A bride got married in secret like superstar Adele - with just her husband and their photographer on the guest list. <br /><br />Carys Hicks, 20, spent just £3.9k on her big day and tied the knot with her partner, Adi, 21, a grad student, in a courthouse. <br /><br />While she told immediate family members and best friends about her plans - none of them were invited, and her wider circle of pals found out about it on Instagram days later. <br /><br />She thinks lots more couples will choose to elope in the future - thanks to high-profile brides like Adele discreetly tying the knot. <br /><br />Carys, a wedding photographer, from Portsmouth, New Hampshire, US, said: “It was so special, we didn’t have a big ceremony - we just got to run around together for three hours, totally in love. <br /><br />“We’re best friends, and we wanted the day to be as intimate as possible. I couldn’t imagine having a big ceremony. <br /><br />“I’m so glad the wedding trend seems to be shifting towards elopements and really small, secret ceremonies. <br /><br />"No-one knows yourself and your partner like you - and only you should have a say in how you celebrate.”<br /><br />Carys first encountered Adi in May 2021 when she was a senior in high school and he attended University of New Hampshire - studying for a BA in mechanical engineering. <br /><br />She spotted him on the uni prospectus - and thought he was “really cute”. <br /><br />Three months later, Carys enrolled at the same university to study nursing and met Adi at bible study and the pair began dating on May 18, 2022. <br /><br />She said: “I hadn’t been in official relationships but I’d dated around - it felt very different this time. <br /><br />“I just felt very peaceful with Adi - and so assured about our relationship. We both felt like we didn’t just want to date for fun, this was serious.”<br /><br />After talking about getting married from just two months into their relationship, Adi eventually proposed on March 19, 2023, when they had been together for 10 months. <br /><br />Carys knew early on that she didn’t want a large ceremony - after hearing about her parents’ traditional church wedding. <br /><br />“Adi wanted a big party initially,” she added. <br /><br />“But then realised he didn’t want to do all the planning. <br /><br />“You don’t really get to enjoy each other at a big wedding either.<br /><br />“It’s the biggest day of your life - you don’t even get to see each other. <br /><br />"My parents didn’t even bump into each other at their wedding.”<br /><br />Carys bought a £2.3k satin wedding dress with long sleeves and a short train, with Adi’s suit rental included in the price.<br /><br />They splashed out £240 on a charcuterie board, got a £60 cake and spent £25 on earrings from Etsy - spending £19k less than the average cost of a wedding in the US. <br /><br />The couple tied the knot on May 26, 2023, at a courthouse in Hampton, accompanied by just their wedding photographer. <br /><br />They then unofficially said their vows again in the evening, on North Beach, Hampton, NH, surrounded by both sets of parents. <br /><br />While their parents knew the wedding was going to happen, the couple say they had mixed feelings about being uninvited from the main ceremony. <br /><br />Carys said: “It was a hard decision, but I wouldn’t change it because it was the right thing for us. <br /><br />“It’s probably tough as a parent to hear that you want to elope just the two of you - even tougher for Adi, who comes from a family of six.<br /><br />“I always encourage people to elope though - despite what their families might say.”<br /><br />After carefully selecting which of her close friends and family members to reveal her wedding to, Carys announced her marriage to her wider circle on Instagram and TikTok.<br /><br />She says everyone was really surprised to hear about her engagement - and subsequent wedding. But very happy for her. <br /><br />She said: "I like to think I'm a very secret person - but I do love posting to TikTok and Instagram. <br /><br />"We were only engaged for two months - I think people were more surprised about that. <br /><br />"No-one realised we'd be getting married that soon. <br /><br />"When we first got together - we wanted a year-long engagement. But we were just too excited."<br /><br />Adi said: "From the beginning, it was something we'd gone back-and-forth about - but we knew we wanted a super small wedding which would allow us to spend more time together.<br /><br />"I'm so glad we did it this way - we had the elopement with a photographer we really, really wanted.<br /><br />"We got to spend the day together doing our thing and it was really fun. We didn't have to worry about anything except ourselves, which was really awesome.<br /><br />"Because we're Christians, we did have a religious ceremony afterwards with our parents and close friends there. It was really just hanging out though, like very intimate."
