Completing the guest list of your upcoming wedding could be the most stressful part of the whole wedding planning process. Does your third cousin, who you haven’t seen in 10 years, get an invite, or should that place go to your favorite bartender? Maybe both of them should get an invite? If so, can they bring a plus one? Maybe you should just not invite either one of them and keep it in the immediate family?
These are normal questions each couple asks themselves while curating their wedding guest list. But a lot of these specific questions can be mitigated by choosing beforehand to have a small wedding or a large one.
Choosing one or the other can be potentially daunting, so hopefully we’re here to help. So, without beating around the bush anymore, here are some pros and cons of each.
Small Wedding
Pro: It’s way more personal. A smaller guest list means you have more time to share in the moment with the ones you love the most. Instead of saying “Hi” to a guest and walking away, never to speak to them again for the rest of the evening, you can sit down with them, have a drink, catch up, share in the revelry of the moment.
Con: You won’t please everyone. And that’s OK. With a smaller guest list, you may not be able to invite those family friends your parents really wanted to be there. So, expect some pushback and some hurt feelings when you cut a guest list. But, hey it’s your wedding, so you do you!
Pro: You’ll save some dough. This one is pretty obvious, but we’d be remiss if we didn’t mention it. Smaller weddings mean you have to feed and drink less people (and, yes, “feed and drink” is a collective verb), ergo, you save some cash. So, if you’re looking to go on a sweet, sweet honeymoon, this may be the way to have additional funds for just that.
Con: You can potentially lose out on a “party.” More people sometimes equates to more fun. The dance floor will fill more crowded and electric, and just the general buzz is enhanced with more bodies around. If you’re cool with have a chill event, then small is the way to go. If you want to throw down, you may want to reconsider.
Big Wedding
Pro: Everyone is happy. With a large wedding, you don’t have to worry about hurting anyone’s feelings. You neighbor’s kid? Sure! Bring ‘em on! We’re only kidding, to an extent, but the larger the guest list, the more inclusive you can be. Your parents’ friends will be stoked.
Con: Planning is tougher. With more people comes more logistics. It means the caterer will have to accommodate a certain number of people and you’ll have to choose your venue based on space size. So planning not only becomes more expensive, but also more limited to what you can do and where you can do it.
Pro: Gifts? If you’re into that sort of thing, this could be considered a pro. Mo’ people, mo’ gifts. It’s simple math, really. Also, you can high five your high school bestie and hope they got you that Vitamix you’ve been wanting.
Con: It’s less relaxed. Big weddings can feel like work if you’re the bride and groom, with a perceived obligation to say “Hi” to everyone in the room. You may lose a little personal enjoyment at the expense of your large guest list, but if you’re looking to surround yourself with a bunch of happy people, then we say go for it!
There are no cons when it comes to good wedding music! At Nice Entertainment, we really love making any wedding -- large or small -- as awesome as it should be. Drop us a line to see how we can make your event memorable!
(The top image used in this blog was created by Smart, take a look at their list of wedding photography tricks.)
