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Making use of your friends' and family members' talents is the key to ensuring your big day comes in on budget!

Having just got engaged, chances are that you've been inundated with messages of congratulations, cards and people offering to help you plan the big day. With all the excitement of your engagement, whatever happens, don't forget the offers of help! These are much better and more valuable to you than a set of matching crockery on your wedding list - your friends' skills are the key to ensuring your big day comes in well under budget. So here's our handy guide to harnessing the power of helping hands…

Offers gratefully received

Once news of your wedding spreads, you're sure to find lots of people putting themselves forward to help; it might just be general assistance with the preparation or doing jobs on the day. Alternatively, they may be able to offer something more specific, such as a particular skill or use of an item, like their car.

Dismiss nothing - make a note of anything and everything that is suggested. You never know how your ideas will develop or what you'll end up wanting a few months down the line. Whatever help you can get now will potentially save you money and stretch your budget even further, giving you more to spend on your luxury items.

Don't ask, don't get

Once all the offers are on the table, it's time to start calling in the help. If you don't find it easy to ask faceto- face, try writing a letter instead. It might feel cheeky but if their offer was genuine and they can give you something you really need for your big day, don't hold back.

When you have confirmation that they are keen to help, ensure you keep your helpers up-to-date with your ideas and the dates you will need things. This is especially important if they're helping with items like the cake or flowers, which will need to be planned well in advance.

The gift of time

Sorting out people to make the cake, arrange your flowers and drive you to the ceremony in a sleek motor might be easy, but what about those who just want to help out now and again?

The traditional gift list is less popular than it used to be, since couples have generally set-up home before getting married. Therefore, if you don't need more bedlinen or toasters, why not set up a time bank instead? First, create a wedding website or gift list at a site such as What to Give. Here you can detail everything you'll need assistance with on the day, such as, 'Eight hours making 100 invitations', 'A morning spent baking cookies for the favours', or even 'A lift to the florist on the wedding morning to pick up bouquets'

If you send out your invitations two to three months before the big day, you can include details of the time bank idea and give the website details to encourage friends and family to sign up for anything they can help with. It's bound to be a popular alternative to buying a gift, and it's an easy way to get involved for people who would love to help but didn't know how to ask.

Saying thanks

Many couples like to present their helpers with thank you gifts on the day. If you've been overwhelmed with help, from big jobs to small, it may be easier to produce an order of the day detailing everyone who made your wedding such a memorable occasion.

You may also like to distribute any floral arrangements from the ceremony and reception to particular guests as a special thank you. This avoids flowers being wasted at the end of the day, but do make sure you leave a note at particular guests' places to remind them to take them away. You could also say thank you by throwing a post-honeymoon party or barbecue and invite everyone who helped to catch up and swap snaps from the big day.

We've featured hundreds of real weddings from budget-conscious brides in Wedding Ideas, so we know exactly where you can save cash with a bit of ingenuity and the kind assistance of talented friends.

But it's not just about saving money - having friends involved makes the whole day much more personalised and unique to you. But for now, see if you can match up any of your guests' expertise with our top ten ways to save money.