As a newlywed, I can tell you that some of the biggest time — and money-saving! — tricks weren't given to me by my wedding planner; truly the best advice comes from other brides. Not everyone will give it to you straight, but once you've been a bride, I find you're always pretty eager to help others. So I'm paying it forward and sharing some of the best advice and biggest learnings from my big day. It might not seem like a lot, but trust me when I say these two tricks likely saved me about $700 (and saved my dress, too).
I always thought I would wear flats at my wedding. Even as a fashion editor with a love of beautiful shoes, I couldn't fathom being uncomfortable in heels when all I want to do is dance. Still, by the time of my first dress fitting, my mom had talked me into a gorgeous pair of bridal heels. I compromised by adding that I would switch into TOMS wedges at the reception (which happen to be the same height as the heels I had chosen). Turns out, as usual, mom was onto something. With the heels, my dress was the perfect length — no hemming required. The result: I saved close to $600 in tailoring.
While that's not always typical, hemming the dress can run you anywhere from $100 to $225 on average. So, if you're looking for a way to cut costs, this is an easy place to start.
My mother-in-law is kind of genius, too. As we were getting ready to move to the ceremony site at my sister-in-law's recent wedding, her mom brought out a sheet. We all looked at her, a little confused, until she explained:
Not only does it save your dress from dragging on the ground prewedding, but it might just keep your dress a little cleaner and save you in cleaning fees postnuptials, which start around $100 for basic services.