Can we talk about how expensive weddings are for a second?
So I did it, I finally broke and bought a few wedding magazines. It took all of a week and a half and then I caved.
There was a section in one of the mags about budget and what real brides spent on their weddings...
The first brides budget? $68,000...
And they didn't even have to pay for a venue because they got married at her parents house. I almost barfed when I read this. Call me confused but spending that kind of money on one day is incredible to me. That is half the cost of a nice house in a lot of states and you're gonna drop that kind of cash on 6 whole hours?!
The boys best friend proposed to his girlfriend a few days after we got engaged (I think the boy inspired him) and we were talking to them this weekend about their plans, they went on and on about how they were gonna have a small wedding and be economical about it because they were paying for it themselves. Their budget? $50,000.
What is going on here? Gone are the days where one can spend $10,000 on a wedding and that seems reasonable and not cheap, women are spending $10,000 alone on their dresses these days. I could buy a car for $10,000 and I would use it for a lot longer than a few hours my friends. In an economy where there are families living in homeless shelters what happened to our priorities?
Let's be honest, if money were no object for me or I'd been saving for a long time I would probably blow a lot of cash on a gorgeous jaw dropping wedding so I am not judging here. But, I think it's a shame that the wedding industry even thinks it appropriate to charge that kind of cash to rent silverware or linens or a flipping cake, most wedding cakes don't even taste that good!
I think it's funny people quietly judge me about spending $20,000 a year tuition to get my doctorate (a lot I know, but I'm gonna benefit from it for the rest of my life) but don't bat an eye on spending $35,000 on one day, and even taking out their own loan to do it. Some people's marriages are over before they've finished paying off the wedding. I think things are backwards, and I don't see any change for the better any time soon.
Las Vegas is looking better and better.
Image from Stressed Out Brides Survival Guide
Update: I feel I must mention that there are a lot more books, websites and magazines coming out about weddings on a budget...but I don't think many ppl are getting the message.
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