Paging through well-worn copies of my favourite wedding magazines, I look back over some of the most anticipated celebrity weddings of the past few years. With an average spend of €1.5 million, money is really no object for the privileged few. This got me thinking: do you really need to spend all that money to have a spectacular wedding? Could you do it for a fraction of the cost – a mere 1% of a celebrity wedding budget? In reality, €15,000 might just about get you a celebrity wedding dress but a ‘celebrity style’ wedding should be achievable! An amazing wedding on a 15k budget should be doable!
I think about the many options a sizeable bank balance would give me and try and translate them into my €15,000 target. So where do I start? Behind every lavish celebrity wedding is a multi-talented wedding planner. No celebrity style wedding would be complete without one! Meeting with a wedding planner on a consultation basis will help set your budget in motion to plan your perfect celebrity style day! Contracting their services for ‘On the Day Co-ordination’ will allow you to sit back, relax and enjoy your day in true celebrity style!
If you want to take our advice here, take a look at our fantastic wedding planners in our supplier directory.
With my mind racing full of celebrity trends and fashions, I turn my attention to choosing a venue for our big celebrity style day. Celebrities choose extravagant and extraordinary venues to host their million dollar affairs – so ours should be equally as lavish and extraordinary! Ireland is home to many gorgeous wedding venues! Many of these can accommodate a wedding on a 15k budget and STILL be spectacular.
Have a look at our beautiful wedding venues in our supplier directory. Or better yet, try our Venue Finder to find your dream wedding venue that’ll fit into your ideal budget.
While my venue is magnificent, no self-respecting celebrity would leave it at just a breathtaking setting. And so now I go in search of some awe-inspiring décor to compliment my scenery. For me, the soft warm glow of candlelight and the intimate twinkling of fairy lights create a romantic stage that would melt the coolest of hearts. My aim is to deck out my venue with vases, mirrors, hundreds of tea lights and twinkling fairy lights. I’m going to add rose petals and mini crystals for extra bling! Bouquets for my bridesmaid and me, buttonholes for the gents and a gorgeous long arrangement for the top table will complete my florist’s duty.
Need some help with flowers and candles? Why not hire someone to handle decor and styling.
Picturing these gorgeous images, I quickly realise that I am going to need someone to capture the day for me so that I can continue to relive it – and so I turn my attention to finding a videographer and photographer. My guest list isn’t exactly going to secure me any magazine deals with Hello but I wonder can my meagre budget stretch to a movie star quality cameraman and paparazzi style photographer? A little research on weddingsonline and I find two great options within my budget!
Check out our wedding photographers and videographers.
While I fantasise about posing for my wedding shots in the bedroom mirror it hits me that I have yet to choose a wedding dress! How remiss of me! Unfortunately, I don’t have Vera Wang on speed dial but a local Irish designer is just as special. I’ll float down the aisle in a dress designed just for me. Wearing their own stunning dresses, my gorgeous bridesmaids will compliment the suits worn by my Groom and his Best Man. My wedding party is complete!
Take a look at Ireland’s finest wedding dress designers in our supplier directory.
All these decisions have made me peckish and my mind wanders to the wedding breakfast! A sumptuous buffet-style banquet served with copious amounts of wine and Prosecco will surely make any celebrity proud? And while my budget won’t exactly stretch to an all-night open bar, with the opportunity to dance the night away under the stars and being party to a truly spectacular celebrity style day, my guests will surely forgive me. A quick top up and I wait for the calculator to flash with my total spend….. €15,883.71. A slight overspend on my initial target – but it wouldn’t be a true celebrity style wedding unless I went over budget!
Wedding budget rules
If you are going to plan a wedding on a smaller-than-celebrity budget, here are a few rules to keep in mind:
- Keep your guests fed (this doesn’t have to be a lavish meal)
- Keep everyone comfortable (something to sit on will do!)
