The impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the wedding industry meant that soon to be married couples didn’t really have much of a choice but keep their wedding guest lists short and sweet during the last two years or so.
After celebrating the start of another New Year in a more positive light, however, hosting an intimate wedding means something very different during 2022.
Intimate weddings are officially in and, as Seasoned details, hosting a smaller celebration makes perfect sense for so many reasons:
“More and more couples are now taking the less traditional approach and wanting a more intimate wedding with just a select guest list full of close friends and immediate family. Most couples are planning weddings with 50 or fewer guests. Not to mention it’s a great way to save the bank account and this is one of the main reasons couples are opting for an intimate wedding. Money saved here can go towards luxurious honeymoons or saving to buy a house.”
There are many more perks that go hand-in-hand with intimate wedding ceremonies and receptions. Wedding planning is also made easier when catering for fewer guests, yet there’s one challenge that many couples struggle with during their quest for a more low-key and personal big day.
Here we share our tips for crafting a guest list to match your intimate wedding ambitions and how not to offend people in the process!
Be honest about your decision – and stick with it!
Transparency is the key to cutting your guest list without any disagreements. Share your reasons for hosting an intimate wedding with everyone you know – and everyone who thinks that they could potentially have made it on your wedding guest list – from an early stage.
The vast majority of people will understand and support your decision to host the big day you want. If you are greeted by hurt feelings and resistance, commiserate but don’t change your wedding plans. Stick to your guns, it’s your wedding day!
By being open and honest about your intentions, a lack of wedding invite won’t come as too much of a shock to those who don’t make the cut.
Layout some ground rules for guest listing
Before you start working on your scaled back guest list with your bride- or groom-to-be, come up with some ground rules to make the guest listing simple for you both and fair for everyone involved.
Your rule could be to do away with plus-ones, only invite immediate family, stick with inviting first cousins if you’re extending your guest list beyond this, or leave out friends of friends or family members to keep your guest list as intimate as it needs to be.
Be picky about your guests’ plus ones
Including plus ones is your preference, whether you’re hosting an intimate weekday wedding or a low key wedding weekender.
To achieve an intimate guest list, however, you don’t have to rule out plus ones completely. If there are plus ones you want to invite and those you don’t, devise a rule of thumb for this too.
Your decision to invite selected plus ones could be based on your relationship with the plus one in question or the length of your guests’ relationships with their respective partners.
Celebrate with everyone a little differently
To include everyone in your wedding journey, why not consider celebrating with all your family and friends a little differently before the big day itself?
Your engagement party or even your first wedding anniversary celebration are both ideal times to extend your guest list and mark your union more affordably with those who missed out on an invite to your wedding.
As an official #extramilevenue, we offer the perfect setting and service for weddings of all styles and sizes. Tick a very important to-do off your wedding planning checklist by booking a viewing at Holmewood Hall today.
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FAQs
How to Limit Your Wedding Guest List Easily
- Separate Guests into Multiple Lists. Segment your guest list into smaller lists. ...
- Look into the Future. ...
- Limit Guests to Adults Only. ...
- Eliminate Extra Guests. ...
- Don't Return the Favor. ...
- Skip the Coworkers. ...
- Be Careful Asking for Help. ...
- Allocate A Number to Each Person.
How to Limit Your Wedding Guest List Without Hurting Peoples'...
- Only invite those closest to you. When you think about your wedding day, who do you picture being there? ...
- Segment your guest list. ...
- Don't allow people to bring dates. ...
- Limit children. ...
- Don't invite people from work. ...
- In short…
Be as specific as you need to. The more vague the addressing is the more questions you could raise. They can rsvp for 1,2,or3 guests but they cannot bring 4 of 3 guests are their are only 3 seats. WE HAVE SAVED ____ SEATS IN YOUR HONOR.
How do you politely say no extra guests? ›
Unfortunately, we're on a tight budget and have limited space, so we simply can't afford for all of our lovely guests to bring a guest of their own. Plus ones are therefore by invitation only and we ask other guests to please not bring a plus one. Thank you so much for understanding!”
Should wedding guest lists be even? ›
Traditionally, no matter who's paying for your event, you should split your wedding guest list into three parts: one-third are guests of the bride's parents, one-third are guests of the groom's, and the rest are guests of the couple.
What percentage of guest list comes to a wedding? ›
How many guests can I expect to show up? Typically 75-85% of local guests attend weddings. But you can expect less attendance from out-of-town guests or if you're planning a destination wedding. Some couples will plan for this and increase their guest list by about 10% - 20%.
How do you politely say guests are limited on RSVP? ›
"Unfortunately our venue has really limited capacity so we've had to really scale back our guest list." "We're so sorry but we just don't have the space in our venue to accommodate plus ones/children etc." "The venue we fell in love with has a max capacity of [NUMBER], so we're really limited on who we can invite."
How to have a small wedding without upsetting people? ›
To reduce the number of guests, you can have a child-free ceremony, invite-only the older members of your family, your most dear friends, and only invite the partners of guests in long-term relationships. Avoid inviting all your acquaintances like work colleagues, neighbors, or all those you don't have a close bond.
How to have a small wedding without hurting people's feelings? ›
Consider the Venue: One of the easiest ways to naturally cut your guest list is to pick a very small venue. If you're limited by the venue to 20 people it will be easy to explain to uninvited guests. "I've always dreamed of a wedding in this spot but they only accommodate 25 people".
How do you say the guest list is limited? ›
We're limiting our guest list to immediate family members and close friends, but we'd love to catch up with you after the wedding. It's great to be in touch again! Due to our venue capacity, we have a small guest list, but we really appreciate your well wishes.
So You Weren't Invited—Here's How to Not Spiral (or Crash the...
- Step 1: Enjoy this sweet, sweet validation. ...
- Step 2: Consider why you're actually upset. ...
- Step 3: Call out those mean voices in your head. ...
- Step 4: Give these friends a quick lil eval. ...
- Step 5: Do something nice for yourself.
4 Phrases when Space is Limited
- “Due to limited venue space, adults only please.”
- “We have reserved [X] seats in your honor.” – add this to the RSVP card.
- “Although we love your children, we regretfully cannot accommodate them at the venue due to restricted numbers.”
Ask the individual to speak with you in private. Don't kick someone out in front of the other party guests. Say something like, "I'm really sorry, but I'm just not comfortable with you being here. I think it would be best for everyone if you left."
Is it rude to not give a plus one for a wedding? ›
If you can afford it, sure, include a plus-one for all of your guests. But if not, some of your guests will probably be receiving solo invites, and that's OK! Don't beat yourself up for leaving any of the following people off your plus-one list: New couples or those who are casually dating.
Can you bring a friend as a plus one to a wedding? ›
If you're determined to not attend solo, it's recommended that you consider bringing a good friend as opposed to a romantic interest. But Swann says there is a benefit to going alone. If you're willing to socialize, new connections can be made with guests in the same boat as you.
How do I remove a guest from my wedding wire seating chart? ›
Hover over 'Planning Tools' and click 'Guest List' Click the name of the event you wish to remove a guest from. Find the guest you wish to remove and click the box to the left of their name. Click 'Remove' in the toolbar that appears.
Can you remove someone from your wedding party? ›
Yes, you can do this. It goes against etiquette, but you can revoke someone's role in your wedding party. For instance, if you realized that you don't know them enough, you can have an open discussion with them and tell them that you would like your wedding party to be comprised of intimate friends.
How do you exclude family members from a wedding? ›
Regardless of the kinship you have with your family, this will often feel uncomfortable. What you can say to them: “As much as we would love to have everyone we know at our big day, our venue has a capacity and unfortunately, we cannot invite everyone and are unable to have you attend. I hope you can understand.”
How do you limit guests on RSVP? ›
Immediately after the RSVP date, include the following: “We have reserved ____ seats in your honor” instead of an open line as “____ number of guests attending“. You'll fill in the blank space with a number (the number of guests you are inviting).
