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Simply Lace Photography. Event Planning, Pastiche Events.

Are you looking at your wedding Pinterest boards and wondering how exactly to make that party happen? And by happen, we mean not just execute your vision, but actually find a way to pay for it?

That’s the thing about weddings—they’re expensive. Costs can skyrocket with a decision as seemingly simple as choosing off-season peonies for your flowers. “Budgets and weddings are always a complicated topic,” says Khrystyna Moro, event planner and principle at Pastiche Events. “Unless you’ve planned a wedding in the last five years, or it’s part of your job to know event costs, you’ll have no idea about the price of a wedding. It’s tough to create a realistic wedding budget if you don’t know what you’re dealing with!”

As a recent bride who planned two weddings for herself during the pandemic—a micro backyard event in 2020, and a larger formal party in 2021—Moro understands the personal and professional nuances of a wedding budget. Instead of looking at costs as inherently negative, she prefers to consider them from a positive perspective. “There will always be places you can spend more, but more isn’t necessarily better,” she says. “When you change the narrative, you can see budgeting as exciting, even liberating. Decide the dollars you can afford to invest, then you can begin to plan for the things that are most important to you.”

Here is Moro’s insider intel on how to keep your wedding budget on track while creating a dream wedding that you’ll love. 

How do you wrap your head around costs and make things work within your wedding budget?

“I always suggest couples begin wedding planning with an open mind and envision what they want for their celebration before settling on a budget. As a wedding planner, part of my job is to explain why things cost what they cost: catering, florals, stationery, and the cost of hiring me. Having a wedding celebration is a personal choice—anyone can get married at City Hall or with an officiant virtually anywhere. There is still a cost factor, but it’s of course much lower. When you choose a bigger wedding, you’re choosing to make a personal and unique investment. Realizing what you, as a couple, want to get out of it will guide your spending decisions.”

We’re in the era of the intimate wedding, but do they actually cost less?

“It’s my experience that couples invest more in the details and the guest experience. With lower guest counts, things like intimate venues, highly personalized services and details, curated tabletop and decor are more top of mind. It’s more budget-friendly to rent a full set of high-quality tableware pieces for a wedding of 20 than 200—but, as we invest more in each element than we would have if it was a larger celebration, the cost for an intimate wedding can match, if not exceed, a larger, albeit more basic, event.”

Muget Photography. Event Planning, Pastiche EventsDepending on how much you want to splurge on your day, a beautiful backyard micro wedding may be comparable in price to a larger, more formal affair.

In your experience, how does a wedding budget get derailed?

“If you have a hard budget number for your wedding, it’s essential to keep it on the rails! The biggest factor determining wedding costs is always going to be your guest count. Some things don’t scale down as easily, but with the guest count, your food and beverage, rentals and decor costs will. The more guests you have, the greater the overall cost will be. Adding custom details will also send costs soaring. Things like custom clothing, custom installations and personalized elements are expensive because they require more labour.

Another factor most couples don’t budget for is taxes, fees  and built-in gratuities. When reviewing pricing, it can be confusing to navigate generic ‘per person’ estimates and hourly packages when you don’t even know how much you need. That’s why I always suggest asking for a detailed pre-quote. Choose a menu or a package to get the ball rolling and once you have a formal quote in hand, it will include all of those extra fees, not just a generic base price. Then you can properly weigh the options.”

If you see your wedding budget going sideways, how can you get spending back on track?

“If you have the option to build flexibility into your budget, you’ll have wiggle room to invest more where you need to. Everyone values wedding elements differently. I’ve had weddings where a couple didn’t want a professional photographer. Many don’t have a wedding cake. For some, videography is the first to be cut, and for others, it’s one of their key vendors. No one can tell you where you should invest your wedding budget except you. To do this in a way that is exciting and not stressful, you need to be very clear on your vision and what elements you cannot imagine your day without. If things go sideways, always come back to that vision and ground yourself in that.”

Brittany Williams Photography. Event Planning, Pastiche EventsIf you need to scale back, focus on the ceremony, dining and party aspect.

What costs can you consider cutting, and what should you never skimp on?

“Such a personal choice! If you need to scale back, look at florals, signage, favours, entertainment and experiential elements. Focus on the ceremony, dining and party aspect. When I begin working with a couple, I always ask what their favourite thing about other weddings was. What I hear back from them are the things we won’t compromise on.

As for what you should never hold back on cost-wise: the preparation of your wedding. With the end goal in mind, it’s hard to remember that the key to a smooth and memorable wedding is in the preparation stages. Whether that means hiring a professional or investing more of your own time, someone must be responsible for making sure everything is accounted for, your vendor team is connected and no detail has been overlooked. Having a peaceful state of mind to fully enjoy the celebration you’ve invested so much time, money and emotion into is priceless.”

 

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