessories with a color printer, card stock and wooden chopsticks. "- Jennifer Masson

22. If your friends offer to help, say YES!

« Instead of asking your guests to give you a wedding present, ask them to help you with the preparations. For our wedding, one of my cousins ​​prepared a wonderful cake for us. We were very grateful, because it allowed us to make considerable savings. "- Laure Martin

“We asked our friends and family to help us on the wedding day instead of giving us a gift. Some people took care of one of the reception preparations and others made a cake for the dessert buffet. Frankly, we really don't need to be offered champagne flutes or a microwave! We'd rather have someone keep Mamie Georgette company. "- Céline Gauthier

23. Don't feel like you have to do EVERYTHING at home

“Be realistic about homemade projects! Sometimes the cost of materials and the time allocated to manufacturing a project can be more important than bringing in a professional. "- Félicie Gontard

To save even more

24. Take a walk to the supermarket

“I ordered my flowers and my cake from a supermarket. All the tables had beautiful bouquets, and at a much lower price than my own bouquet that I had bought from a florist. The supermarket also made 8 white round cakes for me, which I myself decorated with roses. I arranged each cake at different heights, with cake trays. "- Jasmine Goyet

« We ordered all of our flowers from the florist in our supermarket. Thus, we were able to save thousands of euros and we had many more flowers than our budget allowed us. "- Stéphanie Morel

25. Shop around for white dresses that don't have to be bridal gowns.

« I bought my wedding dress online, on a site specializing in ball gowns, out of season. The dress was superb and really inexpensive! "- Lucille Thierot

"If you have some notions in sewing (even basic notions), buy a white bridesmaid dress and personalize it to your liking. You can save THOUSANDS of dollars for a gorgeous, one-of-a-kind dress. "- Anaïs Dufour

“I bought my dress at Galeries Lafayette and took it to a good seamstress to have her touch up. My friends were hallucinating when they learned that my wedding dress had cost less than 200 €! "- Laure Muller

« The dress I ordered was originally a bridesmaid dress. But instead of choosing a blue dress with white fringes, I reversed the colors: a white dress with blue fringes. The dress was gorgeous and I was able to save 50% off the cost of a wedding dress. "- Camille Scalvenzi

26. Don't forget to do the sales

« I saved tons of money on my bridesmaids gifts by taking advantage of the winter sales. "- Aurélie Grandgirard

« Jtook advantage of the winter sales to buy all my bridesmaids dresses. Instead of buying traditional bridesmaids dresses, I just bought summer dresses on sale. "- Marion Moreau

“I chose colors that corresponded to the festive period just before my wedding (Easter). Then, I did the sales in a hobby and creations store to buy the small trinkets and decorations. "- Michelle Meunier

27. Try to save on small expenses that add up quickly

« If someone close to you can help you pick up the flowers, desserts, etc., you can save a lot of money on delivery costs. "- Ondine Champougny

“We found an art gallery right in the center that offered a free service for setting up tables and chairs. In addition, the rental of tables and chairs was included in the rental price of the room. (Don't be fooled by this service! Lots of reception venues try to rip you off on renting and setting up tables and chairs!) ”- Émilie Mielczarek

28. Wear a second-hand dress

« I bought my dress on leboncoin.fr for 40 €. "- Vanessa Cardon

“Buy a second-hand wedding dress on sites like Occasion du Mariage or on Vide Dressing. I spent only 350 € for a wedding dress that sells for 1,800 € in stores! "- Sarah Lecomte

29. Don't limit yourself to shops specializing in weddings

“I really needed to find a reasonably priced wedding cake. So, I posted a "request" on leboncoin for people to come up with interesting offers to bake a cutie cake and cupcakes for our guests. I paid € 100 for a cake and 65 cupcakes. "- Jessica Voisin

« Don't forget to do a search on Amazon. Our groomsmen had matching ties and handkerchiefs, at € 9 each. We even found some for the father of the groom! "- Ludivine Barbier

30. After the wedding, sell as many things as possible

“Instead of renting, try to buy things that you can resell. I bought all my tablecloths 10 € each, and I sold them on leboncoin.fr after the wedding. I did the same for the table runners. I easily managed to sell everything! "- Laurie Lejeune

31. Know how to say no to trivial things

“I have received several offers of personalized towels with our names and our photo. We refused, because I really didn't want the guests to wipe their mouths with a picture of our faces! "- Caroline Bredoux

And you ? Do you know other tips for saving money on a wedding? Share them with us in the comments. We can't wait to hear from you! :-)

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Also to discover:

4 Tips to Reduce Your Wedding Costs!

Cheap Wedding: How to Skip the Caterer?