Creative Inspiration

By Chris Christen

The “ka-ching factor” is a given if there’s a wedding in your future. There’s a certain amount of sticker shock, too, as you navigate the maze of everything bridal.

A new survey by the Fairchild Bridal Group puts the average cost of a wedding just under $30,000. Nearly half of the 1,000 couples interviewed in Fairchild’s “American Weddings” study said they ended up spending more than they originally budgeted.

Wedding consultant Lynne Rustad shakes her head at the prospect. “People come to wish you well, not to see the peripheral things. If you put yourself or your parents in debt, what good is that?”

A couple of years ago, a family friend asked Rustad to help plan a wedding — on a $1,000 budget. “We came in at $987,” Rustad recalls. The experience planted the seed for a bridal idea guide (due out later this year).

If you’re looking to shave expenses, Rustad says, the guest book is the easiest place to start. “Only invite people you want to hug.” If you don’t know somebody well enough to hug them, leave them off the list.
Another economizer: “Rent. Rent. Rent.”

“When you look at reception sites, ask what they can do for you. Can they provide, at little or no charge, the linens, tables and chairs, votives and candles, and glass mirrors for the tabletops?” If you have to rent linens, “you can spend $21 per table before you’ve fed anybody.”

Rustad’s third credo: Lean on creative friends for help with programs, centerpieces and floral displays. “If you’re not creative, somebody around you is. Artsy people love getting that phone call that starts out, ‘I’m getting married and I need your help.’”

And then turn them loose and enjoy the results!