Money Monday: The Hidden Costs of Attending a Wedding

Money Monday

 

Since Vinnie and I are both lucky enough to be standing up for our best friends at their wedding this upcoming weekend, we thought it would be fitting to take a break from budgeting tips to discuss some of the hidden costs of attending a wedding this week.

Attire

Usually weddings are pretty dressy affairs and that tends to lead to the expense of buying a new dress and pair of shoes, or a new dress suit and tie. If you aren't in the wedding, some ways to mitigate the expenses of buying a new dress, etc. are:

• Borrow a dress from a friend or family member. Chances are they've bought a dress for a wedding and only worn it once and wouldn't mind letting someone else wear it to get the most for their money. Offer to let them borrow a dress of yours for their next event. There's nothing better than shopping in someone else's closet!
• Use a clothing "rental" website. I've used RentTheRunway.com for past events and absolutely love it. It's a website where you can choose from all styles of dresses and rent them for 4 days at a fraction of the cost. The clothes arrive in great condition and it is a wonderful opportunity to wear a designer that you may never wear in your everyday life.
• Look for sales. If you know that you have a wedding coming up later in the summer, fall, or winter, a great time to shop is right after the prom season because a lot of dresses will be on sale and you can get them for a great price. The selection is typically larger as well at that time of the year. You should also be able to find some great sales on shoes and accessories as well.
• Recycle a dress from another event. A lot of the time when I go to a wedding, I can get away with using a dress that I bought for my work's Christmas party or another event for the wedding. It's great to get multiple uses out of a dress and no one will know the difference.

Lodging

If the wedding is out of town or if you don't want to pay for a cab or find a DD at the end of the night, you are most likely going to need to stay at a hotel at or close to the reception venue. Some ways to keep the cost of lodging down include:

• Split a room with another wedding guest or two. It will be cheaper than paying for a room by yourself and it is guaranteed to be full of laughs. Think of it as a pajama party for adults. You can recap all the fun of the wedding while sitting in your PJ's and drinking wine and eating chips! 
• Combine discounts (if possible). Even if the soon-to-be married couple has reserved a room block at a discounted rate, see if you can use reward points or get a AAA discount on the room as well.

Transportation

Keep in mind that this section will deal with transportation costs of getting to a wedding out of town:

• Carpool. If there are multiple people going to the wedding from your area, see if you can all ride together and save on gas. Keep in mind you will need room for clothes that need to be laid flat or hung (dresses, suits, etc.).
• Buy in advanced. For airline flights, you typically get the best prices if you buy far in advanced. As soon as you know you are invited to a wedding, I would look for flights to get the best possible flights. Utilize sites like expedia.com, or trivago.com to look for the best deals. Also, SouthWest will often have a promotion for $45 flights; keep an eye out for those as it can save you.
• Don't forget about trains & buses. These options may take longer but they are often cheaper and more reliable!

Gifts

The rule of thumb that I was taught about weddings is that the gift should total the amount of money that the couple is spending on you (i.e. cost per plate, etc.). You should also take into consideration how much you are spending to actually attend the wedding, mostly travel costs. Ways to save money on a gift are:

• Share with a group. If you are going to the wedding with a group of people you know, you can split the cost of an item from their registry with the group. This allows you to get the couple a more expensive item that they want, but you don't need to break the bank to do so.
• Be Unique. Go off the registry and find something that you think captures the essence of the couple. They will recognize that you put a lot of effort in to finding the perfect gift, and that means more to them then the amount you spent. You don't have to spend a treasure to get them a gift they'll love forever.
• Be Crafty. One of the favorite gifts that we received at our wedding was an ornament that one of our guests made using our invitation. It is such a special way to display the invitation and we love seeing it hang on our tree.

We hope you all have a safe and fun wedding season!

Happy Monday!
Jackie & Vinnie