Sometimes money gets so tight, it becomes easier to barter your services than shell out cash for an event, especially for a big event like a wedding. However, have you thought about using your talents to save the bride some money? If you have any of these skillsets, offering your time could be worth more than the check you would’ve written anyway.
Be the hairstylist:
Clearly, you want to make sure you know what you’re doing here, but if you are talented at styling your own hair or others, you can offer to do the bride’s hair for free. If you live nearby, set a date a week before to catch up and check out different styles. This way, the bride has a chance to try out a few of the looks she’s interested in and she’ll be able to sleep easy, knowing you can actually pull off those looks.
If she’s planning pretty simple hairstyles for all her bridesmaids and you feel confident you’ll have enough time, you can either throw in doing their hair, as well, or offer a discounted price for them. Since the average bridal hairstylist costs between $100 and $400 and the average bridesmaid hairstylist costs between $40 and $80, you’re gifting a valuable present. (All cost estimates come from The Knot.)
Be the disc jockey:
If the bride is going for a more DIY wedding, one of the first things to go is the DJ. If you can find your way around an iPod and have an extensive music collection, offer to DJ the event for her. From making sure the wedding march starts at the right time and the recessional plays perfectly to the couple’s first dance, someone needs to be pressing play at the key moments. Besides that, making a multiple-hour playlist isn’t always as fun as it seems.
Ask for some of the bride and grooms favorites and then fill in the rest of the time on your own (according to any stylistic requests they made). Don’t forget to have calmer tunes for while the food is being served and appropriate selections to turn it up if they plan on having a dance floor. Your gift will be worth over $1,000, which is the average cost of a wedding DJ.
Be the florist:
Assuming your green thumb is legit, you may be able to take care of the flowers for the wedding. If you have enough time in advance, you can plant exactly what the bride wants, but if your garden is already flourishing, invite her over and ask her if she’d want to use what you’ve got growing in her wedding. If you don’t already know how, you can learn how to arrange flowers (of course, practice before her wedding day). Even if she only wants to use a few options, like bridesmaids bouquets, you’ll still be saving her money. The average bridal florist costs around $2,100.
Be the baker:
This idea only applies to strong bakers, but if you are one, you could save the bride and groom a bundle, since the average wedding cake comes in at around $500. You’d also be able to customize the cake to exactly what they want. Cupcakes are also a big thing at weddings now, especially for less formal occasions. If you’re a competent cake decorator, you can create a lovely, delectable dessert for the wedding.
Be the officiant:
A growing trend among the non-religious is being married by a friend or family member. It’s very easy to get ordained online to be able to perform wedding ceremonies, and if you hesitate, perhaps thinking ordained is a religious term, there are a wide variety of “churches” that can ordain you, including the Universal Life Church, which has no real religious affiliation, along with the American Marriage Ministries.
Ordination can be done quickly online and is free; however, you should double check the laws section on any site you get ordained through, since some states will not accept certain “churches” ordination as binding (for example, Pennsylvania and Virginia will not accept ordination from the Universal Life Church). Additionally, you should double check with the county clerk where the marriage is taking place to make sure your ordination will not be an issue.
Once you are ordained, you can perform the ceremony for your loved ones, creating a personalized touch for their special day. You’ll save them around $250 for donating your services.
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Cheaper Alternatives to Traditional Wedding Gifts originally appeared on usnews.com
