With the Corona Virus changing the wedding industry, I thought it would be a good idea to share why I love intimate weddings! So many couples are having to make the hard decision of postponing their weddings or severely cutting down on their guest lists. These decisions can be extremely difficult but there are always silver linings to every situation and here are some of the amazing reasons why having a more intimate wedding could be the best decision you make!
LESS STRESS TO PLAN
Having a more intimate wedding can be far less stressful to plan. With a smaller wedding all of the hours of planning get reduced because there is less to coordinate. You don’t have to worry about as many invitations getting lost in the mail or an overload of meal choices and dietary restrictions. You spend less time on seating arrangements and worrying about whether each table will get along, and there are far fewer guests who could possibly arrive late and delay your ceremony. There are always so many more factors that can go wrong when you are trying to organize large groups of people and having a smaller wedding eliminates a lot of those factors.
LESS STRESS ON THE DAY
Having a smaller guest count also means less time trying to see every guest to give them the attention they deserve. Having a large guest count can be extremely overwhelming on the day. One of the things I constantly hear from brides is “I am honestly so exhausted.” When you have a large wedding you end up spreading yourself extremely thin. You want to spend time with everyone, or at the very least say hi and thank them for coming, but with 150 + people this can take up a huge portion of your cocktail hour and reception. I often see couples, blank faced and zoned out, trying to get through large receiving lines or going table to table to say hi to everyone. Your wedding is a long day and there is very little time to relax and soak it all in. Having a smaller guest count greatly increases the time you can spend having meaningful conversations with your friends and loved ones. You will also remember the day far better because you are not overwhelmed!
LESS FAMILY STRESS
One of the more common stress factors is accommodating family guest requests. I cannot count on my hands the number of times couples have said to me “I don’t even know half of these people.” Finally there is a reason to have a small, intimate wedding that your family can’t be mad at you for. The Government has restricted large gatherings, what can you do? To help satisfy your familys’ desires to have their friends and distant relatives there, maybe compromise with a live stream of the wedding so they can still share your day with those they wished to invite.
BUDGET BUDGET BUDGET!
Right now budget is heavy on a lot of couple’s minds as postponements often come with added costs. One of the best ways to not only stay on budget, but save on your budget is to have a more intimate wedding. The largest wedding costs are typically the venue, food, flowers, and alcohol. All of these factors are very dependant on guest list size! The less people you have, the less food and alcohol is consumed and the less flowers you need to decorate tables. You can also now look at a venue that accommodates small weddings if you don’t wish to proceed with the hall you booked. You can even have your wedding on a family property! Having a more intimate wedding can also help you prepare for the future, which might look a little different than what we all expected. You might be able to put more money away for a down payment on a house, or start financially preparing to welcome children into your home. You might even need to take some time to figure out new job security and avoiding a large wedding bill could reduce some of that stress. A smaller wedding can help with all of these financial burdens.
I am sure you are thinking, it is very easy to preach the idea of small weddings with everything currently happening around us, but I have always been a huge fan of intimate weddings! My fiancé and I are actually still hoping that our under 40 wedding will be able to proceed this fall. After 8 years in the industry I can honestly say some of the happiest couples I have seen are those who chose to spend their wedding with their closest family and friends. They were much more relaxed and able to soak in the day which is why I was so set on having a small wedding. For those who are anxiously awaiting the dance floor, remember, the party is one part of a wedding and it doesn’t necessarily have to be on the same day! My fiancé and I decided we wanted a small, primarily family, wedding, but we plan on having a party later with our friends to celebrate this huge life step. This way we get the best of both worlds!
I hope this post has inspired everyone to look at intimate weddings in a more positive way! I truly don’t think you will be disappointed!
PS, All of these images are from a wedding I photographed 3 years ago where I was present for 3 hours and the guest list included only 6 people! Not only did they have a small wedding, but it also rained and these two were the happiest, most in love couple I have seen in a long time! :)
