"I Have To Do WHAT?" Weddings Don't Have to be Boring.

Okay, for those of you who have spent your lives dreaming of caterers in tuxedos, formal black and white dinners and all the elegance of a full cinderella wedding - this post may not be for you! This post is for all the brides out there who hate the idea of a formal, same as all the others, wedding. Who said a wedding had to be that way?

Many brides today are under the impression that things like the meal, the dress, the size of the wedding, the cake, etc are all set in stone based on what is ‘exceptable”. The truth is, more and more brides are thumbing their noses at the “traditional” wedding frills, and doing things in a new, unique way!

Here are some examples of brides doing things their own way:

1. Not so formal reception - A couple getting married were the kind who loved to camp, loved the outdoors, and spent all their free time playing sports. The idea of a staunch, formal dinner and dance was not their idea of “celebrating”. So, they opted for a beautiful outdoor wedding followed by a catered bar-b-que and a baseball tournament! (Yes, the bride played in her dress, lol - and it wasn’t a small dress)

2. At a wedding earlier this year, the bride disliked flowers very much. So, instead of flowers, she used candles as her decor and candle lanterns as the “bouquets” for the wedding party! The only flowers were in the bride’s own bouquet!

3. Another couple I read about had a traditional dinner because their parents requested it, but decided against a dance. Instead, after the dinner, they rented out a bowling alley for a bowling tournament - tuxes and all!

Here are a few things that most bride’s think must be included:

- A Reception: Most bride’s believe that they are required to put on a reception. This is not true. Traditionally, the reception was a party the family put on in the couples honor to celebrate the marriage and was not the couples responsibility. Today, many many couples choose to put on their own, which is perfectly acceptable. But there are some couples who find the idea of a reception, as traditionally done, to be very boring and out of character. If you are one of those people, don’t worry! Spend some time think about what sort of celebration would be most meaningful to you, and then incorporate that into your wedding day!

- A Wedding Cake: No, you don’t HAVE to have a wedding cake unless you want one!

- The Wedding Party: For legal purposes, you have to have 2 witnesses (generally the best man and maid of honor) and an officiate or justice of the peace. All other members of the wedding party are optional and should only be filled if you personally want them to be. Don’t have any children in your life - don’t stress about finding some connected child just to have a flower girl or ring bearer! And by the way the wedding party can be anyone you wish, including friends, sisters, mothers, aunts, even your grandma, if that’s what you want!

- Alcohol: There is NO rules saying you have to serve alcohol at your wedding. There are many people who for personal or religious reasons, do not drink. If you are one of those people, don’t feel pressured to have alcohol involved!

- Flowers and Decorations: There is not a single decoration item that is a MUST. If you don’t like flowers, don’t use flowers. If you don’t like candles, don’t have candles! If you hate ivy and tulle, leave it out! There is nothing wrong with using your own creative mind to come up with unique and original decorating ideas.

- Guest Book: Many brides have already decided that the traditional guest book is not for them, and that is perfectly fine! There is no reason why you have to have any type of guest book at all - but if you want to have a record of the guests and their wishes - there are many other ways it can be done as well.

- The Wedding Dress: It doesn’t have to be white, it doesn’t have to be poofy, it doesn’t even HAVE to be a dress!!! If you are having an informal wedding and hate dresses, wear a suit. It’s your wedding after all, you should be comfortable! Of course, if you love the poof DO IT, cause you only get to wear a dress like that a few times in your life. Friends of my family are avid motorbikers, for their wedding he wore a black leather jacket and black leather chaps over his best jeans and she wore all white leathers: vest, pants, jacket.

There are more, but those are the areas that came to mind. In the end, there is only very few things that are a MUST for a wedding:
- a bride and a groom
- an officiate or justice of the peace
- 2 witnesses
- a marriage certificate, a pen and the required wedding vows
Everything else is there to help celebrate the vows and the signing of that paper - so what better way to do that then with activities that have meaning to you rather then activities you dread?
Found at Dream Budget Weddings