How to plan a wedding with GHc15,000

A joke that has been on social media for years talk about how a child dreams of becoming a doctor, engineer or lawyer. And by the time tertiary education deals with them the way they never imagined, all you here is ‘Yo! Yo!! It’s your boy DJ Armani in the building’. That joke has a lesson.

Not that being a DJ is bad (look at the mark Ghana’s DJ Switch is making across the globe). It’s just that sometimes, you don’t always get what you ask for. Notwithstanding, one must endeavour to make the best out of any situation.

This is the same for wedding dreams.

Growing up, fantasy was a deluded reality for most people. So, the Cinderella books that were read, the movies that were watched created some form of zeal that life is a win all through and through. But that is false, and anyone who has taken a chance at living knows this is a fact.

Wedding day Do you have your wedding checklist ready? Pulse Ghana

Ghanaians have had their way of doing things as would any other country and doing what their culture deems. Culture, however, is dynamic and the dynamism of Ghana’s culture when it comes to marriage ceremonies has been phenomenal with a corresponding directly proportional cost.

Legend has it that getting married in Ghana used to be that simple. Show your hard working skills as a man, show your qualities as a good wife to be and your families will do the rest connecting the two of you. It had its own issues (which has been discovered as the world continues its dynamic approach) but the huge cost was not one of those issues.

Currently, the talk about marriage sends shivers down the spine of many young people. For most, it is not the thought of living with a single person for the rest of their lives. Most of these young people can live with that.

What they can’t live with, as conversations have shown, is the probable huge sums to be blown on the wedding part of the marriage ceremony.

There have been tales of loans for weddings that have ended badly. There’re stories of how wife and husband to be spend all their savings only to struggle after their wedding. So, obviously, there is a need to talk about this.

How big do you have to go on your wedding day? This is a question no particular person can have an answer to. It is situation by situation and highly relative.

A recent conversation on Ghana Twitter talked about a GHc15, 000 wedding. There was ‘for’ and ‘against’ with respect to the motion on the floor. Some thought the figure was too small for a wedding. Others thought it was enough. And there were the extreme extravaganzas who felt GHc15, 000 as a wedding budget was a joke and as little as a Friday night drink-up budget.

But relativity as previously discussed is a key point here. Don’t be bothered if you’ve always planned to use money in the region of GHc15, 000 for your wedding. Because it is possible.

Here’s how to have a classic Ghanaian wedding with GHc15, 000.

The Thought

Have these thoughs when planing a Ghanaian wedding (Kwabena Awuku Photography) ece-auto-gen

Weddings go beyond just buying and accumulating, inviting and making a lot of calls. No. The mental state and the thought process of the couple are very key. Their approach towards their big day before the big day is everything. So here are a few key points to note when planning a wedding with GHc15, 000.

Plan ahead

Don’t wake up on a Monday wanting a wedding the next Saturday with a GHc15, 000 budget. It doesn’t work that way. Time is money and if you need people to focus all their energy on you at the shortest possible time, they will charge more. No two ways about that.

So, if you’re one of those couple wanting a wedding to hide the fact that you two got pregnant before marriage, this GHc15, 000 wedding may not be so much of a thing for you (no shade or judgement).

Planning ahead reduces stress. It gives the couple time to make the best of decisions. Giving yourself enough time to plan your wedding is one of the keynotes to adhere to for a stress-free wedding. Scratch that. Let’s face reality, you will get stressed anyway but that stress will drastically reduce.

Guest list

You can’t have everyone you’ve ever been in class, work and church with at your wedding and have a GHc15, 000 budget. No, you can’t have everything you want in life at the same time without making some sacrifices.

The number of people a couple plan to have at their wedding is a necessary discussion when it comes to budgeting. It could either make or break your wedding funds.

Wedding help instead of gifts

Never go into a wedding planning hoping to break even with the ‘proceeds’ you get in cash and other gifts. Instead, use those relations ahead of the wedding.

For that one person who is good at graphic design, ask for help to design your invitation card instead of simply waiting for them to give you huge sums at the wedding as a gift because you know they run a very successful creative industry.

Ask that friend who knows around town to help you shop for the best deals. It goes a long way but do not abuse the situation. It’s your wedding and marriage, not theirs.

Negotiate without the W-word

The excitement of walking down the isle gets to many couples who blub about it everywhere they go. Well, stop it during your wedding negotiations.

Businessmen/women will always mean business and smell the desperation of a couple to be. They will make you pay higher than you normally will without a care of your wedding budget.

Ask questions without highlighting you need it for a wedding. So ask for the charge of feeding 150 people without mentioning it's for a wedding or a 30 minutes performance charge of a creative person without stating it's for a wedding. Even if weddings have a higher rate, you can see the difference and make a good decision at that.

Don’t negotiate using the W-word in all you do.

Now GHc15,000 … Phew!

Be not dismayed. Believe it’s possible. In all the weddings of weddings are many budgets. If it were not so, this conversation wouldn’t have progressed to this.

Rings

Wedding rings (Photo:sorce_photography) How to plan a wedding with GHc15,000 Pulse Ghana

Ring, one of the most important parts of a marriage ceremony should be an early focus before the wedding. Even if the couple decides to sign at a court, rings are needed. So have the talk and get it sorted as early as possible.

Listen, you can never do too little or too much when it comes to your taste in wedding rings. Because whatever you do, someone will beat you to it and you will also beat someone.

Some of the most expensive wedding rings the world has ever had to report on include Beyonce’s, a $5 million flawless 18-carat diamond from Jay Z and Paris Hilton’s $4.7 million wedding ring.

Genuinely, if you had $4 million now, you wouldn’t spend it all on your wedding ceremony. That is a sign that, whatever you do, do you and do what will make you comfortable.

Despite wedding rings going as high as millions of dollars, there are worthy rings at prices for all.

With the GHc15,000 wedding budget in mind, quick research revealed a maximum of GHc1000 can purchase decent and appealing wedding rings for both the groom and the bride.

Of course, there is room to go big but you can actually manage small too.

Wedding gown and suit

Gown (Photo: Pistisgh) How to plan a wedding with GHc15,000 Pulse Ghana

On the topic of wedding gowns and suits, more focus will be put on the woman. For both locally made and imported wedding gowns, GHc2500 can get any bride a really good deal for their money.

With enough time to plan and arrange everything there is to know about wedding gowns, one may even beat that price and still look stunning on their wedding day.

Suits should not be hard to find whether getting a customized one or already made.

Bridesmaids and groomsmen normally take care of their dressing. Choose a few and find affordable ones they won’t mind spending their money on. They are buying it because of your wedding and you must care enough.

For a budget of GHc 3,500, the groom and bride can have their suit and gown ready with complimentary shoes.

Hair & Make-up

Make up kit ece-auto-gen

This part section of the article was initially placed under miscellaneous. Upon speaking to a few ladies, there is only one simple warning for men: prioritize her hair if you want your life.

One has to be smart about this. If you listen to conversations, you might spend big and not actually go big. Good deals are around so look for it.

Whether it is kinky, blunt cut, Brazilian hair, Mongolian hair, closure or frontals, find the right deal at the right price.

Do not pay too much on make-up. With the art being one of the most common ones available, find a friend, build their trust with practice and make them do it for you.

GHc1500 for hair and make-up.

Invitation

Planning a Ghanaian wedding Do you have your wedding checklist ready? Pulse Ghana

Digital media platforms are there for a reason. Use them. Get an electronic version of your invitation card and send to friends to cut down on printing cost. For the very few people who have to get a hard copy of your invite, do print them.

Photography

The wedding cake which descended from the roof of the venue of Sarkodie’s wedding has sparked a whole new conversation ece-auto-gen

On photography for the wedding, Otpixels explained that it actually depends on the package one wants and how much they are willing to pay.

“With a low budget of GHc3000, a photographer could offer 50 printed pictures and a 1-minute video. All other soft copies would be added without editing I would rather do it free for a friend than charge a low amount,” Otpixels said.

The photographer despite these comments explained that most of his colleagues give good deals to friends.

Find a friend. Or a friend who knows a friend and all your photos and videos will be sorted.

Look harder and you may find a good deal too.

Photos are essential part of this whole ceremony. That is how you will get the message across to all those you didn’t invite due to cost. GHc2000 should be good enough to execute the task.

Venue/Décor

Wedding decor How to plan a wedding with GHc15,000 Pulse Ghana

Forget food! Venue and décor have been one of the high expense executions that swallow a chunk of the wedding budget.

With the high taste for extravagance, the natural flowers, the crystals, the wedding smoke bombs, elevation from under the earth are all money well spent for a great reception if you have it.

If you don’t, try simple but awesome. It is possible.

First of all, find a free venue that suits the purpose of your reception. If you’re a member of a church or an organization, ask if there is a free space you could use. The answer is not always going to be a yes but there is always a way out if you start looking early enough.

Big money does not necessarily equate to great décor. It helps but small money can also do big things with creativity.

Talk to friends. Talk to family members. Talk to colleagues. You’d be surprised how awesome your wedding reception can be with the use of people around you.

Budget GHc2000 for décor and aim not to go over with all the stated implementations.

Food

Jollof rice ece-auto-gen

On the part of the food, the wedding cake is the most important. The wedding is about the bride and the groom and not feeding the masses. You’re not Jesus Christ.

Granted people will make journeys to your wedding and you must acknowledge but that’s not the place where you give them options of banku and tilapia, ampesi, kokonte, fufu, eto, akple, jollof, waakye and what not.

Think about your cake first. It should not be too expensive but classy. GHc500 can get you a good deal based on research for this article. Also, tell a friend to tell a friend, a better deal could be waiting.

When it comes to food for the event discipline is the ultimate here. Talk to your food vendor. There are always cheaper options that won’t compromise on the satisfaction of guests.

Normal trends have proven the more the food options, the higher you pay. Vendors are, however, always willing to work with your budget.

“I always work with the client’s budget. What you can pay for is what we work with, giving you the best. Paying less would normally mean you have fewer options to choose from. And people have the wrong idea that pastries are cheaper. No. But in all these, we always find a way to serve everyone to their needs,” Kebby’s Sweets & Savouries.

Services are usually added to the cost. Cut these expenses by asking family and friends to help with the catering. There are people always willing.

Budget GHc4000 cedis for catering. Keep in mind the earlier point made about the number of guests at your wedding.

Key Points

Ghana weddings (Photo: Kwabena Awuku Photography) ece-auto-gen

This is not your sure way to planning a wedding with GHc15,000. However, if you follow these keynotes mentioned earlier, it will go a long way to sticking to the budget.

-Try and have your wedding reception during the day to avoid lighting cost.

-There are funny people in everyone’s circle. There are people who know how to talk. Find them. Make them the MC. They will like the shine. You will enjoy the 'free'.

-For music, start talking to people early. Talk to good DJs. They might not have discovered their DJ capabilities. Be the one to make them blow.

-Don’t drag the wedding. Keep it short but memorable.

BONUS: Honeymoon

A perfect honeymoon destination is always available at a cool price BusinessInsider USA Images

If you actually make it a point to save at all cost, you may get a small amount for a weekend getaway as a honeymoon.

Trying to find the best places for a short vacation in Ghana is a difficult task. The very renowned ones are almost always in everyone’s face once the search is made. But there are hidden and affordable ones that will give value and good memories for money. Put aside GHc2000 for a weekend getaway and continue your honeymoon in your chamber and hall apartment. All that matters is spending the time together and making sure the marriage lasts forever.

*PS: Prices in this article are based on approximations. It could be higher or lower on the market due to where you’re shopping. Shop at the right places, compromise on a few decisions and GHc15,000 could give a classic wedding your friends will be jealous of. That’s the whole point of going big on weddings right? (wink wink)