How I Saved for Wedding Expenses

After I finalized last week’s post on wedding expenses and budgeting (you can check out the post here), it felt like the wedding expense and budgeting conversation was not complete yet. It was great to talk about budgeting. It was great to showcase how to calculate what you need to save for wedding expenses. It was great to create a plan. But once you create a plan, how do you put saving into action? That is the question I want to dive into today.

Keep in mind this post explains saving for our wedding, but you can change “wedding” into any category you would like. It may be a dream vacation to Europe. Or saving for a new car. Or purchasing camera equipment to start a side job on the weekends (this was me a few years ago). Create a goal for whatever works for you and your life!

I love reading about money and talking about spending habits because everyone is so different. So unique. I am a saver, and I hate having bills. I have learned that about myself. I need a savings goal to focus on each month as I budget. Lately, it was our wedding. Sometimes it is my next vacation. The bottom line is that I love the feeling of having a plan for my money, which is one of the benefits of having a budget. Creating a budget is the first step. The next step is figuring out how to make that budget realistic and happen, which is when savings goals come into play.

The Why of Saving + How It Motivates You

From last week’s post, we created a savings goal for a wedding. Here is a little background information. We looked at the initial amount of funds we had for our wedding. That amount in our example was $15,000. Then, we researched and calculated an estimated cost of our wedding expenses, which calculated to $20,000. Lastly, we took the amount of expenses versus the amount of our initial funds and calculated the amount we needed to save, which amounted to $5,000. Next, we determined how much we needed to save each pay period (or month depending on your payment schedule), which calculated to $250 per pay period (for 20 pay periods).

The best way I know how to keep a savings goal is to create a strong “why” behind it. So, what does that mean? It means you need to have an investment into the reason of why you are saving. It has to be important and meaningful to you so that when the hard times come and you want to spend, you won’t give in to temptation.

Remember when I mentioned this point in last week’s post: If you absolutely must have something specific in your wedding, budget for it.  I want to talk about that idea again. When it comes to the wedding and the day you imagined, I want you to think hard about what you and your fiance really want. What is most important to you? What is most important to your fiance? Why do you want to have the wedding you want to have? Write it down. Talk it out with your fiance so that you will be on the same page for saving and spending for wedding expenses.

If you are planning a wedding that is filled with ideas and things that are not important and meaningful to you and your fiance, it is going to be hard to save. Why? Because deep down the areas you spent the funds on were not important. They did not matter to you, which means at the end of spending you are going to be left frustrated. And nobody wants that.