The outbreak of coronavirus utterly affected the way we live, interact and socialize. Consequently, the way of planning your wedding in covid times changed a lot. This has meant for most of us to give up our events,  and for many couples of spouses to be obliged to postpone their wedding ceremonies.  While this is certainly an extraordinary moment with no simple solution, we’d like to help you look at other options for not to giving up the dream of getting married, despite restrictions due to ongoing the pandemic.

How covid has changed the traditional wedding format ?

The ongoing pandemic has changed the wedding industry, and in such a way, it might even have enhanced it. More generally, the health crisis has transformed the way to get married, forcing couples to avoid planning huge celebrations and breaking with wedding traditions. Many couples are shifting to affordable alternatives to big parties,  avoiding  reception halls and choosing to wed in a more personal way, with closest guests. As a result, more intimate and meaningful weddings are rising at the expense of mass-produced events. 

Wedding Trends for 2021

If nothing else, the threats of 2020 put a spotlight on the important things in life. And when it comes to wedding industry, ceremonies become more and more focused on the substance of the event and the two people joining their lives together. The trend is simple: quality over quantity, from food to design and guest list. To keep everyone safe, as a natural reaction to the social distancing restrictions, weddings on a small scale and outdoor ceremonies  are becoming hugely popular nowadays. With intimate gatherings, spouses are given more flexibility to plan for more customed, unique and immersive wedding events. Let’s take a look at this popular new twists on a wedding ceremony.

Micro-wedding

Millions of couples who had to postpone their weddings are choosing to plan the big day but on a small scale, opting for a “micro-wedding”, that is essentially a smaller version of a regular wedding usually open to a maximum of 50 guests.  It is chosen by couples who want to share the most important day of their life with the closest family and friends, planning it in a more stylish way.  The goal is simply intimacy and sincere emotions.  Fewer guests means more meaningful interactions with attendants and also more personal touches, like a non-traditional colour dress or particular entertainment, like fire dancers or interactive theater! However, just because it’s small affair doesn’t mean you can’t go big! As couples have cut numbers they can splurge on extras be it a fabulous entertainment, an international destination, or a gourmet meal. Often infact, micro-weddings can turn into a true luxury event, organized in unique venues, where to spend a small holiday with your nearest and deares.

Minimony

Along the same lines as a micro-wedding, a minimony is also designed to downsize your budget and guest count, for couples who are rethinking their marriage while following social distancing rules due to Covid pandemic. Like its name suggests, a minimony is exactly that, a small intimate wedding ceremony helds in a more personal way, with  family and super-close friends only, but is quite different from a micro-wedding. A minimony is  essentially a small-scale commitment ceremony with a  guest list around 20 or fewer. It celebrates a couples’ planned wedding date and most often it can be seen  as a “predecessor” to a bigger and more traditional wedding ceremony on a later date.  A minimony is a mini wedding celebration, often with an unusual and personal twist. You could keep things casual with a small garden party in your  backyard, homemade food instead of a catered meal,  and small arrangements from your local florist. 

Elopements

If ever there was an excuse to elope, 2021 is it! An elopement has always been a fair alternative to a big wedding. Like a micro wedding, an elopement is something intimate, stylish and  customize in each detail. As the name suggests, “elope” means run away secretly in order to get married.  It refers to all those marriages organized in no time, sometimes in great secrecy, in unusual places,as in a real love escape. They can be exotic places,  locations immersed in nature, or wherever  that  reflect the personality of the spouses. Elopement is conceived as a private marriage with the spouses surrounded only by people with whom they you have a special bond,  with no more than 10 attendants.Elopingis about creating an experience that’s more personal and focused on the spouses, rather than on the pressure of reception, guests and traditions.  And if you travel abroad to elope, then you get marriage and honeymoon in one! 

Outdoors ceremonies

In 2021 and moving forward, outdoor weddings will be in vogue as they are safer for guests and vendors. Moreover the coming summer with its mild temperature and the gradual easing of restrictions means we can expect weddings with more guests and at low risk. Keeping celebrations outside means having a lot of space to host their guests, respecting the social-distance guidances. It also allows spouses to customize their big day with unlimited style choices, offering a blank canvas for event design, cause nothing beats a natural scenario with plenty of sunshine or moonlight. Today more and more couples are more likely to celebrate their wedding into nature, “en plein air” in ways they haven’t experienced in the past! Barns and farms are some of the most popular wedding location options, as well as open fields, forests or courtyards  filled with candles, special seating areas, overall greenery and flowers, are all incredibly romantic settings. From olive groves to pristine beaches and lush urban gardens,  outdoors wedding provide an unbeatable backdrop that will take your special day to the next level.

Conclusions

This year, even those who dreamed of a big wedding find themselves considering the benefits of the alternative.  With a microwedding or minimony, you’ll be able to focus on spending quality time with each and every loved one at your event. A microwedding or an elopement, being a reflection of you as a couple, it’s a great way to remember your wedding day in a way that was truly yours. A smaller wedding allows you to be more flexible, as it will be easier to coordinate,  and more creative too.  When the storm of pandemic passes, will people still appreciate the value of smaller, intimate wedding or there will be a hunger for big parties?