Over the last few years, the bridal landscape has gone through a significant shift, welcoming the rise of micro weddings, a trend that has made its way to the forefront of the wedding days of many couples worldwide.

As venues, vendors, brides, and grooms alike navigate the wedding industry in the post-COVID-19 world, intimate micro-ceremonies have become incredibly popular, allowing couples to tailor make a significant, personal, and connection-based experience.

This blog is your lowdown on micro weddings, a rising trend in today's wedding scene.

What is a micro wedding?

A micro wedding is an intimate wedding affair, generally carried out with less than 50 guests. It can encapsulate everything a large-scale wedding may have, but it's for a much smaller group of guests, allowing for a more intimate ceremony and reception.

What are some benefits of a micro wedding?

With fewer guests comes less responsibility, less work, and more time to hone your attention on what truly matters to you: your love story and the people you want to share it with. Micro weddings typically cost far less, and there are many more options in terms of physical spaces, with it being possible to hold your event in smaller spaces.

Micro weddings allow you to lower the cost of your wedding, which is terrific for couples strapped for cash but still want to celebrate their love.

Couples worldwide are attracted to the concept of a micro wedding because of the increased level of intimacy, leading to a more meaningful wedding experience.

What is the difference between an elopement and a micro wedding?

An elopement is traditionally the couple, a celebrant, possibly a photographer, and the potential of a couple of guests. A micro wedding, on the other hand, will generally have a full team of vendors and require the event to be coordinated like a standard wedding with structure featuring a photographer, celebrant, catering, a venue, hair & makeup, and much more, on top of a more extensive guest list of 20-50 people.

What is a macro wedding?

A macro wedding is a traditional wedding with larger guest lists that can last all day and often fill venues to capacity. A Macro wedding is the opposite of a micro wedding.

Do you dance at a micro wedding?

Micro weddings do not have to include the aspects of a traditional wedding we've all expected. However, they can consist of anything you want. You can have a first dance at a micro wedding or skip it to save time (or if you aren't the dancing type!)

How much does a micro wedding cost?

As with all weddings, the costs associated with them will be dependent on your choices. However, micro weddings cost 50 percent, or more, less than that of a traditional wedding.

How do I know if a micro wedding is right for me?

You'll want to keep a few key factors in mind when deciding whether a micro wedding suits your bridal style. Ask yourself these questions and let the answers dictate:

1. Are you okay with forgoing a complete guest list and trimming it down for your big day?
2. Is minimising the overall cost important to you?
3. Do you find large weddings overwhelming?
4. Do you want to spend quality time with the guests at your wedding?
5. Are you having a destination wedding?

If you answered 'Yes' to these questions, a micro wedding is likely the vibe for you!

Your guide to planning a micro wedding

When planning, it's essential to know your location, budget, and guest numbers. However, we've compiled a list of tips to help you plan your micro-wedding.

1. Find the right venue.

One great advantage to micro-wedding planning is the near-endless abundance of available venues. Larger weddings require larger event spaces to hold a larger capacity of guests. However, micro weddings accommodate smaller groups, increasing the potential for venues.

Micro weddings allow you to use anything from a traditional wedding space, like a church or vineyard, to something smaller, like an art gallery or a garden.

You may also be considering a destination wedding. This falls in line with finding your venue.

2. Choose your guest list.

When choosing your guest list, it's important to remember that you are having a micro wedding, and with that, you might be making sacrifices to invite.

Our best suggestion is a task for you and your fiancé: take time out separately to write your own 'mandatory' or must-have guest list. You'll be placing the people you cannot imagine having your wedding day without on this list.

Once you've each completed your list, please sit down and cross-reference names and place them into two categories. The first category will be the cross-over list; all the people named appear on both lists. The second category becomes the list you'll both work together to agree on.

Set a hard limit on how many additional guests (after the cross-over list) you expect to be at the wedding. For example, if it's +10 more guests, and both lists combined have an overflow of 30 people, you know it's time to narrow it down and cut 20 people from the list.

Consider who you'll regret not inviting and why, but also think about that person's life and whether it will be feasible for them to attend your wedding. This thought process should help cut your numbers down and eventually reach an agreeable guest list you both can live with.

One way to reduce your list is to avoid allowing guests to have a plus one. There's nothing wrong with this. It's how you make your day more intimate if you're limited on how many guests you can have.

3. Find the right officiant for your wedding.

The person officiating your wedding will always be a large piece of your wedding puzzle because they will lead you through your wedding ceremony. With that in mind, finding the right officiant for your wedding is crucial. 

4. Having a bridal party vs. just the two of you.

Another critical factor in planning a micro wedding is deciding if you'll have a bridal party. Some couples choose a single maid of honour and groomsman; others may have several, while some opt to go without a bridal party to keep things more intimate.

Ultimately, the choice is a personal one that you will need to make based on your wedding day preferences!

5. Hire the right vendors

Once you decide what vendors you'll want, for example, a photographer, cake maker, florist, etc., you'll want to start locking these vendors in for your special day. Think about what will suit your specific micro wedding and what will increase the intimate vibe you're going for.