Wedding Reception Decorations

For most people, their wedding day will be the most expensive day of their lives. But their are plenty of ways you can lower your wedding budget without making your day any less special. The most expensive single part of the wedding is the wedding reception (usually between a third and a half of the entire cost) and it is the easiest part to cut the budget. Here are some ideas for ways that you can save money on your wedding reception with some cheap wedding reception supplies. Photo by advencap

Ideas for Cheap Wedding Reception Centerpieces

Flowers make for massively expensive wedding reception centerpieces. Wedding candles make for a much cheaper but equally elegant idea for centerpieces. I actually prefer to see candles used as centerpieces rather than flowers. Sometimes the smell of the flowers rather overpowers the meal.

Cheap Wedding Flowers

If you do want to use flowers at your wedding reception, you can save there too. Make sure you use flowers that are in season at the time of your wedding. This will make them much cheaper. Also, try to buy your flowers from a wholesaler and create the arrangements yourself (and with the help of family and friends).

Cheap Wedding Reception Favors

Wedding reception favors are often far more generous than they really need to be. Even not giving guests favors at all will not likely be a problem. Most guests won’t even notice. But most couples do like to give their guests something to remember the event by. And that is what it should be - its main value is a memento. A simple candle or a small charm make for an excellent but cheap wedding favor. If you really wanted to keep the cost down, you could even go for a wedding reception sticker which can be found for sale at a price so low it’s almost free.

Make sure you get a discount on your wedding reception favors by buying them in bulk.

Cheap Wedding Reception Food Ideas

There’s no need to have a huge, five course meal for your wedding reception. One popular alternative is to host a cocktail reception. Cutting out the food will mean a large decrease in the cost of the reception. It will also take a great deal of the stress and worry out of it.

The catering is one of the trickiest parts to get right when you have to take into consideration vegetarians, people with allergies, kosher and halal meals and any other particular needs your guests may have.

The best wedding reception I ever went to had a cocktail reception rather than a full meal. The meal has a tendency to get in the way of interacting with all the fellow guests. You can also achieve this (whilst saving money) by having a wedding reception buffet rather than a sit down meal.

Cheap Wedding Cake Ideas

Another way to save money on the wedding reception food is to fake the cake. It is possible to hire large, ornate cakes that are non-edible and just for show. They will even have a small section of real cake that the bride and groom can cut into. This means you can serve your guests a much less expensive cake and they’ll be none the wiser. You could even make the cake yourself or rope in the services of talented friend or relative.

Cheap Wedding Reception Decoration Ideas

There’s no need for grand crystal chandeliers at your wedding reception. It’s much better to keep your decorations simple and elegant. Particularly if the venue of your wedding reception is already beautiful.

Some tasteful wedding reception table decorations will go a long way in making your reception elegant and colorful. Lights make an easy and effective decoration for most venues. Again, avoid using too many flowers if possible.

The cheapest way is to create do it yourself wedding reception decorations. This adds a personal touch and is sure to give you a unique wedding reception.

Timing of the Wedding Reception

The time of day and time of week that you hold your wedding reception can have a big influence on on its cost. You can save a fair amount of money with a Friday night, a Saturday afternoon or a Sunday wedding.

I hope this article has given you plenty of ideas of how you can have an elegant and special yet cheap wedding reception.