While weddings can be based on tradition, there’s nothing saying that your big day has to conform to the same old standards. Every couple out there wants their wedding to be unique as unique as them, but, this can be tricky when everyone does almost the same things. Thankfully, you can make your wedding stand out by integrating just a few personal details and unique features. Here are six things that you can do to take your wedding to the next level.
Personalized Invitations
Your wedding invitations are the first thing guests will see and as such will give an impression of what your wedding is going to be like. With that in mind, you may want to skip the printed and mass-produced invites and instead opt for something a little more intimate. You could find an artist who can design personalized invitations to meet the vision you have of your big day.
Mismatched Bridesmaids
Bridesmaids traditionally wear the exact same dress, with only the head bridesmaid occasionally wearing a gown that doesn’t match the others. The issue with this is that the dress you choose may not flatter the skin tones and bodies of all of your other maids. To remedy this, you should break tradition and allow your special ladies to choose dresses they love and look good in. I knew from the very beginning that my girls would all wear different dresses- there was about a foot of height differences, different body types, and one ended up being pregnant. David’s Bridal made things super easy in that they have locations all over the country so they could go try on a few if they wanted before ordering. The prices are also pretty great.
Custom Drinks
The typical beers, wines, and liquors often served at weddings create very little buzz, which is why you should consider creating a custom cocktail. You can try to do this yourself or work with a bartending service, like BartenderCompany.com, and have them do it for you. If you and your partner have different tastes, then you could create one for each of you for the reception. Apparently, Kendo and I set records for the amount of signature drinks people ordered. It was definitely a very appreciated detail. I also had one of my favorite artists create the poster, and we plan to hang up our signature cocktails in our kitchen when we buy our first home. It’s such a nice memento of the day!
Midnight Snacks
After the main meal is served at your wedding reception, there will be hours before you’ll want your guests to go home. To keep them full and partying with you, you can arrange for food to be bought in a few hours after the main meal ends. There are plenty of tasty snack foods you could choose from, like pizza and sliders.
We thought about doing this (briefly) but decided since there was SO. MUCH. FOOD. between cocktail hour, dinner, and dessert that we would use this idea for our rehearsal dinner. We did heavy apps at Teddy & The Bully Bar the night before the wedding for wedding VIPs and out of town guests. Think high end comfort food- like a play on chicken and waffles. So yum! And they were so easy to work with! Plus, the atmosphere of a cocktail party instead of a formal sit-down dinner made mingling so much easier!
Photo Booth
You have a wedding photographer to catch special moments of your big day for you, so why not give your guests the same thing. You can do this by hiring a photo booth for the reception, which prints out pictures immediately for guests to take home. You may not want to miss out on these images yourself, in which case, you could ask guests to stick a copy in your guest book. I stole this idea from my friend Joanne’s wedding. We had two guest books- a traditional one at the church and a photo booth one at the reception. The notes and pictures are hysterical! I’m so happy we have this souvenier.
Grand Exit
A getaway car is a traditional wedding feature, but you can easily put your own unique spin on it. All you need to do is choose a vehicle that is personal to you in some way. If you’re into sports, for example, then you could ride off on a bicycle. If you’re a festival fan, you could opt for a camper van. One of the few concessions I had to make for our wedding was that I could not ride in my grandfather’s antique woody because a) it doesn’t run b) it would have cost an arm and a leg to bring it up here. Since we just went from the venue to the church and back, renting a limo and a bus for the bridal party was just fine. Whatever you choose, remember to add a beautiful “Just Married” banner.
Your wedding should be as unique as you and your partner are, so consider the special details above and take things to the next level.
Photos by Darrell McDavid Photography
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