After the newly-engagement thrill tapers off, the enormity of planning a wedding settles in; specifically, "How are we going to pay for all of this?" It can be tough to know how to start socking away funds or, conversely, how to stay motivated. We went straight to the handiest resource we know — BG's Instagram followers — to get the money-saving lowdown.
Photo Credit: Michael Essig
"Each paycheck, we put away the amount it would take for one guest to attend our wedding (tax included). After a while, we'd put in for three guests at a time and then four. It made saving more tangible for us because we could see it all coming together per person, as opposed to some random amount. It made keeping track more fun, too! I remember getting super excited when we got to 10 people, then 20. We were incredibly proud of ourselves since we didn't think we could swing a wedding on our own." —@peri_natalie_
"After we got engaged, we worked out how many months we had left until the wedding to save. The first thing we did was pay for the honeymoon, and then we divided the remaining wedding expenses up between those ten months. All we did was pay rent, put aside just enough for fuel and groceries, and then we used the rest for wedding bills. By the time that we had two months to go, we had paid for almost everything, which helped us stay relaxed." —@emily_nikanor
"Besides sticking to a budget for larger items, I sold things on Craigslist and Facebook to get enough money to pay for extra things such as a photo booth and accordion player!" —@amy_irene84
"So far, we save 10% of any money that comes in, whether it be a paycheck, a monetary gift from someone, an unexpected blessing, and so forth." —@jojo_in_texas1
"We put aside a certain amount each month, then a percentage of our taxes and bonuses. We've raised half of our goal so far. We've slowed down since I gave birth to our son a couple of weeks ago. We'll be picking up on savings when I return to work and get back on our feet. We're taking our time to make sure we have enough money saved for the wedding we want." —@hokulove88
"Well, my fiancé and I are still living in our parents' houses (an hour and 25 minutes away from each other) because we have student loans. Although we only see each other on weekends, living at home allows us to save up a bit!" —@meliss_dawn
"When we got engaged over two years ago, we received a ceramic clay wedding pot that you have to smash to open. We put British pounds (dollars) and notes in it! It's a great system because we can't dip into it!" —@nailsandbeautyjade
"We are working on it. We are blessed and fortunate to get some help from both parents! But we also have to save for a house and everything that goes with it because we aren't living together first. Right now, we are putting a certain amount aside each paycheck." —@laurenclarice324
"We put together a spreadsheet, which worked out the maximum we could save each month. That gave us a total we would have by the time we got married (18 months worth of savings). We used this figure as our budget and worked backwards! Easy peasy. I also sent our spreadsheet with estimated costs per aspect to my girlfriends when they all got engaged!" —@hmhickey
"We both make tips at our jobs, so every night, they go straight into this cute jar that my sister made for us. Also, our extra Christmas money went in there, along with any engagement money that loved ones graciously gave to us — all for the Williams Wedding! " —@rachelolivia10
"We each saved $500 religiously every month until the month before the wedding. We felt a sense of pride in knowing that we paid cash for our own wedding but also that we didn't have any debt going into our marriage." —@makeupbynaturallychic
"We share a credit card and pay it off each month. It has a spending tracker on there that helped us see where all of our money was going. We cut back in areas that weren't a necessity. We both set up automatic drafts of a set amount to be taken out of our checks each pay period to be deposited into our shared savings account. It has helped us so much that we've been able to save for not only the wedding but a down payment on our first house. We'll close on March 1st and still have plenty for the wedding in September." —@sammiejo317
"I am working extra hours, and my fiancé puts in overtime when he can as well. We only purchase what's necessary and then splurge once a month on a fancy date night, rather than weekly. We also cook our meals for the week, which keeps us from eating out. We're doing lots of DIY for the wedding and using our resources; if our family/friends have a friend who is a vendor we talk to them, and they almost always do a lot of favors!" — @sevc23
