5 Micro Wedding Ideas That Can Help Cut Down on Your Event Anxiety

A great guest article by Sam Bowman today includes 5 micro wedding ideas that will help ease your planning stress and get you excited for an intimate event!

 

For the majority of recent wedding history, the “normal” wedding was the big, white wedding you see in the movies. It was normal to invite extended family members you’ve only seen once in your life and spend most of the special day in a tizzy because of stress. However, more frequently, couples are opting to forgo the traditional large wedding in exchange for the micro wedding.

This is essentially a smaller gathering where you still follow the general steps of your typical wedding, like registering for gifts or reading your vows, but on a much smaller scale. There are many benefits to this arrangement, and if you are interested in having one yourself, then we have some tips that make the setup even easier. Let’s talk a bit about micro weddings and the options you have for your special day.

A Bit About Micro Weddings

The micro wedding started as a trend that has been growing since the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. During the pandemic, many couples decided to have a smaller ceremony because fewer guests meant they could socially distance themselves and reduce the chances of getting sick.

While COVID-19 may be waning, general anxiety around the country about large crowds has led many folks to continue hosting micro weddings along with other coping mechanisms. A wedding is hard enough to plan as it is, after all, and if you add social anxiety created by the pandemic, it’s important to find help where you can and make it easier for yourself when planning a wedding.

1. Choose A Small Venue

The great thing about a micro wedding is that you have more options for where you can host the gathering. You don’t need to look for a large church or banquet hall. Instead, you can have the wedding and reception at a friend’s house, a chapel in Las Vegas, or in your own backyard. By choosing a smaller venue, you can ensure that you don’t invite more people than you intended because if you do, there simply won’t be room for everyone. If you have the events where you live, then you will likely feel more comfortable and happy in a familiar space.

2. Consider Elopement

If you want to cut the anxiety associated with having a wedding, then skip it altogether and go for an elopement. This is when you and your bride or groom run off and get hitched either alone or with only a witness or two. You may still get stressed thinking about things like where you may want to elope, the potential cost, and other details. To avoid anxiety, take the time to plan ahead. Create a budget, look at possible venues, and research the specifics about laws and marriage licenses ahead of time, so you can be prepared when the time comes.

3. Stick With Immediate Friends and Family

In the case that you still want to have a somewhat typical ceremony on a smaller scale, then be smart about your guest list. Instead of inviting all of your extended family, just invite your core family members and the friends that matter most. You can keep the guest list down by making it a rule that your guests can’t bring dates unless they ask you first and you approve.

If you are selective about who you invite, keep in mind that you may upset some folks who weren’t able to attend. Don’t worry. If they really want to see the nuptials, then film your wedding and show them later or live stream the event.

4. Create a Personalized Menu

Many couples also get anxious about the food they’ll serve at their wedding reception. They may worry that if they only give the option of steak or chicken, some guests may be upset about the options. The good thing about a micro wedding is that you have fewer people to worry about, so you can create a personalized menu. Ask your small list of guests what they want to eat and serve what they like. That way, everyone is happy, you save money, and you eliminate the possibility of people wasting food that they don’t want.

Another option is to serve less food in general and only have a cocktail hour where you only serve drinks and hors d’oeuvres.

5. Personalize Your Decor

Since you’ll be spending less on the venue, catering, and other supplies, you won’t have to be anxious about scraping together funds for a ton of decorations. You have fewer tables to decorate and a smaller space to beautify. A professional decorator will further ease your anxiety by taking all the procurement and arrangement uncertainties away, meaning you can have fun personalizing your wedding decor.    

The first step is to come up with a theme — be it exotic, classical, or whatever fits your personality. The decorator will consult with you to create a design mock-up, and you can get as specific as you’d like to make the decorations as unique to your style as possible. Let them know your budget and find out what level of involvement they’ll have. If you are anxious about things like setup and clean-up, make sure they can take care of it. Fortunately, the money you are saving on the other elements of the wedding can pad your decoration budget.

As you can see, there are many ways that you can have a micro wedding and cut out some of the anxiety while making it a day to remember. Consider these tips, and you and your partner can create endless memories on this special day.