Small Wedding Ideas: A Great Alternative to a Large Wedding Event

Everywhere you look couples are having bigger, grander weddings, and the trend doesn't seem to be stopping anytime soon. Small wedding ideas may be the perfect alternative however.

Instead of having a wedding where you feel obligated to invite distant relatives that you have never met, a small wedding allows you to include only the people that are truly important to you.

Small weddings are the perfect alternative to large weddings for a few reasons. If you have a limited wedding budget small weddings allow you to have a beautiful event for less money.

Many couples that have been married previously do not want a large affair the second time around. They have done it once with all the bells and whistles and the second time around they want it to be more intimate and meaningful with close family and friends.

Here are some small wedding ideas to assist with your planning:

The Location

Having a small wedding allows you to have more flexibility in choosing your wedding location. Since you don't have to worry about having enough room for all of your guests, your options for a wedding location instantly increase.

Popular locations include a favorite restaurant, a bed and breakfast or anywhere you want to get married. Destination weddings are very popular because they allow you to spend a few days with a small group of loved ones before heading off to your honeymoon.

The Ceremony

Small weddings allow you to have your ceremony in unique locations. For example, it may not be feasible to have your ceremony on a small yacht with a large guest list, but with only a few guests this can happen.

You can also incorporate more people into your ceremony by asking them to read passages or poems during the ceremony. Unique ideas like a butterfly release at the end of your ceremony are also easier to pull off with fewer guests.

The Reception

One of the biggest complaints from recent newlyweds is that their reception went by so fast they didn't have time to thank everyone and enjoy themselves. With a small wedding you will personally get to talk to every one of your guests and enjoy the menu you picked out.