Seen At 11: Wedding Experts Offer Creative Techniques To Avoid A Big Bill On Your Big Day

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- Getting married? Congratulations, but get ready to spend big -- average wedding costs in the Tri-State can run over $80,000.

As CBS2's Jessica Moore reported, there are creative ways to save, and no one will be the wiser at a beautiful budget wedding.

Newlyweds Caprice Benedetti and Eric Beuchel had champagne taste, but a beer budget when they planned their wedding.

"I started having heart palpitations. How are we going to do this?" Caprice said. "We wanted to have another hundred of our friends show up, and we couldn't really afford to feed them, and Eric goes, I'm ordering pizza."

Having fewer guests for the formal dinner saved them thousands.

They also saved by sending e-vites rather than traditional invitations. They also printed their own place cards for seating.

"I think the whole cost for that was $22," Eric said.

Benedetti saved on her designer gown by finding one at a sample sale.

"Everyone wants everything to look unique and original, have the latest and greatest thing, but very often those things come with a really big price tag," Elegant Affairs, President and Founder, Andrea Correale explained.

Correale is the founder of elegant affairs catering.

"Instead of breaking the bank and spending hundreds of dollars on a floral centerpiece work with your caterer and make your food your centerpiece," she said.

A wedding brunch can be less costly, saving on food and alcohol, and a cookie cake is a fun alternative to a wedding cake.

The wedding app 'Loverly' can also help with the planning for about a tenth of the cost of a wedding planner, and can help save on vendor costs too.

"We are curating the top vendors and the top products for you based on your budget, your aesthetic, and your wedding date," founder and chief executive officer Kellee Khalil said.

Brides magazine's Keija Minor said guests won't even notice if there aren't any favors. She also suggested taking a page from Kate Middleton's wedding and cutting the number of bridesmaids.

"Each bridesmaid represents about $200 or more in terms of out-of-pocket expenses for the bride," she said.

She advised focusing on the basics.

"Don't run out of food. Keep the music good, don't run out of alcohol," she said, "Everything else, you're fine. No one's gonna notice, no one's gonna think you're cheap."

Another tip from the experts -- cut back on cake costs, which can run up to $22 per guest -- use a smaller or faux cake instead and have a sheet cake ready to be cut up and served to guests, no one will know the difference.