When it comes to planning your nuptials, there is no shortage of wedding expenses. This is true for attendees and participants, but especially true for the couple who are tasked with   making the bulk, if not all. These decisions are often fraught with an uncomfortable amount of dollar signs. The one question almost every couple has when going through the planning process is “Where should I spend my money?” and “Is this really worth the price?”

Videographer

“We kept going back and forth about whether we could afford one in our budget, but I   took the advice of other brides   and went for it. So glad we did. They captured the liveliness of the day that photos just can’t (even though our photographer was 1,000 percent amazing). Plus, we crack open a bottle of champagne on our anniversary, use our toasting flutes, and watch our wedding vid so it truly doesn’t go to waste.” —Samantha L.

Venue

“We wanted the perfect fairytale, which sounded semi-impossible, but the first time we saw our wedding venue,   we knew it was it. All the details—big and small—just felt right. From where our ceremony took place to our reception hall, it fit our theme in every capacity and made each and every wedding decision we made after selecting the venue that much easier.” —Sandra H.

Band

“My husband and I met at a bar and the DJ was playing all of our favorite songs. We sang along and danced all night. We’re so happy we splurged on entertainment because we honestly don’t remember much other than our guests and the music.” —Audrey O.

Hair and makeup

“As anyone who’s been a bridesmaid before knows, it’s an expensive and exhausting process. You’re pretty much ‘on call’ the entire year prior to the big day to help the bride with planning and panic attacks, attend events like the shower and bachelorette party and   purchase all the necessary bridesmaid gear   like the dress, shoes and anything else the bride requests. That’s why I was more than willing to gift hair and makeup treatments to my girls. They all looked beautiful and felt confident and it allowed us to spend more time together being pampered.”—Lytania Mackey Knowles

Wedding bands

“We were super careful where we spent our money and did really well! I would say we splurged probably the most on our   wedding bands   (even though we still got 20 percent off!) and don’t regret it at all. They will forever be a symbol of our covenant relationship, something that will last a lifetime rather than a day.”—Karissa J.