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Person Absolutely Baffled After Being Charged $115 Weeks After Attending Brother’s Wedding
Going to a close family member’s wedding should be a time for excitement and positive emotions. After all, planning a wedding is stressful, but attending the wedding of a loved one? Absolutely wonderful under most circumstances.
A netizen was shocked to receive a text from their brother asking for $115 to attend his small, intimate wedding. To add insult to injury, he had apparently just assumed his sibling knew about this and didn’t even mention it on the invite. We reached out to the person who shared the story via private message and will update the article when they get back to us.
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Some weddings do require a little extra from the guests
Image credits: Nguyễn Xuân Trung (not the actual image)
But one netizen was annoyed that their brother was suddenly charging to attend his wedding
Image credits: prostock-studio (not the actual image)
Image credits: Cloudy_skies1993
There are some reasons to ask guests to pay an entrance fee
There is no getting around the fact that weddings can end up being pricey even if you aren’t going all out. For example, the Knot surveyed around 10,000 Americans and found that the average US wedding cost $35,000 in 2023. Importantly, the vast majority of these weddings did not include destinations outside of the hometown, which are commonly believed to be one of the main things driving up the cost.
Naturally, big city weddings are simply going to cost more. For example, in New York City people paid, on average, $63,000 for their wedding. There is obviously going to be a pretty sizable difference between the most expensive weddings, which might end up going into the millions, to the happy couple simply walking into a courthouse and then sharing a slice of cake later.
No judgment as to what the happy couple wants, everyone is entitled to have the wedding that suits them best. However, as this story demonstrates, sometimes these demands begin to grow to such an extent that suddenly guests are being asked to fund ideas the bride and groom can’t even afford.
As the person who posted the story themselves added, the venue was likely more than he could afford and they didn’t even have room for any activities. Setting aside the ethics of asking people to pay for your wedding, the one upside is that you get to actually enjoy better food, drinks and a nicer venue.
Image credits: Getty Images (not the actual image)
It’s hard to say why the brother “forgot” about the money
Even worse, the bride and groom actually got a rather generous gift, making his demand for more money just seem insensitive. Some might even use the word trashy, but without further details it’s truly hard to say. As the person shared in an update (which can be found below,) most other guests were aware about the “cost” to enter. They do, however, think this “mistake” was intentional.
That being said, it’s hard to gauge a motive. If the brother didn’t want the netizen to come, he could have simply not invited them. If you are charging your guests, it’s in your best interest to actually have people come, as it’s the one way you’re offsetting many of the costs. That being said, not including it on the invite is a very questionable choice.
Even if the bride and groom might feel it’s a bit tacky, this is still the sort of information you do provide ahead of time. It’s easy to construct malice out of incompetence, but the truth is, the brother may simply have been over his head. Many people are already poor communicators, the stress and time commitment of wedding planning and the reality of actually getting married is quite distracting. Whatever the case, there is no reason the sibling’s sizable gift can’t be use to “cover” the cost.
Image credits: Kenny Eliason (not the actual image)
The person shared a short update later
They also answered some reader questions
Most people were surprised at this sort of behavior
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What do you think ?
Traveling Lady Railfan 1 month ago
THIS is the correct reply. Right here. ;)
Load More Replies...
Beth Wheeler 1 month ago
You do not change people to attend a wedding they are your GUEST. If somebody was charging I wouldn't go and tell them it is in poor taste to do so and if I hadn't gone or been invited to the bridal shower I might not give a gift depending on who it is.
StumblingThroughLife 4 weeks ago (edited)
Can I ask what a Bridal Shower is? Is it the same as a Hen Do (Bachelorette Party)? We have a night out (Hen Do, Stag Do for the men), and then the wedding. I've heard of Baby Showers. Someone getting married is scary expensive if they have all these pre-Wedding get-togethers; have heard of Bride-to-be & Bridesmaids 'holidays', Rehearsal Dinners (that some have), and then paying to attend a wedding - on top of wedding gifts & probably paying for the Dinner (which I don't mind too much, tbh). It's insane! It used to be a Hen Do and a wedding where you brought a gift - and Dinner for relatives/Bridesmaids/Best Man, and a reception/party. "Money, Money, Money, in a rich man's world...." 😳
Load More Replies... Broadredpanda 1 month ago
I know this happens here (UK) that people are asking for much more than normal but, nowhere near as bad as in America. Like those who were bereft because they only received $3000 instead of ten, but spent $60 grand on their wedding. Moaning that someone gave them $10. Who has weddings they can't afford and expect it'll be ok because we'll get loads of money as a gift? Or go to an upscale restaurant where guests can't afford an alcoholic beverage because even the coffee was $30? And expect people to people to pay for that pleasure. Honestly bridezillas+ are just entitled people. The same people that will have a baby shower with a gift itinerary where all of those gifts are $500+. It's like people decide to get married or have a baby and use their family and friends to pay for the wedding or kit out a whole nursery!!! NO! That's your decision and we're NOT paying for your f*****g decisions. UK is bad enough but American people, STOP! Ripping peoples eyes out for your decisions! Get real!
María Hermida 3 weeks ago
I think these people are entitled because their family and friends are letting them get away with it. I wouldn't pay to attend a wedding, and I wouldn't spend on a present more than I can afford, whatever the gift itinerary demands.
Load More Replies... Traveling Lady Railfan 1 month ago
THIS is the correct reply. Right here. ;)
Load More Replies... Beth Wheeler 1 month ago
You do not change people to attend a wedding they are your GUEST. If somebody was charging I wouldn't go and tell them it is in poor taste to do so and if I hadn't gone or been invited to the bridal shower I might not give a gift depending on who it is.
StumblingThroughLife 4 weeks ago (edited)
Can I ask what a Bridal Shower is? Is it the same as a Hen Do (Bachelorette Party)? We have a night out (Hen Do, Stag Do for the men), and then the wedding. I've heard of Baby Showers. Someone getting married is scary expensive if they have all these pre-Wedding get-togethers; have heard of Bride-to-be & Bridesmaids 'holidays', Rehearsal Dinners (that some have), and then paying to attend a wedding - on top of wedding gifts & probably paying for the Dinner (which I don't mind too much, tbh). It's insane! It used to be a Hen Do and a wedding where you brought a gift - and Dinner for relatives/Bridesmaids/Best Man, and a reception/party. "Money, Money, Money, in a rich man's world...." 😳
Load More Replies... Broadredpanda 1 month ago
I know this happens here (UK) that people are asking for much more than normal but, nowhere near as bad as in America. Like those who were bereft because they only received $3000 instead of ten, but spent $60 grand on their wedding. Moaning that someone gave them $10. Who has weddings they can't afford and expect it'll be ok because we'll get loads of money as a gift? Or go to an upscale restaurant where guests can't afford an alcoholic beverage because even the coffee was $30? And expect people to people to pay for that pleasure. Honestly bridezillas+ are just entitled people. The same people that will have a baby shower with a gift itinerary where all of those gifts are $500+. It's like people decide to get married or have a baby and use their family and friends to pay for the wedding or kit out a whole nursery!!! NO! That's your decision and we're NOT paying for your f*****g decisions. UK is bad enough but American people, STOP! Ripping peoples eyes out for your decisions! Get real!
María Hermida 3 weeks ago
I think these people are entitled because their family and friends are letting them get away with it. I wouldn't pay to attend a wedding, and I wouldn't spend on a present more than I can afford, whatever the gift itinerary demands.
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