Photo: Nice Print Photography · Venue: Tagaytay Highlands
Your upcoming wedding is indeed a once-in-a-lifetime occasion. In all likelihood, you've been preparing for this day for a long time now.
Weddings are fun, pretty, and an opportunity to make your dreams come true. And this is where the wedding budget comes in: it grounds you in reality, telling you what you can do with your available funds and resources.
The wedding budget is the crucial first action item of any wedding planning effort. It allows you to see the bigger picture, it narrows down your selection of venues and vendors, and it lets your wedding suppliers know how to best help you on your big day.
"Our main challenge is the (wedding) budget. You want to book (certain wedding vendors) because you want your wedding to be perfect!"
— Zee, who married Raph at Tagaytay Highlands
Photo: Nice Print Photography
Raph & Zee shared that it's the little details that can easily stretch your intended wedding budget beyond its limits. "Like these personalized stamps for our wedding invites. This is just a small detail, but actually, it's still an added cost that was not soo useful for us since it was only used for photos."
It was during the wedding planning stage that Raph & Zee realized these little extras and add-ons were eating into their allotted budget for their big day. Their realization: don't stress yourself on the little things. Focus on items that everyone will truly remember — like the catering, the photos and videos, and the entertainment.
Photo: Nice Print Photography · Venue: Tagaytay Highlands
"Your Wedding, Your Rules"
Raph & Zee fondly remember their Tagaytay wedding, and they felt most of what they did was just right.
"We're proud to say that not a single centavo was borrowed just to pull off our dream wedding. Wala kaming inutang."
— Zee
If Raph & Zee had one piece of advice for soon-to-weds: "Don't go bankrupt just to impress your guests. After all, it's your wedding anyway. Your wedding, your rules." Raph also suggested that if you want a simple wedding, go for it — and if you want an extravagant wedding, go for it as well — as long as it is within the budget.
Photo: Nice Print Photography
More Wedding Advice from Raph & Zee
Photo: Nice Print Photography
Photo: Nice Print Photography
About Raph & Zee
By the time Raph & Zee had their Tagaytay Highlands wedding in the summer of 2018, they were already married for four years. It was a church wedding both of them had always wanted — at Madre de Dios Chapel in Tagaytay Highlands — and they worked hard together to save for it without borrowing a single peso.
One particular vendor that truly made an impression on their big day was Eventist Manila, their on-the-day coordinator. "Grabe! They were my angels during my wedding. Our wedding wouldn't be successful if not for them," said Zee.
Photo: Nice Print Photography
Photos: Nice Print Photography · Venue: Tagaytay Highlands · Coordination: Eventist Manila