Weddings should be something people look forward to, a celebration joining two individuals, but for a lot of people – weddings mean debt!

It’s not just the happy couple (or their parents) who may find themselves in debt over a wedding. Wedding guests spend an average of £294 each per wedding in preparations and gifts according to figures released by insurance company Direct Line.

Another survey by Tesco Finance revealed that on average, couples spend around 10 months saving up for their weddings, so where does that leave people who are already in debt and want to get married without making their financial situation any worse??

There are a few options, the most obvious being to wait until you’re in a more stable financial position, but for people in IVAs and Debt Management Plans that could be anything from 5 years upwards. We recently had a question asked by a ClearDebt Community member who wanted to know how getting married would affect her IVA.

If you’re struggling financially and don’t want to wait to get married, here are some top tips for having an amazing wedding on a budget:

• Get creative – think back to the days when you did arts and crafts in school and all the pretty things you made. Get back into that frame of mind and make your own wedding invitations, bake your own wedding cake, and if you’re handy with a sewing machine why not make your own dress?
• Call in favours from friends – being creative and making things isn’t for everyone, but if you can’t do something, ask around your friends, there’s bound to be some hidden talents that can help towards the wedding.
• Defy convention – there’s no rule which says there HAS to be a wedding cake, matching bridesmaids and a fleet of luxury cars. You don’t even have to go on your honeymoon straight after. Pick what’s most important to you and cut out the rest.
• Focus on atmosphere – I’ve been to big lavish weddings that were boring because there was no atmosphere and nobody really knew each other, and I’ve been to smaller budget weddings that have been so enjoyable because everbody was sociable. Remember it’s not the venue or food that make the wedding,  it’s having your close friends and family there to celebrate with you.

If you have any tips or words of wisdom for planning a wedding on a budget, please leave a comment below. We’d also love to hear about the most enjoyable wedding you’ve ever been to?