I know that this varies on a case by case basis but I was curious: how much did you guys spend/plan on spending on decor for the mehndi/wedding? I’m at a COMPLETE loss for what’s an “average” number for desi weddings.
Re: Decor budget
believe me there is no average stages starts from 15-20 thousands and ends up to ∞
It depends on nature of event and number of other items.
A Mid range stag may costs around 30k-35k pkr
Re: Decor budget
believe me there is no average stages starts from 15-20 thousands and ends up to ∞ It depends on nature of event and number of other items.
A Mid range stag may costs around 30k-35k pkr
so 3,000 dollars? Sorry I'm in the US...anyone in the US have an idea?
Re: Decor budget
Its all about what you want. Do you want a lot of floral? Colorful drapes and candles? What is your guest count? What kind of venues are you using? Little details also add up.
I work for a large South Asian wedding planning company in Texas and have seen decor invoices for many weddings. We primarily work with a specific designer - they're called designers because they truly are design professionals that do unique decor and layouts for each wedding. We also work with companies that are moreso referred to as decorators, since their level of work is a little different. On the high end the designers usually run up to 10-15K per event on average, EASILY, especially if there is a lot of fresh floral involved. If you go with someone a little on the lower end, but those that still do a FANTASTIC job, you can expect about 4-7K per event.
Even though I am in the wedding planning business, I myself find my jaw drop when I see some of these invoices. One of my clients spent $150K in decor. One spent $70K. Then you see the ones who spend $10k or less and their events still look amazing. Its hard not to get jaded and think - what a rip off?!
I think a good value is anywhere between the 4K-7K per event. Just make sure you look at plenty of photos of their work to ensure their execution is nice, read reviews to ensure they are professionals, show up on time to allow enough time for set up, etc. So many decor companies run late etc and are setting up as guests are walking into the hall. This gives you NO time for your photographer to do shots of the room decor before everyone comes in and starts getting seated. Also, DON'T feel intimidated by outrageous invoices. Lead with your budget and be flexible enough to adjust your vision for that budget. For my wedding, I have an extremely limited budget and plan on eliminating fresh floral and opting for lots and lots of candles and drapes instead.
Good luck!
Re: Decor budget
^ great post!
Re: Decor budget
Thank you SO SO much. Yeah, there was one company i had my heart set on and they have a $5,000 minimum. That was going to be the upper end of my budget. I love florals but I’m trying to combine those with candles/draping (alternating centerpieces at tables) to cut down on cost. I’m realizing how different people’s budgets are too–but, call me crazy, I can’t recall a single centerpiece or stage (unless it was horrifically bad or INSANELY good) that I remember from any wedding I’ve been to ever. I just want somethng that photographs well and looks put together. I wish I had endless resources but it’s crazy how much money everything costs. I’m still recovering from photographer prices. 
Re: Decor budget
Haha I agree. Earlier this year I started researching prices for photo/video and was shell shocked with the prices. Then I contacted the wedding planning company and asked if they needed any part time help because I wanted to know the ins and outs of the business - I found it hard to believe that people were paying over 15K for wedding photo and video. Now that I have assisted on over 16 weddings this year I feel like I’ve learned ALOT. Yes, people are paying 30K for photo video. Yes people are paying tens of thousands on decor. But does that guarantee a successful, memorable, beautiful event? Not necessarily.
There have been weddings where the decor is memorable - but again those were the weddings with the 70k or 150K budgets. Were those the most fun weddings or the most memorable weddings? In my opinion outrageous and stunning decor does not go hand in hand with how memorable your event will be for your guests overall. What I’ve learned is to invest in decor that is executed flawlessly, no matter how “simple” it seems next to those large decor budget weddings. Time and time again I’ve seen amateur execution of decor and I feel bad for the bride as the family has spent thousands on the venue only to have it look eh with poor execution. I am still considering working with the higher end designer with my budget (I can only do 5-6K for both wedding and reception which are on the same day) even though I know I will get less for my money -but having the piece of mind that the execution will be on point. They are not the only vendors that can provide this value however. There are mid range decor vendors that are in that sweet spot - that give you the most for your money and have excellent execution. The trick is adjusting your vision from a designer level to that sweet spot.
I feel like investing in great decor increases the production value of your event. It gives you amazing visuals for your photographer and videographer to capture. Whats the point of splurging on photo/video when there isn’t something eye catching or out of the box to capture? Decor gives your event personality. I would rather find a photographer that is 1000-2000 cheaper but does great work, and invest that money into my decor budget.
Re: Decor budget
Haha I agree. Earlier this year I started researching prices for photo/video and was shell shocked with the prices. Then I contacted the wedding planning company and asked if they needed any part time help because I wanted to know the ins and outs of the business - I found it hard to believe that people were paying over 15K for wedding photo and video. Now that I have assisted on over 16 weddings this year I feel like I've learned ALOT. Yes, people are paying 30K for photo video. Yes people are paying tens of thousands on decor. But does that guarantee a successful, memorable, beautiful event? Not necessarily.
There have been weddings where the decor is memorable - but again those were the weddings with the 70k or 150K budgets. Were those the most fun weddings or the most memorable weddings? In my opinion outrageous and stunning decor does not go hand in hand with how memorable your event will be for your guests overall. What I've learned is to invest in decor that is executed flawlessly, no matter how "simple" it seems next to those large decor budget weddings. Time and time again I've seen amateur execution of decor and I feel bad for the bride as the family has spent thousands on the venue only to have it look eh with poor execution. I am still considering working with the higher end designer with my budget (I can only do 5-6K for both wedding and reception which are on the same day) even though I know I will get less for my money -but having the piece of mind that the execution will be on point. They are not the only vendors that can provide this value however. There are mid range decor vendors that are in that sweet spot - that give you the most for your money and have excellent execution. The trick is adjusting your vision from a designer level to that sweet spot.
I feel like investing in great decor increases the production value of your event. It gives you amazing visuals for your photographer and videographer to capture. Whats the point of splurging on photo/video when there isn't something eye catching or out of the box to capture? Decor gives your event personality. I would rather find a photographer that is 1000-2000 cheaper but does great work, and invest that money into my decor budget.
True. I just want to balance aesthetics with price. Some of these place are charging a minimum of 5,000 and I don't think I can afford to have that as a baseline price. I've also noticed that if you have a cheap photographer that doesn't understand lighting/framing, you have stages that look terrible/the ambiance isn't captured correctly. I guess it's a balance.