8 Steal-Worthy Money-Saving Tips from Your Favorite Celebrity Weddings
Get inspiration from celebrity weddings. We’re sharing the steal-worthy money-saving strategies to apply to your own wedding plans!
Celebrity weddings have always been a thing of aspiration and inspiration for us regular folks.
When the likes of the Kardashians, Nick Jonas and Priyanka Chopra, and other A-list stars get married, it’s nearly impossible to imagine that they’re sticking to anything resembling a budget.
But believe it or not, your favorite stars actually *do* make some budget-friendly choices for their weddings!
Money-Saving Wedding Ideas from Celebrity Weddings
Many of these choices may not have been made with the intention of saving money, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t still super smart and savvy ways to cut costs on your wedding!
Get inspiration from some of our favorite celebrity weddings. We’re sharing the steal-worthy money-saving strategies to apply to your own wedding plans!
1. Serve affordable cuisine for your wedding meal
Multi-talented singer/actress Lea Michele and her new husband Zandy Reich chose to think outside the box for their wedding catering. While they did serve their guests a full sit-down meal at the reception, they opted to serve it family style!
And not only that, they served a variety of Italian dishes and pastas according to People Magazine.
Pasta can be an incredibly affordable (and delicious) choice for your wedding reception meal.
2. Have wedding decor pull double duty
Whether you choose to re-use your bridesmaids‘ bouquets as centerpiece decor or repurpose your altar arrangements in your reception, getting additional use out of items makes them more worth the cost!
Why not choose wedding decor items that you can reuse as decoration in your home to remind you of the big day?
For example, actress Malin Akerman had her wedding decor pull double duty at her destination wedding to Jack Donnelly in Tulum.
The couple’s boho-themed beach wedding celebration featured an altar decorated with dream catchers, which the couple took home to use as decor and a special memento from their big day.
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3. Call in favors from friends
Lea was one of many talented friends to perform at the wedding reception of her Glee co-star, Emmy-winner Darren Criss.
The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story star and his wife, Mia Swier, invited some of their talented friends to take the stage to sing during their epic New Orleans bash!
John Stamos also made a special appearance on the drums on stage during the party. See more photos in the feature on Vogue.com.
We realize that you may not have talented performers or singers in your inner circle. Think about the other skills your friends have and how you could potentially utilize them for your wedding.
From enlisting your cousin who loves to bake to make cupcakes for your dessert bar, to asking your bestie who has gorgeous penmanship to address your wedding invites, don’t hesitate to ask your friends and family for wedding help!
4. Use your skills to DIY aspects of your wedding
According to the feature in Vogue, Criss played his own pre-ceremony processional music for the couple’s families to be seated to.
And during the reception, both the bride and the groom took the stage to entertain their guests with a first song instead of a first dance! (See second photo in Criss’ Instagram post)
While they may not have gone this route for cost-saving reasons, it sure added an extra dose of personality and personalization to their event.
Take a page out of their playbook and put any wedding-worthy skills to use in service of your big day!
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5. Close the bar down early
While the party was rocking all night long thanks to the talents of his famous friends, Darren Criss and wife Mia Swier took a creative (and potentially cost-saving) approach to close down the reception bar.
To close out the night, guests were ushered from the bar to enjoy coffee and beignets from a Cafe Du Monde food truck. A great way to distract guests from being cut off booze is to feed them sweets!
6. Have a personal friend officiate your wedding
Lea Michele also went this route by having her longtime friend and Glee director Ryan Murphy officiate the ceremony of her wedding to Zandy Reich.
Why pay for a professional wedding officiant who doesn’t truly know you and your partner?
If you’d rather have someone with a personal connection to the two of you officiate your ceremony, consider asking a friend or family member to perform your marriage.
You can even get them a kit to get ordained online to help them make things official!
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7. Skip the traditional wedding squad and go solo
While country singer Maren Morris had her best friend officiate her wedding, she also skipped the tradition of a typical bridal party!
By keeping the number of attendants low for your wedding, you can save costs across the board.
Each member of the bridal party requires additional spending for gifts, meals, bouquets or boutonnieres, hair and makeup expenses, attire, etc.
Keep your wedding squad intimate or skip it entirely if you’re worried about going over budget!
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8. Make a donation in honor of your guests
Sheryl Sandberg & Tom Bernthal donated to a favorite charitable organization in lieu of favors for their guests. They chose to honor VOW for Girls with a $1 Million dollar donation in support of helping to end child marriage around the globe.
“All girls should be able to choose when and who they marry. Tom and I made the decision to marry each other – to choose a partner who we deeply love. Too many young girls are robbed of this same choice,” said Sheryl Sandberg. “We hope our support can help put an end to child marriage so that millions more girls can live healthy, fulfilling lives.”
The Savviest Celebrity Weddings
Based on info shared by The Sun and E! Online, Ed Sheeran may get our vote for the savviest celebrity wedding, as he employed three of our top tips for saving money on your wedding!
Keep your guest list intimate
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You might assume that many celebrities would have huge, lavish events for their big day, but many of your famous favorites have chosen to keep things small in favor of privacy.
For example, Ed Sheeran is just one megastar who had a very private affair. There were reportedly only 40 people at his wedding!
“It was very quiet – just Ed’s oldest school pals, limited family, and the priest,” a source told The Sun. “He wanted no fuss and he wanted it to be something entirely for them.”
Get married during the off-season
Sheeran chose to celebrate his marital union in winter! “Ed got married a few days before Christmas.” said a source, also calling it, “just a tiny winter wedding!”
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Other stars who got married during the winter months?
Glee actress and co-host of The LadyGang Podcast, Becca Tobin who wed her husband Zac Martin in a snowy Wyoming ceremony in December 2017.
Having a winter wedding can save you big bucks due to the fact that it’s not a popular time of year for weddings in many areas.
Use a low-cost wedding venue
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Reportedly, Sheeran and his bride exchanged their vows at the singer’s country home in Sussex.
Not to be outdone by the “Shape of You” singer, Actress Hilary Duff married musician Matthew Koma also ticked these three tactics off the list of savvy wedding budget hacks.
The celebrity power-couple tied the knot in an intimate backyard ceremony at their Los Angeles home in December.
Choosing to have an at-home wedding can help save you money. Just remember, there are logistical challenges associated with doing it all yourself.
Hosting a wedding at your home (or any home) works well if you’re having an intimate event. Not only does it cut down your expenses but it also makes the day feel extra personal and relaxed.
What do you think of these savvy celebrity wedding tips? Would you try any of these money-saving ideas for your own big day?
Above all, be sure to make decisions for your big day based on your own personal priorities. If you stick to your guns, you’ll be more likely to have an event that truly suits you – and your budget – as a result!
