₦airaland Forum

Rocktation:
To your other questions Yvete;

Definitely, budgeting should be among the first smart things to do. If not the very first, should be somewhere between announcing to your folks, friends and picking a date. I've known a few who weren't solvent enough, that picked a date and then waited on a prayer, only to be disappointed in the end, and felt really embarrassed before their friends.

There are several options to creating a wedding budget that you can afford;
1. Folks can decide to contribute a specific amount, and then the couple decides on a wedding budget and makes up any difference themselves. 2. Folks can say that they want to pay for specific items such as the bride's attire, the catering or the wines. The couple then has to figure out how to pay for everything else.
3. The couple can set a budget and then ask to split it evenly. This way, the mothers and fathers of the bride and groom, can each contribute N500000, for a total of a N2,000,000 wedding budget. This is not a bad idea at all for fams, where the parents have split.

Then, depending on your area and taste/class (if you know what I mean), budgeting about N1,500 (for an average Naija wedding oo) per wedding guest will give you a good start. This allows for about N750 a head for catering, and the remaining N750 goes towards everything else – flowers, attire, etc. Of course, if you are only having 10 guests, you may have trouble paying for everything else with only N7500, but it is a good point to start. This starting point fits with the general rule of the more guests, the more formal and lavish the wedding.

So to figure out a basic wedding budget, you can start off by using a basic budget planning worksheet to figure out the basics. Don't get fuddled just yet. Here's what one should look like;

Your Total Budget ___________

Expenses;

Ceremony
Location fee, officiant fee, marriage licence, musician's fees, ring pillows____________
Reception
Reception Site, Food, Drinks, Rentals, Cake, Favors____________
Attire
Dress, Headpiece/veil, undergarments and hosiery, shoes, accessories, jewelry, hair and makeup, Groom's Tuxedo or Suit, shoes, bow tie, cuff links, studs, suspenders____________
Rings
Yours and Groom's rings, engraving____________
Flowers
Ceremony, bride's bouquet, maid-of-honor and bridesmaid bouquets, corsages and boutonnieres, centerpieces, flower-girl basket e.t.c.____________
Music
Ceremony Musicians, Band and/or DJ, cocktail hour musicians, sound system rental____________
Photography
Photographer and Videographer's fees, albums, additional prints, disposable cameras for candids____________
Transportation
Transportation for wedding party, guest shuttle and/or parking attendants____________
Stationery
Invitations, response cards, thank you notes, postage, calligraphy, guest book____________
Gifts
Bridesmaid and groomsmen, parents, welcome baskets for out-of-town guests.

Put the amounts you consider fit or that you already know (e.g cost of the hall rental), against these first (individually and then sum them up), even though their total sum might spill over your intended round figure. And then you make adjustments, so they can fit your plan. For instance, 150 chairs can be reduced to prolly 140, cos exactly 150 people might not attend, or you can trust children and even some adults, to not wanna be held down on a spot, by no force in this world. Lol. As well, you can ask other brides around you, what they spent on vendors to figure out if these numbers you fix are realistic, or need to be adjusted.

Again, adjustment of your budget numbers should only reflect your priorities. While it is likely that you may die to have a photographer from mars, you could be a hundred percent certain that you would die and kill to have that J-lo's kind of wedding dress.

Lastly, you still have to try saving on your wedding budget. You're going to have to do more than just reducing those things you need, by actually crossing off the excesses. I mean, while it may sound wonderful to serve Rice and Soup, it isn't exactly brilliant to serve Jollof, White Rice, Coconut Rice, Fried Rice, Rice Pudding, Puffed Rice and any other miraculous Rice alongside only Egusi soup with eba. You could even trim your wedding guest list, save money on the church decorations, ask recently married friends how much they used and paid for stuff, ask friends in the wedding industry to help you out; giving discounts where possible and even change the day of the week to maybe having the observance on a week night!


If these numbers still do not work out, ask or remind yourself of what's really important to you. Perhaps it's better to have a small wedding now, and then renew your wedding vows in two, five or ten years when you can or might have been able to save for the big party.

Once you've set a budget, stick to it. It's easier to say than do, I know. But an important thing it is, to do in all.

Omaka2000:
We are using video picturet to teach on our whazap group on how to cut and sew suit, senator wears and trouser to the the finish the fee is just N2000

emooo:
let me pay #7000 with the jacket ,but please how can I get it @ minna Niger State

rdesigns:
I hv a fashio. House n school in Benin city..looking for experienced tailors\fashion designers to work with me n also sketch artist to teach in the school.
08038259326