Creating a wedding guest list is no easy task! You might start with an optimistic plan to invite just your nearest and dearest friends and family and soon find out that your list is longer than you thought it would be. One way to downsize your guest list is to eliminate anybody who doesn’t have to be invited. Wondering who you can cross off your wedding guest list? Take a look at this:
Family members you don’t know
If you don’t know them or haven’t seen them in years, there is absolutely no obligation to invite them to your wedding! This goes for distant aunts, uncles and cousins, or simply those you don’t know very well or see very often. Your wedding day is a brilliant opportunity to celebrate with your friends and family, but it doesn’t need to be a family reunion.
MIA friends
There might be people in your world who you haven’t seen in years. Maybe you think that extending the invitation to your wedding will help to fix those relationships. But remember that between trying to say hello to all your guests, and finding time to celebrate with your new spouse, your Big Day isn’t the best opportunity to mend fences with a distant friend. You’ll be way too busy to rekindle a friendship.
Work mates
Just because you sit together and occasionally share a lunch break, doesn’t mean your work makes need to be at your wedding. This is particularly true for anybody who wants a much smaller wedding. If you want to celebrate your marriage with your work friends, how about having a work happy hour to celebrate at the pub!
People who invited you to their wedding
Oh the guilt-invite. Here’s someone you can cross off your wedding guest list: anybody you’re inviting only because they invited you to their wedding. Especially if it was years ago! There is absolutely no obligation to include people in your Big Day just because you were at theirs.
Neighbours
Sure, they might live close to you, but that’s no reason to invite them to your wedding. Unless you’ve become really close friends with your neighbours, don’t feel like they must be at the wedding. Perhaps you’re concerned that it would be awkward not to invite them? Find an opportunity to share with them that your wedding is going to be an intimate, family-only celebration.
Children
One way to downsize your guest list is to take all children off! It won’t go down well with everybody, but ultimately, you want the parents to have a fabulous night without having to worry about the children. Just break the news gently and kindly!
Plus ones you don’t know
You don’t need to give a plus one to anybody who isn’t in a committed relationship. And if they are, but you don’t know their partner, you don’t have to give them a plus one. The exception would be if it’s your bestie’s partner who lives in another country and the only reason you haven’t met is purely logistics!
Friends of parents
Tread gently, but don’t feel obligated to say yes to all requests from your parents or in-laws to invite their friends. Have open conversations with your parents (especially if they are making a financial contribution to your wedding) and set boundaries. For example, each set of parents can invite a set amount of guests.
