Hey everyone and happy Saturday! Today I thought I would come on and give some reasons on why you should consider eloping if you are getting married. I feel like I'm writing this blog post at the perfect time because of the pandemic that is currently taking over the world. So many people are having to either cancel or postpone their weddings! This is just so heartbreaking and I couldn't have imagined having to wait to get married. With the high guest counts and family having to come from other states, traditional weddings are put on hold. That's why I thought I would talk about eloping as an option!
First off, what is eloping? Many people and perhaps your parents or grandparents may think that eloping is where you secretly run away and get married without people knowing. While that may have been the case in the past, eloping is taking on a whole new meaning these days. It's even trending! Eloping nowadays is where you and about 20 of the closest people to you in your life gather together to celebrate you two becoming one. It can also just be the two of you if you wish! Whether this be in your grandparent's backyard or on a mountaintop in another state or country (adventure elopements), you can pick somewhere meaningful to you to celebrate your love and get married! Let's get into the reasons why you might think about doing this!
Reason #1) You have the closest people in your life there to witness and celebrate you! Usually traditional weddings have guest counts of 100+ people. So as you plan your wedding, you have to accommodate all those guests, providing them with enough food, cake, places to sit, tables, etc. And unless you have a ton of very close friends, how many of these people are you actually super close to? Do you want someone you have talked to a handful of times to be present in the most important moment of your life? It just makes sense to have the people who you care about most to be there. This also makes getting married alot cheaper!
One thing a lot of people misconstrue is that they think you can't bring family on your elopement. But you absolutely can! They can have a part of your adventure! For example, the image above (and the images in this blog post) are from my best friend's elopement. They eloped on the Oregon Coast and they had their parents and their grandparents come along! They got to share all the same important moments together as if they had a traditional wedding. First look with your dad, having your parents walk you down the aisle, watching your grandparents constantly wiping tears from their eyes as they watch you say I do... they are able to be a part of your day!
Reason #2) Get married in a place that is meaningful to you. For my best friend's elopement, they chose go elope on the Oregon coast. They have taken many trips here and this is one of their favorite places to be! So they chose here! But who wouldn't want to get married on a beach with the sand in between your toes and the blue waves crashing around you? But you can also get married in your grandparent's backyard for example, where you spent your childhood running through the fields and flowers. Where ever is meaningful to you, make it the place you get married at.
Also, if you choose to go to a tropical place, you can also turn it into an extended honeymoon. You are already going to be there and you started off your marriage with an adventure! You can also find a secluded place that no one really goes to and make that your little ceremony spot, where there are no interruptions from other people and all you have are eachother and gorgeous views. There's nothing more meaningful than it being you and the love of your life, without all the extras that come with a traditional wedding.
Reason #3) Make your day the way you want it to be. Not based off a checklist. If you want to wear hiking boots, go for it! If you want to be a barefoot bride and walk with no shoes in the sand, do it! If you want to wear a hiking backpack because you love exploring and hiking on your wedding day, guess what? You can! Make your wedding day memorable! If you want to go on a hike after your ceremony and watch the sunset, it's not impossible! This is all exactly what my best friend Miki did! Don't do things that you'll regret and later be saying, I wish I could have done something like that, or I can't wait for this wedding planning to be over. The only person holding you back is yourself!
These are some reasons why I personally love elopements. The element of adventure and exploring new things together and having a wedding about you sounds like a dream! Miki said it best, but: "Let's make weddings about love again."
For Miki's viewpoint from her elopement, check out her blog post here that has her own experience behind eloping, and why it's a great option to consider.
If you want to see more from these two's day, here's a link to their blog post!
Where is your dream elopement location? Let me know down below in the comments!
