If you couldn't afford your dream weeding a year after being engaged would you settle for some thing smaller?

Question

If not how long would you wait?

Answer 1

I never had a dream wedding..just a dream marriage....and I'm finally in mine. For me the wedding is just a big party and a means to get married....it is and never was THE highlight of my life..my first wedding was the big white church one.....still it was simple and I never got hung up on details...found a dress Iiked, dresses the maids & I liked.....got a photographer & a florist...booked the banquet hall & church.....selected the meal, chose an open bar & cocktail hour option, hired a live band, used the banquet hall's baker for the cake, ordered the invites thru the photographer, hired the limos....went dress shopping with both my Mom & ex MIL for their dresses...both gals got what they liked and looked good in...I never understood all the insanity, bridezilla behavior, demands and drama that seem to infect weddings today.

My second marriage/wedding was very simple with a home reception and a cold buffet, but if eloping at my local town hall & having a simple dinner afterwards and a weekend hotel stay was all we could swing, then so be it....just don't get all the emotional hype.

Answer 2

You need to decide what matters the most to you and focus your money on that. My big things were a certain type of dress and making sure i had fresh flowers. If you shop when items are on sale, put things on lay-away and go simple but elegant it will turn out perfect. I pretty much had my dream wedding this past June by going simple. Email me at [e-mail] if you have any questions on decorating and etc by keeping it simple and reasonable but yet elegant.

If you truly want a stunning wedding and it all depends on your age then wait a little longer. If you are in your late twenties or thirties I would not hold off.

Let me add that this day will fly by so fast!!! We got married at 430pm and before I knew it, it was 10pm! I am very glad we did not go expensive because it would have been a waste. So many people told me to elope or just go really simple. Of course I didn't want to hear what they had to say......until the day after and i was like "what???" we spent ALL that money and it flew by!!! hope that all made sense. I guess what i am trying to say is that jsut keep it simple and dont go overboard. Save your money for a down payment on a house, another vacation besides the honeymoon and etc.

Answer 3

Do me a favor. Please do not settle. If you do, you will always long for the wedding that you wanted. You can wait as long as you have to. My wedding wasn't as elegant as I would have liked, and I find myself wishing I had done this, and gotten that. But I had to settle because we were way over budget. We should have waited another year.

Answer 4

The important part is the marriage - not the wedding. People get caught up in details and "dreams" - the reality is that the day goes by so fast you barely get a chance to blink. The important part is who you are marrying...

Answer 5

A year is plenty enough to be engaged. Usually a couple gets engaged, sets a date, then figures out their budget to see the type/style of wedding they can afford, and the number of guests they are able to host.

If getting married is important, then the 'way' shouldn't matter. It's WAY more than the wedding day.

Answer 6

I would go to the courthouse if I had to.

Answer 7

My husband and I eloped and we're planning a bigger wedding (a vow renewal) in a few more years to celebrate a milestone anniversary. No point in putting off a wedding for financial reasons.

Answer 8

it depends on what is more important to you....being married or the wedding.  if you are ready to be married the  commitment, has nothing to do with the size of the wedding.  

Answer 9

My grandmother told me that if you can't afford the wedding you want, then you probably can't afford the lifestyle you want either. She advised us to wait until we could afford the wedding we wanted. (It took us 4 years.)

If you're really in love and plan to be together forever, then what's the rush? You're going to have a lifetime together, right?

(We paid for the entire wedding ourselves. We owed nothing after the wedding because we saved for it and had the wedding of our dreams.)

Answer 10

Not only did I settle for a cheap $20 off the rack number from Fashion Bug, I let my husband have a $700 outfit, kilt and all!

A year later, I'm depressed as all get out. I wanted a beautiful, flattering gown, and I settled for something cheap. I wanted a veil and crystal tiara. I settled for an old costume wire piece that I picked up several years ago. I settled on pretty much everything while my husband got the outfit he dreamed of to honor his Scottish heritage. I even had to settle for borrowing my husband's sister-in-law's bouquet.

We're planning to renew our vows, and I'm still not getting any of what I want. I'm still settling.

Don't go into debt, but don't settle too much, either!  

Answer 11

duh wouldnt that be plan "B"

especialy if you gots kids and are young this always what hapens people do plan "B"....

Answer 12

Yes I would it is not about the wedding, reception or any of that it is about marrying your soul mate, I wish I could change mine now to something smaller but to late for that

Answer 13

Whats important is your love for each other - don't start out by putting yourself in debt with a bigger wedding than you can afford!