The Rise of the “Micro Wedding” & Why It Might Be The Perfect Fit for your Big Day
written by W&S Editorial Team
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We saw this amazing TikTok from @veronicajdejesuss (check out her content!) and got inspired to make this article about miroweddings.
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Wedding planning is a considerable time and financial investment— the average American wedding costs about $28,000 and takes over a year to plan. With a concurrent recession and pandemic, couples everywhere are considering non-traditional routes for their nuptials to cut back on expenses and to make their big day a lot easier.
Microweddings have therefore risen in popularity, but what are they exactly, and how do you know if this is the right choice for you and your partner? Our team has put together our guide to micro wedding planning so you can make your love celebration the best it can be!
In This Article
What Is a Microwedding?
Micro weddings are small weddings with a maximum of 50 guests, though the average micro weddings we’ve seen have around 15-20 people attending. Though small, micro weddings still have the same fittings as your typical wedding, just with a more intimate twist.
The concept of the wedding has undergone significant transformations in the United States over the past 75 years. Historically, weddings were often community-centric events, where the entire village or town would come together to celebrate. However, as the wedding industry began to grow in the mid-20th century, particularly after World War II, the notion of a "dream wedding" took hold. This era saw the rise of elaborate ceremonies and grand receptions, influenced by the booming economy and the burgeoning consumer culture. The ideal of a lavish, fairy-tale wedding became deeply ingrained in American society, with couples often striving to outdo each other in terms of extravagance and spectacle.
As the industry expanded, so did the expectations surrounding weddings. The 1980s and 1990s, in particular, witnessed an explosion in the commercialization of weddings. Bridal magazines, television shows, and later, social media platforms, further fueled the desire for picture-perfect weddings. The average cost of weddings skyrocketed, leading to the modern era where the typical American wedding can easily cost tens of thousands of dollars. This surge in costs is largely driven by the "wedding markup," a phenomenon where vendors charge significantly more for services and products simply because they are associated with weddings.
For example, the same venue, flowers, or catering service may be markedly more expensive for a wedding compared to a birthday party or other similar event. A study by Consumer Reports found that vendors often charge up to 28% more for wedding services compared to similar non-wedding events. This discrepancy is due in part to the emotional and psychological significance attached to weddings, which vendors capitalize on. The notion that a wedding is a once-in-a-lifetime event leads many couples to spend more than they would for other types of celebrations.
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In response to these escalating costs and the growing complexity of planning large-scale weddings, many couples are turning to micro weddings. Micro weddings offer a way to retain the essential elements of a traditional wedding while significantly reducing costs and stress. With fewer guests, couples can focus on creating a more personalized and meaningful experience for themselves and their closest friends and family. This trend also aligns with a broader shift towards minimalism and sustainability, as smaller weddings tend to have a lower environmental impact and require fewer resources.
In essence, micro weddings allow couples to celebrate their union in a way that feels authentic and manageable, without succumbing to the pressures and expenses of the conventional wedding industry. They provide an opportunity to prioritize what truly matters – the love and commitment between partners – over the often overwhelming and financially burdensome aspects of large-scale wedding planning.
Is a Microwedding Right for You and Your Partner?
Micro weddings may not be for everyone, but there are many perks to minimizing your big day. For starters, micro weddings are A LOT cheaper than traditional weddings with large guest lists. Smaller parties mean your money stretches more, allowing you to cut back altogether or invest more in the individual experience of all your attendees.
What does this look like? Perhaps you want a destination wedding, and planning what’s essentially a group vacation with less than 50 people is way easier than with a traditional wedding party. So, a micro wedding might be your best option if you want to have your wedding on location.
Another benefit of having a micro wedding is they are more pandemic-friendly. With the continued spread of COVID-19 and the emergence of other infectious diseases, opting for a micro wedding helps ensure your investment is worthwhile. From 2020-2021, it’s estimated that more than half of weddings were postponed or canceled, leaving both clients and wedding-related businesses distraught.
Around half of all weddings in 2020 were postponed to 2022 or canceled altogether due to the COVID-19 pandemic alone. With the pandemic still looming, it’s essential to keep this in mind, especially for those wanting destination weddings.
Lastly, having a micro wedding means you and your partner can spend much less time planning and getting married sooner! A huge factor that makes wedding planning such a long process is the mere number of moving parts due to large guest lists, that come with large venues and large amounts of flowers, etc.
A smaller wedding means less time and energy spent planning and more time and energy spent enjoying the pre-nuptial period with your partner!
Our Tips for Planning Your Microwedding
1.
Get creative with your venue and reception.
Don’t just go to the courthouse for your micro wedding. Really get creative about where you can say your vows. Small wedding parties allow you to be flexible when it comes to choosing your ceremony space.
Parks, bed and breakfasts, private dining spaces, or even your home could be the perfect places for you and your partner to tie the knot. Professional wedding planner ByChenai suggests choosing your venue first and allowing your venue to inform everything else around your big day.
Moreover, having a micro wedding means it’s easier to use the same venue as both a ceremony and reception space. Again, this means you get more bang for your buck and overall less hassle when transitioning between events.
2.
Splurge on your outfit.
A micro wedding doesn’t mean you, your partner, and your guests can’t dress to impress. Fewer people attending means fewer people’s opinions about your wedding dress code, so you can indeed have the wedding looks of your dreams.
Also, you can spend more money on your wedding attire as you don’t need to spend heaps of money on flowers, food, and large venues. Remember, your wedding photos will be some of the most iconic pictures you and your partner will ever take as a couple. Your friends, parents, and children (and their children) will regularly look back on these photos. Be sure to dress to impress not necessarily them, but future you!
3.
Hire a professional wedding planner .
Okay, here us out. You might be thinking, “isn’t the point of a micro wedding that I can save money and not take on the cost of a wedding coordinator?”. Well, you might be right. However, there is merit in considering working with a wedding planner to get the most out of your wedding.
For starters, wedding planners are professionals. They know how to get the most bang for your buck and are guaranteed to make your dream vision come true. They also do this while taking the load off of you and your partner’s back, meaning a stress-free wedding planning process.
Keep in mind that micro weddings are much easier to plan and therefore take a lesser time commitment for wedding planners. As a result, you and your partner are sure to be offered a discounted rate much more affordable than the average wedding would be charged.
We suggest that before you totally decide to opt out of having a wedding planner, you and your partner shop around and check out rates for planners doing micro weddings in your desired area. You might be surprised by what you find!
The Bottom Line On Microweddings
Micro weddings are a great alternative to traditional weddings, especially for those on a budget or wanting to make their planning process as smooth as possible. When it comes to your wedding, only you and your partner know what’s best for your situation. Bigger doesn’t always mean better; sometimes, it’s best to cut back to get the most out of your big day.
