This week sees the start of the minimony at Party Squared. Several of my clients due to have their wedding in the next few months have chosen to proceed with a very small wedding ceremony, with the intention on holding a sequel wedding next year for their full guest list. Their minimony, held on their original wedding date either at their wedding venue an outdoor location, includes a very select number of VIP guests with social distancing measures in place.
Read more about micro weddings here.
Photo credit: The Edges Wedding Photography via Martha Stewart Weddings
Most of my couples going down this route are keeping the same decor for both the minimony and the sequel ceremony but some have asked for inspiration so I thought it might be helpful to share a few ideas on ways to decorate a minimony so it feels like the wedding you planned and more.
Searching Pinterest inspiration is a good start. You could try searching; small wedding ideas, micro wedding decor, small wedding decor and decorating small weddings or stylish outdoor wedding, romantic intimate wedding ceremonies and modern wedding ceremony decor.
Read more about using Pinterest when styling your wedding here.
One advantage of having a smaller wedding and a smaller guest list means you have more options for where you can hold your ceremony. You aren't limited to larger spaces that hold hundreds of guests. Pick somewhere special, meaningful, beautiful and unique. It'll make the celebrations even more special.
Whether your chosen decor is flowers, candle light, festoon lighting or furniture hire, make sure that you choose decor to suit and enhance your venue rather than trying to cover or disguise the bits you aren't so keen on. If you want to cover a wall behind where the ceremony is being held, consider how you could reorganise the room to have your more preferred backdrop behind you. It could be as simple a job as re-arranging the registrar's table and direction of the chairs. You don't always have to spend thousands on decor to get the effect you are looking for.
That said, if you are of the go big or go home mindset, the way you decorate your ceremony could be very important to you. You might want something completely unique to your wedding ceremony or may have been dreaming about including a statement hanging floral installation above your heads. If you have a venue with a tall ceiling this would look amazing, but it would eat heavy into your wedding budget, so something along the same lines, but could be slightly more affordable is a circular backdrop arch part decorated with flowers behind you and the registrar, celebrant or officiant will suit a stylish wedding in a small boutique hotel and alternative venues such as pubs or tipis.
Modern and alternative weddings with metal frames and neon signs are a popular way to decorate and personalise a wedding ceremony, particularly if you buy a custom-made piece including your surname which you could display at home after your special day.
Romantic stone barn venues, castles and tipis which are sometimes darker will suit atmospheric lighting in the form of candlelit ceremonies. Some venues also offer twilight ceremonies held later in the day, which when correctly lit with lots of flickering candles are so romantic and cosy.
Church fronts have traditionally always been decorated with floral arches, pedestal arrangements or churns with floral displays. Flowered church arches are absolutely stunning and flower heavy. They are custom made for each church door arch and so as you can appreciate, they aren't for weddings with a tight budget.
A simple way to make your wedding different to others at your venue is to do things differently to other couples. Change the location of the ceremony, move the furniture around, walk in a different entrance so your guests get a different view or upgrade the venue seating for something a little more luxe than the standard venue chairs.
Lastly, it would be really special to keep decor paired back, simple yet personalised. Choose some elegant aisle marker lanterns and place them either side of the walkway, or either side of where you will stand during the ceremony. Include a sign to let your VIPs know how pleased you are that they can share this unique and special day with you. The guests you invite to your minimony are the most important people in your world. Make them feel like A listers by focusing on elaborate detailing. You could personalise their order of service, reserve seating with beautiful hand lettered place cards or create a minimony seating plan especially for the service. For weddings held outdoors, think of the ways to prepare for all eventualities; monogramed hankies for happy tears, laser cut fans, white umbrellas or paper parasols and sun hats for each guest.
I hope I have been able to paint a visual picture of these ideas for you and that they help spark inspiration and creative styling. If you prefer to look at images, I know I do, then head to my Pinterest profile. My profile is full of inspiration wedding decor and styling boards, styled shoots and desirable wedding decor.
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