For Nova and Reemo Styles, getting hitched was a numbers game.
With dreams of hosting a luxe 12-hour fête for 350 invitees, the couple found wedding venues and vendors across NYC asking for no less than $150,000.
But rather than becoming frustrated by the figures, the pennywise pair figured out how to keep costs low.
“We sold tickets to our wedding,” Nova, 30, a lifestyle influencer from The Bronx, told The Post.
Slapping a price tag of $333 per person on invitations to their June 2023 nuptials chopped the Styles’ guest list down to 60 paying partygoers.
As the marriage between the post-pandemic wedding boom and the inflation crisis continues to wreak havoc on big-day budgets, American couples like the Styles are coming up with clever schemes aimed at having beautiful — yet budget-friendly — “I do’s.”
The invite fee afforded attendees a seat at the duo’s St. Patrick’s Cathedral union and a spot on their post-wedding party bus — a decked-out double-decker that escorted attendees to NYC landmarks, including The Edge at Hudson Yards, for photos. It also bought guests a luxe lobster and steak dinner at the couple’s One World Trade Center reception.
And it saved the newlyweds a whopping $70,000 — funds they’ve earmarked for starting a family and possibly even launching a foundation for couples undergoing IVF treatments down the road.
The Styles’ approach underscores that saving dough is priority No. 1 for the cost-conscious brides and grooms of today.
To keep expenses under the national average of $26,665 — with venue rentals and food ranking as the most pricey must-haves — sweeties have tied the knot in unconventional settings, like NYC’s L train, and entrusted their post-nuptial dinners to big-box stores such as Costco, rather than traditional caterers.
But wallet-conscious bride Courtney Raine Quist may have broken the mold with her sunrise ceremony.
“My husband and I had a Monday morning brunch wedding,” the 27-year-old content creator told The Post of her $10,000 soirée in May 2023.
During the daytime bash, which she and hubby Alex hosted at 10 a.m., Nashville native Quist served mimosas and Pizza Hut slices before inviting guests to boogie on the dance floor into the wee hours of the afternoon.
Artificial flowers from Hobby Lobby — discounted bulbs that the bride resold for a profit after the wedding — adorned the reception room.
And the Quists caught a massive break on costs for the DJ, photographer and bartenders — all of whom charged next to nothing for the off-peak party.
“We were paying for the wedding ourselves,” explained the bride, who’s now expecting their first child. “We couldn’t justify dropping thousands of dollars on one day when that money could be used for a down payment on a house.”
Jai Toppin, 28, and her groom felt the same while planning their brunch ball this spring.
“Financially, it made a lot more sense,” said Toppin, from Atlanta, of her early morning matrimony on April 13.
Following the 10 a.m. service, the Toppins treated their 180 guests to chicken and waffles, shrimp and grits, fresh fruit, home-style biscuits and other midday menu staples.
The festive feast, along with the florals, the photographers and her dress — which she rented — cost the couple a grand total of $20,000.
“The venues we’d toured were asking between $40,000 to $80,000 for a traditional evening wedding,” said Toppin, adding that she and Wayne are planning a lavish European honeymoon next April with their monies saved.
“We didn’t want to put on an extravagant show for our wedding,” explained the brunch fanatic. “We wanted to do something that symbolized our love.”
And when it comes to weekday weddings, Manhattan bride-to-be Caroline Spain is going above and beyond the city limits to keep her dream fête affordable.
“We’re doing a destination wedding in Ireland on a Thursday this October,” said the East Villager, 27, of her and fiancé Stephen’s international nuptials. Spain, a copywriter, met Stephen Rompante, an Irish native now living in NYC, while studying abroad in France back in 2018.
Rather than taking the plunge here in the Big Apple, where venues demand $100,000 to house a Saturday shindig, the sweethearts opted for a $30,000 midweek jamboree that honored their worldwide romance.
“Spending hundreds of thousands on a wedding with all the bells and whistles would feel like we’re doing it for other people,” said Spain, who’ll become a missus at a castle near Dublin.
“Saving the money,” she added, “and having something a little more low-key is reflective of our relationship.”
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