It was just me, husband, his brother, and a photographer :) I bought a $15 dress at a thrift shop and made my own veil, and husband wore a suit. Being that we live in one of the biggest cities in the US, city hall was full of people, but it was still nice since everyone was so happy! It was cool to see all sorts of folk of all backgrounds and orientations coming together and congratulating each other.

— u/apis_cerana

It was great and hilarious. We got married on 12-12-12, so got to the courthouse fairly early that morning thinking there would be a bigger crowd than usual (not really). His mom and my mom and step-dad were there with us.

I worked as a paralegal in town so knew the people in the probate offices. We got our license, filled it out, and waited to go in the hearing room.

When we went back was when things got interesting. the magistrate who would be officiating for us was chit chatting with me and then got a really p*ssy look on his face. Apparently one of the local news channels had sent a guy down to cover the 12-12-12 weddings and he'd followed us into the courtroom. This magistrate was very easy going and I thought he was going to rip the guy a new one as he kicked him out. It was great.

So we get to the vows part of things and I can't do it. I'm a blubbering mess, have no idea why I'm actually crying, just can't stop. Husband starts making jokes trying to get me to snap out of it (he knows this works). Magistrate joins in. Our parents are standing back laughing their butts off. I'm ugly laughing/crying and manage to get out "can I just nod?"

So, we get married and then go out to a fancy restaurant to eat lunch.

— u/kryren

It was perfect; totally stress-free and I didn't have to deal with any family drama, because family were not invited, haha. The ceremony was at 2 PM at the courthouse across the street from our hotel. I woke up at noon to get ready and wore a royal blue, floral-print cocktail dress that I bought at Ross for $30. We brought our two closest friends and their significant others as witnesses. The officiant let us edit the ceremony, which was really important to me because I wanted to keep it to the absolute legal minimum. I think we spent like $70 on the marriage license and fees and the whole process took less than half an hour. Afterwards, the six of us went out and spent the rest of the day eating, drinking, and making merry. I am so glad I didn't go the traditional route!

— u/scrote_inspector

We got married in the court house. I can honestly say i dont regret it one bit. I was happy, relaxed and didnt have to worry about entertaining a bunch of people before, during, or after. I have never been a fan of big flashy weddings either though. The day you get married is about you and your husband. Do whatever makes you happy and comfortable(:

— u/jecklynandhydra

My husband and I got married in a courthouse and I don't regret it. My mother in law surprised me with a bouquet and a flower for his jacket. We wore nice clothes, but not wedding attire. It was just the two of us, our baby, and our mothers there. When we got married, it was rushed because we had to be legally married in order to buy a house. He had proposed only 2 months prior. So, at the time we got married we had intended on throwing a wedding at a later date. But here we are over a year later, pregnant with second baby, and both feeling very relieved that we have decided to not have a wedding. It's too much stress, money, and headache. We have pictures from our wedding day at the courthouse, and I look at them often very fondly. I don't regret not having a wedding, and probably never will. On the other side, if I ever do regret not having a wedding, we can just renew our vows!

— u/Jump102890

My husband and I got married at a courthouse. We were both stationed overseas at the time and were planning a wedding back home. We later decided it was a lot of stress and we ended up getting dressed up and going to the courthouse. Since it was in Germany we paid a bit more due to translating all the documents. But I do not regret it one bit. We had mutual friends come as witnesses and it was very romantic just being us. After all, that's what it's all about. The two of you. It isn't for everyone, but I look back on that day and love that it was so intimate for the two of us.

— u/pumitre

We are having a very small courthouse wedding with just my parents, his parents, my best friend, my new stepsister and older sister and his sister on the guest list. We are having a little park pavilion reception afterwards with a taco truck and cupcakes. We are going to spend the weekend before our wedding doing tourist-y things with our family and friends in Atlanta and have our "rehearsal dinner" at my fiance's favorite BBQ place. My dress was super affordable and I have the cutest cats in space flats. Our Save the Dates and Invitations are just as quirky and fun as we are. We are looking at around $1000 for the whole event, not including our honeymoon. Planning this wedding has been super fun and relaxed and I am really looking forward to marrying my best friend and the love of my life.

— u/squeaksthepunkmouse

I had a beautiful courthouse wedding that didn't spare any expense. I planned a lovely ceremony and a huge party and but for family health reasons I had to cancel. I was incredibly relieved. We decided to go on with our original wedding date. I had a gorgeous Oscar de la Renta wedding cocktail dress for the cancelled reception, so I wore that. My husband wore a suit he owned. We made reservations at a four star restaurant and stayed in Manhattan for the weekend. Watching Central Park while drinking Champagne and talking about the future was amazing. We started our life in our own fancy way and have never regretted it for a moment.

— u/priceofale

We had a courthouse wedding for ourselves and then we are doing a bigger wedding in May. But honestly, seeing all the expenses, I would've been okay with just the courthouse wedding. I'm sure our big wedding will be great and I'm not going to regret it. But I really loved our courthouse wedding. We had 2 of our close friends as witnesses. And that was it. It was really intimate and made it feel special for both of us.

What I recommend is to make it as special as possible. I went out and bought a new dress for the courthouse wedding and we spend the night on Oregon's coast and a bed & breakfast. Do something like that! We only spent one night, but it meant a ton to me.

— u/lc504503

My SO and I moved our wedding up after I got knocked up and decided to have it. So, we decided on a date, invited our parents/his sisters and walked through Annapolis in what was the tail end of Hurricane Floyd. My parents, SO and I caravaned, with his family coming separately.

We walked from the parking structure to the courthouse and looked a lot like drowned rats about halfway there. SO & stepfather duck into a store while Mum & I waited under the awning. They found a jacket and a couple umbrellas. Which is why I arrived at my wedding wearing a Navy jacket (woo!) and carrying a Three Stooges golf umbrella. It was absurd and very us.

We'd been looking for simple rings for a while, but never found anything in our (nearly nonexistent) budget that we really liked. So, we got married with ring-pops. The officiant said she'd never seen that and would be talking about it for a long time.

The actual ceremony was lovely and dreamy and couldn't have gone better if we were taking part in a million dollar wedding.

— u/Myschyf

However you and your spouse-to-be choose to celebrate your wedding will be your version of perfect. There is no pressure to do it the "traditional" way if "traditional" doesn't feel you. Really, what's more important? Follow your gut and do what makes your wedding feel as special as your relationship does. You've got this!