Most brides who have a formal wedding, also want a formal reception.  This is pretty typical, but certainly not a hard fast rule.  Reception themes are fun to do and can be totally separate from your wedding.  No matter how elegant, formal, or sophisticated your wedding is, you can cut loose with a completely different look for the reception.

Here’s an example of exactly what I’m talking about.  Try a wonderfully creative sundae theme, complete with sundae bar, different flavors of ice creams, candy bar toppings, whipped cream and cherries.  What a wonderful companion to your wedding cake!  Offer ice cream drinks, root beer floats, or any other ’soda shop’-type beverage. 

 Of course this won’t work for all receptions.  It will need to be held when your guests aren’t expecting to be fed a meal.  You may even want to specify a ’sundae reception’ on your invitations.  Adorable sundae wedding favor candles or banana split salt & pepper shakers will not only complete the look, but it will definitely be the cherry on the top!

Put yourself in your out-of-town guest’s place.  What a wonderful surprise it would be after a long trip to a wedding to be greeted at the hotel with a beautiful gift basket filled with goodies especially for you.  This is the kind of thoughtfulness that will be remembered long after your wedding day.

When it comes to the items you place in each basket, try customizing the baskets to your guests.  This shouldn’t be too difficult if you know them fairly well.  In addition to the traditional snacks and maps to the area, golfers may appreciate some new tees, those who enjoy cooking may love to receive a wire whisk or recipe card holder.  Coffee lovers will delight in a gift card to a nearby coffee cafe.

You could also include items specific to your location.  For instance, if you’re in Atlanta, you may want to add something that has to do with the Braves, the Falcons, or Coca-Cola.  

Personalizing your welcome baskets will make not only make your guests glad that they came, but they will also let them know how glad YOU are that they came as well. 

Wedding Favor Reflections has new pricing-tiers on many of their favors, including baby shower favors, and favor boxes.  The new tiers now make it much easier for customers to reach a lower priced tier. 

In the past, you would have to purchase a much larger quantity of favors if you wanted to get them for a lower price.  With the new pricing-tiers, many favors offer lower prices just by ordering 2 or more sets.  Dozens of favors now feature this lower pricing-tier, which makes it the perfect time to start looking for that perfect favor for your wedding or special event.

Picking out your wedding favors can be the most enjoyable part of planning your wedding.  You can literally spend hours browsing through all the adorable favors that are available today. 

Once you’ve chosen those perfect favors for your dream wedding, consider finding a favor to give out at your rehearsal dinner as well.  No matter how elegant your wedding will be, the favors you choose for the rehearsal dinner can be just plain fun.  You can coordinate them with any theme, or they can be totally unrelated.  After months of hard work and planning, this is the time for a well-deserved evening of relaxation.  Let yourself be a little silly with your favors.  Then share that silliness with your friends and family!

When purchasing gifts for your bridesmaids or groomsmen, personalization is a great way to express your love and gratitude.  It shows your attendants that you’ve put a little more thought, time and effort into choosing their gifts.  Whether you choose to personalize their gifts with their entire name or just monogram it with their initials, it turns an ordinary present into a true gift from the heart.

For your groomsmen, consider giving items such as keychains, Swiss Army Knives, tie tacs, or pens engraved with their names.  Any bridesmaid would love personalized items such as cosmetic travel cases, jewelry cases, flip flops, or tote bags.

Personalization adds that little something extra that will make whatever you choose to give a wonderful keepsake.

If you’re considering adding an ethnic touch to your wedding reception, consider incorporating one of the special ethnic wedding favors found in the Kate Aspen line. 

Among some of the nationalities incorporated in these truly unique favors are Asian, Indian, Italian, French, Spanish, Mexican, as well as Jewish favors.  You’ll also find your favorite all-American favors from ‘Park Place’ Park Benches to ‘Bourbon Street’ Streetlights.

Incorporating your wedding favors into your wedding reception theme is a great way to draw the total effect together.  And it becomes a great take home memory of your very special day!

Spring is nearly here and most spring weddings are well into, if not nearly completed, with their decoration plans.  Here’s an adorable idea that may just fit perfectly into your spring theme wedding.

Everyone knows about the use of wedding favors in decorating reception tables, cake tables and other areas of the reception hall, but few think about baby shower favors.  I purchased a pink and a blue ‘Nest Egg’ Scented Soap Eggs from the new Kate Aspen line and they are absolutely perfect for a spring theme wedding.  The nest is made of actual shredded raffia so it looks and feels like a real nest.  The eggs are perfectly shaped and so lightly scented as not to ruin the aroma of the food it surrounds.  It the scent worried you at all, you can keep them wrapped in the clear cello film it arrives in.

Place these tiny little nests among your floral centerpieces to give it a genuine spring flare.  After the wedding, take them to your new home and decorate any room (I use them in my birdhouse theme bathroom) where you may consider a pastel color scheme.

If you’re considering hiring a wedding planner, you should know that there are several types available depending on how much help you think you’ll need and how much money you’re willing to spend.  

An ‘Event Planner’ takes over the whole wedding from day one.  They plan the ‘look’, meet with and hire vendors, and pretty much have complete creative control.  Event planners are perfect for couples with no time, but lots of money.  Costs can range from $40,000 to $75,000.

A ‘Full-Service Coordinator’ usually recommends vendors, will accompany you to appointments and negotiate prices.  They control all aspects of the actual wedding day itself, allowing you to sit back and enjoy.  This is a great option if you want more ’say’ in the planning of your wedding, but want someone else to worry about everything running smoothly on the big day.  Costs can range from $5,000 to $50,000.

A ‘Day-of Planner’ usually doesn’t get involved until at least a month before.  They confirm vendors and contact suppliers.  They also coordinate the wedding dayschedule making sure everything runs without a hitch.  Fees can run from $1,500 to $6,000.

An ‘Hourly Planner’ is available by the hour to answer specific questions or bounce ideas off of.  They can help find bands, reception locations or caterers.  A minimum of two or three  hours is usually required and can cost from $50 to $200 per hour.

A ‘Referral Maker’ simply recommends vendors and suppliers such as florists, musicians and caterers.  They normally collect their fee from the vendors they refer, so their services are free to the bride and groom.  This is a great option for couples that simply want a little guidance in their wedding planning.

Personalizing your ceremony is a great way to keep the tradition and yet have a wedding that is uniquely your own.  You can personalize a wedding ceremony several ways. 

The most common is through your wedding vows.  As long as you feel comfortable expressing yourself in front of all of your guests, this is a perfect way to let the ‘real you’ shine through.  The trick is to totally ignore everyone else in the room ~ easier said than done, however. 

You can also personalize your ceremony through music or specific readings during the ceremony.  Choosing a poem or song that has special significance to the two of you is a wonderful way to bring extra meaning to the whole ceremony.

Symbolic gestures or ceremonies can also be added to reflect your personal style.  The unity candle is very popular but you can also do a variation on this idea.  Handing both mothers a flower from the bride’s bouquet can also symbolize the unifying of the two families.  I recently attended a wedding where the parents and grandparents were invited to the front to form a circle around the couple and participate in a blessing of the bride and groom.

How ever you decide to personalize your wedding ceremony, be sure to check with your officiant first.  Some denominations may have restrictions that you’re not aware of.

Does the word ‘traditional’ not describe the wedding of your dreams?  Are you not excited about any of the more typical ‘theme weddings’ that you’ve heard about?  Then you may be looking for something a little more unusual and unique.  Here are a few ideas that might at least get your creative juices flowing.

Choose a particular time period, such as the 1920’s or Victorian England and build your wedding around it.  Incorporate the costumes, the customs, the music and even the foods.

Western-style weddings are also a unique alternative.  Decorating the reception hall in hay-bails and holding a square dance complete with fiddle players is a wonderful way to show your western flare.  Serve up a barbecue feast and even set out adorable cow ‘Udderly in Love’ wedding favors on the tables.

A simpler variation of a unique theme would be to choose a special place of significance to be married at.  Maybe you’d like to hold the ceremony where the two of you first met, the school you attended together, or the place where he proposed. 

Theme weddings are a great way to display your unique style.  Allowing yourself to think ‘outside the traditional box’ will ensure you and your guests a wedding that will not soon be forgotten.