We pulled off a 100 person wedding with an open bar and buffet for $14,318 (not including gifted photography). We received about $6000 in cash from family to help pay for the wedding. 

My dad and stepmom gifted us the photography, his neighbor is a photographer and cut him a deal. They paid about $2500 for 11 hours with a second shooter.

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Venue & Rentals

• Venue: $1000 – included tables and chairs

• Extra 100 ceremony chairs: $428

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Vendors

• DJ: $1000

• Bartenders: $700

• Officiant: $400

• Content creator: $600 – second most important thing to me from photography and zero regrets

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Beauty

• Hair: $70

• Makeup: $350 – total including trial

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Attire

• Dress: $1525

• Dress alterations: $600 – lost a lot of weight, needed major taking in

• Suit + alterations: $525

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Legal & Admin

• Marriage licence: $140

• Liquor licence: $50

• Event insurance: $195

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Flowers, Decor & Signage

• Flowers: $250 – faux bouquets from Michaels + Costco flowers for tables

• Decor & misc: $1500 – Amazon, Temu, etc.

• Signage: $150 – welcome sign + seating chart; made the welcome sign generic and re-sold it

• Baby car prop: $20 – got the car free, repainted it white for photos, and sold it after the wedding for a profit

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Food, Alcohol, Dinnerware & Stationery

• Food: $1400 – drop catering from a local shawarma place; bartenders swapped trays

• Alcohol: $1400 – open bar; originally spent $2000 but returned unused bottles

• Plates & cups: $300 – fancy plastic ones; looked gorgeous and avoided washing dishes

• Chafing dishes: $300 – bought on Amazon, returned after because some arrived damaged

• Tablecloths: $200 (amazon!)

• Save-the-dates & invites: $200 – photo prints + postage

• Rehearsal dinner: $150 – pizza night

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Gifts

• Bridal party gifts (bridesmaids + groomsmen): $300

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Stresses and reality check

It was a beautiful day, but it was a LOT of work. We had the hall for 3 days but I wish we’d had it for 4. The day before the wedding we were there from 9am to 11pm and still didn’t get everything done. I ran out of time and had to scrap a few decor things.

I was especially proud of how the sweetheart table turned out. It looked exactly how I imagined it and matched my Pinterest inspo perfectly. One of my favourite parts of the whole setup.

We forgot to light the chafing dishes before the ceremony, so they didn’t get lit until the food arrived. That meant the first few platters were cold. It still bothers me, but nobody complained and we got tons of compliments on the food.

We also did not have a rain plan for the ceremony. It was on the lawn beside the hall, and I was stressed for weeks watching the forecast. Thankfully it didn’t rain. Don’t be me. Have a rain plan!!

And because this was a DIY, budget wedding, there was no relaxing first day as husband and wife. We were right back at the hall tearing everything down and cleaning for hours. Exhausting, yes. But that’s how you save money. Worth it at the end of the day. No regrets.

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Final thoughts

It was the best day ever, and hardly anything went wrong in the grand scheme. We spent $14,318 by DIYing, prioritizing what mattered, and letting go of tiny imperfections. Even on a tight budget, the day felt full, fun, and completely “us.”

(15k) WEDDING UNDER 15K – FULL BUDGET BREAKDOWN + REALITY CHECK (SEPTEMBER 2025)