- Shannon Detrick has spent over $10,000 for friends’ weddings and bachelorette parties since 2022.
- She emphasizes the importance of cost transparency and financial awareness in wedding planning.
- Good planning and open conversations helped her avoid resentment and overspending.
This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Shannon Detrick, a 29-year-old based outside Sacramento, California who works in the wedding industry. The following has been edited for length and clarity.
Since 2022, I’ve been part of four weddings and bachelorette parties, spending $10,804 altogether.
It’s crazy to say that out loud — $10,000. That’s almost half the cost of my own wedding. And that doesn’t even include the four weddings for which we’ve been guests but not part of the wedding party.
But it’s been really fun and well worth it to go on these awesome trips with my friends and have moments that really connect us. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime thing I’m doing with my friends to honor them.