Personalize Your Day

Trying to avoid the cookie-cutter approach to planning your wedding? Here are some ideas to help you personalize your celebration.

FOR THE WEDDING

Invite the bride's mother, alongside the bride's father, to walk with the bride down the aisle.

Invite the groom's parents to walk out with the groom.

Hand a rose to each of your mothers as you pass by them during your recession.

Face the congregation as you say your vows (as opposed to having your back to them). This trend is a wonderful way to share your love with the family and friends that you have invited.

Place childhood photos of the bride and groom and their parents' and grandparents' wedding photos on the guest book table. Or set up an easel and fabric-covered bulletin board on each side of the aisle at the back of the church: Label one "Bride's Side" and the other "Groom's Side," and include family photos and mementos.

If wearing your mother's wedding dress is not practical for you, you can still use her wedding photos as inspiration for your own ensemble. Copy a detail from her dress, the style of her veil, or the flowers in her bouquet. Use fabric from her dress to make the ring pillow, or sew a swatch into the lining of your own dress.

Invite a family member to sing a special song.

Have a special friend or family member perform your marriage ceremony. (Anyone in Alaska can perform a marriage ceremony one time only. The person performing the ceremony must also get a license with the Bureau of Vital Statistics.)

If your family includes a beloved canine member and your wedding is being held in a casual space, let your dog make a trip down the aisle (one of your attendants can hold the leash). A well-behaved pooch could also be in attendance at an outdoor reception. The dog can wear a ribbon that matches the bridesmaids' dresses or your bouquet.

Many brides and grooms want to include some type of remembrance during their wedding ceremony of a parent (or grandparent) that has passed away. Some options are:

• Lighting of candles at the very beginning of the ceremony or prior to the lighting of the unity candle.
  
• Presentation of flowers: Altar sprays or single stemmed flowers.
  
• A special reading or passage in their honor read by a chosen family member or friend.
  
• Have a clergy person say a prayer mentioning the deceased names and relations to the bridal couple. Ask them for suggestions on fitting this in at the right time during the ceremony.
  
• Include their names in the wedding program.

Create a photo guest book. Have the guest book attendants take Polaroids of your guests as they come in and place the photos in a scrapbook. Then ask the guests to sign beneath their photo.

Have guests toss flower petals or blow bubbles after the ceremony.

FOR THE RECEPTION
Consider personalizing wine bottles with custom-created wedding wine labels. Or give personalized bottles as gifts.

Designate a playroom at the reception for children and infants. Offer babysitting services for those guests wanting to enjoy the reception and dinner.

A groom's cake is a great way to show off the groom's personality. Pick a cake inspired by his hobbies and history, such as a football cake (he was All-American in college) or a cake shaped like a salmon (for his love of fishing).

Try these ideas for a reception table centerpiece: ice sculptures (shaped to your request), candles of different heights, or a chocolate fountain.

For seasonal weddings, consider giant pumpkins with fall foliage, or a glass bowl filled with Christmas ornaments.

Hire a videographer to make a video of your photos to show at the wedding reception. Make sure to give the producer a list of the specific songs you want your photos edited to.

Have childhood photos of each of you blown up into poster-size prints and mounted on a stiff cardboard sheets or foam-core board. Ask all your guests to sign the poster before they leave the reception.

Ask your caterer to make a version of a favorite family recipe and list it as such on the menu or buffet table. After all, what's a family gathering without Aunt Rita's Sweet Potato Casserole or Nana's Spicy Deviled Eggs? Or give out Grandma's Famous Macaroons as favors, along with the recipe. (Of course, if you're having a large wedding, spare Grandma the work and have the caterer or a baker make them instead.)

Hand paint your toasting glasses. Find a pottery place where you can paint glass, they "fire it" for you, and you pick it up later.

Instead of giving guests sugared almonds or potpourri bundles, give them a seedling of an evergreen tree that they can plant to remember you by.