How long will it take to pay off your wedding?

Most wedding vows include something along the lines of, "for richer or for poorer," which is a useful provision considering just how costly tying the knot can be. According to Brides magazine's 2012 American Wedding Study, the average cost for a wedding cake is $486. Other average costs include:

• Wedding dress -- $1,355
• Flowers -- $1,334
• Wedding rings -- $1,594
• Photographer -- $2,186

We thought it would be interesting to see how long it would take to make enough money to cover these wedding costs. To find out, we looked at the average annual incomes of 25 jobs, as reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. These jobs cover a variety of industries and range in yearly pay. We then broke down the annual incomes based on eight-hour workdays to see how many hours would need to be logged in each job in order to pay for these wedding expenses.

Keep in mind that these calculations are based on the averages supplied by Brides magazine; every wedding is different, and costs vary greatly from one wedding to the next. Also, we understand that people pay for weddings in different ways. This is just one way to look at what it takes to pay off a wedding.

Here is the breakdown of how many hours it would take at each one of these 25 jobs to make enough money to pay for the average American wedding.

1. Architect, except naval: $79,300 average annual pay
Cake -- 12.25 hours
Dress -- 34.7 hours
Flowers -- 33.64 hours
Rings -- 40.2 hours
Photographer -- 55.13 hours
Total: 175.41 hours = 21.93 days

2. Automotive-service technician and mechanic: $38,560
Cake -- 25.21 hours
Dress -- 70.28 hours
Flowers -- 69.19 hours
Rings -- 82.68 hours
Photographer -- 113.38 hours
Total: 360.74 hours = 45.09 days

3. Bartender: $21,550
Cake -- 45.1 hours
Dress -- 125.75 hours
Flowers -- 123.81 hours
Rings -- 147.94 hours
Photographer -- 202.88 hours
Total: 645.48 hours = 80.68 days

4. Bookkeeping, accounting and auditing clerk: $36,120
Cake -- 26.91 hours
Dress -- 75.03 hours
Flowers -- 73.86 hours
Rings -- 88.26 hours
Photographer -- 121 hours
Total: 385.11 hours = 48.14 days

5. Carpenter: $44,330
Cake -- 21.91 hours
Dress -- 61.13 hours
Flowers -- 60.18 hours
Rings -- 71.92 hours
Photographer -- 98.62 hours
Total: 313.78 hours = 39.22 days

6. Child, family and school social worker: $44,410
Cake -- 21.89 hours
Dress -- 61 hours
Flowers -- 60 hours
Rings -- 71.79 hours
Photographer -- 98.45 hours
Total: 313.22 hours = 39.37 days

7. Choreographer: $44,160
Cake -- 22.01 hours
Dress -- 61.37 hours
Flowers -- 60.42 hours
Rings -- 72.19 hours
Photographer -- 99 hours
Total: 315 hours = 39.37 days

8. Coach and scout: $36,340
Cake -- 26.75 hours
Dress -- 74.57 hours
Flowers -- 73.42 hours
Rings -- 87.73 hours
Photographer -- 120.31 hours
Total: 382.77 hours = 47.85 days

9. Computer and information systems manager: $125,660
Cake -- 7.74 hours
Dress -- 21.57 hours
Flowers -- 21.23 hours
Rings -- 25.37 hours
Photographer -- 34.79 hours
Total: 110.7 hours = 13.84 days

10. Computer support specialist: $51,820
Cake -- 18.76 hours
Dress -- 52.3 hours
Flowers -- 51.49 hours
Rings -- 61.52 hours
Photographer -- 84.37 hours
Total: 268.43 hours = 33.55 days

11. Dental hygienist: $69,760
Cake -- 13.93 hours
Dress -- 38.85 hours
Flowers -- 38.25 hours
Rings -- 45.7 hours
Photographer -- 62.67 hours
Total: 199.4 hours = 24.92 days

12. Elementary school teacher, except special education: $55,270
Cake -- 17.59 hours
Dress -- 49 hours
Flowers -- 48.27 hours
Rings -- 57.68 hours
Photographer -- 79.10 hours
Total: 251.67 hours = 31.46 days

13. Executive secretary and administrative assistant: $48,120
Cake -- 20.20 hours
Dress -- 56.32 hours
Flowers -- 55.44 hours
Rings -- 66.25 hours
Photographer -- 90.86 hours
Total: 289 hours = 36.13 days

14. Hairdresser, hair stylist and cosmetologist: $26,460
Cake -- 36.73 hours
Dress -- 102.42 hours
Flowers -- 100.83 hours
Rings -- 120.48 hours
Photographer -- 165.23 hours
Total: 525.7 hours = 65.71 days

15. Librarian: $57,020
Cake -- 17 hours
Dress -- 47.53 hours
Flowers -- 46.79 hours
Rings -- 55.91 hours
Photographer -- 76.67 hours
Total: 243.95 hours = 30.5 days

16. Middle school teacher, except special and vocational: $55,780
Cake -- 17.43 hours
Dress -- 48.58 hours
Flowers -- 47.83 hours
Rings -- 57.15 hours
Photographer – 78.38 hours
Total: 249.37 hours = 31.17 days

17. Personal financial advisor: $90,900
Cake -- 10.69 hours
Dress -- 29.81 hours
Flowers -- 29.35
Rings -- 35.07 hours
Photographer -- 48.1 hours
Total: 153 hours = 19.13 days
 
18. Photographer: $36,580
Cake -- 26.57 hours
Dress -- 74 hours
Flowers -- 72.94 hours
Rings -- 87.15 hours
Photographer -- 119.52 hours
Total: 380.26 hours = 47.53 days

19. Pharmacist: $112,160
Cake -- 8.67 hours
Dress -- 24.16 hours
Flowers -- 23.79 hours
Rings -- 28.42 hours
Photographer -- 38.98 hours
Total: 124 hours = 15.5 days

20. Physical therapist: $79,830
Cake -- 12.18 hours
Dress -- 33.95 hours
Flowers -- 33.42 hours
Rings -- 39.93 hours
Photographer -- 54.77 hours
Total: 174.25 hours = 21.78 days

21. Police and sheriff's patrol officer: $56,260
Cake -- 17.28 hours
Dress -- 48.17 hours
Flowers -- 47.42 hours
Rings -- 56.67 hours
Photographer -- 77.71 hours
Total: 247.24 hours = 30.91 days

22. Post-secondary teacher: $74,360
Cake -- 13.07 hours
Dress -- 36.44 hours
Flowers -- 35.88 hours
Rings -- 42.87 hours
Photographer -- 58.8 hours
Total: 187.06 hours = 23.38 days

23. Retail salesperson, department store: $25,130
Cake -- 36.68 hours
Dress -- 107.84 hours
Flowers -- 106.17 hours
Rings -- 126.86 hours
Photographer -- 173.98 hours
Total: 553.52 hours = 69.19 days

24. Technical writer: $67,280
Cake -- 14.45 hours
Dress -- 40.28 hours
Flowers -- 39.66 hours
Rings -- 47.38 hours
Photographer -- 64.98 hours
Total: 206.75 hours = 25.84 days

25. Veterinarian: $91,250
Cake -- 10.65 hours
Dress -- 29.7 hours
Flowers -- 29.24 hours
Rings -- 34.94 hours
Photographer -- 47.91 hours
Total: 152.44 hours = 19.05 days