Weddings are expensive. In fact, the average cost of a wedding is more than $30,000. But this doesn't mean that you have to panic if you don't have a massive wedding budget. There are several ways that you can cut costs and still have the wedding of your dreams.

Wedding Venues

One of the largest wedding expenses is booking a venue for your ceremony and reception. Fortunately, by choosing your wedding date and venue wisely, reserving space for your wedding won't break the bank. It shouldn't come as a huge surprise that Saturday is the most popular day of the week to get married, which means that it will cost more money to reserve a venue on a Saturday than it will during other days of the week. So, instead of having your wedding on a Saturday afternoon, consider having a Friday evening or Sunday afternoon wedding. The venue that you choose also affects the cost. Instead of booking separate venues for your wedding and reception, opt for a venue that has enough space to hold both the ceremony and the reception.

Wedding Flowers

Flowers are an important part of your wedding. You need them for your bouquet, the bouquets that your bridesmaids and maid of honor will carry, the men's boutonnieres, the end of the aisle, and the reception tables. That's a lot of flowers, so it's important to discuss your flower budget with a wedding florist such as Fasan Florist before you begin planning. A few things that you can do to save money on flowers include:

• Choose cosmos, chrysanthemums, dahlias, or daisies instead of more expensive flowers such as orchids, roses, tulips, and peonies.
• Plan to have only one or two types of flowers at your wedding instead of a large variety of blooms.
• Create non-flower centerpieces for your reception tables.
• Design flower arrangements that mix real flowers and silk flowers.
• Have a bouquet making party with your maid of honor and bridesmaids so that everyone can make their own bouquet.
• Have your bridesmaids and maid of honor carry something other than flowers. For example, if you're planning an evening wedding, your bridesmaids and maid of honor could walk down the aisle carrying a small lantern with a lit candle inside.

Catering

If you need to save money on catering costs, you should skip the sit-down dinner. Instead, opt for a buffet-style meal. This way, you don't need to pay for extra servers. You can also serve comfort foods, such as mac-n-cheese, barbecue chicken, and corn -- it's typically cheaper than serving steak, roast, or fish. Other ways to save money on food and drinks include:

• Have a signature drink for your wedding instead of a full bar.
• Skip the champagne toast.
• Have a cocktail reception with drinks and appetizers instead of a full meal.
• Order a small wedding cake -- one or two tiers -- instead of a massive cake. Use the small cake for the cake-cutting portion of the reception, but keep a large sheet cake in the kitchen to serve your guests.

Your wedding costs can add up quickly if you aren't careful. However, by cutting costs for each major expense slightly, you can easily plan a wedding that you'll love on a fairly limited budget.