You and your guests will cherish the memory of a heartfelt ceremony so much more than a vague memory (if any) of the floral centerpieces. Your beloved will remember the letter you have had hand-delivered (just before the wedding begins) that shares your heart and why you love him/her so much; they will likely not remember anything about the accessories you wear. Your parents will never forget the last words you say to them before you walk down the aisle. Make sure they are something like “I love you and thank you”

At your reception, guests will remember how joy-filled you are or not. If you are pouting over the overdone chicken and forget that you can never get this moment back… you’ve not only ruined the celebration for yourself, but for everyone around you. It is your energy, not the chicken, that will make or break your celebration.

The frills of most weddings are nice, but the character of your celebration is what can create a heart-song for you and all those lucky enough to attend your true celebration of love. So in the midst of your wedding planning, just keep on asking yourself: “Will our wedding reflect the best of our character?” If you do this, you will have a day that all will remember with a smile on their face and joy in their heart.

Read a story about one bride who truly lived this advice: My Favorite Bride and you also may enjoy Be in the Moment for some tips on how to have a wonderful wedding day.

and crushin’ on these pillows too!

and her flowers…

If you are like me and look forward to sharing a little trinket with your guests, here are some “favorable” examples:

1. Marianne met her husband because they both purchased all the lemon drops out of their company’s (a trash collection service) vending machines. They began meeting at the vending machine and love bloomed. So for their wedding favors they placed a bag of lemon drops in little dump trucks. The best man mentioned the lemon drops love story in his toast, and everyone had fun having dump-truck races on the dance floor.

Joe and Jill are firefighters and did a very similar favor with mini fire trucks (they filled their trucks with personalized M&M’s). Creating a favor that is symbolic of your life together always adds a special touch to your celebration.

2. Ever since Tiger Woods came on the scene, golf- oriented favors have been very popular. Many Chocolate companies offer solid milk, dark, or white chocolate golf balls that they can package sitting on grass (artificial of course) in a beautiful truffle box or in iridescent cellophane packages. You can order personalized golf tees to place under the bow. Order plenty of golf tees and have the extra displayed in a glass brandy snifter for all the golf fanatics to grab a nice pocketful. The guys love this one!

3. Rosanne’s mom makes the best snicker doodle cookies in the whole world – that is a fact. So for Roseanne’s wedding, her mom made her delicious creations and placed them in clear cellophane bags tied with beautiful French ribbon. The note attached to the bag said “From our Family to yours, thank you for making our day so sweet!”

My family made homemade truffles and fudge for the favors at my wedding. We ordered boxes that said, “The Sweetest things in life are those you share with the ones you love. Thank you for sharing our Day.” All my friends told me that they ate all their treats on the way home. This wouldn’t be so shocking if it had been one or two truffles per guest. The truth is, it was a half-pound box of chocolates for each guest. Oy vey!

Frames can do double duty - hold your place cards and be your wedding favor

4) I love framing place cards in beautiful little frames so they serve two purposes (the favor and the place card). After the wedding I suggest that Newlyweds send a picture (included in the thank you card) from the wedding that will fit into the frames. Ask your photographer to be sure to get a picture of the two of you with every guest so this can be a very personal thank you gift.

Whatever you favor, enjoy!!!

Please share your ideas on great wedding favors.

Here are two on-line favor stores for inspiration:

Beau-coup

My Wedding Favors

Use pictures as background on your table numbers

There are many ways to personalize a wedding. One very popular idea is to use pictures as part of your wedding décor. Most couples find that using pictures as focal points at their wedding and reception will not only make their “wedding-scape” truly one of a kind, but really helps break the ice between guests. Pictures bring back fond memories for guests to share with one another, relieving that awkward silence between people that only have the bride and groom as their common denominator. And the cherry on top of this idea? This couldn’t be a more budget friendly idea; you have the pictures and even if you buy new frames, you can use them for your home décor after the wedding. Personal, budget and green friendly; how much better can a decorating idea get? Here are a few ways to incorporate pictures in your celebration:

Show off your parents' cake cutting pictures on your cake table

Guest book – Instead of a traditional guest book, have your guests sign the matting that surrounds your engagement portrait.
Altar pictures- Place small pictures of your dearly departed, (or those who cannot attend your wedding), on the unity candle, communion or ceremony table.
Personal jewelry –A locket with your beloved’s picture in it is a nice accessory to wear when you say, “I do”.
Reception entrance – Display pictures at the entryway of your reception, either on stand-alone easels or on your placecard table.
Tabletop centerpieces – Set three or four pictures of various sizes on each dining table. Make sure you include baby pictures and those awkward pre-teen pix as well as recent couple shots of the two of you in the mix. Add votive candles and scatter flower petals, some decorative stones, crystals, or mirror discs around the pictures and you have yourself some great conversation pieces. People will walk around to see what pictures are featured at each table.
Head table –A framed picture of each attendant (hopefully you are in the picture with them as well) at their place-setting is a very special way to designate who sits where at the head table.
Cake table- Flank your wedding cake with pictures of your parents and grandparents cutting their wedding cake.
Entertainment – Many photographers and videographers have the ability to produce and present a video or slide show of your love story. If you or friends are on the creative side, try it DIY style and have your masterpiece shown at your reception.

Last but not least, be sure to include a picture from the wedding in your thank you cards. From beginning to the end, pictures can add so much to your wedding experience.

Question for our Experienced Brides: How did you use pictures in your wedding decor? Brides2Be want to know!

There is nothing wrong with what we call a “Cookie-Cutter Wedding” – a classic traditional wedding can be executed beautifully. But just like a recipe for your favorite old fashioned cookie, if you add just one special ingredient, you can make a typical cookie (I mean wedding) extra special and definitely “all yours.”

Alix and Russell wanted their traditional wedding to begin with great fanfare. I would bet there isn’t one of their wedding guests that will ever forget when two fantastic Opera Singers (hiding in the balcony) started singing “All I Ask of You,” just before the processional began. You could literally hear people gasp, whisper “Wow!” and even wipe some tears from their face. For those who knew that this couple LOVED the Phantom of the Opera, it was an extra special moment. And the nice budget news on something so special? Hiring two professional singers from the San Francisco Opera Company cost them less than $600! Even Opera Stars will moonlight when available. No harm in asking right?

Andy loved cars and Lauren wanted Andy to be one happy boy. So Lauren arranged to have a very special surprise for her groom when the “Limo” picked them up from the church to go to their reception – it was “the star car” used in Andy’s favorite movie – “Tucker – The Man and His Dreams” (if you are a car lover you love this movie!). Andy knew the car at first glance and stayed happy all day long. This classic car was a perfect backdrop for some great pictures and cost less than what you would think.

Lisa wanted a traditional wedding cake to be the centerpiece of her reception but wanted to add very personalized accents. The cake table’s tablecloth was made out of her Grandmother’s wedding dress, framed pictures of the bride’s and groom’s parents cutting their wedding cakes flanked the cake, the antique knife to cut the cake was from the groom’s great grandparents’ wedding and the cake topper was two beautiful ceramic doves that the groom’s father created. I have never seen a more meaningful cake presentation to this day.

So Experienced Brides, tell us how you made your traditional wedding classically special.

Mary and Jim surround themselves with “Foodies and Winos”. No one can really cook better than their own friends and they all love to show off their culinary skills.

So when Mary and Jim decided to say “I do” they asked their friends to leave the gravy boats at Macy’s and instead, “gift” them, with their favorite recipe and a plate of it to share at their wedding reception. On the response card their friends told them what they were bringing and sent a copy of the recipe. Three friends coordinated what they would need to set up a beautiful buffet that would not only show off each dish but would keep all the food at the right temperature (not only for flavor but to avoid food poisoning). They prepared a silver framed label for each dish that featured the name of the recipe and cook.

The Bride and Groom chose amazing wine to share with their guests, added a few of their own favorite recipes to the buffet and hired a “Day-of coordinator” and some party staff so they could truly enjoy their celebration. The reception was a huge success and the food… let’s just say it was one culinary orgasm after another…

For a thank you gift, they sent their guests a “Wedding Cookbook,” a collection of recipes from their potluck reception. The cookbook included wedding pictures and a heart-felt thank you letter to their treasured friends.

This was such a special wedding that perfectly reflected the bride and groom and their guests. What could be better than that?

Please share your ideas on how to create a potluck worthy of a wedding day!