Do you have a budget for your wedding decorations?

Here are all our tips for managing the wedding decoration budget

According to a survey carried out by CSA Research for Cofidis*, released on February 1, the French spend on average 11,063 euros for their wedding. However, it is difficult to anticipate and manage a wedding budget, especially when it comes to decoration. If you do not know where to turn, here are some tips to help you figure out your wedding budget.

Do you have a budget for your wedding decorations?

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The summary is as follows:

• How should the wedding decoration budget be determined?

• Budget-friendly wedding decoration made from recycled materials

• Decorations for a large wedding entrusted to a professional

• Don’t call a pro unless you need advice

How should the wedding decoration budget be determined?

If you are planning a wedding, the first step is to list all the elements that can affect your decorating budget. These are the components that can affect your decorating budget:

Guests’ number

A wedding’s decor budget can be increased or decreased depending on the number of guests. You will have to choose a wedding hall whose capacity is matched to the number of people because he will be the one who will decide the choice of your wedding hall. The larger the number of guests, the larger the space, and the greater the decoration budget.

Hall for weddings

As we said earlier, the larger the wedding hall, the higher the decoration budget will be. You can also increase the budget if you choose different locations for the ceremony (if it’s a secular ceremony), the wine reception and the wedding party. Therefore, choosing the same location for all events is a good idea so that budgets do not go out of control.

Decorations for the wedding

There are some wedding reception venues that offer wedding decoration packages. It is common for prestigious venues like mansions and castles to offer these services, but these types of venues are more costly to rent. It is your responsibility to provide the furniture and decoration yourself if your reception venue does not include them in the rental contract. This typically includes:

• Lighting;

• Here are the tables;

• Chairs;

• What’s on the table;

• Decorated with flowers;

• Decorative accessories in the form of archways;

• Photobooths, for example, serve as decorative accessories as well as entertainment…

Here are the average wedding budgets for different decorative elements:

• The cost of renting a round table ranges between 10 and 100 euros for beautiful wooden tables.

• Renting chairs costs between 2 and 20 euros. 

• The cost of cutlery, plates, and glasses for a party of four is about three euros per person. 

• Plan on around 5 to 10 euros per tablecloth and between 0.50 cents and 1 euro per napkin per person for linen rental.

• Rental flowers and floral decoration: budget about 30 euros each for centerpieces, 40 euros for wreaths, 200 to 300 euros for an arch of flowers, and 10 euros each for bridal bouquets and buttonholes. 

• You should also include the cost of decorations and entertainment in your budget as well. For example, a cocktail bar costs 600 euros and a photobooth costs 300 euros.

To determine your final budget, you need to multiply the prices per unit by the number of guests. Of course, these are indicative rates, and you can find cheaper or much more expensive rates depending on your needs.

You can determine your priorities once all the elements are laid out flat and estimate your wedding decor budget. You should ask several service providers for quotes and compare the offers. If you have a limited budget, we advise you to start with standard type services, even if you have to revise them upwards once you have determined the final budget. Then you can adjust your budget based on your priorities.

Remember that the average wedding decor budget ranges from 500 to 2000 euros.

Budget-friendly wedding decoration made from recycled materials

If your wedding decor budget is limited, but you still want to personalize your reception venue, you must become an expert in these areas:

Recovering 

When you antiquing, you can find old furniture and objects that can be reused on D-Day at a cheaper price than they would be at a garage sale, flea market, second-hand site, or hidden in grandparents’ attics.

Mismatched decor 

Who said that a harmonious decoration was an obligation for a wedding? The mismatched decor trend has been hot for several years, and can also add flair to your wedding décor. Additionally, it can stimulate the curiosity of your guests, making them want to move between all the tables to discover all the different worlds on offer.

Do-it-yourself 

No matter if you are an expert DIYer or not, you can always find easy-to-reproduce DIYs to decorate the room and the tables on the Internet.

It only takes time to make your own wedding decorations. If you don’t have enough time, ask those around you for help.

Saving money on wedding decor doesn’t mean skimping on style:

• You can cover pretty tablecloths with trestles if table rentals are too expensive for your budget. 

• With DIY and the customization of old objects, there are endless possibilities for creating inexpensive wedding table decorations. As an example, we can use glass yoghurt pots to make candle holders and accessorize them with lace or ribbon. We can also use paint or string to transform cans or bottles into vase shapes, as well as corks to serve as place cards.

• Floral decorations: use field flowers, which are often less expensive and can even be picked by you, as well as dried flowers, which can be kept forever as souvenirs. 

• Create an original staging at a lower cost by using recycled elements like wooden pallets, crates, hanging frames…

The cost of a wedding decoration can be reduced to a few hundred euros by doing it yourself…

For weddings with a larger budget, a professional will decorate 

You can hire a professional to decorate your wedding if your budget is unlimited (or very limited) or if you don’t have time. Wedding decorators and wedding designers generally offer packages to meet your needs.

The advantage with a wedding designer is that there is no limit and that you can let yourself go to all your desires (according to your budget) to create a wedding in your image. He will also set everything up, as well as uninstall everything once the wedding is over, which is ideal if you don’t want to spend too much time on organization. With a wedding planner, you also won’t have to worry about forgetfulness or unforeseen events, and you won’t have to manage anything.

Budget between 400 and 3500 euros for calling on a decorator or wedding designer.

Advice should only be sought from a professional 

Nothing prevents you from asking advice only from a wedding decorator if you want control over the decorations of your wedding but still want advice from a pro to make your ideas happen!

It is true that some decorators or wedding designers offer consultations based on what you are looking for. This may concern the theme, the colors to be used, the choice of decorative objects, the layout of the room… The professional’s role is to provide guidance.

According to the rates and popularity of the person contacted, consultations cost around 60 to 100 euros per hour.