Any wedding is a big event in the context of one’s life but as much as you want to celebrate it, you also don’t want to splurge more than you can. Here’s how to plan for an affordable wedding.

Give yourselves ample time to prepare. If you’re not rushing, you have time to wait for the right timing when the prices on venues and other reservations are not so high.

Keep it to a small crowd. Less people mean less food. As much as you want to invite everyone you know, you gotta admit, most of them will just show up for the food. So keep it exclusive to family and very close friends.

If your crowd is small, you can send out formal invites with all the special touches. But if you’re inviting a lot of people then you can save by sending out informal invites such as email, text messages, or verbal invites. At least it gets the word out.

It’s not hard to find the perfect dress if you have the money to pay for it. But if the dresses in the catalogs are way too expensive, try to look for the dress off the rack or maybe your mom’s closet.

Go for costume jewelry if you can’t afford the real ones. It can give you the same sparkle. After all, you should be the one shining, not your gems.