Weddingbee Blog

I don’t know about you, but I managed to make it through twelve years of public education and four years of undergraduate study, and never took a class on personal finance.

Image via My Mocha Money

After college, I wanted to set up my own savings account, find more affordable health insurance, and figure out how to not have less than $20 going into my next paycheck. I had absolutely no idea how to accomplish any of this. But I knew there was a way to live life that didn’t involve each and every “surprise” expense completely sidelining me and driving me bankrupt.

So, I checked out a few (free) books from the library, got some advice from my FI who was a finance major in school, and felt myself getting more familiar with many new terms. Things didn’t seem quite so scary anymore.

I thought I’d share some tips I’ve picked up along the way for how you can save some cash for your wedding (or really, for any savings goal you may have).

1. Educate Yourself

For some of us younger brides, saving for a wedding may be one of the first large savings projects we’ve ever had to take on in our lifetime. It can be daunting. There are a lot of blogs, books, and articles dedicated to smart budgeting and personal finance decisions. Googling “Wedding Budget” or “Saving for a Wedding” is going to net you a lot less useful results than if you take a look into general saving and budgeting web results.

2. Start Small

Set a goal that is attainable. Even if it is a small one. $20 a week might not sound like a lot, but it adds up to over $80 a month and nearly $1000 dollars a year. That’s a nice little chunk of change if you ask me!

3. Be Specific

It is always way easier for me to save up for something specific. Sending my hard-earned money towards an un-exciting-sounding “Savings Account” doesn’t motivate me in the slightest. I’ll even go so far as to re-name my accounts online so instead of it reading as “Savings Account,” I get to make a deposit towards “Photographer” or “Emergency Fund.”

Image by Joy Neville Photography

4. Be Realistic

Setting a lofty savings goal without thinking things through is a recipe for failure. You can always increase from Step 1, but the point is to get yourself in the regular habit first, so that you can ultimately meet your goals in the long-term.

5. Re-Evaluate/Adjust

When I first started planning I had some rough ballpark numbers about how much each component of the wedding would cost. As things started to flesh out and our real wedding numbers replaced those original ones, we wound up coming way under-budget in some areas, and over-budget in others. It is okay to make changes to your savings levels as you go, depending on the changing circumstances.

Anyone else new to the world of personal finance? What are your wedding saving tips?