The future of (mini, micro) weddings….do we need to rethink?

See, the way I see it, the most important part of a wedding is very much that….the wedding bit! But with all that has gone on for the past 10 months or so, mini and micro weddings have become a thing for those who really wanted to just go ahead and do the deed. And more power to them! I get it. Absolutely. The mini and micro weddings I have shot….when I have been able to….have been absolutely fantastic. Intimate, special, fun and all the joy of a “normal” wedding in a compact and bijou package.

Vintage inspired Mini wedding at the awesome and beautiful Boxted Hall, Suffolk back in September. Dress by Needle and Thread, Flowers by Bracken and Twine, Hair and Make Up by Flamingo Amy, Rings by Michelle Oh

But obviously, I have had a LOT of my couples have to rearrange their dates too. This has been taken out of their hands and understandably not wanting to do the mini or micro wedding and hold out for the day they planned, they have held on, rearranged, replanned, rescheduled…..anything they can do to try and hang on to the idea of what they want their wedding day to be. And this is also absolutely legitimate. I also get that too. Completely. And my heart goes out to them.

But with the great news that there might be a knight in shining armour on the horizon in the form of a vaccine, where does it leave plans for those who were planning on mini and micro weddings?

Well, from my point of view….anywhere a couple wants!

If we are allowed, at any point, to get back to some kind of normality, lockdown rules will hopefully be relaxed to a point where numbers larger than 15 or 30 will be permitted, which means those who originally had a “normal” wedding day planned then decided to downsize, plan a mini or micro wedding and go ahead anyway, have a choice. And what a place to be!

Get married anyway, go ahead be done OR you can now go back to original plans but decide when to do it.

What are the pitfalls in this?

Well, the wedding industry as a whole has been turned upside down. Every supplier from venues to stationary makers have had their diaries utterly ripped up due to trying to accommodate their couples who have had to move dates, who have cancelled, fit in those who have changed dates or have decided to go ahead anyway and so on. And that isn’t a complaint on the wedding industry’s part. Not at all. Almost to a person, everyone involved in making couples weddings be the best day they have ever had has gone out of their way to accommodate their couples in this horrible time for them. The stress of not being able to have the wedding you want, or rearrange the wedding to get it done must be horrendous and I for one don’t know of anyone who hasn’t gone the extra mile to make their couples lives as stress free as possible.

But that goes with the consequence that the suppliers themselves now will be overwhelmed with fitting people in and all the logistics come from it. We have all had to adapt and on the whole, suppliers I know have done an AWESOME job in doing this and there hasn’t been a single complaint.

Sadly, the knock on effect of this is that couples who do want to now get their wedding sorted, to couples who DID rearrange but now want to change again because of that light at the end of the tunnel or the influx of lockdown reality from couples who have made the decision to get married because life is too short…..it’s going to be a waiting game while the venues, suppliers, registrars and so on clear the backlog that has inevitably risen from this.

Is this doom and gloom?

Not at all! If anything, there are big positives in this.

Firstly, if you are newly engaged and you’re thinking of getting married and this is your first foray into organising your wedding, it’s good. It means you have time. It means you can plan the day you want. It means that if you play your cards right, you will have a dearth of venues, suppliers and the like who are clamouring to help you have the day you want. It gives space to breathe, think about what it is and who it is you want, where and whether you can get it booked for a reasonable time.

Secondly, weddings will still be going ahead. Nothing is cancelled. Those that are now booked will remain booked and there should now much fewer (or much reduced in numbers anyway) postponements, rearrangements, fear and stress for the couple that their day isn’t going ahead etc. Life can move forward just that little bit more……with the appropriate caution of course!

Thirdly, you now have an option. What lockdown has shown us is that mini and micro weddings are a viable and equally joyous and fun option for your wedding. What’s more, if budget is tight or you want to make more of a stamp on your own wedding, these mini and micro weddings are a perfect opportunity to really make it unique to you. Example is the image above and Morwenna and David’s wedding at Boxted Hall, Suffolk. A restricted to 30 people wedding where the ceremony itself was a 20 minute registry office affair with them and parents in attendance, then meet up with everyone else later for the celebrations. Tradition went out of the window and for those who like that kind of thing, it was all the better for it! A quick vow giving ceremony under a tree, an old German tradition of log sawing, tying ribbons to trees and a completely outdoor, socially distanced celebration afterwards with the nearest and dearest. It was a total joy.

Here is another example of a 30 people restricted vintage inspired (1920’s) wedding that I shot that same weekend that was very much a unique day. Charli and Rob’s wedding at the University Arms Hotel in Cambridge was slightly different as their plans were scuppered and rearranged and reformed so many times, but even they themselves said that it turned out to be just the best day ever. It was an all day affair, but all precautions were put in place for social distancing and the day went ahead as it would have done as a traditional, all day affair, but very much within the guidelines set out. And it was an absolute triumph!

1920’s inspired socially distance and restricted wedding at the University Arms Hotel, Cambridge. SO much fun! Dress by Eliza Jane Howell, Shoes by Louisa Shoes, Hairpiece by Liberty in Love, Flowers by Wild Frost Cafe, Hair by Thairapy, Ring was vintage 1920’s antique from Antique Jewellery Company,

The point is, because this was nowhere near what Charli and Rob had planned in their original arrangements, they made the day their own. Everyone chipped in, it was a heck of a journey to get there, but it was worth every second.

Agnes and Nick did it the other way around and went ahead anyway, but literally had the most micro of micro weddings possible. One set of parents only at a registry office, then a photo shoot in and around Great Yarmouth to capture the day afterwards for a couple of hours. And what a whole heap of fun it was too! Arcades, beach, pier and even a quick go on a rollercoaster, it really encapsulated them….just them….and what their day meant to them.

Agnes and Nick’s DIY micro wedding in Great Yarmouth. What a lot of fun! So DIY, everything was bought or designed by them! Hat was by H&M, Shoes by Dr. Martens, Flowers by the Artisan Dried Flower Company, hair and make up by Agnes herself as the MUA cancelled the day before!

So let’s sum this up. Weddings will be happening. HURRAH!!!

How they go ahead is part down to couples and how they want to do things, when they can do them and what kind of wedding they want.

And the beauty right now, if all things go to plan and we are given the green light to get things back on track in the next few months, is that all couples now have choice. And we all have to be thankful for that, right? Your choice…..I am so looking forward to hearing what you all have planned and I would LOVE to be part of it! If you like what you see, have read and would like someone to capture the laughter, fun and all the moments of a wedding with a slight sideways glance and a different point of view, do get in touch. I would love to hear from you!