How to Personalise your Wedding Ceremony

When considering your wedding day, you will have thousands of different choices to make. From the venue to the food to the music you’ll dance the night away to, planning a wedding involves an endless selection of areas you can personalise exactly to your tastes.

There is, however, one element of your day that you may feel you have relatively little control over: the ceremony. Many couples assume that the ceremony is a legal, and potentially religious, part of their day that they cannot influence – but this isn’t actually the case. While all ceremonies do require some legal elements, you may be surprised to discover just how much you can actually personalise this part of your big day. Below, I’ve put together a list of personalisation elements that can ensure that your wedding ceremony truly reflects you and your partner – read on to find out more…

Provide “thank you” cards and programs to your guests

As your guests file in to the ceremony, an usher or bridesmaid can issue personalised “thank you for attending” cards. You can also include a program with the thank you cards if you wish; use this to briefly outline how the day will progress, so that everyone feels comfortable knowing exactly where they should be and when.

It’s also worth considering expanding the remit of your program. For example, you could include a section where guests can write messages; these can work well in place of a formal guestbook. Alternatively, you could provide a history of you and your soon-to-be-spouse’s relationship complete with photographs; wedding ceremonies can take awhile to get started, so your guests will likely be glad of something to read while they wait!

Offer a limited range of snacks and beverage options

Wedding ceremonies – and particularly religious wedding ceremonies – can be rather long, and for many guests, will take place immediately after a long car journey. To ensure your guests are comfortable throughout the ceremony itself, you may want to consider providing food and drink options prior to the ceremony commencing.

If you decide to implement this idea, it’s best to opt for simple, snack-size canapes and non-alcoholic drinks. These can be provided to guests along with their thank-you card and program as they enter.

How to Personalise your Wedding Ceremony

Place something significant behind the altar

If the area in view is not scenery, and you’re indoors, The area behind the altar may be a blank space; a bare wall that the officiant stands in front of. This means that you have a canvas to personalise. You could, for example, choose artwork that is significant to you and your spouse-to-be or enlarge a photograph of your favourite holiday destination.

For a truly personal touch, you could use this space to temporarily hang a chalkboard or whiteboard. You could then invite your guests to write messages on board while they wait for the ceremony to begin. This not only ensures your photographs of the wedding ceremony will include this touching tribute from your loved ones, but it also gives you a wonderful keepsake to cherish for years to come. Alternatively, If you have the time and know how…do what Jody and Phil did and make your own sign!

Choose music that is personal to you

In life, music is a highly subjective subject – we all love different artists and bands that reflect our personal tastes. However, when it comes to weddings, music choices tend to be far more restricted: tradition dictates it’s the Wedding March or… the Wedding March.

This is rather restrictive, so why not break with tradition and instead opt for music that is truly reflective of you and your spouse-to-be? There are really no rules when it comes to music, and don’t feel that you have to be restricted to romantic music either; if you want to skip down the aisle to Uptown Funk, then that’s your prerogative!

Walk down the aisle as you please

Conventionally, the groom walks himself to the altar, usually accompanied by the best man while the bride walks with her father. However, there’s no specific reason to do things this way if you would prefer to personalise the moment. You could, for example, walk down the aisle arm-in-arm as a couple – this choice can be beautifully romantic, and truly adds a personalised touch to your day.

How to Personalise your Wedding Ceremony

Write your own vows

This is undoubtedly one of the best-known choices when it comes to personalising your wedding ceremony. If you opt to write your own vows, it’s important to remember there is no “right” or “wrong” way to do so – your vows can be whatever you want them to be. If you want to be funny and make jokes, then go for it; or you can be more serious and solemn as you promise yourself to your spouse-to-be. The only thing that matters is that your vows reflect you and truly say what you want them to say – if that means being a little unconventional, then so be it!

It’s also worth noting that saying vows at the same time – rather than one after another – has become increasingly popular in recent years. If you do opt for this, practice beforehand with your spouse-to-be; this will help you ensure you can speak at the same speed and with the same cadence during the ceremony.

How to Personalise your Wedding Ceremony

Only include ceremonial elements you both like

Finally, an important point that has been touched upon throughout this piece, but is worth mentioning in its own right: your wedding ceremony is yours. While many of us associate certain eventualities with a wedding ceremony, these rules are arbitrary, and they can be broken if you and your spouse would rather not engage with them. Above, we have mentioned changing your vows or how you walk down the aisle – but ultimately, this same concept applies to anything related to the ceremony.

All that you must ensure happens with your wedding ceremony is the legal aspects – everything else, from the way the room looks to how your guests are arranged in the space, is entirely your decision. If you want to break with tradition, do so: it’s your wedding! If there’s something you dislike about the conventional wedding setup, then don’t do it: it really is that simple.

If you remember to only choose the ceremonial aspects you and your spouse-to-be truly enjoy, you can be sure of an intimate, personal ceremony that fundamentally suits you as a couple.

How to Personalise your Wedding Ceremony

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