Barbara Cameron - The Everything Weddings on a Budget Book: Plan the wedding of your dreams--without going bankrupt!

2nd Edition

Dear Reader,

I'm so glad that you've chosen this book to help you plan your wedding! Whether your budget is modest or large, you've chosen this book to help you plan your wedding because you want to spend wisely. Working with a wedding budget may be the first time the two of you will be discussing and handling finances together. It can be a terrific learning experience, one that will pave the way for a great future together.

It might be hard to believe you can avoid overextending yourself when you plan something as important as a wedding, but helping you stay within your budget is what this book is all about. You will discover that it's possible to have a lovely wedding on far less money than you think without compromising what's important to you.

Perhaps you want to spend more on some aspect of your wedding than the experts say you should. This book will show you how to do it without harming your overall budget. It also has advice for saving as much as possible on your overall wedding expenses to allow for a nicer honeymoon or for making a down payment for your first house. Do what makes you happy, and don't go by anyone else's rules. It's your wedding and your life.

Barbara Cameron

The Series

These handy, accessible books give you all you need to tackle a difficult project, gain a new hobby, or even brush up on something you learned back in school but have since forgotten. You can read cover to cover or just pick out information from the four useful boxes.

Alerts: Urgent warnings

Essentials: Quick and handy tips

Facts: Important sound bytes of information

Questions: Solutions to common problems

Now you can finally say you know Everything!

EDITORIAL

Director of Innovation: Paula Munier

Editorial Director: Laura M. Daly

Executive Editor, Series Books: Brielle K. Matson

Associate Copy Chief: Sheila Zwiebel

Acquisitions Editor: Kerry Smith

Associate Development Editor: Elizabeth Kassab

Production Editor: Casey Ebert

PRODUCTION

Director of Manufacturing: Susan Beale

Production Project Manager: Michelle Roy Kelly

Prepress: Erick DaCosta, Matt LeBlanc

Managing Designer: Heather Blank

Interior Layout: Heather Barrett, Brewster Brownville, Colleen Cunningham

Visit the entire Everything series at www.everything.com

Plan the wedding of your dreams without going bankrupt!

Barbara Cameron

Avon, Massachusetts

Copyright 2008, 2002 by F+W Publications, Inc.

All rights reserved. This book, or parts thereof, may not be reproduced in any form without permission from the publisher; exceptions are made for brief excerpts used in published reviews.

An Everything Series Book.

Everything and everything.com are registered trademarks of F+W Publications, Inc.

Published by Adams Media, an F+W Publications Company 57 Littlefield Street, Avon, MA 02322. U.S.A.

www.adamsmedia.com

eISBN-13: 978-1-60550-228-1

Printed in Canada.

J I H G F E D C B A

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Cameron, Barbara

The everything weddings on a budget book/Barbara Cameron. 2nd ed.

p. cm. (An everything series book)

Includes index.

eISBN-13: 978-1-60550-228-1

1. Weddings Planning. 2. Wedding etiquette.

3. Budgets, Personal. I. Title.

HQ745.C35 2007

395.2'2dc22

2007030944

This publication is designed to provide accurate and authoritative information with regard to the subject matter covered. It is sold with the understanding that the publisher is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting, or other professional advice. If legal advice or other expert assistance is required, the services of a competent professional person should be sought.

From a Declaration of Principles jointly adopted by a Committee of the American Bar Association and a Committee of Publishers and Associations

Many of the designations used by manufacturers and sellers to distinguish their products are claimed as trademarks. Where those designations appear in this book and Adams Media was aware of a trademark claim, the designations have been printed with initial capital letters.

This book is available at quantity discounts for bulk purchases. For information, please call 1-800-289-0963.

To Sarah

Acknowledgments

Thanks to my editor, Kerry Smith, for asking me to update this book and for offering great suggestions and direction. Thanks, too, to the many brides, grooms, and others who shared their stories with me.

The Top Ten Ways to Plan a Luxurious and Affordable Wedding

1. Talk often! The more you and your fianc talk and come to an agreement about money matters, the better.

2. Don't think of your budget as a constraint. Think of it as an opportunity and a challenge.

3. Reward yourself for coming in under budget with small, affordable luxuries.

4. Avoid impulse purchases.

5. Put the money for wedding expenses in its own account.

6. Request overdraft protection on the wedding account.

7. Use a low-interest credit card that offers frequent-flyer miles for each wedding purchase made.

8. Look for ways to save by doing certain jobs yourself instead of assigning others.

9. Comparison shop.

10. Consider free credit-counseling services if necessary.

Introduction

You're engaged and planning your wedding what a wonderful time in your life! It's exciting to plan a day you may have been looking forward to for a long time. There are so many plans buzzing in your head, so many things to do and buy and arrange, and you feel like spending whatever it takes to have what you want.

That's exactly how the people in the wedding business hope you're feeling. There are hundreds of businesses, books, magazines, and Web sites out there just waiting to tell you all the things you need and how much you'll have to spend to get them. While it's tempting to blithely and blindly spend your way to the altar, you need to think carefully about the future to avoid starting your married life with financial problems.

You might feel that budgeting your wedding takes the fun, romance, and excitement out of planning the most important day of your life. Not true! But feeling taken advantage of and going broke truly will take the romance out of your big day.