Tame the Beast

I am super organized. And probably the most frugal of all of my friends. I started planning my wedding with the steadfast goal of not overspending. I was not going to be sucked into the "wedding machine" and overspend. This was my second wedding and I was determined to hold my ground this time. My fiance and I set a budget of $5,000. My friends all thought I was crazy but I knew I could do it. After all, I had Pinterest on my side.

Unfortunately, Pinterest is not always your friend. Just type "wedding dress" into the search field and see what happens. The peripheral vision blurs and those pretty, pretty princess dresses start popping up; one after another of gorgeous designer dresses. I might be frugal but I'm also the Queen of Justification. If you need to feel better about your overpriced purchase, you just call me and I'll talk you off that ledge. I can justify anything. Any. Thing.

So when I start seeing image after image of my perfect dress over and over again and I see that the price is $1,000, or $1,500 or $2,500; my dirty little justification voice takes over. "it's only $1,000...and it's on sale!" "I need that dress for my special day!" "I can alter it and wear it again after the wedding!" Stay strong ladies! This is when you need to remind yourself that it's just one party and there are plenty of affordable solutions out there that won't take up 50% of your original budget.

Taming the Beast might seem like it's a simple thing, but don't under estimate the multi-billion dollar beast. If you're going to conquer it (and you will) then you need to acknowledge it, make friends with it, and then kick it in the ass and step over its steaming carcus. You will need reminders throughout your wedding planning to keep you focused. Feel free to read and re-read this post throughout your planning as those dresses are sparkly and oh so tempting. Or pick a friend. Not your weak willed over spender friend who hides purchases from her husband, either, but the strong willed one who tells you to put those black pumps back because they look just like the ones you bought last month. Or you can even put a post it note in your wedding planner (preferably in giant block Sharpie lettering) because, let's face it, we're not made of stone.

Next up...dresses! Since I seem to be beating the dress analogy into the ground, come back next time for our search for the perfect dress..