Same as with the other markets, the wedding industry suffered a massive loss due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 2020 saw a massive decline in the number of weddings held. 49 percent of weddings were lost last year. Similarly, spending was reduced to 20 percent from the average wedding spending in 2019.
Nonetheless, the wedding industry is slowly getting back on its feet — although not in the traditional sense. With COVID-19 restrictions still in place, many couples have decided to forgo their grand wedding plans and settle for a more intimate yet savvy one: micro-weddings.
What Is a Micro-wedding?
A micro-wedding is not a new concept. In fact, people have been practicing this for many years — it is just that it has not acquired a name back then. But just as a minimalist lifestyle attracts many people, especially from the younger generation cohorts, micro-weddings are a growing trend for modern couples.
Micro-weddings involve a small-scale ceremony and a reception that includes roughly 50 guests or less. It combines the traditions of a typical full-blown wedding ceremony with a minimalist twist. It is more intimate, sophisticated, and more often budget-friendly.
With the minimal number of guests invited, micro-weddings have flexibility when it comes to selecting venues. Because of its small nature, you may opt to celebrate your wedding in your backyard, on a mountaintop, or any other venue that suits your liking.
Micro-weddings vs. Elopement vs. Minimony: What’s the Difference?
There has been a growing volume of searches for the terms “micro-wedding,” “elopement,” and “minimony” during recent months. So what exactly are the differences in these COVID-19 wedding trends?
A micro-wedding is a planned small wedding event that essentially maintains the traditions of a full wedding. It is more intimate and involves a lesser number of guests.
Elopement, on the other hand, is also private. However, it is more often secretive. It is typically spontaneous and scaled back, with the event only involving exchanging vows in front of one or two witnesses. And just like micro-weddings, the ceremony can occur at a local courthouse, on a boat, or wherever the couples would prefer.
For couples opting to push for a grand wedding celebration once the COVID-19 pandemic dies down, they usually settle for a minimony. Though minimonies are quite similar to micro-weddings, the difference lies in that minimonies are just “mini ceremonies” to celebrate a more grand and larger wedding celebration later.
Countless couples chose to go with minimonies during the pandemic outbreak. It allows them to get married on their original, planned date while giving them an avenue for a larger celebration once it is safer.
Deciding whether to stick with the traditional ceremony or choosing any of these unconventional wedding trends is entirely up to you and your partner. While weighing down your options, here are some reasons why you should choose a micro-wedding celebration when getting married amid the pandemic.
Reasons to Have a Micro-wedding
1. More Intimate
A typical full-blown, large wedding involves 82 to 103 guests. But with micro-weddings, you only have around 20 people more or less in attendance. This means you can celebrate this major milestone with the closest people to your heart.
Unlike traditional weddings wherein you feel as if you have to dash from one guest to another, just so you could somehow “entertain” your guests, micro-weddings offer you an opportunity to have real, more intimate, and meaningful interactions with your guests.
2. Free You Some Budget
Just because it is “micro” doesn’t mean it is cheaper. Nonetheless, micro-weddings are considerably much less expensive than traditional, full-blown weddings. With a lesser number of guests, you can significantly knock down the price of your wedding celebration.
Rather than allocating the huge chunk of your wedding budget to 100-plus guests, you can spend more on things that truly matter. You could splurge on the quality of food for the reception, flowers, wedding dresses, buy a diamond wedding band that is fancier or save more money for the honeymoon.
3. Stress-Free
Planning a wedding can be stressful. But with a micro-wedding, you can somehow take some stress away. Since micro-weddings are “minimalist” versions of traditional weddings, you can choose whatever elements of the latter you want to incorporate.
You no longer have to worry about the logistics that come with larger weddings. There are fewer invites to send out, fewer questions to answer, fewer table favors and arrangements to deal with, and so on.
Plus, if you are naturally more introverted, you will feel more at ease knowing the handful of guests you have are those that you truly know.
Overall, micro-weddings are smaller, more intimate, and easier to manage than traditional ceremonies. Hopefully, with this article, you can properly plan out your 2021 wedding plans.