It’s no secret that your wedding day goes by so fast. As a wedding planner, I often see couples so worried about attending to family and friends that they forget to spend time with each other!
It’s totally important to make your wedding guests feel amazing, but it’s also important to take a few deep breaths and soak in the fact that YOU ARE MARRIED. Insane, right?! Whether it’s two months or two years of planning, it all comes down to this one incredibly important day.
So, let’s be real. Spending time with your new partner in life doesn’t mean you disappear for hours; it doesn’t even mean you have to be alone. It just has to be a memorable moment that you can look back on and say, “that was awesome.”
I’d love to share 5 different ideas to create memorable moments on your wedding day. I hope this helps you soak in this amazing day together.
1. Ceremony Unity Items
Photo Credit: The Porto’s
Venue: Mission Inn Resort – Marina del Rey
The representation of a wedding ceremony unity item is of two people coming from separate backgrounds, separate families, or even separate parts of the world and becoming one. Some couples choose to opt-out of a ceremony unity item, while some put a unique twist on it.
The most traditional unity item is a unity candle. This is where three candles sit on a table: two tall taper candles and one large pillar candle in the middle. Traditionally, the mothers (or another close family member) of the couples light the two smaller candles prior to the ceremony. During the ceremony, the couple uses both of the smaller candles to light the middle one together.
Of course, if a candle isn’t your thing (or if you think it might be too windy or rainy), there are lots of other options. Some couples create a wedding time capsule where they write love letters to each other and place them in a box to open on the 5 or 10-year anniversary. Other popular wedding unity ideas are the wine blend—where two varieties of wine are mixed together—and a cord of three strands, where the couple braids string or rope together to symbolize the couple and God.
The opportunities for unity symbols are endless but it’s important that you don’t just do a unity item because you feel like you have to. That particular moment should represent you and your fiancé.
2. First Look / First Touch
Photo Credit: The Porto’s
Venue: Riato Tampa
An old superstition says that it’s bad luck for the groom to see the bride in her dress before she walks down the aisle. But increasing numbers of couples are bucking tradition and choosing to do a “first look” at each other before the ceremony. So, which do you do?
The most important rule is this: if seeing your fiancé before you walk down the aisle will put you at ease…DO IT.
A lot of people worry that a pre-ceremony first look won’t have the same effect as it will when you’re walking down the aisle. I beg to differ! First looks can honestly be one of the sweetest moments of the whole day. It’s a moment that the two of you have together before the craziness begins to just say everything you wanted to say and get some photos out of the way too!
Some couples want to see each other for the first time when they walk down the aisle, and that’s a beautiful moment, too.
If you don’t have an opinion either way, consider the lighting on your wedding day. Most photographers consider the hour before sunset as the “golden hour” for couple portraits. If this hour falls before your ceremony, you should probably do the first look then.
Still don’t want to tempt bad luck? A first touch is a moment prior to the ceremony where you hold hands (usually with a corner or door between you), talk to each other, pray with each other—whatever that moment is for the two of you—without peeking. This way, you still get a few cute “couple” pictures, but you didn’t cheat and break tradition.
3. Gift / Letter Exchange
Photo Credit: Marcoz and Miranda
Venue: Club Lake Plantation
Some of the most memorable moments of a wedding day have been during a letter exchange. The coolest part about this moment is that you can say everything you want to say during that moment without having to come up with it on the fly. Some brides and grooms prefer to read their letters out loud so they can capture the heartwarming event on video.
If you don’t feel like you have a way with words, you can choose to exchange gifts—cufflinks, watches, jewelry, perfume, etc. It can be either an inside joke or a small memory of your relationship.
Normally, gift and letter exchanges are done prior to the ceremony or first look, but I’ve seen couples read their letters during the first touch moments and it’s a beautiful memory.
4. Married Moment
Photo Credit: The Rivers
Venue: The Acre Orlando
Our team calls the moment after you are married and recession down the aisle “the Married Moment.”
The two of you are in the happiest moment: after your vows and before you get distracted by more photos and people screaming “Congrats!”
We usually sneak our couples away into the Ready Room or a less populated area and give them at least 5 minutes while we get the family ready for photos.
I know, I know…everyone wants to talk to you. You’re the stars of the show. But take 5 minutes, people. You won’t regret it. Even if it is just to say, “I love you” or “Holy Crap, we’re married!”
5. Private Last Dance
Photo Credit: Chelsea Renay
Venue: The Distillery Savannah
After the last song is over and your guests have exited the wedding reception space, have one final last song…alone with your new wife or hubby.
To get the full effect of this special marriage moment, we recommend that there are no other guests in the room, just the two of you with your photographer/videographer and your band/DJ. It’s honestly one of the best ways to end your night back where it started: with each other.
Every time I have a couple who wants to do a private last dance, I peek through the door and my eyes tear up a little. It’s a sigh of relief and overwhelming love all at the same time.
Remember to take a few deep breaths and soak in the fact that YOU ARE MARRIED!
Photo Credit: Concept Photography
Venue: Bella Collina
There they are: 5 ways to create memorable moments on your wedding day – and enjoy every minute of it!
The team at Runway Events doesn’t just want to be your planner, they want to be your friend. Good friends will be there to give you advice (because they care about you), be honest (because they just want you to have the best experience), and to guide you every step of the way. They want to bring your vision to life, from helping you think of things you didn’t think of to make sure the day is executed with you in mind. Bonus: They’re fun.
Find out more at: www.yourrunwayevent.com.
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