Here's my thought on saving some money: set up a budget with what you feel comfortable paying. Then, when you go to look at flowers, cakes, photographers, etc., tell them, "Here's what our budget is, what can you do for us?". For example, we did that for our flowers, told them that we have a budget of $900 (that included corsages, bridesmaids, decorations, etc.), and they actually came in under budget. Another neat idea my wife had was to have individual cakes at each table, and that was the "centerpiece" for them. People loved that idea, and it was much cheaper to get those done than some big, elaborate cake. All in all, with some help from our parents, money from guests, etc., our bank account looks the same as it did before we started planning the wedding. Also, in my opinion, don't skimp on pictures. I've talked to some people who don't even want people to look at their wedding album because they hate it so much. Also, with a good photographer, he/she won't take 15 minutes to get group shots done. I hate posing for pictures, but she got us through all of the poses and group photos so quickly. All the groomsmen enjoyed that too; it was less time away from drinking after the ceremony was done.