Unique Traditions / Ceremony?

A few weeks ago, I read about a ceremony idea on here that was pretty unique & I really liked:

Before the ceremony, the bride & groom each write a letter to the other saying why they fell in love, why they are getting married, etc. They seal the letters & keep them secret.

At the ceremony, there is a wooden box w/both letters, two wine glasses & two bottles of wine. As a part of the ceremony, the couple hammers the box shut while the officiant tells the guests what is in the boxes. S/he then explains that if the couple ever feel as if they should give up on the marriage ~ they agree to break open the box & go to a private area to read each other's letter while drinking a glass of wine. They will then meet, drink some more wine & talk things over before throwing in the towel.

IF the couple never has that big, blow out fight ~ they will open the wine & the letters to celebrate their 25th anniversary.

When I read about it ~ it was worded much better than I am wording it now, lol ~ but I am sure you get the idea =)

I thought that it would be cute to have mini-cakes on each table. The guests can cut their own cake and decide when they want to eat it. PLUS it serves as the centerpiece. Ok, that's not too unique or different. I'd also like to have other entertainment besides music - lots of people won't dance. Have a casino set up or games to play! It's all about having fun and enjoying the company of those around you. Good luck!

If you have any ethnic/cultural traditions in either of your families, use those! We had a very traditional Ukrainian wedding, so it was full of many unusual things.

I agree with you about the cake cutting thingee - NO way was I going to do that. We didn't have the big tiered cake, either. Our centerpiece showcase item was Ukrainian specialty wedding breads, called korovai. We had three stacked braided rounds, here's what one looks like -

http://www.nazdorovya.com/korovai.htm

For dessert after the dinner, we had a variety of cheesecakes and toppings, and a variety of dainties. We did give out wrapped fruitcake at presentations, for our guests to take home, put under their pillows, to dream of their true love (old family tradition).

You can have cup cakes instead of a cake. You can have the guess release butterflies instead of throwing the bird seed. When it comes to throwing the garter, blind fold the guy that catches it and replace the girl/women with an old lady. Blind fold the groomsmen and make then do a fun dance.

I prefer cupcakes tiers over cakes... and it omits the whole need for the cake cutting.

Candy buffets are fun and tasty. I've seen mini-pastry buffets too, where guests got to take home treats in miniature pink pastry boxes.

People are renting those photo booths for receptions... which gives you lots of fun candid photos of guests and family.

We are doing a "knot ceremony" (as in, 'tying the knot'). It is kind of along the same lines as handfasting, but not really. I bought a very inexpensive 6" quilt hanger, which the pastor will hold, and after our vows, our mothers will present us each with a long (2 1/2 feet) piece of ribbon - his black, mine ivory (our wedding colors). The pastor will say this:

"In ancient times, handfasting was used to signify the union between a man and a woman. Bride and Groom have decided to share in their own unique version of this practice, which ultimately became known as “Tying the Knot”. May we have the ribbons please? (Bride and Groom's mothers each place a piece of ribbon in a section of the knot holder and return to their seats). Bride and Groom, these two distinct ribbons represent your lives before this day: individual, unique and special. They were woven out of the wisdom, strength and love of your family and friends who have helped shape you into the individuals standing before us today. As you each take your ribbon and join it with the other, let this symbolize the joining of your two lives as one. That you may each retain the individuality that makes you unique, but recognize the strength created by joining each together into an impenetrable knot. (Bride and Groom “tie the knot”). As these two ribbons are united as one, so are you."

SInce it isn't a common ceremony, I had to create the wording myself.

We plan on hanging the knot in our house as a reminder of our special day, and tying a new knot (separated by some sort of decorative button probably) every year on our anniversary.

Hope this helps!

http://store1.yimg.com/I/h-madewithlove_1915_62552...

big chocolate chip cookies and shots of milk is one that I've seen by a few people (and there's a few websites that give this as a suggestion). Cupcakes, little mini cakes for everyone are two others. Have you searched theknot.com for ideas?

My friends, family, fiance, and I are all huge sports fans. We're going to do an alternative to the "dollar dance"...

You have 2 jars... one for the 2 rival teams in your area (ours are FSU and UF)... people put money in the jars... whichever jar gets the most money get their fight song played.

This way you're not asking people to give "you" money... they're giving the money to hear the song! And if your friends have as much team pride as mine do... it raises ALOT of honeymoon money! It's always a hit at the weddings in our area!

Instead of cake, these people I knew had a table of goodies (like twizzlers, to gum drops, to reese peanut butter cups) and then also rented a candy floss machine and snow cone machine