Congratulations, you’re getting married! The clock is now ticking for you to plan while spending an ungodly amount of money on a one-day event that you and your beloved will remember for the rest of your lives. All family members will weigh in with their opinions, you will suddenly become obsessed with things like "pin lighting," and, as the day approaches, you’ll find yourself having little panic attacks when, at 3:00 am, you realize you forgot to specify you wanted cotton napkins, not satin. Before this wave of insanity hits you (and I fervently hope that it never does), I suggest you pick up a copy of Bridal Bargains: Secrets to Throwing a Fantastic Wedding on a Realistic Budget. The information out there for engaged couples is overwhelming, and so much of it is geared towards making you spend as much as possible. This book was written to give you choices and to let you know that you can have a beautiful wedding without having to take out a bank loan.

One criticism of the book is that the authors tend to hammer home just how much the industry is trying to dupe or scam you out of your money. It can be pretty pessimistic, but I took it as a grounding rod to the fluffy bridal magazines I’ve read. As the book points out, it is so difficult to comparison shop for something like a wedding. This will (hopefully) be the only wedding you’ll ever have, so you can’t really compare it to anything else, as you would a house or a car. You can do research on the best deal for your car, so why shouldn’t you research for the best deal for your wedding? A bargain does not mean a bad wedding!

Hopefully, you’ll read this book, save some money, and have a gorgeous event!

Jennifer Johnson – Glenwood Branch