Small weddings and elopements. Two things we absolutely love. We often find the smaller the wedding, the further away you can get from traditions and the more personal you can make your day. Some of the best weddings we’ve ever been to have been the ones that are the most intimate and personalised to the couple.
So with that, we’ve listed a bunch of our top tips to help you plan and pull off a little big day.
Featured photography by Corinna and Dylan.
Handy tips to help you pull off an epic “big” day:
Choose vendors you’d want to be mates with
Make sure you partner with a legendary celebrant/photographer that you REALLY connect with. You’ll be spending lots of one-on-one time with them. If you’re still searching for either of these, you can find a bunch we love here on Wedshed.
Involve the limited guests in attendance
Given that you’re getting married in front of an intimate crew, it could be a nice idea to get everyone involved. You could ask each guest ahead of time to send over a fave memory spent with you and your partner, or a well-wish for your life together that could be read during the ceremony.
Choose a location where you can all stay together
Choose a destination where you can keep your guests nice and close so you can spend as much quality time together – perhaps a resort, holiday park, big Airbnb, for example. In fact, plenty of our venues have onsite accommodation – you can search for these properties here.
Incorporate things to the day that you’re truly passionate about
Really think about what you and your partner are into and aim to introduce that passion to the small, special group of guests you have. Love wine? You could ask guests to bring a fancy bottle in lieu of a gift and do a tasting session with everyone on the day. Avid campers? Set up glamping for everyone at the venue so you can stay overnight together. Partial to a touch of glamour? Set a fancy AF dress code. You get the point. Make your day really reflect what you’re all about.
Keep the ceremony and reception sites close (or otherwise organise the logistics for guests)
If you’re having a backyard reception (love, love, love), we’d suggest choosing a spot for the ceremony that’s not too far away – you don’t want to have to make guests traipse across town. Or alternatively, if the ceremony location is a distance from the backyard, we’d consider organising transport for everyone (like a group bus) so that you can keep people together and make it more of an experience, with a fun playlist and a beverage.
Don’t feel pressured to share your plans if you don’t want to
If you’re eloping and want to keep it secret, you could tell people you are planning a long engagement and won’t be thinking about wedding planning until at least a year or two on and say something like, “we’re just going to enjoy this lovely stage of our lives and figure out the wedding stuff later.” And then BAM. Elope. Nice way to keep it private, we think.
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Some other handy reads:
How To Decide On A Styling Theme For Your Wedding
Wedding Stylist vs. Florist vs. Planner – What’s The Difference?
