What Is A Micro-Wedding? Tips On Making It Intimate and Special
As we all know, weddings are expensive and planning them, like other things around it, for example wedding showers, one can be incredibly time-consuming – which many busy people can ill afford. Happily, there is an alternative and, in this article, we’re going to be talking about a growing trend – the micro-wedding.
What is a micro-wedding ?
A micro-wedding is a small, intimate affair with a ceremony in a church or other venue such as a hotel followed by a modest reception. In most cases, a micro-wedding is one which features 50 guests or fewer and may be a little less grand than some more extravagant weddings.
The benefits of a micro-wedding
There are lots of great benefits to choosing a micro-wedding and we’re going to take a look at some of these in this section:
For richer, for poorer
One of the most obvious advantages to a micro-wedding is, of course, cost. In the UK, the average cost of a wedding is £20,775 – which is a fair chunk of change at any time but particularly when lots of people are struggling with soaring prices. With fewer guests and, in some cases, a smaller venue, a micro-wedding tends to be significantly less expensive than a full-blown extravaganza.
Saying I don’t to excessive planning
Another major benefit to a micro-wedding is that it takes a lot less planning. During the planning of a wedding many couples find themselves becoming increasingly stressed as they try to juggle their jobs with all of the things that go into a wedding including ordering and sending invitations, liaising with venues, negotiating menus and much much more. Fewer guests means a lot less hassle – meaning that you won’t be completely frazzled by the time the big day arrives !
Watch this space
When you have a regular wedding you will often find yourself limited in your choice of venues as you need somewhere which will be able to accommodate all of your guests. When your wedding is more on the intimate side, you’ll usually find yourself with more options – meaning that you won’t have to just settle for whichever venue can fit you in.
For some couples, this also opens up the possibility of a destination wedding when only a small number of guests are involved.
Time for me and you after I do
If you’ve ever attended the wedding of a friend or family member you’ll know that, in many cases, the happy couple will spend a significant amount of time on their special day circulating in order to try to speak to every guest – leaving them little time to relax and enjoy the day. With a micro-wedding, the couple is more able to balance speaking to the guests with simply enjoying their big day.
The sky’s the limit
We’ve just talked about the fact that a micro-wedding gives you more flexibility – it also gives you more creativity. When you reduce the number of guests at your wedding you open up a whole new world when it comes to venues for your ceremony and for your reception. For example; you can think about more unique places such as a boat or a favourite museum which may not necessarily be able to accommodate a larger number of guests.
How to make your micro-wedding intimate and special
While your micro-wedding may not take as much planning as a larger affair, there are a few things to keep in mind and we’ll cover these in this section:
The guest list
The most difficult (and sometimes contentious) part of planning a micro-wedding is deciding who’s in and who’s out. As the old saying goes, you can’t please all of the people all of the time and, invariably, there will be some people who are unhappy at being left out. A little diplomacy here goes a long way – for example; you may want to explain that space is limited therefore a separate, intimate lunch with that person will follow.
Coordinating your day
With a micro-wedding, you’re unlikely to have a massive team of bridesmaids and groomsmen to help things along. For this reason, it’s important to choose your wedding party carefully. Where possible, elect two people as bridesmaid / maid of honour and best man who are most likely to have the time and inclination to help you to plan things and co-ordinate proceedings on the big day.
This is important as guests will sometimes be under the mistaken belief that the more informal structure of a micro-wedding means that they can be more casual on important aspects like timing and seating.
Small but perfectly formed
A micro-wedding is a great way of spending your special day with your loved ones – without the expense and hassle of a large and extravagant affair. With a little bit of planning – and a lot of diplomacy when it comes to your guests, your micro-wedding will be the special day that you always wanted without leaving you in debt or burnout from excessive planning.