More Wedding Trends in a Tough Economy

More wedding trends happening in this economic slowdown, according to “ The Wedding Report:”

Outdoor weddings are very popular.

Holding your wedding outdoors (weather permitting of course) is a good way to economize. (Here is a good site to help you organize this.) Having it in a large backyard, a park or even the grounds of a museum are often less costly than a paying for a traditional church and secondary location, such as a hotel, country club or banquet hall. This means that you have a shorter reception, usually in off-peak hours. Since you are having ceremony and wedding reception at the same location, you can also take advantage of the all-inclusive wedding packages that many caterers and vendors offer.

Wedding couples prefer buffet reception dinners to sit‐down meals

Sit down dinners are extremely expensive. These usually cost more than $35 per person whereas a buffet can equal out to about $7-$15 per person. You also seem to have more choices as to the kinds of foods served and the side dishes.

There are other options, such as food stations, appetizers, and desserts-only. I went to a wedding recently where the wedding couple’s family had provided an entire table of desserts and pastries for a crowd of 250 people, along with a small wedding cake. (Here is a site that will help you set your wedding budget so you can determine what you are going to pay for food)

Amateurs (friends or family members) more often do the photography.

With the rise of digital cameras wedding couples have the option to request that several members of their family (or friends) take all their photos. Sites like PhotoWorks can provide elegant wedding photo books and prints so that wedding couples having family/friends take the pictures can still have professional-looking results. Plus you get photo books that are put together with their favorite pictures from a number of different sources. Those who are hiring professionals are settling on smaller packages and supplementing their pictures with table disposable digital cameras and fewer set portraits.

Brides are spending less on wedding gowns.

One of the most expensive items a bride can purchase is her wedding gown. Unless she has unlimited funds available, many brides are also seeking vintage or second-hand wedding gowns. (A good article on how to find these types of wedding dresses is located at this site.)

Hugely decorated ball gown styles are being replaced in many cases with simpler color accented informal gowns that provide a narrower silhouette. Brides are buying wedding and bridesmaids' dresses online, from discounted wedding gown sites, and even from overseas. (This has precipitated a rise in alterations to make the wedding gowns fit better, but someone had to benefit from this trend.)

Also many brides, instead of hermetically sealing the wedding gown away are reselling their wedding gowns on places like eBay. (There is even a site dedicated to this located here!) In some cases, brides are purchasing their wedding gowns and bridesmaids gowns as a package so that there is a price break.

Destination weddings are becoming more popular.

While these all-inclusive destination wedding packages at different resorts have been popular for quite some time, wedding couples are seeking destinations closer to where they live as their option for wedding and honeymoon packages. Fewer people are being asked to accompany the couple and since they will be paying their own way to the wedding, including travel and accommodations, the actual cost of the wedding will be decreased accordingly.

As more trends develop over the next several months, the Wedding Report (and I) will be here to let you know about them as you plan your wedding in these bleak economic times.