'Our wedding only cost £4k - including £90 eBay dress and Aldi booze'

A savvy couple saved £16.2k on their wedding by bagging second hand outfits and buying Buck's Fizz from Aldi. The couple set themselves a strict budget of £4,000 - and managed to stick to it.

Amy Louise Barnes, 34, had been engaged to her partner, Rhys Pryor, 32, for 13 years before the pair finally decided to tie the knot. Up until that point the couple had decided to put their money towards a house deposit and raising their three children - Lola, 10, Mila, seven and Charlie, four.

When the pair decided to finally tie the knot, they hired their local church for £531, the village hall for £250 and spent £550 on fish and chips for the evening meal. Amy also picked up her son and daughter's outfits for as little as £12 on Vinted.

Amy decorated the village hall herself - finding decorations such as glow sticks and fake flowers from charity shops and bargain sites such as Shein. The couple loved their special day and estimate they saved £16,202 on the average £20k wedding in the UK.

Amy, a teaching assistant, from Ashford, Kent, said: "For me spending huge money on nine hours is not worth it. I'd rather put it towards buying as bigger house.

Inside Amy Louise Barnes and Rhys Pryor's money saving wedding.

"My dress was £90 from eBay. It was worth £1,150 - it still had the price tag on it. It had come from a bridal shop and been on display. It's beautiful. I wouldn't want to have spent anymore on the dress - it's completely black now.

"It got caught on brambles but I wasn't concerned. The decorations are Vinted, Shein and charity shops. It was completely magical.

"You don't know how it is going to turn out when you're planning a budget wedding. Everyone was very complimentary. It was the best day."

Breakdown of costs:

• Church - £531
• Village hall hire - £250
• Fish and chips - £550
• DJ - £150
• Wedding dress - £90
• Suits - £267
• Bridesmaids dresses - £125
• Shoes - £98
• Decorations - £473
• Cake - £125
• Rings - £70
• Flowers - £50
• Invitations - £6.98 (Designed on Canva and printed using Free Prints)
• Drink - £200
• Extra food - £130
• Miscellaneous (personalised items and gifts) - £197.60
• Hair - £45
• Make-up - £40
• Dress alterations - £399
• Total - £3,797.58

Rhys, a plumber, and Amy met in a club in June 2010 and hit it off straight away. Rhys got down on one knee to pop the question a year later.

But rather than planning their wedding the couple decided together to buy a house and start a family together. Amy added: "We bought a house. We never had the money to do it [have a wedding]. We didn't want to start our life in debt."

After 13 years engaged the pair decided it was about time they wed and set about planning a budget wedding. Amy said: "I didn't want to spend more than £3.5k. I enjoyed the challenge of finding things on a budget."

Amy managed to find her perfect dress on eBay for just £90 and her shoes for £12 from Vinted. She also spent £50 on supermarket flowers to make her and her bridesmaids flower bouquets.

Amy Louise Barnes and Rhys Pryor at their wedding.

She said: "It's a princess dress with pretty lace flowers and trails down. The shoes are brand new, never been worn and they match the dress."

Rhys found his three-piece suit in the Next sale for less than £100 and Amy found the matching trousers for Charlie on Vinted for just £12. Amy said: "It costs £200 to hire and he's very clumsy. The kids are going to want to end up changing anyway."

The couple wed in Orleston church on June, 8 2024, on their 14th anniversary, before moving to their village hall for the reception. Amy decked out the venue herself - spending £473 on decorations and small touches such as a basket of flip flops and glow sticks.

She also made all the table decorations and the bouquets herself, and had her hair and make-up done for under £100. The photographer cost £399, while fish and chips for 55 guests cost £550 and their wedding cake cost £120.

The pair didn't have to pay a corkage fee, won a bar in a competition and bought other alcohol from Aldi. Amy said: "Everyone likes fish and chips. It was £3.50 per glass for Buck's fizz - I can buy a bottle for that. I had so much fun finding and planning everything. It was absolutely incredible."