A real wedding budget

I have read a LOT of wedding blogs the past year, and one of the things I find really interesting to read about is the facts of wedding planning, including budgeting. So today I am writing about our budget, and maybe there are a few future brides/grooms that can benefit from it.

Planned budget: 50 000 kr
This number was very random, basically the highest amount I thought we could spend... I quickly realized it would be very difficult to keep to it. Earlier, I wrote about how to make a wedding budget, which might be helpful early in the process.

Actual budget: 77 500 kr
Was it really the "budget wedding" I wanted it to be? Comparatively, the average for weddings in Norway is around 100 000 kr, so maybe not. Being a part of a non-profit organization for 8 years has had a big impact on my view of finances, and it turns out that paying a professional for their service cost a lot more than I thought. PS. Our honeymoon and rings are excluded from the budget.

Wedding Emergency Kit

Any self-respecting wedding blog will tell you about the emergencies that may arise on your wedding day, and what you can do to prevent it. To feel safe, I packed a kit that would be able to save the day from at least a couple of potential scenarios. Luckily, no emergencies arose (that I know of), and I only used some of the makeup.

After talking to a few friends that are already married, I decided against a purse of my own (but not before I spent hours on Etsy looking at vintage white beaded clutches...) I figured I wanted to reserve one hand for a big bouquet of flowers and the other one for my husbands hand, and that ended up being enough to keep track of. My maid of honor had my lipstick in her clutch, and when we arrived at the venue, the rest of the emergency kit was kept close by a bathroom, and no one had to keep track of it. If you are planning a wedding of your own, here is what I packed, and what I actually used:

Emergency kit

- Sewing kit  with needles, thread, scissors, seam ripper and safety pins (I used this the night before the wedding to sew the comb on the veil. Nothing like procrastination...)

- Stain remover/Tide pen

- Nail file

- Clear nail polish (not sure why I packed this, since I didn't wear tights, but it could stop tearing if you do)
- Nail polish remover

- Cotton swabs and pads

- Pain killers

- Band aids

- Bobby pins

- Tampons
- Spare eye contacts

- Breath mints
- Tissues (There were definitely a lot of happy tears!) 

- Make up remover and wet wipes

- Face powder (I am not sure I used it. I only freshened up once, after the ceremony/before dinner)

- Lipstick

- Concealer (Other makeup was available close by, but not part of the emergency kit)

- Blotting paper 

- Perfume

My maid of honor had hair spray in her bag, so that was available as well.

It looks like a long list, but all of it fit in a medium size toiletry bag, so it didn´t feel like too much to bring along. This kit consists of things you probably already own, it can be made weeks or even months in advance, and even if you don´t end up using most of it, it is nice to know you are covered in case something happens.