For some couples, the bigger and more extravagant the wedding, the better. There is nothing wrong with planning a huge wedding with 500+ guests and there are always plenty of beautifully lavish wedding hotels and venues more than happy to take your booking, but are you really sure you want such an over-the-top day?
The thing with big weddings featuring hundreds of guests is that they are expensive: great if you have unlimited funds, but not so great if you are planning a wedding on a budget. Smaller, more intimate weddings can be just as beautiful as a large celebration, but more importantly for many cash-strapped couples, are considerably less expensive. So what are your options if you want a more intimate celebration rather than a feature spread in “Hello” magazine?
Throw Some Ideas Out There
Good communication is the foundation of any healthy relationship, so start as you mean to go on. You and your intended should sit down and have an in-depth discussion about how you envisage your forthcoming wedding to be. Clearly if one of you has your heart set on a grand ceremony in a country house hotel, an intimate ceremony with family and friends in attendance is likely to fall far short of expectations. But if there is some common ground, you have plenty to work with.
What are your interests? Do you have any hobbies that could be brought into the wedding theme? Put some ideas out there and see what you come up with. Even if some of the ideas are truly off the wall, they may be workable with a bit of forward planning!
Registry Office
A civil ceremony is perfect for couples trying to keep the wedding small and intimate. Obviously if you are a practicing member of a particular faith a religious ceremony is the only option, but if not, consider having the legal side of the day at a registry office before going elsewhere for a small celebration.
Garden Party
If you (or someone you know) are blessed with a lovely garden, a small outdoor wedding amongst the flowers makes for a lovely day. Marquees can be hired to keep guests warm and dry if the weather doesn’t co-operate, but if the sun is shining on the day, this type of informal celebration can be fabulous.
Beach Weddings
Beach weddings can be expensive if you go for a tropical destination, but you can keep the costs down if you stay closer to home. Fine weather is helpful in this regard, but if the weather turns out to be perfect, a small wedding party in a secluded cove would make for a wonderfully intimate day.
Just the Two of You
Some couples don’t need anyone else present when they make a commitment to love each other forever. And if that is the case, then great, skip off to Gretna Green. You can always have a celebratory party for family and friends at a later date.
Sometimes, smaller is just as good as large and ostentatious. So don’t automatically assume you need to super-size your wedding!
Article Submitted By Community Writer