Prioritising wedding costs

They say finances are one of the major areas of conflict in relationships, particularly where you have two people with their own ideas about money, how it should be spent, how it should be saved etc. Planning a wedding gives you the first real opportunity to 'pool' resources and get real insight into what is important for people and how they value particular things.

It hasn't been too bad for us, as Mr E and I have similar ideas about how we want the wedding to be and how we will manage our finances going forward, however I have been thinking about some recent purchases and some yet to make.

My wedding dress for instance, it is beautiful, but sometimes I think of other ways I could have spent the money I paid for it. {I'm terrible - I haven't even worn it yet!} Don't get me wrong it's not mega expensive, it's pretty average, cost wise but it's something I know I'm only going to wear for one day, a few hours even, after which it will get relegated to the loft or somewhere, so cost per wear is pretty high.

Flowers are another area. I personally have never understood why you would want to spend so much money on something that will die in a few days time. Sure they look pretty, but they barely last a week and cost a fortune - it never made sense to me.

Then there is the big chair cover debate! Yes they have wow factor and can make some pretty ugly chairs look beautiful, but if there weren't there, once people sit down would they really notice? At £2.50 a pop, a 500 people wedding would set you back £1250! I'm not sure I personally could justify it - although don't hold me to it!

Your wedding is the start of the rest of your life and many people have said to us 'make sure you don't get into debt over your wedding' and that has really struck me... I really don't want us to get into debt for this wedding at all. That mantra always stays at the back of our minds when making purchasing decisions for the big day.

It's all down to about priority. How you choose to spend your money is down to what's important to you and your fiancé. Don't be swayed by what wedding magazines/blogs say you need to spend your money on or even other people's weddings. If it doesn't feel right to you, then it probably isn't right for you. Once the confetti has settled and all the cake is eaten, there will still be bills to be paid and you want to be happy that you spent money on the right things. What's important to one person, may not be important to the next.

What's important us:
- getting married in God's house
- all our family and friends being present to witness it

Aside from that, having a really good photographer to capture the day is important as we'll only do this once and want good pictures and a good caterer, as people always remember the food! Everything else is an added bonus!

Brides to be...what's important to you?

{p.s. Congratulations to my boss, who's daughter got married this weekend!}