Gone are the days when it is only the bride-to-be's family - usually her father - who shoulders all the expenses associated with a wedding. Before, it was only the bride's family who are mainly involved in spending for most of the details involved with a wedding, including the ceremony and the reception.

Fortunately for the bride and her closest family members, all of that has changed. In modern-day weddings, you can have a princess-like, fairy tale wedding without busting your budget because everyone can now chip in with the expenses.

This is actually a good thing for all parties concerned, because not all of the bride's parents are affluent enough to be able to handle all of the wedding related expenses.

Modern Weddings: A Quick Look at Who Pays for What

Again, today's wedding industry indicates that there are no set rules anymore when it comes to the expenses related to a wedding. Despite the dreamy side of planning a wedding, they typically involve cold, hard cash which is something that all parties concerned need to deal with.

To help you out in figure out who pays for what in a wedding, here's a quick look at some modern-day wedding expenses ideas:

- If both the bride's and groom's families are of equal financial footing, one great idea to settle the expenses is to split the bill in the middle. This way, both families can pay an equal share and you can all work together towards a 'ceiling amount' so you will not go overboard with the budget.

- It's perfectly acceptable for the more affluent family to take on a larger chunk of the financial load. As long as no one is going in debt over paying for the expenses involved in a wedding, you can have a blast assigning who pays for what.

- Another good idea is to let each family pay for their own guests at the wedding.

- Traditionally and in modern day weddings, bridesmaids and groomsmen pay for their own dresses and suits, respectively.

- For the bride and her family, they usually pay for the engagement party, the groom's wedding ring, wedding announcements, catering, wedding cake, wedding coordinators, the bridal gown and accessories, the dress and accessories of the mother of the bride, as well as the bombonieres and the gifts for the bridesmaids.

- For the groom and his family, they usually pay for the wedding ceremony, cars, the suite of the groom and the accessories, the marriage license, the bouquet for the bride and her bridesmaids, wedding night accommodations and the honeymoon.

- For the groom, he usually pays for the engagement ring and the wedding ring. The bride and groom can personally take on the expenses related to the honeymoon, the photography and video for the wedding and bridal party gifts.

All in all, the basic rule is this: a family member - or even the bride and groom themselves - would not need to fall in debt when planning a wedding.

Remember that weddings are just the start of your journey towards a life together, and it is never a good idea to start a marriage with a zero balance on your bank account.

As such, it pays to have realistic expectations when it comes to the type of wedding that you can have.

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