Pretty and Perfect Wedding ideas for intimate, tiny Weddings in Cornwall - Reasons why micro weddings are just as fun as big weddings

Planning a Micro wedding in Cornwall

It’s no secret that we are big fans of intimate weddings, as photographers, not only do they give us more space and scope to be creative and get some truly lovely portraits of all of your guests but there’s so many reasons why our couple’s love them too. As time’s move forward, and the idea of the traditional wedding template becomes a thing of the past, couples are personalising their weddings more and more to suit their personalities. With the Pandemic forcing people to limit their guest numbers, we saw a surge in ‘micro weddings’ - weddings with 30 people or less but one thing we’re absolutely delighted about, is pandemic or not, intimate weddings are here to stay!

So what are the pros of having an intimate wedding?

• You can do whatever the heck you want

  I feel like this is the big one. With larger weddings, there will always be restraints such as budget, keeping family members happy who want you to stick to traditions or the expectation of the typical wedding timeline (you know, ceremony followed by wedding breakfast, speeches and disco etc.) Of course nobody is saying you have to stick to that timeline for your big day but when you’ve got to shepherd 70+ guests between events and areas, there are always going to be some amount of restrictions and restraints. We consider a small wedding anything with under 40 guests but the fewer people involved, the more freedoms you have to get creative with your day. You only get married once so you can be as bold and wild as you like with your ideas - have a wedding day swim in the ocean, go wakeboarding in your wedding gear, have a candlelit dinner on a boat on the river… you’re only limited by your imagination (and budget!)

  Your wedding day is the day to live out your own personal fairytale and even if you’ve got children in tow, why not create the most romantic picnic in a meadow whilst wearing the prettiest outfits ever? (Just like Rich & Lowenna enjoying a French inspired picnic in the grounds of Pencarrow house & gardens.)

• Your money goes further

  Obviously every budget is different and people have different priorities about what they want to spend their money on, but we’ve attended micro weddings and elopements in Cornwall where couples passionate about food have used their budget to have an elaborate and delicious 8 course dinner or Lobster seafood banquet or a bride has elected to have a beautifully bespoke dress from her favourite dressmaker rather than an off the rail gown like Lowenna’s dreamy bespoke blush dotty tulle dress by Ailsa Munro dressmaker. Some couples have elected to hire a really unique venue that specialises in tiny weddings such as Treseren where they can accommodate their small number of guests for the duration of their wedding whilst still being at a venue that’s fully licensed for marriage. Whatever you want to do with your wedding budget is up to you but having an intimate wedding can sometimes mean not sacrificing the elements that are most important to you! (We had a small wedding and used a large portion of our budget to hire our favourite photographer and videographer as those elements were extremely important to us)

• Less Drama

  It’s true, there will always be a relative that will be offended by your choice to have a small wedding or elopement but let’s face it, if you’re the kind of person that likes to avoid as much drama as possible, it’s much easier to draw a line and say “Do you know what? This is about us and it’s just for us,” rather than trying to please aunts and uncles and before you know it, you’ve had to invite your great aunt’s cousin’s daughter’s boyfriend to keep the piece and that’s £50 a head spent on somebody you' don’t even recall. We’ve witness our fair share of wedding drama and it’s heartbreaking that something so special can get so political. Sometimes families need to remember that it’s not a day that’s about them so by putting up firm boundaries of ‘we’re just having our absolute immediate family’ or ‘it’s just us and our kids’ then there’s no way your great aunt can justify wangling an invite for cousin’s daughter’s boyfriend :P

Intimate weddings and elopements are the perfect option for introverted souls looking for something with less fuss, attention and formality. So many couples we work with tell us they hate being the centre of attention and with so many beautiful options available (especially in Cornwall) for small weddings, we really are spoiled for choice for a plethora of ways to have an intimate wedding.

Alternative ideas for a small wedding

One of the most popular choices for an intimate wedding that we see, are booking a country house venue like Treseren in Cornwall that come equipped with everything couple’s need for anything from an elopement to a wedding of 20 people. Renting a house, whether it’s a licensed venue like Treseren, or a beautiful property you’ve found on Air BnB, you can have all the grandeur and luxury of a large traditional chateaux or mansion style venue on a much smaller scale. Perfect for a super romantic wedding with a multiple course tasting menu or summer garden party.

Town Hall + Meal Wedding

This is a popular option we see at city weddings like En & Pedro’s but there’s no reason why it couldn’t work for a getaway wedding to Cornwall too. With some beautiful little spots like the St Ives Guildhall and an absolute plethora of incredible restaurants serving up delicacies made with local produce, you can easily build your own town hall wedding at one of Cornwall’s quaint little seaside towns.

A foodie restaurant wedding

Something new that we love and are seeing more of, is when you get some really unique destination restaurants such as the New Yard at Trelowarren where you also have the option to get married. For couples that are foodies and want something really stylish and atmospheric, a destination restaurant like The New Yard is not only licensed and serves up delicious food, but has an outdoor space for a really Mediterranean feel in the summer and extensive grounds for some dreamy photos of the two of you together.

An adventurous glamping wedding

Who doesn’t love the whimsy of glamping? It has all the beauty of camping with all the added comforts of a soft bed and pillow. From Shepherds huts to Tabernacles, traditional gypsy vardos and yurts… Cornwall is full of beautiful glamping spots and options for glamping weddings and elopements for couples that are really outdoorsy and love being as close as possible to nature. Some of our favourites that we’ve been to include Cornwall Tipi weddings and Frieda and the Moon and we’ve got a few more exciting glamping weddings booked in this year for our nature loving couples planning a more bohemian wedding surrounded by trees and the great outdoors. We find that Canopy and Stars can be a great resource for couples looking for inspiration for their outdoor glamping weddings. We’re pretty sure we’ve seen options for weddings in treehouses so… if you’re planning a Treehouse wedding, we’d be exceedingly up for that!

An island elopement

Did you know, we have beautiful white sandy beaches just fifteen miles off the coast of Cornwall? The isles of Scilly are a dreamy little destination with so many gorgeous views so if you love the appeal of an island getaway elopement with white sandy beaches, mild weather and colourful flora and fauna but don’t fancy the long-haul flight to the Caribbean or Seychelles, you might want to seriously start browsing the beautiful options available on this local island paradise. There’s even a few options for licensed wedding venues or you could say your vows on one of the archipelagos uninhabited islands such as Samson.

A pub garden wedding

Ok, here us out… I know what you’re thinking, a pub garden wedding?! But have you SEEN some of the pub gardens in the UK? Not only do some pubs do incredible food but they boast some of the most whimsical locations… on the riverside, on islands, on the beach… another great option for a really super relaxed fuss free party with none of the price tag of a big bougie wedding. You should really check out some spots like The Shipwrights on the Helford River which has it’s very own jetty so you can rock up on your boat. Eve and Greg had a beautiful, tiny wedding at their local pub in Old Basing which had the most beautiful location on the river surrounded by meadows and wild swimming spots.

An elopement on a boat

Ok… we don’t have any photographs to share of an example of a boat wedding but how fun would this be? How about eloping on a canal narrowboat and cruising along the Norfolk Broads or sailing along the various rivers and estuaries of Cornwall? There’s even options for boats where you can have a meal served to you so imagine sharing your first dance as you cruise along and perhaps stopping off on a secret quay for a moment or two. Again… if someone is planning a narrowboat wedding, we are your dudes for photos!

A Castle

Always dreamed of a fairytale wedding? Did you know there are loads of castles that cater to tiny weddings and even elopements like Pengersick castle in Cornwall where Hannah and Luke shared their alternative winter elopement. From follies and Rapunzel towers to national trust forts and seaside defences/ look outs like St Mawes and Pendennis. There’s even some quirky former monasteries with some serious chateau vibes like Place Manor on the Roseland or castle ruins which you could fill with flowers for the most perfect and whimsical tiny wedding.

We hope you’re feeling inspired with a few ideas for ways to have a tiny wedding in Cornwall. We’re always happy to help our couples with recommendations for actual venues, places to stay or eat when they book in with us and help them to plan a dreamy wedding just for them. We’ve worked with a fabulous team of local Cornish suppliers so we’re always on hand to help pair couples up with their perfect florist or hair and makeup artist to save them trawling through endless google listings. Planning an alternative intimate wedding can be overwhelming so we love to help where we can. This guide is just a very basic glance at some of the options available to couples but please do let us know if there’s any more in depth advice posts you’d love to see on our blog.

Happy wedding planning!

Big love,

Sarah & Jon x