First and foremost, you would need to work out a preliminary guest list. Be mindful that this is not cast in stone, but it will be very helpful in assisting you in your budget planning process. In most instances, items like your wedding menu, the wedding stationery or the wedding favours, the wedding necessities will be charged on a per person basis. Knowing the estimated number of guests will be very useful in helping you decide the amount you would need to set aside for each part of your wedding.
Once you have worked out the preliminaries, it is time to start working on the budget.
Photo Credit: Philip Brewer
Working out the budget
As part of the budget planning process, the key components of the wedding are broken down into percentages against the total wedding budget. Typically, the budget is broken down as:
Venue Rental / Reception: 50%
Ceremonial Rental & Reception: 2%
Suits, Gowns, Accessories & Makeup: 10%
Wedding Bands: 2%
Flowers & Decorations: 10%
Entertainment: 10%
Photography & Videography: 10%
Stationery: 3%
Favours & Gifts: 3%
Total: 100%
Having said that, couples should also be aware that how much they decide to spend on each component, depends very much on the style of the wedding they are having.
For example, Kenneth and Jessica decide to hold their wedding within a grand hotel. The most important consideration for them would be the ambience and the food quality. In this case, they may decide to portion a higher amount to the venue and food menu. They may choose to cut back on items like on items like flowers, decorations and other miscellaneous items like personalized napkins, cake toppers etc.
Gerald and Joy decide that they would like a outdoor garden party. In this case, they may decide to portion more of their budget to the flowers, decoration, stationery and favours to fit into their wedding theme.
Remember, these are pre-planning and as you go along, you will inevitably find that you would need to shift things round a little, or maybe increase your budget a little. Whatever the case, this will form a very good initial guide for your wedding preps.
Photo Credit: Philip Brewer
