Save or Splurge: How I Budgeted My Pretty Wedding...
BY Latha Sunadh | 10 Nov, 2016 | 5438 views | 3 min read
Budgets, budgets, budgets. In a world where weddings are getting flashier and fun-ner, it's important to know where to spend and where to save. So as we went along with these budget stories, we found brides who were very open to discussing their priorities and their ideas - what made them choose a certain vendor and what made them compromise on one. This week, it's Ashima's wedding (Straight from Varanasi) we are featuring and she gave us an insider's view into the details - take a look!
Bride: Ashima Suri
Photography: Fotografia9
My two lehengas : My bridal outfit was from Frontier Raas in South Ex–Delhi. I was looking for something not too heavy so that I am comfortable on the wedding day! The lehenga was for just under a lakh. For my Sangeet lehenga I headed to Frontier Bazaar and that was cheaper.
A Local Makeup Artist instead of one from Delhi : Since I got married in Varanasi, I was quite apprehensive about getting my make-up done from a local makeup artist in Varanasi. I reached out to quite a few make-up artists in Delhi but taking them to the wedding for 2-3 days was turning out to be quite expensive. I then did more research on make-up artists in Varanasi, got recommendations and visited the make-up artist to explain my preferences. This decision turned out to be amazing as I was very happy with my make up on all functions!
A DIY Photobooth : We did a super fun and colourful photo-booth for the sangeet. My friends and cousins helped me put it together. We got the props from different vendors and on the D-Day they coordinate with the décor person at the hotel to put it all together. We used hand carts, bird cages, fun placards and a super colourful back drop for the photo booth.
Using the same venue and the same vendors: Most of our functions except the wedding reception happened in the same hotel where we were staying. This made life very easy for both sides of the families and also the usual wedding related logistical nightmares were easily avoided. We also used the same vendors for décor, photography, videography throughout the wedding. This helped us get better rates and also ensured hassle-free coordination.
I'll say Good Planning and WedMeGood. I invested a lot of time in planning the wedding and the preparation leading up to it. We did not start the wedding preparations too much in advance but good and efficient planning ensured that the whole process was calm, focussed and a lot of fun too. We used the WedMeGood app and website to plan our website. It really helped in narrowing down vendors and ideas for the wedding.
Bride: Ashima Suri
Photography: Fotografia9
Wedding Outfit: Frontier Raas , South Ex Sangeet Lehenga: Frontier Bazaar, Karol Bagh
Wedding Venue: Taj Ganges, Varanasi
Budget: Not too high, moderate. In fact, we DIY-ed most of it.
What did you Splurge on?
We mainly splurged on Jewellery and the venue, we got married at the Taj Ganges. It was in my husband’s hometown in Varanasi and everyone loved the vibe of the city. That really helped!
Where did you control the budget?
Not hiring a planner: We did not hire a wedding planner for the wedding. We wanted the wedding to have a personal touch so the two families planned it together. I took the help of my friends and cousins for the more fun elements of the wedding such as choreographing the dances for the sangeet, doing the DIY photo booth and arranging for giveaways.
My two lehengas : My bridal outfit was from Frontier Raas in South Ex–Delhi. I was looking for something not too heavy so that I am comfortable on the wedding day! The lehenga was for just under a lakh. For my Sangeet lehenga I headed to Frontier Bazaar and that was cheaper.
A Local Makeup Artist instead of one from Delhi : Since I got married in Varanasi, I was quite apprehensive about getting my make-up done from a local makeup artist in Varanasi. I reached out to quite a few make-up artists in Delhi but taking them to the wedding for 2-3 days was turning out to be quite expensive. I then did more research on make-up artists in Varanasi, got recommendations and visited the make-up artist to explain my preferences. This decision turned out to be amazing as I was very happy with my make up on all functions!
A DIY Photobooth : We did a super fun and colourful photo-booth for the sangeet. My friends and cousins helped me put it together. We got the props from different vendors and on the D-Day they coordinate with the décor person at the hotel to put it all together. We used hand carts, bird cages, fun placards and a super colourful back drop for the photo booth.
Using the same venue and the same vendors: Most of our functions except the wedding reception happened in the same hotel where we were staying. This made life very easy for both sides of the families and also the usual wedding related logistical nightmares were easily avoided. We also used the same vendors for décor, photography, videography throughout the wedding. This helped us get better rates and also ensured hassle-free coordination.
What aided you in getting your budget right?
I'll say Good Planning and WedMeGood. I invested a lot of time in planning the wedding and the preparation leading up to it. We did not start the wedding preparations too much in advance but good and efficient planning ensured that the whole process was calm, focussed and a lot of fun too. We used the WedMeGood app and website to plan our website. It really helped in narrowing down vendors and ideas for the wedding. 
