There are many decisions to be made when planning a wedding, from location to wedding venue to the size of the event. Each of these choices will have an impact on how large your spend is for your big day.
Weddings can be a major expense. And, in this difficult economic climate, it’s even more important to plan carefully to create a wedding that doesn’t break the bank.
Your Humanist Ceremonies celebrant will work with you to create a ceremony unique to the two of you, and will have ideas about how you can personalise your ceremony and save some money at the same time.
Here are 5 tips on planning your affordable humanist wedding
One of the wonderful things about a humanist wedding is that it allows couples to shape the ceremony to fit you, these tips will help you to plan an affordable wedding which is right for you as a couple.
1. Venue hire
The venue is likely to be the largest cost of the day but, with a humanist wedding, you can have the ceremony wherever you like! You could have it in the comfort of your own garden, on a beach, or in a beautiful woodland.
A woodland is a wonderful place for a humanist ceremony, allowing you and your partner to affirm your love immersed in nature – and avoid the costs of an expensive venue. If you are choosing a woodland wedding, do check if you’ll need permission to use the land and consider if the location will be accessible to all of your guests.
Read our blog post about woodland weddings for more ideas.
2. Get creative
If you’re someone who loves to craft, creating parts of your own wedding could be really fun.
You could design and print your own wedding invites using Canva or find some that you like on Etsy and print them yourself. Hand-written table place names give a personal touch and popping some fairy lights in jam jars is an effective way to create some cute quirky lighting.
Getting creative allows you to put your own stamp on your decor and will also save you some pennies.
3. BYOB (Bring your own bouquet)
Your budget for wedding flowers may need to cover a wide range of things so, if you are dealing with a smaller wedding budget, you’ll need to prioritise. You might want to spend on your own bouquet of flowers but do you need to pay out on buttonholes for the groomsmen and flowers for the tables?
Ask your guests to bring flowers from their own gardens or local florists to pop into bottles or vases at the venue, creating a rustic floral display. This saves on the budget and allows your guests to be involved with the decor. Christine and Nij did just that at their humanist wedding.
Christine said “We self-catered and we didn’t spend any money on flowers – everyone brought a bunch each. It was a community task – everyone who was invited helped to make the wedding.”
Read more about Christine and Nij’s special day here.
4. Put your playlist making skills to good use
Of course live music can be a wonderful addition to your special day, if you have your heart set on it but you can save on the costs of a DJ by creating your perfect wedding playlist for the party, and include all your most-loved dance tunes. You can even create a collaborative playlist where guests can add their own favourites!
5. Elope
Elopement can be a great option if you’re on a very tight budget!
For some couples, it’s also the chance to shake off difficult conversations about guest lists and family. You can personalise your humanist elopement however you want – you just need to find the right celebrant for you.
Find out more about planning a humanist elopement here.
Find your local celebrant
Planning your wedding and would like to explore having a humanist ceremony? Find your local celebrant on our map and get in touch.
Find out more about humanist weddings
