Most weddings involve months of planning. Costs add up quickly. In fact, the average cost of a mid-sized wedding, with about 150 guests, was $30,000 as of 2018. While some couples see their wedding as a day to spare no expense (and that’s totally awesome) not everyone wants of a big wedding. 

There are plenty of reasons why… Some couples are more reclusive and private. Other couples have their hearts set on a venue that’s too small for huge crowds. 

Whatever their reasons, more couples are opting for smaller affairs, known as micro weddings.  ...(continued)

Why are more couples getting married by a friend? That’s the question asked by Rainesford Stauffer, a writer over at the Atlantic. This question is something that we have spent the last decade thinking about too. 

What Stafford found was that more couples were choosing online-ordained friends as their wedding officiants because marriages are becoming “‘deinstitutionalized.” 

Deinstitutionalized is a fancy way of saying that the way we think about marriage -- and the ceremonies that mark their beginning -- has become more fluid, flexible, and individualized. 

These days, weddings are a public statement about who you are as a couple. And what better way to personalize that statement of individuality than to have it made by someone who knows the couple?...(continued)

From the time that the procession begins until the recession is over and the couple have exited the building, you are the boss. Embracing this role will make or break the ceremony, which is why we put so much emphasis on planning EVERY SINGLE DETAIL!

As the wedding officiant, you are directing more than just the words and the emotions. You’re guiding the movement and flow of everything that is going on. 

During the ceremony you are scripting and directing “special moments” between the bride and groom, like the exchange of personalized vows, the ring exchange etc. It goes without saying that these moments make for some of the best wedding day pictures. 

That’s why it’s so important to have a plan. 

Here, we cover five ways that you can pretty much guarentee awesome wedding ceremony pictures.

 ...(continued)

Just over ten years ago, I did not believe in the institution of marriage, and I never planned on getting married. Now I have been married for eight years, and I am a wedding officiant who works with couples to plan and celebrate their marriage ceremonies. What caused such a paradigm shift in a relatively short amount of time? The short answer is my wife. The longer answer is what my wife and I did together to celebrate our love with our family and friends.

I grew up believing that marriage and love were two separate concepts. Almost every marriage within my family had ended in divorce, and most of the ex-spouses were completely out of the lives of their former partners. I knew love existed and could exist between two people, but I also thought that being married and being in a loving relationship were never the same thing. ...(continued)

Unless you’re planning on eloping, you’ll have to create a list of guests that you are inviting to your wedding. (First on that list, of course, is your officiant.) But it’s just a matter of coming up with a list of the people that you want to join you in celebrating your big day, right? 

Nope. 

Several factors -- from family obligations to venue capacity -- will complicate your guest lists. That’s why your good friends at AMM have come up with six steps -- and a couple tips -- to help you get a handle on this challenging task.  

1. Make the First Draft

When creating your guest list together, start by making your no-holds-barred, budget-be-damned version. This means drafting a list that you and your fiance(e) would invite if money and space were no issue. ...(continued)