Why You Should Consider Planning A Secret Wedding

I just celebrated my 10^th wedding anniversary. It’s hard to believe it’s been a decade since that wonderful wintery day in February when we said ‘I do’ at Langdon Hall Country House Hotel & Spa. I’m often asked about my wedding and how it all went down. Make no mistake, I had the most magical, personal and amazing day, but it was anything but a huge, epic, OTT affair. Ultra-intimate and incredibly personal was our vibe. There were only two invited guests—my parents—and it was also a secret wedding as in nobody except a handful of people involved with it knew it was happening. We did it way before Justin and Hailey made it cool.

Why a secret wedding? It was totally us. We are a very on the DL couple and wanted our day to be exclusively ours. I also practice what I preach. Our motto at Weddingbells is you should have your day, your way, whatever that looks like for you. It’s your party, plan it the way you want it… you do you. If a private, under-the-radar wedding day is something you’ve thought about, here’s are five reasons why it may be a perfect choice for you.

Two words: low stress. Since there’s basically no guests to worry about, planning your day will be relatively easy. I still wanted all the elements of the day—a white dress, flowers, cake, photography, amazing venue and food—so that took a little organizing but fell into place quickly and easily.

You don’t have to wait long. I started planning in November and our wedding was in February. Once I secured my venue I was off and planning. The biggest part your secret wedding plan will be deciding your venue or destination and from there, it’s easy peasy.

There's greater budget control. If you opt for city hall and dinner at a favourite resto it’s obviously going to cost less than a luxury elopement destination affair. That’s the beauty of an intimate wedding—you can choose to save or splurge where you want to!

It’s ultra-romantic. In an age where privacy is an ever-shrinking luxury it’s a decadent choice to keep your day secretive and just for the two (or few) or you.

You’re attention shy. Make no mistake, a wedding is ALL about you and if one or both of you are not comfortable having the spotlight on you it can make for a very anxiety-inducing and emotionally turbulent day. When it's intimate and nobody knows about it, there’s no pressure and no problems.

If you do opt to go the secret route, the one thing you do have to be prepare for is there will be friends and family who will be disappointed they weren’t a part of your day. Hopefully most will be happy and want to celebrate the news with you over brunch, lunch, dinner or drinks. And for those who continue to voice their discontentment, remember it’s their issue, and not yours.