WEDDING IDEAS ON A BUDGET: NYC NUPTIALS

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There is nothing like a good wedding!

In 2013, Zeshan and I got married in Central Park – only two weeks after deciding to get married! Yes, two weeks. The question we often get asked is “how did you do that” with close to no money and no time to plan. 

Well, hop on board and keep reading to find out our wedding ideas on a budget!

Our attitude is you can do anything you put your mind to, especially when you’re determined enough. All it takes is a little creativity and thinking outside the box.

So let’s get to the good stuff! How did we get married in Central Park with ALMOST NO MONEY?!?

1. IMMEDIATE FAMILY ONLY

First thing you think of when you think about your wedding – who are you inviting?? Are you keeping it intimate, do you want everyone to come including 3rd and 4th cousins and everyone you’ve ever met?

All right, maybe not everyone one you met, but everyone in the family tree and friends. 

With a super low budget, you’re definitely going to opt for the immediate family, like we did. We both have big families – Zeshan and I are both one of five kids! And, we had Aunts and Uncles (and their kids) who just couldn’t be excluded. Our guest list was a modest 43 (45 including us). 

It’s also much easier to feed 45 people than it is 200 people, which brings us to the next big ticket item when it comes to wedding planning – catering!

2. NO CATERER NECESSARY

Food and drink is the largest expense for a wedding. The more people you invite, the more mouths you have to feed. But, you do have to feed the people that are coming…so how do you do that on a budget??

Here is where your creativity needs to kick in!

For us, we got married in October and it was still sunny and warm and the grass was still green.

Our solution – we cooked the food and packaged them in personal picnic boxes! It allowed us to put our own personal touch on the day. We spent the day before our wedding slow cooking steak and chicken, making cupcakes, roasting veggies and making salads.

As traditional weddings entail a wedding party, here would be a great time to enlist the help of those loyal friends/family you would have normally asked to partake in the wedding day festivities. We were lucky to have Zeshan’s brother and his girlfriend come over to help us cook all the goodies. We created stations and went to it. 

In the end, we had these cute boxes all packed and ready to go. They were the perfect size and included everything yummy for an October picnic in the park – even the dessert! (And the bonus to cupcakes – no need to cut a cake and plate them. They are already in the box.)

3. NO NEED FOR A VENUE

Okay, you got engaged, now you start picking dates and scouting for the perfect wedding venue. How do you pick? Well, it needs to house all of your expected guests, have the look and feel you like and then obviously be in your price range.

When you’re planning a wedding with little to no money, the best way to get married is when you don’t have to pay a venue. And as this point, you may say “where the heck is that??”

Well, if you live in NYC, it’s easy to waltz right into Central Park (which is a public park) and pick a place to have your family and friends stand with you and be a witness to your beautiful wedding vows. We did…

This could be said for lots of public places! There are parks everywhere. We’re originally from Upstate NY and there’s public parks everywhere, including lots of areas with privacy that are still considered part of the public park. You can also pay $100 to rent a private pavillion for the day, equipped with a huge fire pit and bathrooms if you so desired.

Bottom, line – there are plenty of places to “park it” for a couple hours to say your “I DO’s”, enjoy some food and family time and get those beloved wedding photos!

4. KEEP THE DRESS STRESS FREE

For a bride, the dress can be a big deal. However, you can find something amazing that you love that doesn’t cost thousands of dollars, as many dresses do! 

For anyone who doesn’t know, Zeshan is my 2nd husband. (Post COMING SOON called “Divorce – What I Learned From a Failed Marriage”) I won’t even admit how much I spent on a wedding dress the first time I got married. 

When Zeshan and I decided to get married, before I even mentioned a wedding dress, he said to me “wear the dress you have, I don’t care. It’s just a dress.” At first, I felt like that was a BIG no-no, why would I wear a dress from a failed marriage. Didn’t it have bad karma attached to it or something??

But he insisted. His feeling was, it’s just a dress. It’s not going to define our marriage, it’s a small detail in the big scheme of things. 

So, no pressure ladies! It can be whatever you want it to be – it can be a cute little white shift, a borrowed dress, whatever your heart desires. The important thing to remember is that you’re marrying the love of your life, the person you want to spend the rest of your life with.

5. PHOTOGRAPHER – RECRUIT FAMILY

I know what you’re thinking…a family member??

9 times out of 10, someone in your family is good with a camera! We got very lucky, our sister in law is a photographer and offered to bring her camera to snap a few for us…this was the result.

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I’d say they were pretty amazing! We got photos we could cherish forever!

Getting married is an exciting time! It’s not meant to put you into debt, drive you crazy and make you stressed out of your mind. It’s about the promise you’re making and the person you love. So, if you’ve decided to keep the costs to a minimum, we hope these suggestions will help you to tailor your special day!