Today's weddings have no hard-and-fast rules.
Get married on the famous<br>pink sand of Bermuda.
The number of completely traditional weddings — with the typical church, hall, and reception format — has decreased dramatically as family geographic limitations, mixed marriages, blended families, and second weddings have become more prevalent.
Today's couples get married on live television, atop mountains, in theme parks, and even under water. Whether or not you are daring enough to be this extreme, you'll enjoy these fun ideas for how to have a traditional wedding and still incorporate modern twists.
Choose an unlikely site
Consider using an alternative site for your wedding, such as a museum, an aquarium, a cliff top, a historic mansion, a boat, a baseball field, a beach, a ranch, or even the zoo.
Write your own vows
The words of love that you exchange can include poetry, music, and personal anecdotes in addition to, or instead of, the traditional "to have to and to hold from this day forward for as long as you both shall live." Try African-American Wedding Readings
for ideas.
Today's couples get married on live television, atop mountains, in theme parks, and even under water. Whether or not you are daring enough to be this extreme, you'll enjoy these fun ideas for how to have a traditional wedding and still incorporate modern twists.
Choose an unlikely site
Consider using an alternative site for your wedding, such as a museum, an aquarium, a cliff top, a historic mansion, a boat, a baseball field, a beach, a ranch, or even the zoo.
Write your own vows
The words of love that you exchange can include poetry, music, and personal anecdotes in addition to, or instead of, the traditional "to have to and to hold from this day forward for as long as you both shall live." Try African-American Wedding Readings
Get more ideas!
Get more ideas!
Add your culture to the wedding.
Plan a unique wedding quilt
Mail all the wedding guests a small piece of fabric several months before the wedding with instructions to decorate it with a permanent message or image. The fabric pieces can be stitched together into a marriage canopy that you and your groom stand under during the ceremony. Or the fabric pieces can be made into a bridal quilt that will be a beautiful and personal keepsake to hang on the wall of your new home or to use at the end of your bed.
Personalize your marriage certificate
Have your marriage certificate designed by an artist instead of using a traditional document completed by the minister or priest. You and your fiance‚ can work together to add symbols significant to your relationship. Later, you can hang the marriage certificate in your bedroom as a permanent reminder of the commitment you two have made.
Think beyond the guest book
As an alternative to a guest book, mount an enlargement of your engagement photo or wedding invitation and have guests sign it with a silver or gold pen as they enter the wedding.
Face forward for the ceremony
There is no rule stating that the bride and groom must face the officiant and turn their backs on the guests for the duration of the ceremony. Instead, turn toward your guests and have the officiant stand alongside you (or with his or her back to the audience). This personal touch makes guests fell that they are a more intimate part of your wedding, because they can witness your expressions and your love for each other.
Exchange roses
A new trend known as a rose exchange is popping into ceremonies. A single red or white rose is exchanged as a first gift between the bride and groom to symbolize their love for each other. The couple then exchanges a rose in a special location in their new home on each anniversary or significant highlight in their marriage, reminding them of the vows they exchanged and the promises they made on their wedding day.
Choose a theme song
At the beginning of the reception, when the married couple is announced and members of the wedding party are introduced, instead of a drum roll or cheesy music, consider having the DJ or band play the theme from "Rocky" as you enter. Other fun songs: the "Tonight Show" theme song; Queen's "Another One Bites the Dust" or "We are the Champions;" the theme from "Star Wars," "Jaws," or "Indiana Jones;" the fight song from your alma mater; or any other song that is upbeat and meaningful to you both.
Plan a life-long keepsake
After the wedding and honeymoon, print your vows on pretty paper, and then frame and hang them somewhere in your new home where you two can glance at them and remind yourselves of the promises you exchanged.
— from Ultimate Wedding Idea Book: 1,001 Creative Ideas to Make Your Wedding Fun, Romantic, and Memorable by Cynthia C. Muchnick (Prima Home, 2001) $14.95.
Mail all the wedding guests a small piece of fabric several months before the wedding with instructions to decorate it with a permanent message or image. The fabric pieces can be stitched together into a marriage canopy that you and your groom stand under during the ceremony. Or the fabric pieces can be made into a bridal quilt that will be a beautiful and personal keepsake to hang on the wall of your new home or to use at the end of your bed.
Personalize your marriage certificate
Have your marriage certificate designed by an artist instead of using a traditional document completed by the minister or priest. You and your fiance‚ can work together to add symbols significant to your relationship. Later, you can hang the marriage certificate in your bedroom as a permanent reminder of the commitment you two have made.
Think beyond the guest book
As an alternative to a guest book, mount an enlargement of your engagement photo or wedding invitation and have guests sign it with a silver or gold pen as they enter the wedding.
Face forward for the ceremony
There is no rule stating that the bride and groom must face the officiant and turn their backs on the guests for the duration of the ceremony. Instead, turn toward your guests and have the officiant stand alongside you (or with his or her back to the audience). This personal touch makes guests fell that they are a more intimate part of your wedding, because they can witness your expressions and your love for each other.
Exchange roses
A new trend known as a rose exchange is popping into ceremonies. A single red or white rose is exchanged as a first gift between the bride and groom to symbolize their love for each other. The couple then exchanges a rose in a special location in their new home on each anniversary or significant highlight in their marriage, reminding them of the vows they exchanged and the promises they made on their wedding day.
Choose a theme song
At the beginning of the reception, when the married couple is announced and members of the wedding party are introduced, instead of a drum roll or cheesy music, consider having the DJ or band play the theme from "Rocky" as you enter. Other fun songs: the "Tonight Show" theme song; Queen's "Another One Bites the Dust" or "We are the Champions;" the theme from "Star Wars," "Jaws," or "Indiana Jones;" the fight song from your alma mater; or any other song that is upbeat and meaningful to you both.
Plan a life-long keepsake
After the wedding and honeymoon, print your vows on pretty paper, and then frame and hang them somewhere in your new home where you two can glance at them and remind yourselves of the promises you exchanged.
— from Ultimate Wedding Idea Book: 1,001 Creative Ideas to Make Your Wedding Fun, Romantic, and Memorable
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