The great news about weddings is that they can be lavish, elegant affairs no matter what size they are. There is a misconception that an elegant wedding must have a large number of people, but the truth is that even smaller weddings can be just as glamorous and fancy.
There are many reasons why couples choose to invite fewer guests to their wedding, one being fewer guests allows you to splurge on other wedding items instead like upgrading your reception menu or handing out specialty favors to your guests. For other couples, a smaller wedding is a necessity due to gathering size limitations due to the Coronavirus.
Regardless of your reason for choosing to have a smaller wedding. There are so many different ways you can make it spectacular. Here are some of our favorite ways to plan a smaller, yet elegant wedding.
Splurge On Your Wedding Venue
Your reception venue sets the tone for your entire wedding, making it the perfect place to splurge for a more elegant wedding event. Allocating more budget to your venue allows you to not only choose a stunning wedding venue, but also to find one that meets all of your checkboxes without having to sacrifice anything. This also gives you the opportunity to splurge on upgrades for your reception, like having your ceremony on-site or adding special touches to your reception you couldn’t have afforded otherwise.
Upgrade Food or Drink Options
One example of a reception upgrade many couples opt for is to upgrade your food and drink options. This might mean serving custom cocktails, or adding speciality items to your cocktail hour or dinner menus. This is a great way not only to add some personal touches to your wedding celebration, but also create a fancier feel to your event. Certain foods have a way of elevating the atmosphere and give an upgraded, elegant touch to your menu. This is a great way to make your wedding immediately feel more elegant.
Create Guest Experiences
With larger weddings, it’s difficult to create a true guest experience due to the number of people invited. Guest experiences require personalized detail and attention to each guest, making a smaller wedding the perfect setting to create guest experiences.
To create a guest experience you need to think about how you want the night to unfold. This could mean transporting guests from the hotel to the wedding venue so they don’t have to worry about driving, creating personalized welcome bags for each guest, having custom favors made and placed at each place setting, or even offering a tasting menu at dinner time.
Add Spectacular Eye-Catching Details
Adding special details to your wedding day is another great way to make a wedding look and feel more elegant. One great idea is adding lounge furniture to your reception for guests to relax and mingle when they need a break from dancing. You can have a custom menu, place cards, and programs designed providing the details of your wedding day. Adding floral arrangements to the aisle for your ceremony, or a custom arch to say your vows under will also add a wow factor to your wedding.
Get Your Dream Wedding Gown
With the money you save by inviting fewer guests, you can splurge on your dream wedding gown. The same goes for menswear, instead of renting a suit or tuxedo, consider in investing in a high-quality one that the groom can use for years to come.
Hire a Wedding Planner
Wedding planners aren’t just for big weddings. Rather, they are perfect for weddings of all sizes. Hiring a wedding planner will allow you to focus on your wedding and reception come the big day. You won’t have to worry about a single detail, except to enjoy your day and have fun!
Hire Live Musicians
Live musicians are one of the easiest and best ways to upgrade your wedding and give it a more elegant feel. Consider a string quartet for your ceremony, jazz band for your cocktail hour, or a live singer for the dinner portion of your reception.
Extend the Length of Your Reception
Extending the length of your wedding by adding more time for dancing or a Viennese hour is a great upgrade to consider for your wedding. If you had a band for your reception, you can even bring in a DJ for an after party.
Add a Day After Brunch
Hosting a smaller wedding also gives you the opportunity to keep the celebrations going the next day. While traditionally a day after brunch is held for out of town guests, with a shorter guest list you can invite the entire party to celebrate the morning after at brunch.
