Since we started planning, one of the absolute hardest things I’ve had to deal with is getting over how much things cost. During the initial engagement period, it was all happiness and sunshine and rainbows, but once we got down to number crunching and began to research our options, I’ll be the first to admit, I suffered from a pretty severe case of sticker shock.
Every time I turned around, it seemed like there was another thing we’d need to pay for and any time the word “wedding” came up, it seemed as though the item in question would be almost twice the cost of what it might have been regularly. Wedding cake? Well that’s $600! Wedding flowers? You’re not going to get away with paying less than $1,000!
Thankfully, with early research and the help of some crafty/foodie friends, we’ve managed to get reasonable pricing or decided to do a bunch of the work ourselves (my MOH who went to culinary school is helping me with our cake). But now, after several months of being bombarded with inflated pricing, I feel like I’m going in the opposite direction and I almost don’t believe it when I’m given a genuinely good deal on something.
As I mentioned previously, one of my biggest concerns is the food for our big day and though we haven’t made a decision yet on which caterer we’re going with, this weekend, when I received a quote from one of the caterers I liked and realized it fit into our food budget, I immediately wondered what was wrong with the food that it could be so reasonably priced.
I know I can’t be the only one feeling this way, so I’ve got to ask - Is anyone else completely thrown off by the crazy variance in wedding pricing? What has shocked you most about the financial side of wedding planning?
I think I’ve slowly grown immune to it….which is actually a bad thing. For example, when I was dress shopping and whenever I saw a pretty dress for under $1,000 I would think, “Wow this is so cheap!” when in reality I’ve never spent more than $300 on any piece of clothing my entire life and a grand is a lot when you think about it. *sigh*
Totally- I see a price I’m quoted and think, “What ELSE are we going to be charged???” I don’t trust people anymore!! I’m cold hearted now, man!
I find it too bad that majority of wedding vendor boost up their prices…because they take advantage that this is your wedding (majority of the time it being the first)
What I suggest is stepping away from the wedding vendors.
Opt for a normal baker, a photographer that doesnt necesarily concentrate on weddings… you can save alot of money that way…
I am in the field, and I know what everything costs, but still, when you’re spending someone else’s money its just not the same. I still got sticker shock, even if I was prepared for it and probably significantly less shocked than most, I was still shocked.
The idea that someone would spend the amount of money that could be a downpayment on a house continues to shock me. Even having a “modest” wedding is way more than I ever thought it could.
Whenever I see the numbers on yet another wedding-related purchase, I continually ask myself, “Do other people really think this is affordable or reasonable?” I guess enough do, otherwise they would be forced to lower their prices.
Planning my wedding in Toronto as well. One caterer quoted us 25,000 and got huffy when we asked if there was anything else she could do. She came back with a quote of 23,000.
When another quoted us 12,000, and was nice to us and asked us questions about our likes and dislikes, I didn’t know how to handle it.
Good service? What’s that?!?
It’s a billion dollar industry - you don’t make billions by charging pennies I guess! I was also shocked at the prices. There are ways around it.
For example, Costco does wedding flowers. If you can get some of your friends to arrange the flowers for you for your centerpieces you can save a bundle there. Grocery stores, like Superstore will do bouquets and corsages for less than the speciality flower shops.
The biggest shock for me was the price of a photographer. I met with one photographer who charged $3000. And that didn’t include any pictures or proofs or a CD or anything. 3 grand just to take shots at the wedding. And that was only for FOUR hours! I ended up getting a freelance photographer that wasn’t affliated with some big photography company. He’s a grad of the Art University in NS and his pictures look amazing. And he charged a reasonable price. 
The other thing that shocks me is the price of wedding dresses. I just want a simple gown, no bells or whistles..simple. I went to one place where the sales lady told me that I wouldn’t be able to find a dress for less than $3000. Are you kidding me? If I spent that much on my dress my guests would have to bring their own beer and food.
There are some things I’m willing to spend money on: food, drink, candy (I really like candy) but a dress I’ll wear once and then get rid of? Flowers that will be wilted by the end of the night? No thanks! I’ll find ways around spending too much.
I had sticker shock over pretty much everything. So I decided to rebel against wedding prices.
Going to charge me an arm and a leg for cake? I’ll just do it myself. How much for that dress? I’ll go ebay thank you very much. Did you just say first born for catering? I’ll go partial-catered potluck. So there. You want what for the video and photo? Okay, I gave in there. I found a quality way around everything else, but I just had to get the “best” with that one.
And I know we’re paying for quality…handmade, just for you, tailored quality and I’m sure there are women out there who live this lifestyle everyday, but I’m just not one of them. So yeah, that was hard to get used to.
I agree with wondering what the heck is up with the prices. I figured out though that if I find someone who does quality work, but might be new to the wedding industry or has an existing portfolio but is building their wedding portfolio, then the deal is pretty genuine.
But, then I recently found a great deal for bride and she hesitated because it was so inexpensive. Why is it so cheap? Sometimes you just can’t win.
I think Mr. Canary would really agree with you, Miss Hummingbird!
At first I was really shocked, but like Miss Peony I’ve started to develop an immunity, especially since I know I’m having a large wedding, I’m always doing the math in my head… “Oh that’s X times 300… That’s not so bad…” when in reality I’ve never considered spending that much money in my life!
Mr. C still gets sticker shock though so we usually have conversations before hiring vendors about the “real” value of things that aren’t tangible, like peace-of-mind and convenience, or originality.
I think we’ve had sticker shock over nearly everything with one exception - I did expect that gowns would be expensive.
Part of the challenge is not giving in. I don’t need to (nor do I want to) spend more than $600 on a gown for myself - so I just don’t look at gowns that cost more than that. I think relaxing (not lowering) your own expectations to fit your budget is a KEY way to cut costs. When we started looking at photographers, we again limited our search to those that fit our budget and we’re thrilled with our choice.
I think by looking at every element that goes into the day and deciding on your (as a couple) top 5 most important things to do exceedingly well/pay the price for - is a good way to do things. You don’t feel like you’re skimping on everything. Then you’re free to let other elements be less expensive and no one attending will the none the wiser because they’ll be too busy noticing the elements you felt were most important (be that the music, the venue, the food, or whatever).
I just came to the insane realization that my inviations are going to cost me 20 dollars per person.
Yep.
Sticker shock
As a fellow Canadian in Vancouver, I was also amazed by how much prices differed between the US and Canada. Our Canadian bridal shops mark up their prices but also they are still almost double the American prices for the same item. Even our Michaels’ craft stores are more expensive than our US counterparts.
To keep from going broke or sacrificing my wedding ideas, I did my research and bought most of my decor and accessories including veil, shoes, CD jewel cases, unity candle, etc. from eBay.com or US shops. I got the items shipped from the US. This included ribbons and tulle. The bonus was most of the items did not even get charged duty! Even our Custom Gobo was still $50-75CAD cheaper than having it made in the US and couriered to Canada.
Our guests thought we spent a fortune on all the details. Well… it wasn’t super budget but we were able to have our fairy tale wedding without the huge price tag! Yay!
The hardest thing for me is determing quality. I’m a big believer in that you get what you pay for… but that doesn’t mean I can afford to buy top quality stuff/services. The tricky part is that some good deals are still great quality (i.e actually a good deal)! And sometimes…. you do get what you pay for 
I hear ya! 4 months post wedding and we are still paying for it. One thing that is great for us Canadian brides now though is that we can order on-line from US vendors (if they will ship to Canada) at par! Yay!
Love seeing those bright green CDN $20’s up there!
Yah agree with you!
Abraham
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Mrs. Hummingbird, Toronto
Age and Occupation: 25, Publishing Coordinator
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 24, Videogame Designer/Cartoonist
Engagement Date: May 4, 2007
Wedding Date: June 28, 2008
Blogging Since: September 18, 2007
Venue: A garden wedding followed by a tented reception on Mr. Hummingbird's father's property.
About Me: I’m a pop culture loving, vintage obsessed foodie living in Canada’s biggest city with my fantastic fiancé and our lovable fluffy cat Bettie. I’m stoked to marry my best friend and to throw what I hope will be
the most fun and colourful party of our lives.
i was floored! i completely know what you’re talking about.
having family help me out (photography, cake, food, even decor) has saved me HUNDREDS!! not to mention my sanity!
keep hunting for those deals, girl!