Dream weddings on different budgets; no matter how much you spend, the outcome of your big day depends on how well you plan

Ebony, June, 1990 by Roxanne Brown

Dream Weddings On Different Budgets

WHEN Melvin Bobo III took his sweetheart's hand and asked her to be his wife, Darnesha Johnson was overjoyed. Her joy, however, quickly turned into puzzlement when her fiance asked her to consider a wedding date that was almost two years away. It wasn't that Bobo was stalling, he just happened to know how much time it would take to create the wedding of their dreams. The couple was married in August of 1989 without a hitch, after having carefully planned their wedding from top to bottom. Luckily, the Bobos found out the easy way that time is your most prized possession when your goal is wedding day bliss on a budget.

Plan Ahead

Lengthy engagements are rather rare these days, but couples should still plan to spend no fewer than six months planning an average-size (200 people) wedding ceremony and reception. Even if you don't have the drive and organization to do the planning yourself, keep in mind that consultants and coordinators can do a much better job when time is on their side. Besides, the more time you have, the less financial strain there is, and that is the name of the game.

With roughly 19 months to plan, the Bobos of Chicago were able to shop around for quality services at affordable prices. "We wanted to use all Black vendors," explains Darnesha, who through friends and associates was able to get in touch with what she insists were an excellent caterer, florist and photographer. Bobo applied his skills as a financial analyst to devise a workable budget, and he used a wedding planner as a guide.

He says having so much time allowed them to pay off major expenditures by making small monthly payments. About six months before the wedding, the couple doubled their payments on their rings, the hall and to the caterer and florist to meet their deadline. "I even sent letters out to the bridesmaids and groomsmen, giving them the costs of their dresses and tux rental, and showing them how they could pay on installment," says Bobo. The couple slightly exceeded estimates when actual costs totalled $10,000, but that included an eight-day honeymoon in Jamaica.

Envision Your Day

The Bobos are ot the only newlyweds who can look back and say that they truly lived out their wedding day fantasy. Any couple can pull off their dream, and with less money and less time to plan all the little details. The first thing to do, according to Yvonne D. McClendon, a wedding consultant in Detroit, is to sit down and envision what you want your weddig day to be. She says many times the bride will start to shop around before she and the groom have talked out their version of a dream wedding.

One of the first questions to ask yourselves is whether you want your wedding to be formal, semi-formal or informal. To help reach that decision, you must also decide what time of the day you would like to wed. When budgeting, keep in mind that an informal ceremony--minus tuxedo rentals and elaborate gowns--is almost always less expensive and can be just as beautiful. Even with financial constraints, never assume that what you really want is unattainable. "You must first recognize that you have a budget to work within and then take it from there," says McClendon. "The '80s presented us with large, very formal and traditional weddings, but the new decade seems to be bringing back the smaller, intimate wedding that is still very elegant."

Budget Realistically

Once you have come up with your "dream list" that includes all the components you would like to include on your big day, then come up with a realistic budget and match it against your list of priorities. Most wedding consultants agree that if you find it necessary to cut costs early in the planning, then the most logical place to start is with the number of people you would like to invite and the kind or amount of food you want served at the reception. Traditionally guests were served cake and a little something to toast (the couple) with, but today emphasis is on food, and this can put undue pressron the family and the bride.

Pressures and expenditures don't have to mount just because your ideal wedding happens to be large and formal. Depending on the part of the country you live in, major purchases like catering, flowers and wedding apparel can be made for a lot less.

Shreveport, La., newlyweds Yolanda and Vincent Chevalier had a formal Catholic church ceremony that included seven bridesmaids and ushers, three flower girls and a miniature bride and groom. They invited 200 people to a church hall reception where finger foods and punch were served (champagne was limited to the bridal party). The total wedding bill, including a brief honeymoon in Dallas, made Yolanda's father a happy man. "He paid less than $2,000 for everything," says the resourceful 22-year-old. Having a whole year to plan, Chevalier shopped around for her own gown and just happened to find what she wanted in a department store bridal section, on sale for less than $200. Though her wedding troupe was responsible for the costs of their apparel, she brought the costs down by buying the fabric by the bolt and having the dresses made.