5 Ways to Trim Your Wedding Guest List

By Ashley Paige

Updated on 6/18/2015 at 7:00 PM

Anna Roussos
Anna Roussos

Making your guest list can go from convivial to contentious with the cross of a pen. You can feel the invite pressure from your parents and your partner's, your friends, and yourself. But if obligations start adding stress — emotional or financial — then it's time to make some cuts. Here are five areas where the guest list can get hectic.

  1. Parents' friends: This can be tricky if your parents are paying, but if they want to invite people you haven't seen in 20 years or only met once (or never!), then it's time to intervene. Politely state your case for why you think the invitations are unnecessary. Setting a number ("I really want to keep it under 100, so I'm not overwhelmed") and arguing for wedding-day sanity may be the route to take.
  2. Co-workers: Invite only the co-workers you want at your wedding. It really is that simple! Don't hide it, but don't flaunt it either. If anyone can't understand that there has to be a cutoff somewhere, then it's their problem.
  3. Plus ones: Making a guideline (only inviting married or engaged couples, significant others you know, or only the bridal party can have guests) will probably go over better than deciding who gets a guest on a case-by-case basis.
  4. Exes: There are only two people whose opinion matters here, and that's you and your intended.
  5. Kids: It's perfectly understandable why you wouldn't want kids at your wedding, and if it's going late into the night, their attendance doesn't entirely make sense. I imagine their parents would enjoy the night away!