How to Plan A Meaningful DIY Wedding
Elopement and Intimate Wedding Photographer
Most couples contact me because they know I am not only an adventure wedding photographer, but I also help plan elopements and small weddings. I don’t just walk through the basics. I also ask the questions needed to help create a meaningful celebration and wedding day. I’m your wedding planner! Most elopement photographers do not offer this level of detailed service!
Questions you should ask yourself when planning a meaningful wedding:
What do you prioritize in your relationship, life and daily activities and habits?
What is your vision for the future?
How can you specifically incorporate this vision into your wedding celebration?
When I work with couples, I ask these and MANY other meaningful questions. In addition, I personally guide each couple through a step-by-step process. With the onset of COVID-19 and the postponement or alteration of many wedding days, I want to share the top five things you can do to create a meaningful elopement or wedding day, regardless of the circumstances!
1. Ask Yourself What Matters Most
Couples often get overwhelmed when they start to plan their elopement or wedding, no matter the size! The first step in DIY elopement or wedding planning includes taking the time to discuss and write down what you value as a couple. This also includes determining your total budget! From there, you should decide each element you want to incorporate and the cost of each item. Whether you’re planning a local wedding or a destination elopement, this helps guide the process to find a photographer, videographer, venue, location, caterer and more.
Maybe you value experiences and people over things, such as rentals for your ceremony set-up or florals? Knowing that you want to spend money on the actual experience of travel and activities with the people you love rather than on a venue is key. Plus, understanding what you want in a wedding provides an answer when the people in your life ask why you aren't having a traditional wedding, with all the vendors. This blog post I wrote might help when it comes to remaining focused on what you value as a couple!
2. Hire the Right Wedding Vendors
Be smart about who you hire by understanding their expertise! If you're having an elopement wedding or small backyard wedding with less than 50 people, hire a wedding photographer who is more logistically minded and can walk you through important questions along with planning a timeline. It should be a collaborative effort! It’s the wedding photographer’s job to manage the timeline and activities on the day of your elopement or small wedding. When there are less than 50 guests, you don’t need to pay for a wedding planner!
I work with my clients to craft a timeline they feel comfortable with, factoring in the sunset, reception start time, portraits, special requests or other activities throughout the day. I even factor in vendor arrival and set-up times, with my wedding planning services!
I created a guide for planning elopements and small weddings broken down into 3, 6 and 9-month timelines with a checklist. I give this to each of my clients to help determine goals for each month and keep everything on track, minimizing stress!
3. Let Your Elopement or Destination Wedding Location Be the Statement and Decorations
Instead of renting wedding decorations, such as chairs, tables and ceremony backdrops, the actual location of the elopement or wedding can provide the decorations, reducing your overall costs. State and National Parks are great locations for ceremonies, with a small permit cost required! Both types of parks normally have a list of items allowed for wedding ceremonies. Be careful about following the guidelines to avoid any issues!
I always suggest using the money saved on decorations for a real wedding bouquet. Another suggestion is to use a rug from your home to stand on during the ceremony, if it fits your vision. There are a lot of ways to incorporate your personality into a location!
Peter and Emily rented an amazing secluded West Texas Airbnb and put their money into the rentals, catering and decorations. They placed value on the people in their lives attending over a costly wedding venue that didn’t feel like them. You can read about their day and see all the details here!
There are plenty of Airbnb’s or Vrbo’s that you can rent to host a small reception or dinner after a ceremony. Carefully read the description and regulations to ensure you can host an event at the rental property. I also have a few other resources up my sleeve that I share with clients!
4. Incorporate Meaningful Items
This might be the most important factor in planning a DIY wedding! Utilize items from your parents’ or friends’ houses on your wedding day! If you have mugs you use every Saturday to drink coffee or tea together in your home, use them during the reception! I love how Josh and Ashley incorporated personal items into their elopement day, which you can view here! Use a favorite piece of art or wall hanging as a backdrop for your wedding ceremony or reception. These simple touches not only save money but add your personal style and story to your wedding day! Who wants a cookie-cutter wedding anyways?
If you feel like you need additional items for decor, I often personally help couples create a mood board with my wedding planning services and find personal items to incorporate. Here are some affordable wedding decoration ideas you can reference for inspiration! If you’re creative and like DIY projects, there are plenty of ways you can take IKEA or thrifted items and personalize them for your day.
If you or someone you know is good at arranging flowers, I recommend buying your flowers from Peal Driven to assemble yourself! Blushing Blooms Creative is also an expert when it comes to florals for elopements and small weddings!
5. Delegate to Family and Friends
Finally, do you have an aunt or close friend that’s organized, artistic or even an event planner? I recommend asking those people to help you create unique items for your backyard wedding. When you ask people to create items or help throughout the day, it also allows people to feel included in your special day. It’s a community effort!
So now you’re thinking, “This is all great but I still feel overwhelmed!” There are countless times I hear from couples that they originally wanted to elope but started planning a traditional wedding due to outside pressure. In the end, they select a small intimate wedding as a happy medium. I would love to guide you with small wedding ideas as we work together to plan a meaningful celebration. Whether you choose me to help plan your wedding day or not, I encourage you to check out my Elopement and Wedding Guidebooks! It’s a great way to start and covers important questions to empower you to create a day true to you!
Plan Your DIY Elopement or Small Wedding with a Professional Guide, Planner and Photographer
Thinking about planning an elopement or intimate destination wedding? I’m a guide and adventure wedding photographer dedicated to helping couples plan a unique experience and wedding day, stateside or abroad! I work with vendors like Hereafter Films and Blushing Blooms Creative to offer an entire experience with like-minded vendors. Together we put the couple and your experience first! Contact me to start planning your dream celebration!