Couples are finding ways to cut wedding costs

But her bridal gown is actually an ivory-colored prom dress that she picked up for $160. The flowers will be purchased wholesale from the flower district in downtown Los Angeles the day before the wedding. And she's getting married to her fiance, Scott Smith, on a Sunday, when location fees are usually cheaper.

At a time when the average wedding costs about $30,000, Macrae, of Redondo Beach, plans to spend $8,000.

"Planning a big, expensive wedding was kind of an unnecessary expense," said Macrae, 26, a quality analyst for Sony Pictures. "We didn't want to be exorbitant, and definitely the economic crunch makes us feel that more strongly."

Planning a cut-rate wedding might seem out of step with the gauzy dream of the big day, but lately, more brides have been thinking thrifty as the economic slowdown has left them worried more about the higher cost of living than whether to serve chicken or filet mignon.

"There's no question that the recession has affected the wedding industry," said Jolene Rae Harrington, director of creative content at Here Comes The Guide, a wedding planning resource. "Brides still want to realize their wedding dream -- they just need to be more creative in how they achieve it."

That includes inviting fewer guests, getting married on off-peak days such as Fridays and Sundays, crafting handmade wedding favors and holding receptions at low-cost or no-cost venues such as parks and beaches.

Concerned about rising fuel and food costs, bride-to-be Megan Turner already was driving and dining out less and reducing vacation travel. Then, in April, she was laid off from her job at an architectural firm because of the cooling housing market, and Turner said she realized more than ever that a wedding shouldn't mean "starting your life off with debt."

"You want to give your family and friends a nice evening, but also, there's got to be some lines drawn," said Turner, 30, an architectural project planner from Orange. "It's really important for us to start saving because we don't know what the future is going to bring."

So Turner held a garage sale with proceeds going toward her wedding. Instead of buying wedding favors, Turner's sister, a student at a culinary school, will bake sugar cookies for guests to take home. And when Turner learned she'd have to fork over $4.25 per guest for a cake-cutting fee, she scrapped plans for a wedding cake and ordered cupcakes.