When people think of weddings, they picture big celebrations, extravagant parties, and spending tens of thousands of dollars on one event. The global wedding industry was valued at an incredible 160.5 billion dollars in 2020.
A Los Angeles couple turned their back on all that and spent only $500 on their wedding.
Keep in mind that this happened in 2022, not in the 1970s. According to the Knot, the national average cost of a wedding was $28,000 or 56 times more than what this unique couple spent on their special day.
Kiara and Joel Brokenbough decided that they didn’t want to get into debt before getting married.
“Our goal was just to be as minimal as possible. And to spend the least amount of money possible,” Kiara shared with “Good Morning America.” The couple did just that.
Kiara found her wedding dress on fashion retailer Shein’s website. The cost? An amazing $47.
She shared her experience finding her wedding dress on TikTok, where her videos have gone viral and have garnered thousands of likes and comments.
“I didn’t want to spend a lot of money on a dress, because I had the mindset, ‘I’m gonna wear this one time for a few hours’,” Kiara also said.
The couple also spent as little money as possible on their wedding venue, food, and drinks.
Family members gifted the couple with flowers and a runner. They also found the perfect free wedding venue – a turnoff of the Angeles Crest Highway, about an hour northeast of Los Angeles.
Their beautiful wedding venue offered a scenic mountain view and did not require any permits, reservations, or fees to use.
Kiara said that if other couples want to follow the same path she and Joel did, one of the most important things they should do is find a free and already pretty venue. This type of venue removes the need to spend money on decorating the place.
Family and friends fully supported the couple’s decision to have a low-cost yet meaningful wedding.
Guests paid for their own food and drinks at the reception.
They also asked a photographer they knew to take the wedding photos using Kiara’s camera. Joel then edited the photos. This also helped them save thousands of dollars in wedding costs.
“I am proudest of Joel and I’s decision to be brave and take a leap of faith and get married without having all that we wanted and desired,” Kiara told My Modern Met.
Joel and Kiara had a beautiful wedding, surrounded by their loved ones, against a scenic backdrop of mountains for less than the cost of what many brides spend on the wedding dress alone.
“You have a wedding, with witnesses there to witness you, vowing to your spouse, vowing to God that you guys are going to stay together for life. And then you celebrate with food, drinks, and dance. And that’s exactly what we did,” Kiara said.
This beautiful couple reminds us that weddings should focus on couple and the future they plan on having together. Everything else is just extra, and in this case, unnecessary.
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@kiarabrk Replying to @lienahslessons saved a lot of money this way! #500dollarwedding #kiarabrokenbrough #cheapwedding #weddingphotosession ♬ Future x Biggie – Catalina: Influencer & Creator
