No two marriages are exactly alike, so it makes sense that your wedding should be uniquely yours. Decades ago, the personalization of weddings seemed to be limited to choosing colors for bridesmaids’ dresses that would forever remain in closets post-wedding; deciding whether to have a buffet or plated dinner, and selecting music for the ceremony as well as the reception.
Eventually, personalization found its way in with engraved napkins displaying the names of the wedding couple and their wedding date. Some took it a step further with engraved champagne flutes. Well, times have changed and so has wedding personalization.
Local wedding planner Tiffany Hilgar of Tiffany and Design has noticed several emerging trends. “One trend I’ve noticed is couples having a logo designed uniquely for them—almost like a family crest,” she said.
Couples are using the logos almost like branding. “It goes beyond their wedding day with the logo being used in their homes on things like cutting boards, cocktail napkins and linens,” she added.
Sharing Favorite Foods
Gone are the days of choosing a basic wedding menu of chicken, steak or fish. Today couples are going for the foods they love. This means you can bet on barbecue when attending a Southern wedding and delicious pasta at Italian fests.
“Couples are also having their weddings catered by their favorite restaurants,” said Hilgar. “This is especially true if the restaurant was somewhere they went on dates.”
For desserts, cupcakes made a big debut a couple of years ago, but that trend seems to be fading. “Cakes are back,” said Hilgar, “but they’re only doing the top tier, which the couple will freeze and eat on their first wedding anniversary.”
The rest of the ‘cake’ is made from Styrofoam and decorated to look like a wedding cake while the real cake is a sheet cake served from the kitchen. “This allows the bridge and groom to stretch their budget further,” explained Hilgar.
Another fun trend has emerged in cake toppers. “Instead of using a traditional bride and groom cake topper, couples are having toppers made out of clay that look like their pets,” Hilgar added.
Your Kind of Music
While music has always leaned toward personal choices, some take this a step further by writing their own songs. When Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson married recently, his musician wife wrote and sang a song for their wedding. Noncelebrity couples also get in on the personal song trend when talent permits.
“One groom who performs in local bars wrote the sweetest song ever for his bride,” recalled Hilgar. “He then recorded the song as a record and gave it to her for their first anniversary.”
The “All About Us” Wedding
Currently Hilgar is working with a couple to plan their wedding with an “all about us” theme. “Their wedding is all about their personal experience and what brought them to this day,” she said.
The couple plans to use lavender for their flowers from their home garden and is hiring the DJ that plays at the bar where they met for their reception. The food will be catered from their favorite restaurant, and in a particularly endearing touch, the bride is having the cookies her grandmother taught her to make as a child served as dessert.
“These things are special to us, and we want to share them with our guests,” the couple explained to Hilgar.
More Wedding Trends and Ideas
COVID pretty much changed everything in our world, and weddings are no exception. “We’re no longer seeing huge weddings with 300 to 500 guests,” said Hilgar. “Typically, weddings are about 100 to 150 people as couples become more comfortable with inviting only their closest friends and family members.”
A recent article in The Insider by wedding planner Sarah Wintersteen noted a few interesting changes to wedding events, including the absence of the bouquet and garter toss. She also suggested that couples make time for a private dance at the end of the reception while their guests line up outside for the honeymoon send-off. This gives the newly married lovebirds a moment to reflect on the events of their big day.
No matter how weddings are personalized, one thing is certain—there are plenty of these big days coming up. “Business was really busy in 2021,” said Hilgar, “and 2022 looks like those number will double.”
So if you’re so inclined, get that big day planned and make it as personal as you want. It’s your love story—so it should be all about you!
Photos courtesy Kim Fleischer Photography
Commentaires