For Nova and Reemo Styles, attraction was a numbers game.
With dreams of throwing a lavish 12-hour party for 350 guests, the couple found wedding venues and vendors all over NYC asking for no less than $150,000.
But rather than be put off by the numbers, the penny-pinching duo figured out how to keep costs down.
“We sold out tickets to our wedding,” Nova, 30, a lifestyle influencer from The Bronx, told The Post.
Forking out a price tag of $333 per person on invitations to their June 2023 nuptials, Styles’ guest list was reduced to 60 paying guests.
As the marriage between the post-pandemic wedding boom and the inflation crisis continues to wreak havoc on big-day budgets, American couples like Styles are coming up with clever schemes aimed at beautiful — but budget-friendly — I dos.
The invitation fee earned attendees a seat at the St. Patrick’s Cathedral Syndicate and a seat on their after-wedding party bus—a fancy double-decker that escorted attendees to NYC landmarks, including The Edge at Hudson Yards, for photos. He also bought friends a lavish lobster and steak dinner at the couple’s One World Trade Center reception.
And it saved the newlyweds $70,000 — funds they’ve set aside to start a family and maybe even start a foundation for couples undergoing IVF treatments down the road.
Styles’ approach underscores that saving dough is priority No. 1 for today’s affordable brides and grooms.
To keep costs below the national average of $26,665 — with venue rentals and food as the most expensive must-haves — the sweethearts have tied the knot in unconventional settings, like NYC’s L train, and outsource their post-wedding dinners to box stores. big. such as Costco, rather than traditional caterers.
But wallet-conscious bride Courtney Raine Quist may have broken the mold with her sunrise ceremony.
“My husband and I had a Monday morning wedding,” the 27-year-old creator told The Post of her $10,000 soiree in May 2023.
During the day party, which she and husband Alex hosted at 10 a.m., Quist of Nashville served mimosas and Pizza Hut slices before inviting guests to boogie on the dance floor until the wee hours. in the afternoon.
Artificial flowers from Hobby Lobby — discount bulbs that the bride resold for a profit after the wedding — decorated the reception room.
And the Quists snagged a massive break on costs for the DJ, photographer and bartenders – all of whom pay nothing for the off-peak party.
“We paid for the wedding ourselves,” explained the bride, who is now expecting her first child. “We couldn’t justify dropping thousands of dollars on a day when that money could be used for a down payment on a house.”
Jai Toppin, 28, and her son-in-law felt the same way as they planned their brunch this spring.
“Financially, it made a lot more sense,” Toppin, of Atlanta, said of her early-morning April 13 wedding.
After the 10 a.m. service, Toppins treated their 180 guests to chicken and waffles, shrimp and grits, fresh fruit, homemade cookies and other lunch menu items.
The celebratory party, along with flowers, photographers and her dress – which she rented – cost the couple a total of $20,000.
“The places we visited were asking $40,000 to $80,000 for a traditional evening wedding,” Toppin said, adding that she and Wayne are planning a luxury European honeymoon next April with their savings.
“We didn’t want to put on an extravagant show for our wedding,” the breakfast fanatic explained. “We wanted to do something that symbolized our love.”
And when it comes to weekday weddings, Manhattan bride-to-be Caroline Spain is going beyond the city limits to keep her dream celebration affordable.
“We’re having a destination wedding in Ireland on a Thursday this October,” the East Villager, 27, said of her and fiancé Stephen’s international nuptials. Spain, a writer, met Stephen Rompante, an Irish native now living in NYC, while studying abroad in France in 2018.
Rather than splurge here in the Big Apple, where venues ask for $100,000 to host a Saturday shindig, the girlfriends opted for a $30,000 midweek fling that honored their worldwide romance.
“Spending hundreds of thousands on a wedding with all the bells and whistles would feel like we’re doing it for other people,” said Spain, who will become a lady in a castle near Dublin.
“Saving money,” she added, “and having something a little lower is a reflection of our relationship.”
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Image Source : nypost.com