It is worth remembering for anyone with cheap wedding plans that the wedding industry is huge, in fact it is worth more than 25 billion dollars annually and with the average wedding costing upwards of 25,000 dollars it is hardly surprising. However, it is possible to plan a cheap wedding if you cannot manage something that requires expensive stationery, photographers, caterers and dresses. You just need a bit of guidance and a few tips to help you achieve the dream of your big day so here are a few suggestions with tips on how to save on some of the more expensive aspects of a wedding.

Of course the bride will want a designed, hand made dress but this is very expensive but it is something where savings can be made, especially if consider using a second hand wedding dress. Men do not feel uncomfortable hiring a tuxedo for the day so why should a woman feel badly about buying a quality wedding dress for a fraction of the cost or hiring one herself?

Catering for the wedding reception is going to be the largest financial outlay and with current figure suggesting that upwards of 190 people are invited to the average wedding reception this is where cheap wedding planning will create the most savings. Firstly is don't invite everyone you know, in particular relatives you may not have seen since you were a child and as far as the meal is concerned why opt for a buffet instead of a full three course meal. The venue of the wedding can also be somewhere less expensive than the local golf club or hotel by using a relatives home or a small club and then the drinks bill is easily reduced by only catering for wine, beer and soft drinks at the bar.

The obvious choice is to shop around for the best rates, but consider hiring a photographer for the ceremony only and ask a family member or friend to take snap photos of the reception. Although you may not like the idea, there is no reason why you couldn't have all the wedding day photos taken by your guests and you will find yourself saving many hundreds of dollars.

Other areas where you can be assured of saving money for your cheap wedding plans like wedding invitations and place settings for example which can easily be produced to a very high standard on a home computer. With sophisticated customization tools you'll be able to enter your own text and preview it before you print so as not to make any costly mistakes, all from the benefit of your probably underused PC.

Florists can also be very expensive, especially for weddings so why not cut out the middle man and buy they direct and arranging them yourself or getting a friend to do this for you. Get a friend to make your wedding cake for you and opt for a smaller tier cake and it doesn't have to be a fruit cake, try a sponge, chocolate or carrot cake and make favors and center-pieces yourself, accessories for these can be found at little outlet stores or online. Your cheap wedding plans should also include asking a friend if their car can be used to take you to the ceremony so saving more money which you should be able to put towards something that you need for your home.