Wednesday, June 9, 2010

Ain't got no money...

Does anyone watch that show Platinum Weddings? Its on the WEtv channel. I think that stands for wedding. Idk. But anyways, this show portrays the ridiculous amount of money that some brides and grooms spend on their elaborate and very chic weddings. These people are obviously rolling in dough, that's why they can afford to spend LARGE amounts of money on every single detail of their weddings, right down to the amount of money spent on their dogs' jewelry. Yup. Their dogs.

One couple (the groom was a professional football player. And the bride is a marketing specialist) spent $2 million dollars alone on the bride's wedding jewelry. It was all diamonds. A bracelet. Earrings. And a necklace. The diamond bracelet by itself was 100 carats. CRAZY!




She doesn't have the jewelry on for the actual wedding. But she had it on for the reception.

But they are a very cute couple, arent they?

I know these people have a lot of money because of their jobs and careers. But I wonder if they have any debt after it all. Or if they have any regrets of how they spent all that money after it's all done.

Come on, everyone has debt. Credit card bills. Loans from undergrad. Loans from Grad school. Loans from medical school. Loans for weddings. Mortgages. Loans for loans.

Show me a person who doesnt have debt.

Alhamdullilah for my job and the money that I earn from it, but I know I'm scrambling. I have a a couple of loans from undergrad that I'm not paying as fast as I should. (But that's my own problem) And I know that if I go to grad school, I'll be taking on some more loans. And when I decide to buy a house, I wont be able to buy it without getting a mortgage. And I feel like everyone I know has some sort of financial issue. And it seems like it's the norm.





(CC and I and what we spend/save our money for)


But in all seriousness, I just wonder about all these people who
do have all this money, and where it goes, and how they spend it. And it kinda frustrates the heck out of me when I see people (like the people on Platinum Weddings show and any celebrity) spending it so carelessly. I know, during your wedding day, you may want to have it a particular way and it's a very special occasion. But is it really worth spending $2 million dollars on? Can't you spend that money on building your marriage instead or your future kids' tuition or a house? Or charity and giving it to the needy? Spend that money on a more worthy cause?

Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) says that, "There is no envy except in two: a person whom God has given wealth and he spends it in the right way, and a person whom Allah has given wisdom (i.e. religious knowledge) and he gives his decisions accordingly and teaches it to the others."

Question for you, ask yourself: what is the right way?

And are we spending it in the right way?

14 comments:

MarjnHomer said...

The less you spend on the actual wedding, the more blessed is the marriage. what is that you guys are holding?

Loredana said...

I couldn't agree with you more! I understand it's your money and you earned it and you can do with it as you please, but REALLY you need to spend $2 million on jewelry that you will only wear a day?! I watch that show every once in a while just so I can sit there and shake my head and wonder "where'd they get this carefree way of spending this money?" My husband and I made it a point that we weren't going to spend so much on our wedding and we still had a very classy and beautiful wedding on a boat!

I always think, put that money towards your futures, a house, your kids, your loans, ANYTHING but something as extravagant as a wedding. I know you want your wedding to be as beautiful as ever, but HONESTLY people don't notice the difference at all. When people leave your wedding you're lucky they remember what the bride or THEY were wearing. As long as they see the love between two people, that's what matters. At least that's what I think.

Sana said...

Even though my brothers wedding was supposed to be simple it ended up costing a lot. i didn't realize it was so hard to stay on budget. On top of that, Indians like to invite HUNDREDS of people. Sigh.

Loredana is 100% right, though. I never remember anything about the weddings I go to. Maybe the food and dessert. lol

Irie said...

I know that insha'Allah, when I marry I'll want a nice wedding, but that was WAYYYY too much money. I couldn't possibly spend so much for a one day event.

Muslim Girl said...

After seeing people spend thousands of dollars on their wedding only to end up in divorce months later (yes, MONTHS), I am definitely keeping my own wedding low-key iA. I have other reasons for keeping it low-key as well, but unnecessary/excessive spending is one of them, for sure.

Maureen@IslandRoar said...

What a great post. It's so true, people spend huge amounts on this one day. I don't know; I guess it's some people's dreams, but it seems like a strange way to start a life and family together.

Rationality said...

sometimes I gree in making classy wedding, it depends on the preson's social state and in this case the royal families are envolved on the top of the list.
But I disagree when people overloaded themselves by taking loans to make calssy wedding, simplisity is nice as well.

Anonymous said...

I know that show!! I used to be addictedddd and I think it was because I wanted to see how ridiculous people could get for their wedding and partly to see what the latest wedding trends were. Lol.  Oh there was this one Indian girl who got a professional to put the wedding sari on her... cost a couple hundred bucks just for that! You could just ask any aunty to put a sari on you for free!! Lol

I think what it is with these celebs/wealthy people is they feel they NEED to spend that much, due to social pressure/standard of living/expectations they're used to. Maybe they don't really wanna spend that much but have to cuz they're afraid of ppl talking about them. it obv shouldn't ever matter what ppl think but that's life!

So glad I'm not filthy rich :)

PI said...

i like the flower on the guys suit

supreem said...

hahahaha! I <3 the fund boxes!

I will be honest.. I am debt free, alhamdullilah. I don't have a credit card and I have no loans.. I pay semester to semester for school. :)
Honestly, I do believe I spend my money the "right" way. alhamdullilah.
Good post. I've never watched such shows. :x

AL said...

well i also think spending lavishly on ONE day is foolish, everyone should do what is in their means and keep it simple but stylish, there are ways to do that...i would rather save up for the first house or for a vacation together or for something else that lasts longer than just a few hours....people spend months and months planning down to every last detail and in the end the entire thing is over in a few hours.... i always think of that when i attend a wedding and honestly i don't think guests notice so many details (i don't and i'm usually a person drawn to decor and pretty things) --as long as its organized, has some nice uniform colors, and there is plenty of food that's delicious, i think that's what most people remember from a wedding....i guess its for yourself though too, isn't it? but how much of your own wedding do you really get to take in? im guessing not much...

Farnnay said...

Supreem: how do you manage to pay for grad school w/out loans? Any advice/tips you can give me???

Farnnay said...

Supreem: Also, kudos to you for having NO debt. mA

Julio Clatterbuck said...

Spending depends on a person's attitude and personality! Everyone's different in many ways... Not all of us would like to spend money for others first. Some people spend for themselves and buy things that they want before sharing their wealth with others. Good thing there are still people who do things for happiness.