One of the most challenging parts of planning a wedding is deciding who’s going to be invited and who’s not. If you’ve already started planning your wedding, you likely know that this is a difficult step. How do you even get started? How do you narrow your list down? What if you forget somebody?
There are some simple steps that can make this hard process a whole lot easier for you! Here are a few guidelines that can help you determine who should be on your guest list.
When you first begin making your guest list, start with the people that you absolutely KNOW need to be there. These are your non-negotiable family members and friends. This can include parents, other relatives, and close friends that aren’t in the wedding party. For simplicity’s sake, we’ll call this the “A List”.
Your “B List” will be people that you would love to have join you. This can include other friends and people from your community.
And finally, your “C List” will be people that you’d like to have there, but if you need to narrow the guest list down, they can be cut.
If you’re having trouble thinking of who to involve, let other people brainstorm with you! Be sure to have your fiancé involved when you’re making your guest list, of course, but if you need help from other people, reach out! Sometimes involving your mom, your fiancé’s mom, or your maid of honor can help you come up with some ideas of who to invite. While you don’t have to include every person they suggest, it can be a great way to get the ideas flowing.
Don’t try to do this all in one day! Give yourself some time, maybe even a couple weeks, to build your guest list just in case anyone else comes to mind. After all, the last thing you want is to finalize the guest list and realize you forgot someone important. So don’t rush this! Give yourself a little time to get everything sorted out.
One of the best ways to avoid this is to look through 3 potential lists of contacts: your Facebook friends, Instagram followers, and your contact list on your phone. Most, if not all, of your close friends and acquaintances will be found in these lists. If you don’t have them in your regular contacts, are you close enough to them to want them at your wedding?
In addition to the points I gave about creating prioritized lists, I have a few more helpful hints for how you can narrow your list down. You can cut out some of the following people:
– Plus-ones
While it’s a nice courtesy for your guests, you aren’t under any obligation to provide plus-ones. If there isn’t room, don’t feel guilty about it. Invite guests that you want there, ones you personally know!
– Long lost friends
It may sound great to get reacquainted with a childhood friend by inviting them to your wedding, but the truth of the matter is you probably won’t have time. Your wedding day is going to be very busy, and even if you do get to chat, it won’t be for long. If you haven’t talked in years, it’s best to find another opportunity to catch up.
– Relatives you hardly know
It is 100% okay to only invite relatives to your wedding that you’re close to. If you don’t know them well, don’t feel obligated to invite them.
– Coworkers you aren’t close to
Some of your coworkers may be your close friends- others, not so much. If you aren’t close to your coworkers and you’re inviting them just to be nice, but the guest list is tight, you don’t have to keep them on the list.
– Kids
Especially if the wedding isn’t going to be a kid-friendly environment, it’s okay to cut kids off the list. You may find that there are a lot of kids on your guest list that you aren’t close to at all. Don’t sweat this- it’ll also give Mom and Dad a chance to have a nice evening out!
I hope this has helped you determine who you want to be present at your special day! With these tips, you can create a guest list full of people you love that will make your wedding that much more memorable.
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