How I Pulled Off a $3,500 DIY Wedding in Colorado

My longtime soulmate and I promised one another endlessly at a 7,000-foot overlook in the Rockies in 2024. There have been no company or officiant, simply our photographer and the wind as unofficial witnesses.

In a half-hour photograph session, we exchanged rings and handwritten vows from a pocket pocket book, and tried to look pure for the digital camera — all whereas ensuring we did not tumble off the sting in excessive winds. We picked Colorado for its distinctive marriage legal guidelines, permitting {couples} to self-solemnize independently.

What we spent that day was a fraction of the norm. The average US wedding now tops $30,000, whereas even “budget-friendly” elopement packages usually run $5,000 to $15,000. By planning every detail ourselves, we pulled off all the expertise for about $3,500, with out sacrificing the surroundings we might at all times imagined as our marriage ceremony backdrop.

We wished freedom to manage our funds

When we looked into wedding packages, each choice appeared to observe a one-size-fits-all template: pre-selected venues, an assigned photographer, and a timeline with little room for spontaneity. Comfort was the promoting level, however to me it felt like paying a premium for a prepackaged cookie-cutter concept of romance.

We wished the liberty to decide on a trailhead as a substitute of a chapel, a photographer whose fashion we cherished, and the power to speculate time in ensuring the day felt like ours.

The DIY route gave us personalization and management over our funds, but it surely additionally meant additional analysis, spreadsheets, late-night planning periods with my fiancé, and extra use of my iPhone calculator than ever earlier than. However from the second we laced up our boots, it was rewarding realizing each alternative had been intentional. That possession made the day really feel extra significant and private than signing a examine for a bundle deal.

This is how we spent our cash

We ended up spending $3,550 on a nine-day highway journey and elopement. This is a breakdown of how we spent the cash and the issues we made throughout our planning.

Photographer: $400

A 30-minute weekday session lined the self-guided ceremony and posed pictures, together with a high-resolution photograph gallery.

Cabin Reservation: $1,050 (4 nights)

I am going to admit, we may have saved $500 on a extra modest Airbnb within the space. We did not want a family-size cabin with leisure area and three bedrooms, but it surely was good to stay giant with a full home all to ourselves.

Street Journey Lodges: $636 (4 nights)

We splurged right here for consolation, preferring higher-quality accommodations with stellar opinions. Finest Western was our most cost-effective keep at $86. The others (Hampton/Consolation) ranged from $95 to $150 per night time. Reserving last-minute with Lodges in America helped us discover offers.

I deliberate the route in Google Maps so our nightly arrival instances matched up with cities or suburban areas the place accommodations had been available and reasonably priced.

Venue/permits: $0, free overlook

Marriage License and Certificates: $30

Colorado’s Gilpin County made it easy: We arrange an appointment on-line, utilized in particular person, and returned after the marriage to finalize the wedding license.

Officiant: $0, Colorado permits self-solemnizing

Hair and Make-up: $350

Apparel: $139

My gown was $134 through Lulus; I saved $22 by utilizing a promo code I discovered on-line. For equipment, I solely had a $5 synthetic bouquet. Every little thing else we already owned or had been handed down from household.

Journey/fuel: $625

Throughout our 3,190-mile round-trip from North Carolina and again, we burned by means of about 168 gallons of fuel in a Ford F-150. At $3.72 per gallon (the US national average in May 2024) and with the truck’s gasoline financial system averaging 19 miles per gallon, our journey prices had been roughly $625.

Flights for 2 plus a rental automobile in Colorado would have simply topped $1,500, together with baggage charges and insurance coverage, so the highway journey saved us a number of hundred {dollars} and doubled as a built-in journey.

Meals: ~$450

Between drive-thrus, grocery runs, and some sit-down eating places, meals got here out to about $450. Breakfast-included accommodations helped stretch the funds on the highway, since we may forgo lunch for an early dinner.

Actions: $70

We skipped the guided excursions, horseback driving, and spa days. Retaining actions gentle helped us keep on funds and on theme with our DIY expertise. The one splurge was a historic practice journey, $70 for 2 tickets. We spent our days in Colorado window-shopping, people-watching, mountaineering free trails, and exploring random cities and websites. Driving aimlessly allowed us to come across backroads lined with elk, pit stops in tiny cities, and high-elevation trailheads with killer views and no climb.

Ideas if you happen to’re contemplating a DIY elopement

DIY elopements work greatest for {couples} who worth flexibility and intimacy, and who do not thoughts the additional planning. Packages are simpler and fewer anxious, however they will lock you into another person’s model of your day. My recommendation for anybody making an attempt to do what we did is fairly easy.

Early within the planning course of, set “e-book by X” deadlines to remain proactive. Having a roadmap helps. Decide one class to splurge on, and make that your motivation for locating methods to avoid wasting throughout all different classes. We prioritized our spending on lodging, whereas opting without cost or low-cost actions. Go away area for flexibility, as climate and timing will not at all times line up. Analysis marriage legal guidelines early. Each state is completely different, and Colorado even permits {couples} to self-solemnize with no witnesses.