Now remember, these are just estimated costs and percentages. Perhaps you may spend more in one area and less in another area. You may be able to reduce or even eliminate some of these expenses.

If you decide to wear your mother's wedding dress, this will eliminate, or at least reduce, the estimated cost of your bridal gown. The wedding dress of your dreams may be more than your budget allows. If this is the case, ask yourself where your priorities are. Would you rather spend more on your wedding dress and less on your photographs?

Another way to reduce costs is to use flowers that are in season on your wedding day. Obviously if you use flowers that are not in season, it is going to cost you more.

These are just a few examples. You can decide what is best for your budget. Be flexible, if you spend more in one expense, reapportion it to another expense. Find more ideas to save in the following articles:

High-end Looks for Less | Inexpensive Wedding Ideas | Saving on your Reception
(you'll find many other tips throughout our planning pages for saving)

Creating a budget with your fiancé will probably save you a lot of headaches. Being realistic about costs and actually seeing the numbers written down on paper will help you from spending out of control. The key is to create the wedding of your dreams and stay within your budget!