Four Ways to Make Your Wedding Extra-Special

If you think your guests may be tired of run-of-the-mill weddings, eg. many of your friends have gotten married in the past couple of years and all the weddings seem to be blending into one...then mix things up a little and make your wedding a unique affair to remember. Whether you do this by having especially memorable decor or a unique venue, or by making an impact on the future as in point 4, the possibilities are endless, so get creative!

Location: Instead of a banquet hall or other dressed-up meeting room, try something out of the ordinary. We've seen wedding receptions at some gorgeous places: for a local wedding, try an art gallery, a heritage building, an airplane hangar, an indoor amusement park, or any other unusual but large indoor space that suits your style. For a destination wedding look for something both exotic and affordable; from North America this typically means the Caribbean, but can also can include Hawaii and Europe, for instance. TIP: Check out the Honeymoon in Hawaii section at our Travel site!

Decoration: One special way to create memorable ambience is to have a theme running through your decor. From cultural wedding themes - eg. Asian, Mexican - to seasons or anything the two of you love, this can be a personalized way to celebrate. Choose extra lighting to add a sense of style, (eg. light outdoor pathways with hurricane lanterns), think about what you love and wedding theme ideas can be as creative as you want them to be!

Eco-Friendly: Make a statement that you hope will be followed by your guests and have an eco-friendly wedding! Buy a dress spun from soft renewable bamboo fibers, arrive in a hybrid vehicle, give plants as wedding guest gifts, serve sustainable seafood with a story about it in the guest menu, offer vegetarian options, etc..

Wedding Gifts: Instead of registering for the standard good china and flatware, create a whole new style of wish list that will have a positive impact on the future of yourselves (and your children some day)! You could ask for exercise & fitness equipment to help you both get and stay in great shape, such as matching bicycles or gym memberships; you could ask for the money to enroll in finance or real estate investing courses to help you both get off on a good financial footing...there are many ideas here which your guests would likely be more than happy to spring for. You can even send thank you notes several years from now to the guests who contributed in this way, with a picture of your fit selves or your new rental home investment, letting them know that their gift had a positive long-term impact. Now that's memorable!