Personalizing Your Wedding Ceremony

In lieu of the formal readings or traditional vows, why not take a few liberties to personalize your ceremony and make it uniquely you?

Some of our favorite ideas include:

• Write and read your own vows to one another. You can structure them by including all the things you fell in love with, why you are thankful for one another, and what promises you make to one another. There are several great books you purchase with creative ideas on writing meaningful and original vows.
  
  
• My sister has an incredible voice and she sang to her husband at the alter. It was beautiful and breathtaking. There wasn't a dry eye in the house.
  
  
• Coordinate with your officiate to have all of the married couples in attendance stand. Have them sit in increments of those married less than 5 yrs, less than 10 yrs, 20 yrs, etc ... until you are left with one couple standing who has been married the longest. I was at a wedding where the couple had been married 63 years. Everyone applauded them and the officiate challenged the couple to reach that goal and to look as happy, healthy, and in love at that age. It was incredibly touching.
  
  
• Include the story of how you met in your ceremony. Your guests will appreciate sharing in your love story.

• At my own wedding, rather than decorating the chapel with flowers, each female guest was given the symbol of love, a single red rose. The ushers presented them from large vases at the entrance as they were seating each attendee.
  
  
• Greet guests with music as they arrive at the ceremony. A traditional string quartet is beautiful, or you can be original with an acoustic guitar or even mariachis!
  
  
• Place something in each seat for your guests. Rice or confetti to toss after the vows, is a great touch. Wedding bubbles are always popular too. You can really set a festive tone with party poppers filled with streamers for the guests to unleash after "I Do"! Check out WhereBridesGo.com for creative wedding boxes, pouches, and personalized gift tags for your guest goodies.
  

Do you have unique idea for your wedding? Share it with us! We would love to read and share what you are doing to make your wedding creative and original!

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Visit WhereBridesGo.com for wedding supplies and wedding favors. FREE shipping on all orders over $100. Take 10% off your entire order with coupon code BLOG.

Great Site to Help Select Your Wedding Color Palette

We found a great resource for selecting the perfect wedding palette and wanted to share!

http://www.colourlovers.com/


Hundreds of beautiful palettes and patterns, color ideas and inspirations can be found at COLOURlovers!

Once you've found the perfect palette for your wedding, visit WhereBridesGo.com to find matching wedding accessories and wedding favors!

Creative Idea for Your Head Table

Create personalized wedding party gifts that double as decorative "place cards" at your head table.

Doubling as a wedding reception accessory and a super cute bridesmaid gift, these Flower Bouquet Reception Vases are a bride's best friend!

Both statuesque in form and stylish in appearance, these one of a kind floral vases provide a helpful service on your big day while remaining a treasured keepsakes for all your favorite girls all the days after!

Simply place these vases at the head table to give the bridesmaids a place to keep their bouquets safe as they dance the night away! At the end of the evening, they'll gladly take home the personalized vase filled with their beautiful, floral arrangement. Measures 3 1/2" x 7" tall.

These adorable vases are available at WhereBridesGo.com. Coupon code BLOG takes 10% off your vases and your entire order!

Planning the Wedding Ceremony

The ceremony is the heart and soul of your wedding because it seals your union, marking the start of your new journey as one. Today's wedding ceremonies range from highly traditional to extremely personalized and unique, but their purposes and outcome are all the same ... to complete the union and join the lives of the couple.

When planning your ceremony, it can be helpful to create a ceremony worksheet. This will help ensure you haven't overlooked anything important. The outline below can serve as your guide. Be sure to speak with your officiate for his/her input, as well. If you are marrying in church, temple, or other religious venue, there can be specific rules and requirements by which you must abide.
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Ceremony Worksheet Outline

Ceremony site reserved:

Cost for site (some religious venues simply request a donation):

Date of ceremony (be sure to confirm!):

Ceremony time - From: To:
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Name of officiate:

Officiate's telephone #:

Officiate's email address:

Officiate's fee (if any):
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Ceremony Details
If you are incorporating music or performances in your ceremony, indicate your music selections and performances in the appropriate area of the checklist, as well.

Seating of Guests (who will your ushers be?)

Seating of Parents (who will escort each?)

Procession (names of participants and order of procession):

Giving Away (i.e. who gives this bride .... ideas to make it unique):

Reading and/or prayers (name of readings and verses):

Readers (who will be presenting each reading or verse):

Bride's Vows:

Groom's Vows:

Exchange of Rings:

Unity Ceremony:

Pronouncement of Marriage:

Benediction or Blessing:

Recessional (names and order):

Signing of the marriage license (In most cases, this actually happens after the ceremony, however you can actually incorporate this into the ceremony if your officiate will allow it!)

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For wedding ceremony accessories, unity candle or unity sand ceremony supplies, visit WhereBridesGo.com! Use couple code BLOG to take 10% off your entire order.

New Team Member Joins WhereBridesGo.com!

Hi Everyone!

I want to introduce myself as the newest team member for WhereBridesGo.com. I'm Mike Waggett (yes - Sandy's Hubby) and I'm joining the team as the Vice President for Business Development. Let me tell you, even though I had an inside track to the job, the interview was still pretty tough.

A little bit about myself... I just retired from the United States Air Force after 24 years. The Air Force was pretty good to me...I served as a fighter pilot, assistant professor at the US Air Force Academy, and served some time at the Pentagon among many other assignments. I was lucky enough to get three Masters degrees paid for by Uncle Sam, and ended my career as the Commander of a large training and education center for the Air National Guard.

I met Sandy while stationed at Nellis Air Force Base and working at RED FLAG (Fighter Pilot training program). We moved together to Colorado Springs where we eventually married at the wonderful chapel on the US Air Force Academy. Sandy started the business in 1999 on a part time basis as she was working as a senior engineer with BAE Systems/Lockheed Martin. When we moved to Knoxville, TN as a military reassignment, she went for it and worked fulltime on growing the business!

I'm very proud of her efforts building WhereBridesGo.com along with the wedding portal sites in 26 markets across the country, plus her highly successful web site design and hosting company (MSW Interactive Designs, LLC). I'm excited about joining her team and using my skills to help push WhereBridesGo.com to even greater heights. It's easy to rave about the company because I've seen first hand the quality and affordable products offered to our wonderful customers, and the absolute top-notch customer service provided to ensure all our clients are satisfied.

More to come in the future!

Best

Mike Waggett

A Wedding Tradition : Jordan Almonds

Did you know that Jordan Almonds are not only popular wedding favors, but they are also a long-standing wedding tradition? The bittersweet taste of the almod is said to signify life, and the sugar coating is added to ensure a sweeter marriage.

Traditionally, couples give guests five almonds to represent:

1. health



2. wealth



3. longevity



4. fertility



5. happiness

Typically almonds are placed at each guest table setting as favors. They are presented in wedding favor boxes or tulle bags (called bomboniere) and are often personalized with the couple's names and wedding date.

You can also include a popular Jordan Almond poem to let your guests in on the tradition!

Jordan Almonds for Thee
Five sugared almonds for each guest to eat,
To remind us that life is both bitter and sweet.
Five wishes for the new husband and wife:
Health, wealth, happiness, children, and a long life!
Author unknown

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Visit http://www.WhereBridesGo.com for Jordan Almonds in bulk, plus a fabulous selection of unique wedding favor boxes and containers to suite the theme of your wedding perfectly! Use coupon code BLOG at checkout to take 10% off your entire order.

Wedding Thank You Gifts

Thank you gifts and welcome baskets are often given to guests who have traveled a long distance to attend your wedding and to bridesmaids and groomsmen for participating in the big day. For your out-of-town guests, the welcome baskets are typically presented as they arrive at their accommodations. You can work with the hotel to coordinate delivery of your gifts so each guest feels appreciated and pampered on their arrival. Gifts for the wedding party are often presented at the rehearsal dinner or groom's dinner.

For the out-of-towners, a basket of fruit with a bottle of water used to be the norm, but today couples are getting more creative and personal with their gifts and welcome baskets. Here are a few ideas to get you started. Incorporate your own special twist and your guests will thank you for the incredibly thoughtful gesture.

Spa Bags & Baskets
You don't have to spend a fortune to prepare this pampering gift. Load cosmetic bags or totes with scrubs, lotions, lip gloss, a compact, and a loofah for a perfect spa bag. You can even add a robe and slippers to larger totes for a more elaborate thank you! Don't forget to add a touch of personalization either by monogramming the bag or including a handwritten note. Leave these in the rooms of guests who have traveled a long distance to indulge in a little R 'n' R before the festivities begin.

Welcome Baskets
A little less pricey, but equally appreciated, is the more traditional welcome basket! Include bottled water (add custom labels), munchies, teas, and coffees. You can include an itinerary of the wedding festivities, as well as maps to the venues and personalized thank you note to let your guests know how much you appreciate them making the trip.

Bridesmaid Tote

Treat your bridesmaids to a great bag that is fashionable and functional. It's perfect to tote accessories, shoes, and makeup to the wedding venue. If you are having a destination or beach wedding, fill it with necessities such as a pair of flip flops, water, and a beach towel.

Winning Wine Caddy
Thank your wedding party with personalized picnic bags. A wine caddy filled with a bottle of wine and stuffed with a baguette and cheese is a guaranteed hit! You can include personalized bottle openers and wine toppers for an extra special touch. Top off the gift with a set of personalized wine glasses.

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Visit http://www.wherebridesgo.com/ for more great wedding ideas, wedding supplies, and wedding thank you gifts for your wedding party. Use coupon code BLOG at checkout to take 10% off your entire order.

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