Deciding who makes the cut on your wedding guest list can be a tough task to tackle. How do you make the decision regarding who needs to be there on your special day and whose feelings will be hurt if you do not invite them? While the process is not easy, there are a few simple techniques that you can use in order to use logical sense rather than emotion when deciding who does and does not receive an invite to your wedding.
Look at Wedding Locations
Before you even tackle the guest list, it is a good idea to look at various wedding locations. If you do not already have a dream destination in mind, you might find one that you fall in love with during your travels. If this happens, it is easier to tailor your guest list to fit the number of people that the location can accommodate rather than trying to cut the list down after the fact.
Immediate Family Comes First
Before you start writing every name down that comes to mind, make a rule that requires you and your fiance to strictly write down the names of immediate family. This should fill your list first. Once every immediate family member's name is written down, you will have a better idea of how many spots that you have left to fill, making the rest of your list a little easier.
Set a Time Limit
You and your fiance should agree on a cut-off when it comes to determining which friends to invite. If you pick a time limit, such as 5-years, anyone that you have not been in contact with since that time should not make the list. This might help to reduce the number of people that you have to cut when the entire list is compiled.
Make Separate Lists of Important People
Making a wedding guest list can get very stressful and even cause arguments between you and your intended spouse. Rather than fighting, each of you should make a list of people that you could not imagine leaving out of your wedding. If each of you keeps your wits about you when making this list, you can add the names to the portion of the list that does not get touched no matter what.
Keep Everyone in the Loop
Anyone that will have input on your wedding guest list should be given the restrictions right away. If either of your parents, grandparents or siblings will want certain people invited, make sure that they know your rules right up front. This will prevent them from saying too much to people that they assume will be invited, yet might not make your list. When everyone keeps a policy of open communication, it becomes easier to cut the list down the road.
Cutting the guest list is no easy task, but it is a necessary part of planning a wedding. The guest list should be a priority when you are planning your wedding as it allows you to budget appropriately, choose the right venue, and plan every detail that goes into a wedding with the proper number of guests in mind. The earlier that you work on your wedding guest list, the more time you will have to enjoy the fun things that go along with planning your dream wedding.
Martin Wynn
