SO YOU WANT A SMALL WEDDING?
With plenty of experience, I know planning a wedding is a big commitment in itself. This often leads couples nowadays to decide if having a big wedding is worth it. With weddings averaging well over $50,000, many couples are opting for smaller and more intimate weddings.
With the guest list dropping slowly throughout these past years, I know couple’s have joked or at least thought of the idea of eloping. If you are like me, you can’t bring yourself to toss out all traditions. So you go with a small wedding. Small or ‘Micro’ weddings are a great way to have a completely customizable wedding, few guests, and lower prices. All while still celebrating your most important and memorable day.
Don’t miss the chance to celebrate:
Personally I have stopped so many people from just going down to the courthouse. To have a small wedding is a chance to do what you couldn’t with all the extra. Get your marriage license, you can hire an officiant, grab a few friends and family, and have your wedding somewhere you couldn’t usually before! This can be the wedding of your realistic dreams that you never knew you wanted. There are venues that offer Small or Micro wedding packages. You can also just grab your people and head to a meaningful place like up north in the woods or the desert. Your choice.
Cut the stress by cutting the guest lists: When you’re planning a larger wedding, the guest list can start to spiral quickly. There’s your mom’s book club friend, your dad’s old fraternity buddy, your down-the-street neighbor from growing up, those two acquaintances that come attached with another friend. You can go from 30 to 300 in the blink of an eye. Speaking from my experience, when you’re hosting a small wedding, people are understanding. My rule; If you haven’t talked to them in the last 3 months, you don’t need to invite them to your wedding. Not everyone has to be there and now is the time to cut the guest list down to the bare necessities for your special day.
Take your time to figure out what you want: Vendors are one way to go with a small wedding. Saving the money of a huge place and an 8 hour wedding can leave you space to fund your Photographer, Videographer, caterer, bartender, taco truck, or whatever you want there. Personally, I am planning my own Micro Wedding and it will be 3 hours in total. That’s the ceremony, pictures, dances, dinner, cake, and goodbye! I cannot take stress very well and having an 8 hour wedding would wreck me. So now I can save and take my time with my vendors for the 30 guests I am having. It is soooo much less expensive and really easy.
Remember why you're doing this: After 15 years in the photography business, I have never seen a wedding start on time. Did you read that? Never. But I have seen many overly stressed out brides. I have seen major things go down at weddings. I have seen many things go untouched and ignored; like donut walls, snack tables, caricaturists, etc. I have seen many empty tables and people showing up late. So many things that have stressed so many brides. But one overall aspect, the happiest couples I have seen were the ones who didn’t stress that stuff. The ones who just wanted to get married to each other. Those were the best! It showed up in their photos and they were shining bright. Let the little things roll off of you. You are marrying the person you love the most. Be happy. Don’t sweat the irrelevant stuff.
