The Wedding Fact Sheet

Or REALLY budget weddings, to be more precise about it.

If even celebrities are cutting down on cost, there’s no reason why ordinary mortals like you and I can’t. The times simply call for it. Am sure budget brides will reason out that all the moolah spent on a one-day affair is better allotted for big-ticket priorities after the wedding, such as a house or car downpayment and saving up for when the baby comes.

It’s all a matter of spending creatively. Here are some ways to do this before the Big day:

1. Comparison shop between suppliers. Do not be afraid to engage in some dirty leg work or conduct serious research which may be via the internet or plainly asking your friends for referrals. I assure you this makes a difference, rather than relying on what you hear on TV or read in magazines.

2. Do-It-Yourself. DIY, the magic word in wedding preparations. There are a lot of aspects of the wedding preps which you can designate for DIY such as the invites and giveaways. Pool together the talents of your friends and families. This can save you as much as 40 per cent.

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If you’re based in Manila, Baclaran should be a familiar name. The Redemptorist Church is the refuge of faithful devotees of the Our Lady of the Most Perpetual Help. This place is also the ultimate bargain shopper’s haven. Its market is not only the ordinary fashionista, but people looking for costumes, members of the entourage of the yearly May Santacruzan, and yes…. brides and the whole wedding party!

There are a number of wedding stores in Baclaran but the most established is Rosy’s Bridal Center. So popular is Manang Rosy that her clients include some of the Philippines’ actors and actresses. She is assisted in the store by her son Ogie and a number of helpers.

I visited this store during the wedding preps and the prices were simply unbelievable. There was a sale during that time and I even tried on a wedding gown for P2,000, LOL.

What’s amazing about Rosy’s is that you can have a new gown made and buy it, or have a new gown made and charge it as “rental.” Obviously with the latter, you cannot keep the gown but you will be charged cheaper. Prices at Rosy’s start at 2K and as low as P500 for the entourage dresses.
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