5 Ways To Fund Your Dream Wedding

Getting married is one of the most exciting days of your life—so of course you want it to be perfect! But for most of us, funding our dream wedding costs a little (or, more likely, a lot) more than what we can afford.

But what if you could afford it?

Here are a bunch of ways to fund your dream wedding—from taking out a loan to getting a side hustle.

1. Get a side hustle

There’s no magic to this. The simplest, most effective way of having more money to spend is by earning more. Though that might not be possible with your current job, it will likely be possible on the side.

Everyone should have a side-hustle. It doesn’t have to be as complicated as starting your own side-business, but anything to make a little extra money will help. 

If you’re having trouble finding a side-hustle, here are the best places to look. And, if you need ideas, we have 35+ side hustle ideas right here.

A side-hustle can also be as simple as working a part-time job. These eight side-hustles—while not the most glamorous—can earn you a good chunk of change in a short amount of time.

2. Cut back on expenses

The flip side of earning more is, you guessed it, saving more. And the two certainly aren’t mutually exclusive.

Are you a big Netflix user? Cancel your account.

Listen to Spotify? Try Youtube instead.

Are you a gym member? You don’t need a treadmill! Of course, you shouldn’t stop exercising – you’ll need to fit into your wedding suit or dress, after all. Just run around the park instead!

These might not sound like big savings, but they add up!

3. Save on the lattes

Don’t just cut down on recurring monthly expenses. You need to change your daily spending habits.

There’s something called a “latte factor” – it’s a fun name for the amount you spend on random unnecessary expenses.

Check out this calculator to see how much you can save by making instant instead of buying your daily cup at Starbucks. Spend less on clothes, gadgets, and eating out, and before you know it your bank account will swell.

4. Take out a loan

You can always earn more money, but your wedding day will only happen once (hopefully). So taking out a loan to fund your perfect wedding could be a great way to make sure it’s every bit as sweet as you’ve been dreaming about.

That being said, taking out a loan should be a last resort. Yes, your wedding is important, but starting out your marriage having to pay off a huge loan won’t be a good thing for you or your new spouse.

If you can take out a loan with the full intention and capability to pay it back over a short period of time, taking out a loan shouldn’t be a problem.

Check out this list of loans and find the best one

5. Settle for a more realistic dream

So this isn’t a piece of advice you want to hear. I know it’s not one I wanted to hear. Personally, my dream wedding would be a grand ceremony in Alaska (I know, weird). But my fiancé and I have learned to love the idea of having an outdoor wedding in the Maine woods and we’re doing the decorating and catering ourselves (luckily, my fiancé and his family are great cooks!).

There comes a time when taking out a loan or opening a credit card for a $50,000-dollar wedding just doesn’t make sense. You can have a great wedding—even the wedding of your dreams—for a lot less. You just need to identify which part of your wedding is most important to you—besides marrying the love of your life, of course.

Here are a couple tips on how to have your dream wedding on a budget:

Don’t spend a fortune on an engagement ring

If you empty your bank account on an engagement ring, your future spouse may love it, but you’ll have no money left for the wedding itself.

You have a couple options when it comes to wallet-friendly rings:

• Don’t buy from a chain store
• Go with online jewelers like Blue Nile or James Allen
• Don’t buy a diamond 

Make a budget and stick to it

Unless you’re a millionaire (and probably even then) you need to set a budget for your wedding.

If you don’t spend time looking at overly-expensive venues, you won’t know what you’re missing—and, chances are, there’s a venue within your budget that you’ll fall in love with.

Do as much as you can on your own

I’m not going to lie, I’m not a crafty person, but luckily my fiancé is, so we’ve chosen to do most of the leg work ourselves. We’re not getting married until next Fall, so we’re taking advantage of all the sales happening during the summer—which is saving us a fortune.

We’re also:

• making our own decorations
• cooking all our own food
• making our own invitations
• having our wedding at a campground (that alone is saving us thousands over a smaller, more expensive venue

As you can see, the savings options here are huge—take advantage of your own skills (or mooch of your family and friends) as much as possible.

Summary

No one should be deprived of their dream wedding. But sometimes, your dreams far surpass how much you have saved. Taking out a loan might be your best bet, as long as you can repay it in a timely manner.

You also may have to settle for a smaller wedding than what you wanted—and recognize that what’s most important about your wedding day is the fact that you’re marrying the person you love most.