Catering 27% – included here are appetizers and welcome drinks served after the ceremony, dinner (savoury and sweet), drinks (incl. alcohol), service, silverware, tables, chairs, chaircovers and sheets. Weddings usually last for the whole day, so it’s necessary to make sure that noone would be hungry at any point of the day. The menu depends on your food preferences and on the budget. Definately include the caterer in this discussion as they can always suggest the best solutions.
The appearance 12% – wedding rings, gown and suit for the couple, shoes and accessories, hair and make up. Your outfits price can be highly affected by whether you will rent it, buy from a salon, make a custom design or order online. Wedding rings are the only things that will stay with you for years to come, hence it is really important to think this choice through before making a final decision. The rings should be comfortable, durable, qualitative and suited for everyday use. When making rings you can also use your own gold, which obviously also changes the price.
Venue 12% – for a beautiful wedding a beautiful venue for the ceremony and party are needed. The price for the venue changes the most from wedding to wedding. Sometimes the chosen venue is not meant for big parties, in these cases we need to bring in water, electricity or even lavatories. On the other hand a church, beach or your own home garden don’t usually cost anything. Barns (with electricity and water), wedding venues, restaurants and manors usually cost more. However, should you choose also the venue’s catering then you don’t have to pay for the venue itself or the price is significantly smaller.
Flowers and decor 9% – this incorporates all the visual beauty besides the newlyweds. Flowers include the bridal bouquet, groom’s boutonniere, decorations for the car and everything necessary for the ceremony, venue, best men and bridesmaids. We recommend to make seasonal choices when selecting flowers, this way you get an excellent selection with better prices. The beauty of flowers lies in their singularity. They help to transform a casual venue into a very glamorous one, creating the proper emotion and ambiance.
The venue usually needs a lot of other decor besides the flowers: lighting, candles, lanterns, chests, fabrics, ribbons, signs etc. This also includes setting everything up and taking them down after the big event.
Musicians 8% – musicians for the ceremony and for the party, or a DJ. Musicians should be of course chosen according to your preferences but additionally you should think through what your guests like so that everyone could have a dance. The price mainly depends on the amount of people in the band, rather than their popularity. Usually the band takes all the technology they need, sometimes they also take the lighting. The band should always be willing to learn one new song, that the newlyweds wish to have.
Photographer 5% – wedding photos will last and be always there to remind you of one of the happiest days of your life. The wedding photographer has a big responsibility – there are no do-overs and everything needs to be perfect. Surely you wish to have the best quality possible and luckily we have many professional wedding photographers in Estonia, who all have their own style.
The MC 4% – the MC is the leader of the whole night. In addition to entertaining he will also help you put together the schedule and give you advice on everything else. We always recommend to meet the MC before making a decision as a good match is crucial for your final satisfaction. Every MC has their own style, but they always take account of your wishes and preferences. Perhaps there is already someone amongst your friends who knows how to coordinate, entertain and play some games? Their advantage is that they already know most of the guests and also what everyone likes. You should thoroughly deliberate whether to use someone you know or a professional MC, as they have one of the biggest roles during the night.
Videographer 4% – a wedding video can not be compared with a home video. Wedding videos are filmed and put together so that it is very heartwarming to watch. This way the most moving moments will be perpetuated for generations to come. Short videos are so popular that they have been watched thousands of times on various platforms.
Other entertainment 2% – fireworks, fire dancers and other performers. If you wish to offer your guests marvelous experiences with a pyro-musical show then you need experienced professionals and hours worth of set up time. Of course that has a noteworthy price tag. Often guests are surprised with a performance that represent one of the newlyweds hobbies and thus the performers are also acquaintances and the show is done for a small symbolic price or even for free.
Cards and invites 2% – this includes wedding invitations, place settings, table plans, menus, schedules, songbooks, boxes for gift-envelopes, guestbooks, occupation-badges etc. You don’t definitely need to have everything on this list in your wedding, it depends on your personal preferences and on the size of your wedding. When ordering these items from professionals the price depends on the chosen style and it’s complexity. On the other hand, in a wedding with 15 guests you don’t need a table plan or may-be even no place-settings. If you have the skill we always encourage the couple to make some of these items on their own.
Transport 2% – a wedding car with a driver, if necessary transport for the guests. Renting a car with the driver insures that you get a clean car with a driver who knows where to go and is always there for you. If you or your friend has a car that suits you, then it might be the reasonable choice and a cheaper alternative. If you ask a friend to drive you, then you must take into consideration that he must always be fit to drive.
Officiant and documents 1% – you have to consider the state fee, officiant’s pay and often his transport, if the ceremony is held somewhere else besides a notary’s office or vital statistics department. In Estonia a marriage can be united by a vital statistics department’s official, a clergyman or a notary and the prices vary tremendously. The price also depends greatly on where the ceremony is held. Should you wish to have a friend officiate the wedding, you can sign the necessary papers already beforehand.
Thank you notes and other minor expenses 1% – wedding memorabilia are small gifts to guests, their price depends on what exactly they are. Usually it is something symbolic, eatable or even something made by the newlyweds. This category holds a lot of small details, and the need for them turns out during the planning process.
Accommodation for the newlyweds 1% – mostly the newlyweds don’t want to go home straight after the wedding and something more luxurious is chosen for the first night. If your wedding venue also offers accommodation, then you might get their suite for a very low cost or for free. Or may-be you wish to go somewhere further from the venue and spend the night at the most luxurious hotel’s fanciest suite – the wedding night is the perfect time for that!
Wedding planner 10% – our passionate team offers solutions to every stage of the wedding, to ensure that your special day turns out exactly the way you have dreamed it. We offer a full event planning service, so that you can enjoy not just your wedding day but the whole planning process that precedes it. Additionally we offer a coordinating service, where we help out during the big day and briefly before it. Then we get in touch with all of the service providers shortly before the wedding and make sure that everything goes smoothly on your wedding day.
Ideally we would recommend to start planning your day and getting in touch with us at least a year before the planned date, especially if you wish to have your wedding in the summer. However, we have managed to organize big weddings with only three months as well.
The budget will help you make your dreams come true! Put it together right from the beginning and by filling in the blanks continuously keep everything on track. This way you reduce the stress and unnecessary surprises towards the end. We share with all the betrothed couples Pulmakorralda’s wedding budget sheet, so your planning could be just a bit more simple!
