Toying with the idea of having a small wedding celebration? Not sure if a traditional large wedding is for you? Never thought about having a small wedding before but want to learn more about the appeal? This post is for you! Today I’m sharing 5 (pretty compelling, I think!) reasons to have a small, intimate wedding.

Less Stressful Planning Experience

By nature, these smaller celebrations require less planning and less logistical juggling. So if you hate making lots of decisions, don’t enjoy planning and prep work, and/or get anxious over having to handle all the moving pieces that go into a large wedding, an intimate wedding is your solution! By opting for these smaller events, you will have far fewer decisions to make and tasks to accomplish. That means your time from beginning of planning to wedding day can be significantly decreased! All of this translates to a less stressful planning experience – who wouldn’t want that?!

More Bang for Your Buck

If you value thoughtful, intentional quality over quantity, an intimate wedding is truly the best way to live that out. By gutting your guest list, you’ll be able to afford splurging on the quality elements that are important to you. With larger weddings, your budget is being pulled in a lot of different directions, so you often have to skimp on quality just to meet the necessary quantity for your guest list. Maybe you’re a foodie – with a smaller event, you can treat your guests to a truly unique and memorable meal. Perhaps you adore flowers – by having an intimate event you can invest more in your florals and create a breathtaking statement installation or a lush bouquet. Or maybe you want to make a big fashion statement – a small event will allow you to splurge on that designer gown you’ve always wanted.

Greater Ability to Personalize and Customize

Because of the nature of larger weddings, there does tend to be a bit of a formula they all need to follow. While there are certainly plenty of opportunities to customize with food and decor in large weddings, a small intimate wedding really gives you the ability to personalize the experience for your guests. By having a smaller number of attendees you’ll have more time to put into customized welcoming touches like favors or place cards. Or you’ll have the freedom to treat them to a fully planned event weekend from a welcome party to a farewell brunch.

It also gives you carte blanche to make your event REALLY reflect you. Want to get married on a Thursday morning at your favorite beach and then have a reception Friday night at your favorite restaurant? You can do that! Want to have your favorite chef come cook a 5-course meal in your parents’ backyard? That’s an option! Do you just want to have a picnic with your love and then meet up with family members later to celebrate? Go for it!

More Venue & Location Options

By trimming your guest list, you are more or less creating a situation where anything goes in terms of venue options. With larger weddings, there are a limited number of venues that can accommodate your guests so you often just have to pick the best option that’s available to you. With smaller weddings, you can start by thinking about what YOUR favorite places are. Do you want indoors? Outdoors? A restaurant? A park? A random spot along the lake? A family member’s house? A museum? You get it. Instead of having to start with the venue options and work backwards to determine which you like best, you get to start with what you love and create your day from there.

In choosing a smaller wedding, you also give yourself the option of doing a destination event. So if travel/culture is important to you, an intimate wedding is a great excuse to host your event in the location of your dreams!

More Relaxed, Quality Time with Your Guests

Most married couples you talk to will mention that their wedding day felt like a blur. With a large wedding, it can be difficult, if not impossible, to greet everyone in attendance, much less have a meaningful conversation with them. By having a small, intimate wedding, you are giving yourself the opportunity to slow down and truly take your wedding day in. You are giving yourself the chance to have robust and meaningful interactions with each and every guest in attendance. And you are giving yourself the chance to create and tuck away some truly cherished memories.

If you liked this post be sure to also check out these awesome small wedding venues in Chicago.

see more wedding planning resources here

Film photos scanned by The FIND Lab