Mindful Wedding Ideas

Mindful Wedding Ideas

As a professional who’s been doing this for a looong time, here’s my take on a mindful approach to planning your wedding day.

As always, read with a grain of salt & trust that whatever resonates with you (or doesn’t) is a-okay. It’s your day to plan YOUR vision.

1. Intimate/Micro Wedding

If you’re wondering what makes a wedding micro, it’s having a guest count of typically 50 or less. When choosing to celebrate with a smaller group, it makes your day extra intentional. You’re able to have intimate one on one time with everyone, which is often unachievable when you have a larger guest count.

While it’s unintentional, the more guests you have—the less time you’re able to visit with every single one of them. Of course you want to spend quality time with all of them, but the fact is, it’s easier said than done with a lot of guests invited.

I understand intimacy is not a number. So if you’re having an intentional wedding with intimacy & slow moments as your focus, a wedding with more guests can feel intimate when planned accordingly. (See no.3)

2. Non Formal Bridal Party

You can still wrangle up your closest friends on your wedding day without having a formal bridal party. By ditching the formalities of this tradition, not only do you gain authentic time with your friends (rather than overdone prom-like lineups), you can do something y’all actually enjoy as a group. Like playing a game of cornhole/what-have-you or simply sharing a group toast followed by hugs.

This way, you’re having more genuine moments together & time to enjoy their company. Group/one-on-one photos can still happen, so consider shaking things up a little by ditching the formal stress. You’ll be stoked on the candid memories you’re able to have & capture.

3. Extended Cocktail Hour

Long gone are the days when you have to follow a rigid copy/paste wedding timeline. Consider extending the traditional hour of cocktails to 90 minutes. (Or even an added 15 minutes can do the job.) This allows for more time spent with your guests before dinner & reception activities begin.

If you’re keen on snagging some alone time for just the two of you, an extended cocktail hour offers you time to steal a moment alone for private drinks & appetizers. Then you can re-emerge to mingle with guests once you’ve had a nice breather.

4. Thoughtful Day-Of Timeline

Intentional buffer time will help slow things down so that you’re not rushing throughout the day. Believe me, time races by on your wedding day & the last thing you want is to feel like it’s slipping you by. Planning to have intentional buffer time will account for inevitable lateness & offer a breather in-between one thing to the next.

Examples: plan brief downtime between getting ready & the ceremony, account for time right after the ceremony & taking family photos, & space out your reception events. This will help you feel more present.