So…Where Do We Start? Budget.

Happy Holidays! Hope your Christmas  was splendid!

Now, before deciding on a venue, theme, or even color scheme, I believe the budget is the most important thing to do. It lays out exactly what is going to be within a tangible grasp. Typically, Africans like to think that the guest list is unlimited (side eye) — and this is the biggest factor affecting the budget and what type of wedding you can have. Open receptions are feasible, but you will have to mind your budget “well well” and most likely settle for a typical banquet hall reception in order to bring in food and drinks without conditions.

My fiancé and I both agreed that we didn’t envision our white wedding in a banquet hall off of Bissonett. With the help of our planner, we set forth a very detailed budget to help dictate what we are willing to spend for the white wedding. When I saw how far we went over our initial estimation my face was like this:

After I picked my jaw off the floor, I realized to get all we really wanted, I might need to compromise a little. Why did no one tell me how much these things cost? A Nigerian wedding is done on such a larger scale than a typical American wedding PLUS the additional wedding celebrations; I just thank God in advance for providing for it. Since eloping is not an option (though I strongly considered it lol) we’ve decided if we’re gonna do this, it’s going to look spectacular and STAY IN BUDGET! That’s the goal.

That being said, our white wedding will have an exclusive guest list with RSVP necessary (meaning security enforced). For the traditional ceremony and any other wedding celebration we will be more than happy to accommodate all those who wish to celebrate with us.

There are plenty of tools online to track your budget and spending such as weddingwire.com. I really enjoy weddingwire.com from its tools, forums, and free wedding website. Very user friendly in my opinion. When making your budget keep in mind little things do add up such as postage, gratuity, and shipping costs if purchasing/renting online. I highly suggest building some leeway onto your budget in advance.

Thanks for reading! Feel free to subscribe by email and stay tuned for a post about wedding crashers…

Love,

Onyi