Saving up for your Wedding

[Awesomecakes]

Hi mga sis Hope you can share with me and to our fellow GTs on how did you save up for your wedding day. It's a big help for me kasi we just started our planning Our wedding will be on the last quarter of next year pa naman, of course it's exciting to prepare for my big day pero minsan I can't help but worry kasi we're not depending on anyone. Gusto namin ni h2b, samin manggaling budget. Here are some of my questions(will answer them too!):

1. What are your preparations (for the budget/funds) before and during the preparations?
2. Were you able to meet your initial wedding budget?
3. What are the challenges and how were you able to resolve it?

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1. What are your preparations (for the budget/funds) before and during the preparations?

- It's been two years since we started "saving" talaga, but it's just this year that we decided to save more kasi we're planning to buy a house first. And of course, for us to have enough funds for the wedding preps. Currently, may stable job naman kami ni h2b. We're both IT professionals kaya not bad narin. To be able to provide more, naghahanap kami ni h2b ng new work na mas maka-help sa amin sa pags-save.

2. Were you able to meet your initial wedding budget?

- Target budget is 400k, not sure if we can stick to it but we'll try our best.

3. What are the challenges and how were you able to resolve it?
- So far wala pa kami na encounter na challenges, for now ang pinagtatalunan pa namin is saan ang church and venue. Ano ba yun priorities talaga namin and saan kami mag-save ng budget.

[120515]

this is a great topic, awesomecakes! 

1. we already had extra savings. so we figured out how much from our extra savings we can use for the wedding. however, we made sure that we did not dip into our long-term savings so we computed that the wedding expenses should be less than 10-15% of our total net assets.

another good way of preparing is figuring out how much you want to spend in total and then working back from there, computing how much you need to save monthly considering the length of time you have to the date of your wedding.

2. i'm not sure yet because we're still in the midst of planning and our wedding is in december. however, our total actual expenses is still within our budgeted 350k-400k range and there are only a few minor suppliers left to book.

3. no challenges encountered so far 

[yannuh]

1. What are your preparations (for the budget/funds) before and during the preparations?
-we did the 52 week challenge since 2014 haha. Medyo nilakihan lang namin yung weekly deposit para mameet ang wedding budget. Super nakakaproud na naachieve namin yun hihi
2. Were you able to meet your initial wedding budget?
-nope.initially 200k ang budget pero super lumobo na sya now:( medyo hindi pala kasi realistic yung sinet naming initial budget sa hirap ng buhay ngayon hehe tapos from 100 pax, nag 150 pax na kami now so mas lumaki talaga ang budget
3. What are the challenges and how were you able to resolve it?
-medyo tagtipid sa date para di mabawasan ang ipon
-di kame nakapag summer vacay sa malayo this year para di na gumastos
-may 6k na naforfeit ( from prev hmua and invites suppliers) na for us, malaki laki na din ang nakakahinAyang talaga pero sabi nga nila, hindi nabibili ang peace of mind hihi

[simang]

1) we sat down and decided on a specific amount we can save each month, apart from our personal savings. then binilang namin how many months pa before our target date and that's the total amount na willing kami i shell out for the wedding. we also did not want to touch our personal savings so yung wedding budget namin was all extra for us. kami lang din lahat gagastos for the wedding. our siblings have already pledged some cash gifts but we'll be putting that into our savings na.

2) we still have a little over 3 months before the wedding, and our working budget now is around 40-50k under our target, all major suppliers booked, and yung mga di pa namin nabubook we have an estimate already. so hopefully excess na talaga yung 40-50k, more or less.

3) one of our major challenges was our guest list. we initially wanted just 80 pax (yes, very intimate) but it ballooned up to 120, and now we're on 150 maximum na talaga. this one was a challenge kasi we both don't want to scrimp on food, so medyo napamahal talaga kami dito, since our guest list almost doubled. another thing was tipid talaga kami sa dates lol para bawas gastos. but it was a good thing overall kasi mas masipag kaming maggrocery para magluto.

[chiskeyk]

helpful topic coz this one is a major consideration sa wedding planning:
1. What are your preparations (for the budget/funds) before and during the preparations? We first set our target budget based on our identified priorities and not-so-priorities, then we calculated how much do we need to save every month considering our savings. We opened a bank account so we could separate our savings from our personal expenses.
2. Were you able to meet your initial wedding budget? Our wedding will be this coming december, and we already exceeded our budget by 10% (all major suppliers book). I hope it stays at 10%, weeeeww..
3. What are the challenges and how were you able to resolve it? The challeges come in when its time to book your suppliers (you know-in between wants and needs) so you really need to stick to your target. Don't be too excited booking during wedding fairs especially when you are not that familliar with the supplier (dont be lured by their promos), coz you may end up regretting it when you find the "this is it supplier".

Also, if there are any problems concerning money and savings, dont let this get into your relationship with h2b, always remember that you are always each others significant half.

Happy preps 😀😀

[rightback]

1. What are your preparations (for the budget/funds) before and during the preparations?

honestly we were/are not prepared. we pretty much enjoyed our single lives so when wedding planning came we  had to devise a strategy to raise enough funds on time. my whole salary (including holidays, bonuses and overtime) all went into the wedding. h2b's salary is for our living expenses including paying for our new place and a lot we got about 2 years ago. anything extra is set aside as contingency fund. we had to do this because its hard to control ourselves with expenses and we saw we raise funds faster this way and planning to continue this after the wedding.

2. Were you able to meet your initial wedding budget?

initially i said 400k but we had to be realistic with the number of guests plus peace of mind with the suppliers that i was booking. we raised it to 600k and we're just slightly over budget.

3. What are the challenges and how were you able to resolve it?

MIL passed away when we have already started booking suppliers. so i was handling all the planning so h2b can grieve with his family. he had to shell out a huge chunk for funeral expenses and had to result to a loan since we're paying for several things all at once.
date nights result to more cooking at home. i'm not complaining since i like to cook anyway. plus we get yummy food (dahil maarte ako) at a small cost compared to eating out at restaurants. i haven't watched a movie in a while plus a massage.
guestlist is also a challenge. there's just too many people from my side of the family and we could have saved a huge amount if we had 150 guests instead of 200 (and counting). but whatever our issues especially with money, we try to work it out together. its a good exercise actually on how we can deal with it in the future.

[khalee]

Nice thread
1. What are your preparations (for the budget/funds) before and during the preparations?
   - like sis rightback, we are also not prepared. when we decided to get married, we started checking out bridal fairs to estimate the cost of the wedding and also asking recently married couples about their budgets. We were shocked na ang mahal pala ng wedding na nowadays! but still decided to push through, so we decided to at least have a year of preps para na din sa budget. Fiance provided the initial budget (which is around 15-30 % of our orig budget). Then every payday, we save part of our salaries to the wedding budget para di na din magalaw yung ibang savings namin. Like other sissies here, nag cut din kami ng ibang uneccessary gastos like our trips bawi na lang after the wedding.

2. Were you able to meet your initial wedding budget?
   - NO. hahaha our initial budget is 300k. this is set without us discussing what we want to prioritize or invest on. We are now a little over 300k, but major suppliers are already booked. Hopefully, konti na lang ang madadagdag.

3. What are the challenges and how were you able to resolve it?
   - we are one of the couples who did an impulsive bookings. nadala ng freebies sa bridal fairs without even doing a lot of research. h2b and I discussed about letting go of this supplier for a month.  yes, we deliberated for a month. ang ending we let go of the supplier because we are not happy anymore with their output, and we have to forfeit our friggin 15k downpayment. masakit sa puso kasi its a high amount for us. but believe or not, we are happy with our decision. True enough, di mababayaran ang peace of mind So far yan palang. my guess is that next on our challenge is the guest list. hehe 

[z0z]

Here's ours:

1. What are your preparations (for the budget/funds) before and during the preparations?
Medyo reversed kami because we are an unconventional couple (we are living together), prior to engagement we already have a house and car here in Netherlands. I have also invested on a house and condo in PH, so these things we do not have to worry after the wedding.

So how do we prepare for the gastos? we just set aside a part of our salary every month and it goes to wedding funds.

2. Were you able to meet your initial wedding budget?
No, nawala na yung budget...kasi lahat over, so nakakfrustrate lang :p

I just have a rule lang na don't go over 2M, I think this is enough for 100 guests.

3. What are the challenges and how were you able to resolve it?
I got a condo that was turned over this July, I want to furnish it ASAP! Because I want to stay there when I go home this October, so yun...kurot muna sa wedding funds kasi I want it to be profesionally designed, kaya mejo mahal.

8 months to go pa naman, so we can replenish it.

Just a piece of advice, don't empty yourselves just for the wedding. All of us dream of a nice wedding, but for me it's a luxury and not a necessity. And like all luxuries, use your extra money for it and not your main funds.

[bonzaigirl]

1. What are your preparations (for the budget/funds) before and during the preparations?

When my hubby and I had started discussing marriage, before the actual proposal, we've talked about the budget and how much should we alot for our wedding.  Both of us had our own savings, but we disn't want to dip into our extra savings, so I had to increase my extra work shifts and opened another account just for our wedding fund, and made sure I  am always booked in my second job. Now that I've stopped working as I've just moved to my hubby's place, he is now the one that has taken a second job. This is just so that we won't dip into each of our savings account. 
 
2. Were you able to meet your initial wedding budget?

No. At first we wanted ( or I wanted) to only spend 500K for our wedding (he wanted more), but then I realized that it is not feasible since we will be staying 3 days 2 nights at a destination wedding (Tagaytay lang naman though) so now I'm afraid that it has increased by 30% of our original budget. Most of our suppliers are budgeted ones, I only have a few that are high end. This is already with the approximation of added costs whatsoever.

3. What are the challenges and how were you able to resolve it?

Being an overseas bride isn't easy, especially when dealing with suppliers. So most of the time our decisions are based on those who reply promptly via email.

We've made some rash bookings ourselves. I don't know if I want to change some or not. We are still in the middle of deliberation. But we are hoping to see the light at the end of the tunnel soon

[belle_v2g]

1. What are your preparations (for the budget/funds) before and during the preparations?
*10 months before the desired date of wedding, hubby asked me if we wanted to pursue the church wedding. we are civilly married 3 yrs ago so I am not so keen with the idea that time. we've initially allocated a budget of 800k for 200 guests. as the planning goes, we've realised that we needed more money. we've opened up a joint account where a corresponding amount of our salary every fortnight goes directly there. sometimes, if i wanted a specific supplier but it's beyond our budget, i will add more (voluntarily) from my own extra money. We wanted to prioritise the food & P/V but we were surprised by the current rates.
2. Were you able to meet your initial wedding budget?
*We've exceeded.  I had trouble with my excel files. All the while I thought within the limit lang ako with suppliers. So I booked and booked all the Nice To Have's. Then i forgot to add some items pa pala when I did auto sum. And the worse part, our round trip plane tickets ($1200 aud per way) weren't in the budget too eh twice kami umuwi ng MNL for the preps.
3. What are the challenges and how were you able to resolve it?
*Flactuating exchange rates. AUD rate plummeted and we had to add more and more funds. The remittance centre won't allow us transfer money more than 6k AUD per month so we had to do it in several batches. I didn't realise too that the 2 weeks pre wedding preps, meet ups with suppliers and things to buys and to do's would cost us a LOT! (Didn't see that coming).

The planning has been an exciting journey and a great challenge to my mathematical skills lol! the nicest part is that, it was all from our pockets so no one dared to interfere us from getting what we really wanted from the very beginning.

Tip: prepare extra money aside from your projected wedding budget.

[caleeice]

1. What are your preparations (for the budget/funds) before and during the preparations?
I didn't know that the husband has been saving up for our wedding. Hehe. I just got surprised when we got engaged, he told my family that he set aside 500k for the wedding. I was beyond amazed especially considering that he was just ahead of me in post-grad school by 2 years. Ako kasi, wala! Hahaha. When we got engaged, I literally just finished 4 years of post-grad school and months reviewing for the professional board exams.

The husband's budget covered all the basics; whereas I covered all the "upgrades" and those that I wanted hehe. So when I started working, I had to set aside an X amount for wedding preparations.

2. Were you able to meet your initial wedding budget?
On my part, I saved enough to pay for my wants. Kuripot kasi ako. Hahaha! Pero as a couple, we had to lessen watching movies and eating out --- which was okay because fun that we got to eat at home and watch DVDs instead. Tipid pa. Hahaha! When 2015 came in, we no longer went out of town. Bawal din kasi according to the elders. So nakatipid din in that aspect

As for the wedding budget, we didn't set a working budget. While he told us how much his budget is, I didn't. Pero he spent more than his budget. I also stopped tracking the minor expenses 2 months before the wedding. Hehe

3. What are the challenges and how were you able to resolve it?
Hmmm... There are things that he didn't want because sobrang mahal daw, especially compared to his brother's wedding. I gave in to some, but insisted in others. For my non-negotiables, I told him ako naman ang gagastos eh. Hehe. Tapos since my parents knew that both of us just started working, they were kind enough to shoulder some of the expenses, especially because they were the ones who insisted on some things they wanted that we can no longer afford. Hahaha! Pati si MIL shouldered a portion of our expenses for catering. Just happy that we have a supportive family

Advice: It would be good if you have a working budget and a max budget. Hirap when you didn't set a budget in the first place. It would also help if you track all expenses --- from the major ones down to the littlest ones. Alam niyo those little things, you'd be surprised at how much they'd cost when you add them all up!!! Hahaha

[sparklingjewel]

Whew nakakapressure naman this thread!  I may well be the most unprepared bride here.

1. What are your preparations (for the budget/funds) before and during the preparations?
 - Knowing how much my brother spent for his 2007 wedding, we knew we'd have to allocate more since prices have risen. To validate rates, we asked for quotations from major suppliers first and put ballpark figures for the rest, then we arrived at our initial budget. Which increased +35% pa while preps went on since daming hindi naisip na details. My FMIL volunteered to shoulder 20% (food) and we have enough from our savings to cover the balance naman. Sadly, hindi na kami nag-isip magraise ng additional funds since occupied narin sa respective work.. and I guess we have poor financial planning skills, kasi hindi kami nagoutlook if we are spending "too much" of our net worth on the wedding. I didn't touch my personal investments naman pero it's like we had no limit basta kasya pa sa liquid savings. Ang hirap din kasi magtipid sobra on the wedding kasi we had to make sure not to embarrass the families. Honeymoon also not budgeted. Realistically, what will happen nalang i guess is we will save after the wedding. Hindi naman malaki gastos namin in our first few years together i guess since we already have a house to stay in and existing cars to use, so day to day expenses lang and minor stuff to buy for the house. Pero definitely need to prepare better before we have a kid!

2. Were you able to meet your initial wedding budget?
- With 4 months to go, pasok pa naman kami sa revised budget. Pero our honeymoon which we are decided on pursuing (400-500k?) also isn't budgeted...baka we will use wedding gift money to pay for this hehe.

3. What are the challenges and how were you able to resolve it?
- Saving/ rebuilding our savings after the wedding >> to pour into more investments. Been adding year on year except this year bec it was spent on the wedding.
- Right now our bank accounts are still separate and we don't really track who's been paying more of the downpayments. Di ko alam how much of my share i still owe for the wedding day itself hehe. Baka try ko to i-figure out one of these coming weekends.

[izabelle]

Year 2010 pa kami kinasal. Marami kaming natutunan while planning and preparing for our wedding and now na 5yrs married na kami.


1. What are your preparations (for the budget/funds) before and during the preparations?

Halos 2 years kami nag prepare for our wedding. We initially planned na civil wedding kesa church kasi baka hindi kayanin ng ipon namin, but God is really good kasi maraming blessings na dumating kaya we were able to fulfill our dream wedding.

Kumuha kami ng maraming part time jobs, kahit mahirap. Sabay sabay kasi, may full time office work pa kami. Gusto talaga namin kasi kami gagastos para sa kasal namin, kaya ginawa talaga namin lahat to save.

2. Were you able to meet your initial wedding budget?

No. 150k lang original budget, pero inabot kami ng 700k haha! but it was all worth it at wala kaming pinag sisisihan.


3. What are the challenges and how were you able to resolve it?

Mahirap mag save lalo na kapag may kasabay na monthly amortization ng bahay. Pero kinaya lahat, sipag at diskarte ang katapat.

Nagkaproblema din kami sa coordinator non, so mga few months before the wedding kailangan namin magpa book ng bagong coordinator.


To all couples getting married, set a big chunk of budget para sa life after the wedding. It is the most important.