DECKED OUT
We were quoted £7k to hire a ‘rustic barn’ for our wedding so booked a village hall instead – it cost £450 for FIVE days
They didn't have any complaints about noise either, despite the "heavy rock band" they'd hired
ANYONE who has ever planned a wedding knows how the price of everything shoots up anytime you mention the 'w' word.
So when Rebecca and her other half started looking at venues for their big day, and set their sights on a rustic barn, they were quoted a whopping £7,000 to hire it out.
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That was solely a "dry hire" too - meaning it was just to hire the venue and didn't include anything else.
So, instead of spending such a massive cut of their budget on the venue, the couple decided to look at other options, including their local village hall.
And when they were told it would cost them just £450 to hire the hall for five days, they jumped at the chance.
Having the wedding in the hall also meant Rebecca had free rein to do whatever she wanted in terms of decorating, and kept their entire wedding budget under £15,000.
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In a Rebecca showed how the hall looked before she'd worked her magic on it.
She and her husband-to-be then got to work decorating the hall, adding numerous trees and branchy garlands.
Swathes of material were added on the ceiling to give a romantic feeling, while long trestle tablets were hired for guests to sit at for dinner.
Long branches were used as table runners, with gold plates adorning each place setting.
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And once it got to the evening, the hall looked even more magical, with fairy lights covering the trees and on the ceiling.
There was also a fairy light 'curtain' concealing the stage at the back of the hall.
I didn't want to shell out loads for my wedding flowers so nabbed a £16 bargain from Dunelm - the quality's unreal
"Our magical village hall wedding," Rebecca captioned the video.
"I couldn’t have been more happy to see my vision come together after all our time planning.
"Lots of hard work but the outcome was so worth it!"
"Any ideas of costs for something like this?" one person wrote in the comments section.
"We were considering doing something similar!"
"We had a budget of £15k in total...," Rebecca replied.
What is the average cost of a wedding cake?
ALONGSIDE the dress, the venue, the flowers and the bride and groom themselves, choosing a wedding cake is one of the most important parts of organising a perfect day.
But ensuring you've got the perfect cake can be an expensive business.
Becky Hartt from Hartt Cakes spoke to about her business, and revealed her average cake costs between £450 and £750.
This cost depends on the size of the cake, the ingredients and the decoration.
Professional wedding cake maker Kate, from Little Button Bakery, said she works out the price of a cake by using the equation: "Basic costs + cost of business overheads + cost of time + profit = price."
"It is usually around 20-30 hours work in one wedding cake when you consider: admin time, researching designs, cake tasting and consultation, preparing and tweaking the final design, sourcing materials, liaising with other suppliers and the venue, baking, creating and finishing the cake, delivering and setting up the cake and checking in afterwards," she added.
While an average cake is anything up to £750, some people spend thousands on the perfect one for them.
As others can spend a lot less on their cake by going to an alternative such as a cheese cake, a cupcake tower or a doughnut wall.
"Splurged on things like the band and food but the hall was £100 a day for 5 days. 3 for set up, wedding day and one clear down Sunday.
"So worth doing it though!"
Speaking to Fabulous Online, Rebecca added that they actually paid £450 in total for the hall after getting a deal.
And one of the biggest bonuses was having "a blank canvas to really make it our own".
"We did a DIY village hall wedding and I loved it!" another person commented on the video.
"£330 to hire for 3 days."
"Amazing!! Perfect way to save money!" Rebecca replied.
"That village hall, is nicer than 90% of village halls I've ever seen… BEFORE the decoration," a third wrote.
"Lucky to have it in our village!" Rebecca agreed.
She also shared more details about the big day, including what they had for their "huge feast".
"Sharing charcuterie platters, 8hr slow roasted pork with all the trimmings," she wrote.
"Apple pie and Sticky toffee for pud!"
When it came to the music, they did their own playlist for the wedding breakfast, before a "heavy rock band" kicked in at 8pm and played "all the nostalgic tracks we all loved from our early teens".
"Dance floor was never empty!" she added.
Replying to someone asking if they'd had any noise complaints from anyone in the village, Rebecca said: "Not at all.
"Finished at midnight and by that point I think everyone was ready for bed.
"Up very early for a 12pm ceremony.
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"Had a heavy rock/ metal band and no complaining!"
"Get this in a Hallmark Christmas movie immediately," someone else gushed.
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