The Final Cost

I did my absolute best through this whole process to keep a meticulous budget and jot down every single thing in it. Not just for myself, but I wanted to be able to show other brides exactly what I got for what I spent. For the most part, I was successful.

That being said, there are a lot of things that I didn’t have to pay for that most people would. You already know I traded photography services for my dress. I started graphic design when I was fifteen years old. I have years and years of experience, so designing my own wedding invitations was a snap. This also gave me a lot more options and flexibility in doing things myself, with the Cricut. There’s not much I’m not capable of DIYing. I also went to school for video production, so while I couldn’t run the camera myself, my brother has been on enough shoots with me that he knew exactly what to do, and I was able to edit our wedding video. I had friends volunteer to take our engagement photos, and I asked friends on the ship to take our wedding photos with our phones. Then I edited them. Scott agreed to help with the first dance choreography. Jay’s mom embroidered our welcome bags and made the lanyards. My mom handled all the phone calls so I wouldn’t have to. Lacey did my hair and assisted with make-up on the ship. Zym was the #FoundMyGuyCruiseActivitiesDirector. The point is, I had a LOT of help.

That’s not to say that if you’re planning your wedding and you don’t know how to DIY this stuff, that you can’t figure it out or have friends that can help you. I didn’t know how to make glitter tumblers when this started, and I taught myself from online tutorials. This is just me being transparent about the things that didn’t cost what they should have, because I have some super talented friends and family that were able to lend their services.

For a point of reference, if someone had hired me to design the invitations that I did for us, it would have cost them somewhere between $100-$150 for the design work, on top of the cost of printing them.

There are some other items not included in this price breakdown. I didn’t include the Cricut, the printer or the laminator I bought to make the magnets, because I will use them for things years down the road. I did include the laminating pouches and the cardstock, because they were purchased for this. I also left out the dining from the Yacht Club and Boardwalk restaurants, because they vary so much time to time, and based on what you order. I didn’t include the extra Duffy friends I got from Aulani, because I could have used ones I already had, but I wanted to make it easy on Polly.

Also, to be fully transparent, I used every trick in the book to save money wherever I could. I’ve talked about opening the Chase Freedom Card to pay for the park photos, but I actually have a total of four credit cards with cashback programs. I basically use them strategically based on what gets me the best rewards and I put all the rewards towards wedding purchases. In addition, we wound up with $625 worth of onboard credit on the ship thanks to how we booked the cruise. I cashed out Ebates/Rakuten points into a Sephora gift card to help pay for the products to get the free facial. I also will add everyone covered their own admission to Magic Kingdom for the Welcome Party, so there are no ticket prices included here.

I had a running number through the bottom of the articles, but I also realized I missed some things along the way.

Alright, that’s enough of me talking in circles. Onto the numbers!

Cruise Fare and Onboard Wedding Package: $4,944.06
Invitations and Postage: $89
Disney Fine Art Photography: $2875.50
Fairytale Hair and Makeup Deposit: $100
Hair and Makeup Trial: $180
Hoop-Dee-Doo for us and our parents: $444
Park n’ Cruise for 6 Vehicles: $256.94
Wedding Party Outfits: $125.43
Wedding Dress Materials: $300
Wedding Dress Garment Bag: $15.99
Groom’s Suit: $527.18
Groom’s Dress Clothes and Shoes for the Cruise: $79.14
Groom’s Accessories: $73.04
Suit Garment Bag: $13.99
Lanyard Supplies: $64.89
Robby Cook Art: $100
Duffy Tsum Tsums and Buckets: $28.50
Duffy Bottles: $20.29
25 Canvas Bags: $47.49
Stainless Steel Tumblers, Glitter, and Cardstock: $123.89
Sunscreen and Bandaids: $178.96
Sorcerers Cards, Buttons, and Custom Tie: $107.08
Magnets: $5.99
Chapstick: $17.23
DIY Supplies: $14.26
Sunglasses, Kleenex, Sleep Masks: $57.97
Card Protectors and Sharpies: $15.51
Cricut Vinyl: $74.39
Boardwalk Guest Book: $114.28
Cardstock for Place Cards: $30.88
Life Preserver: $4.60
Tell-a-cast Printing: $14.06
Paper Cutter: $12.94
Mickey Character Appearance: $550
Extra Guest Fee: $100
Prepaid Gratuities for Our Room: $81
Bridal Jewelry: $47.90
Sephora Product Purchase and Free Facial: $77.75
Amazon Supplies: $37.69
Curling Iron: $39.99
Chelsea Wedding Band: $437.36
Jay Wedding Band: $175
Thank You Cards: $10.99
Panera Catering Order: $39.82
Accordion Folder: $3.97
Marriage License: $89.50
White Pirate Outfit: $127.55
Spending on Ship: $59.29
Welcome Bag Delivery: $18 ($2 per room)
Footgolf: $120
Lee Nails and Spa: $172
Cake for Welcome Party: $104.58
Fairytale Hair and Makeup Early Morning Services Two Days: $700
Photographers Tips: $67
High Heel Pads: $7.99
Cord for Pirate Corsets: $10.99
Paper Crafting Glue: $6.36
New Shoes Chelsea: $49.86
Printable Cardstock: $10.14
Laminating Pouches: $35.99
Chelsea Skirt for Animator’s Palette: $15.00
Two Fort Wilderness Cabins plus Parking: $1,043.50
Two Nights at Disney’s Yacht Club Resort plus Parking: $1,331
Total: $16,619.50