Planning Your Wedding

While your love may be whimsical and spontaneous, full of last-minute “just because” celebrations, let’s face it – planning a reception for 200 people takes a lot of organization. Whether your wedding is large or small, unique wedding favors are an easy way to make your day special. From the place card holders at the rehearsal dinner to the last signature in your guest book, choose a theme and stick to it, or have fun mixing and matching. Here are some ideas from Thewritemyessay.com to get you started:

Picture Perfect

That beautifully-posed formal wedding portrait doesn’t have to be the only way you capture the memories in a photograph. Both old and new pictures can make your wedding special in so many ways – try these fun photo ideas and you’ll “get the picture.”

Use pictures as place cards. Instead of names, use a photograph of each guest to make their place at table. Choose a recent picture; if you don’t have one, ask your friends and family to send them in advance. Select a variety of place card holder styles for a casual look.

Make baby pictures into name tags. Have each guest bring a picture of themselves as a child and use double-sided tape to attach the picture to their name tag.

Decorate with photographs. Use long floral spikes to add family photos to flowers arranged in large vases, or prop them up against miniature vases. Combination tea light and photo holders are another lovely option.

Bring families together. Gather family photos from both bride and groom, then arrange them in stylish photo book or include in your guest book.

Create a photo family tree. Have your guests pin their pictures on a wall or large easel and connect them with small lengths of ribbon. For a fun party game, use longer rolls of personalized ribbon and “connect” your family and friends to you – afterwards, you can cut the ribbon into pieces for souvenirs.

Disposable cameras on each table encourage guests to take their own pictures, and give you more variety to choose from when making your mini photo albums to send your guests after the wedding. If you’ve gone digital, transfer all of the pictures to compact discs and send them out in personalized CD envelopes. Put the best pictures in a silver signature frame or photo keepsake box to make extra-special gifts.

Instead of using a standard guest book, give your friends a Polaroid camera and an instant photo guest book – they can insert a just-snapped picture and write their messages on the same page. Instant photos are also great for last-minute shots to use as photo place cards on the table.

Pick your favorite wedding picture to send with your thank-you notes and delight your friends with a beautiful picture frame to put it in. For autumn weddings, choose a fall-themed pressed leaf frame and match it with a plan table flower card to put in the garden for next spring.

Your friends and family are important to you, and you want to thank them for all they do for you with a special gift. Innovative but inexpensive wedding favors let you show how much you care without breaking your wedding budget. How about one of these combinations?

-a personalized mini purse and a gift certificate

-a box of stationery and a letter opener

-a candle holder and a scented pillar candle

-a tin of relaxing tub tea and a loofah sponge

-a corkscrew and a bottle of wine

-a pound of their favorite coffee and a heart-shaped scoop

-a pair of personalized champagne flutes and some sparkling cider

-a personalized packet of flower seeds and a pair of garden gloves

-a personalized jar of honey and some tea in a reusable tin

-a pair of flip-flops and some floating flip-flop candles

Sometimes all you need is something small to slip in a take-home bag. Inexpensive favor bags filled with bulk candy get a special touch when you add a personalized mint pack or mini votive candle with your names and wedding date. Try filling sheer organza favor bags with Jordan almonds in pretty pastel shades, or hand out chocolates in a personalized gift box.