According to a recent study with newlyweds conducted by Wedding Wire, the average wedding has 131 guests. However, due to the coronavirus guidelines which have continued to change experiences across the world, couples have had to get very creative with the wedding planning process.
In some instances, instead of postponing the nuptials altogether, couples have decided to get married in a scaled down way with their very own micro-wedding. One of the most common wedding trends during the COVID-19 pandemic has been the micro-wedding and here's why.
Before we go any further, we’d like to clear up one of the biggest myths: a micro-wedding isn’t the same an elopement. A micro-wedding is essentially a scaled down version of a traditional wedding. It typically has around 10 people, but no more than 30 (then it’s just a plain ‘ol wedding!)
Before you immediately pivot to planning a micro-wedding, you must first determine what is most important to you: get married (regardless of the changing rules), or wait until you know that we are living in a post-pandemic world (whenever that may be)?
Only you and your spouse can answer this question and it’s important to make this decision together. To help with your decisions, here are some things to consider.
In the beginning of the pandemic, a lot of engaged couples were hopeful that it would be over soon. They shifted wedding plans by a few months and lost deposits, and bookings with wedding vendors or locations.
In many cases, this happened multiple times, because things kept shifting. The entire wedding industry was immediately impacted and this led to many broken hearts.
As the guidelines across the nation continue to be significant variables in the wedding planning process, having a micro-wedding will help keep you and your guests safe while not risking an entire cancelation of the big day.
Even though Texas is beginning to open back up during 2021, it’s important to also remember the comfort level of those you would have invited. It isn’t just about whether your local county will allow for a big wedding, but also whether your guests want to attend.
If you have a lot of people coming from out of state, older family members, or a mixed audience with varied views on the COVID-19 vaccine, then you may get more wedding declines than anticipated.
In this case, a micro-wedding makes a lot of sense!
We’ve heard from brides and grooms who end up having large weddings that say that they have regrets.
Their wedding day became about hurt feelings of those not invited to be in a bridal party and there was drama with seating charts.
And things got so chaotic at the reception that the wedding guests were the only ones who got a chance to eat the very carefully planned wedding meal!
One of the most important reasons to have a micro-wedding is that you get the ability to challenge all the things that you feel like you ‘should’ do and focus more on what you ‘want’ to do.
One of the upsides of scaling down is that your budget won’t be consumed by paying for meals of extended family members who you see once a year. You won’t feel pressured to have a DJ set list that meets a variety of needs.
And you’ll be able to spend more time before, during and after the ceremony instead of hugging (what feels like) a million people.
Less people + less chaos = more time with your beloved.
You aren’t LOSING anything because if the worst outcome is that you GAIN a spouse, isn’t that what you want?
One of the hardest things for couples to envision with a micro-wedding is which traditional elements will continue to feel relevant. Smaller doesn’t have to mean that it’s less special.
Here’s our advice: if your dream wedding includes having a first look, walking down the aisle with your ‘dog of honor’, carrying a luscious bridal bouquet or cutting into the wedding cake with your new spouse, don’t shy away from incorporating these elements.
While your wedding will look different, you can still find ways to implement the aspects of your wedding ceremony or reception which are most important to you.
You can even make the most of your the experience by taking extra time for priceless photos at unique locations near your reception-site (like this one outside of the Capitol in Austin!)
Have a glamorous wedding gown to wear? You can still wear it in your backyard or at the park. Want a formal china or actual wedding cake to cut in to? Why not!
If anything, more flexibility with budget will give you the ability to splurge on higher quality meal options for your wedding guest list—instead of feeding 100+ people.
Don’t let your vision of a traditional wedding take away from all of the reasons to have a micro-wedding. You can still ‘have your cake and eat it, too.’
While many will be understanding of your choice to tighten up the guest list, there may be people in your life who feel that they have missed out. Having a live Zoom or Facebook video going throughout key parts of your wedding day will help people feel involved, but it’s highly likely that the footage shared will come with limited angles and inaudible moments.
Photos are a given for all wedding days; we think that video is that much more important if you're having a micro-wedding. It will allow you to have high quality coverage of your wedding highlights that can be easily shared with those who weren’t able to be part of your big day.
We have a professional team who can document your special day in Dallas, Houston, San Antonio, Austin and surrounding areas. Learn more here.
We’ve always been fans of a grand ornate wedding but there is something incredibly meaningful and romantic about an intimate wedding day that’s focused solely on your commitment to forever.
For more reasons to have a micro-wedding and tips, we liked these pieces of advice for couples planning a micro-wedding on Wed Inspire and unique micro-wedding ideas from Wedding Wire.
[Photoshoot in the spotlight: A+J Wedding Photos in Austin, Texas captured by Ila.]
Choose Joy,
The Joy Team