Budget: How do I come up with a budget?
The $10,000 Budget
Here is a Budget I found online prepared by a popular wedding planner in Los Angeles (Liz Coopersmith )
50% - Ceremony and Reception - $5000
Site Fee - $1200
Food - $3800
which breaks down to $38 per person, INCLUDING standard 9.75% tax and 20% service,$29.35 base without tax and service OR, if there is no site fee, only a charge per person for food, $38.50 per person.
$5,000 for everything else:
10% - Photography - $1000
10% - Attire - $1000
10% - Flowers - $1000
10% - Music - $1000
5% - Cake - $500 ($5.00 a slice)
5% - Invitations - $500
You can play with these figures all you want. Decide what is most important to you and increase that category. Just make sure you cut an equal amount somewhere else.
Do you need to cut that in half? Okay.
$5,000 Wedding Budget We suggest:
40% - Reception - $2,000 (includes cake and music)
15% - Flowers - $750
15% - Wedding attire - $750
10% - Photography - $500
5% - Stationery - $250
5% - Misc. - $250
Preparing your budget, together with your fiancé, will be good practice for learning how to compromise - and marriage is all about compromise.