Bridal party or not to bridal party

Just don't have a bridal party. We're not planning to do more than just a MOH and best man because picking people is too difficult.

I totally understand this. My thoughts are, this is YOUR day. You don't have to do anything, you get to make this about you and your fiance. All you need are witnesses to sign your marriage certificate. If you /want/ to have a MOH or bridesmaids, what about family?

I'm sure your day will be killer, no matter who is standing up there beside you.

First of all, you are absolutely not pathetic. It takes a lot of strength to change your lifestyle the way you described, and better your life. It is hard to make the decision to distance yourself from friends/ family even when you know it is the right thing to do for yourself!! So be proud!!

There are lots of reasons why a couple would choose not to have a wedding party. Some good friends of mine are about to get married in September, and they've decided not to have one. They've both got lots of siblings/ people that would have made sense to ask, but decided they wanted their day to be centred around their partnership together. We'll all be right there with them as guests, sharing in the joy and love that day, and nobody thinks it's weird that they won't have anyone in their bridal party--it was just what they wanted!

There is also nothing wrong with including your friend as MOH, and not having someone on your FH's side if that feels right. I have only one close friend and my FH has an entire huge group of guys he's always been tight with. We'll just be mismatched - I'm an introvert haha!

I think you should do what you feel suits you and your FH as a couple. It sounds like you guys are a strong partnership, and there is nothing wrong with having your people come to celebrate that without standing up at the front with you.

Wishing all best for your wedding day!

There is nothing wrong with not having a bridal party! I personally do not think it would be worth it to ask people to be a part of your wedding, just for the sake of having people standing up there with you.

In terms of it effecting other events, it may mean that you and your FH will have to do more on your own. It also depends on what pre-wedding events you plan on having (bridal shower, stag & doe, bachelorette/bachelor party, etc). If you want to have any of these events, it just means that you will most likely be planning them yourself.

Realistically the only thing our best man is responsible for is planning the bachelor party and the rest of the groomsmen are just there for moral support.

I have turned to my bridesmaids a few times, just for their opinions, but these discussions are also great for that! My bridesmaids also all helped in planning my bridal shower and bachelorette, but like I said, it depends if you plan on having them and if you do, you can plan these yourself if you wanted to.

In terms of the day of your wedding, you will just need to make sure that you have someone to sign as your witness on your marriage license.

It's not necessary to have a bridal party. We've decided to go without, because 95% of our friends/family live in a different province and it would be a logistical mess. Instead of a full on bridal party, we've decided to enlist our best friends as witnesses for the ceremony.

Not having a bridal party doesn't mean that you won't have any help with the wedding. We've been super lucky with having a lot of support from our friends/family with them wanting to help in any way they can! Even my FSIL has offered to organize my bachelorette party because she's super excited about the trip (we're doing a weekend in Palm Springs).

You're correct! You don't have to have a wedding party at all and whoever you choose as your witnesses don't have to stand up with you/be in the party - they can just come up and sign the license when the time comes.

Also HUGE congratz on getting clean

First, I would like to congratulate you both on getting clean. Well done!!!

I think it is totally fine not to have a wedding party. I don't really think it will impact things too much in the way of how things roll for the day. I agree that it would be odd to ask someone to stand with you just to have a wedding party.

Also meant to add! I understand your worry about the lack of bridal party but honestly you both coming clean is a HUGE thing! And much better than dragging along with any negative influences in your lives!

Do you both still have both parents in your lives?
Maybe you could have the 2 moms on your side and 2 dads on his?

You absolutely do not need a bridal party at all if that's what works for you! It's your day and all about you that's what really matters!

All you really need is someone who can sign the marriage certificate as a witness!

One of my close friends chose not to have a wedding party, mostly because she wanted to avoid any drama that came with some of her friends, but also because it was too expensive. The only thing to consider is who will be your witnesses at your wedding (parents or close family members?) in order to sign the registry. Otherwise, it's totally fine and I think quite romantic, since you'll have more time for pictures and time with just the two of you.

I think that it is totally okay to not have wedding party! If my FH didn't have so many friends then I would have loved to have kept our wedding party as small as possible (he is wanting all 6 of his friends).

A witness will be the person who signs your marriage license. You will need two people to sign, just stating that they seen the two of you get married! Your witness can be anyone ,as long as they are over the age of 18.