When I got married 17 years ago (on the 11th), some of the fancy things they have now weren’t available. Or at least not widely popular like they are today.
How do I know this, seeing as I’ve been happily married for almost two decades?
Well, some of the books I’ve been writing to come out in the future have people either planning weddings or working as a wedding planner. And that means, I get to plan weddings–for free!
Free, because Pinterest boards cost nothing, and I can pin anything I want and like on there at no cost to my wallet. Though I feel a bit sorry for some of the dad’s of these brides. Because weddings can be ridiculously expensive.
My own wedding was rather simple. My mom made my dress. I did my flowers. But it was one of the happiest days of my life, because I was finally marrying the man I’d been dating for over three years. We were such babies!
Looking back at my mom’s wedding, where her mom made the dress (tradition?), I can see the changes between her fancy candelabras and my candles in hurricane vases.
And looking back farther to my grandmothers’ weddings, where they both ended up having blue wedding dresses, I can see even more changes in trends and traditions.
So, what are some ideas trending now for weddings?
- Hashtags! Have you seen this? The bride (and groom) pick a hashtag to be just for their wedding. Then, they can add it to all posts, as well as having all their guests add it to theirs. This allows everyone to see the photos and keep up with what’s going on. Since social media wasn’t big when I got married, hashtags didn’t exist yet. I wonder what mine might have been. I could’ve had a lot of fun with the last name Anguish. ;-)
- Barns. I honestly don’t understand this one. But I know so many people who are booking barns as their wedding venue. Granted, these aren’t housing cows or horses or anything else four-footed anymore, but they might have in the past. I got married in a church building–and loved it because of the gorgeous stained glass window that sparkled above us through the ceremony. Not to mention the fact that it was free instead of the ridiculous price some of the barns are charging.
- Guest book alternatives. What do I mean by that? I’m talking picture frames people can sign with well-wishes. Or calendars. Or framed art pieces that look like trees. Or just about anything else you can think of. It’s a really fun idea, and if I had any extra wall space, I might wish we’d done that, too.
- Matching shirts for the rehearsal or getting ready. Have you seen these? Cute shirts that say “bridesmaid” or “bride tribe” or something else. They’re cute, but I’m not sure what you’re supposed to do with them after the wedding. Maybe I’m just in a mood since I’m trying to pare down all the t-shirts I have in my drawer right now, too.
- Twinkly lights. I love this one. I adore twinkly lights. I even had a string around my room in college for those evenings when I was exhausted or stressed. I’d turn on my music and only the Christmas lights, and everything would look better. They’re just so romantic.
- And I’ve noticed several of the sites say that “At Last” by Etta James is coming back into trend as a song for the weddings. This is the song we walked out to at ours. Maybe I was trendier than I thought. ;-)
If you’d like to see some of the ideas I’ve pinned, be sure to check out my pinterest boards. I’ll be sure to let you know when any of my books that include these wedding ideas come out.
Have you noticed certain trends I forgot to mention? If you could redo your wedding, would you want to incorporate anything new?
Amy R Anguish grew up a preacher's kid, and in spite of having lived in seven different states that are all south of the Mason Dixon line, she is not a football fan. Currently, she resides in Tennessee with her husband, daughter, and son, and usually a bossy cat or two. Amy has an English degree from Freed-Hardeman University that she intends to use to glorify God, and she wants her stories to show that while Christians face real struggles, it can still work out for good.
Elopement avoided all the hoopla and saved mum heaps of money. So much stress nowadays.
The last wedding I went to was at a winery. They have a lake there and the wedding was held on the shores of the lake and the reception outside at the winery (you wouldn’t notice it was a winery as it has the large open areas for weddings and events. They said no photos at the ceremony. We could take photos at the reception. They also had a photo booth and the idea was to take a photo (3 crazy ones) and there would be 2 copies one to keep and one to put in a guest book with a message.
Another thing they did that was different they enjoy going to second hand stores and finding books and had found a book for all of their guests and signed them and we got to take them home.
The other newer thing is the Save the Date card that gets sent ages before the invitation. I had never seen that before but got one for this wedding. They also had the # and a website to get info on the wedding and to RSVP and to put food allergies etc. Also many now have a money tree or wishing well where they ask for money not gifts.
I always think that simpler is best. Much more personal.
Hi Amy. Happy Anniversary! On the 16th will be married 48 years. As an immigrant, my church wedding was simple. Definitely saves on costs. We had a blend of American and German traditions. My mom worked for a lady who owned a dress shop so I got my wedding dress at cost. Church ladies picked wild flowers to decorate the tables at the reception and the ribbon they reused a few weeks later for my parent’s 25th -Silver Anniversary party.
Living in Michigan wine country , my husband officiated a barn wedding. Wedding was outdoors, reception in the barn. One of my former students just got married there this weekend. Beautiful sunset over the wine yard.
One new idea I enjoy is couples displaying wedding photos of their parents, grandparents, great grandparents weddings. Inspiring to see the family history. Also one talented photographer had a line up of bride & groom, then parents, then grandparents each couple kissing. Fun to see the love. Best wishes.
I thought about elopement a time or two, but that was more because I was impatient. We were engaged over a year.
And I agree that there’s way too much stress on the wedding now.
Yes! My brother did the photo booth at his wedding and that was fun.
And I actually have a save the date magnet on my fridge right now from some of my husband’s former students.
Agreed. And not so overwhelming!
I love the idea of the generations of wedding photos. Such a beautiful legacy. We went to a wedding a few years ago where they displayed the mom’s wedding dresses at the reception.
I’ve never been married. I told my Daddy that I’d marry outside in a cow pasture so he could wear jeans instead of a suit after my three older sisters got married! One of my sisters had a huge church wedding and even had the church choir sing. Another had a huge wedding, and that marriage didn’t last. Her second wedding was much smaller. The other sister had a smaller wedding, too. Personally, I like smaller ones, and have considered doing what my parents did if I ever do marry, and that’s just get married at the minister’s house with just the few needed to witness the wedding. I haven’t seen anything “new” at weddings. One of my nephews got married at the beach, two other nephews and a niece got married outside, and two nieces went to the courthouse.
I was at a wedding Saturday and just the dress cost $1200 and all the excess that was spent. They are in their early twenties and just bought a house and they could have used that money for so many things they needed. I guess it was important to them but I just wanted to help them do it more wisely. Haha
I love the idea of marrying in the cow pasture and wearing blue jeans.
Wow. I can’t even imagine spending half that on a dress.
In December we’ll be married 40 years. Best decision ever made, though I never wanted to get married LOL. In 4 weeks my Mom designed and made my dress, I called 100 guests (97 showed up. Probably shocked I was indeed getting married!), we both worked for an airline, so we fly and got friends and pilots to bring back liquor from St Thomas, got married at home with tents in the backyard by a judge that was a dear family friend, the DJ was also a friend, and the afternoon affair lasted over 5 hours. The best wedding ever to the best hubby and man I could ever wish for.
That sounds like a lot of fun! My parents passed 40 years in March. :-)
Wanna talk simple? How’s this, wake up on a Saturday morning and call a notary public friend and tell them they are going to marry us, we’ll be at your house in an hour……!! True story, of course we knew we were planning it so we did get the license early in the week.
Btw, we will be married 17 years too, this August!
I have heeard of braclets so guests so they can say how much contact they are each comfortable with. Saw it on a today show video.
We had a simple wedding, we got married at my in laws house by a Judge, it was a small wedding, relatives and a couple of friends but it was very nice. It was kept pretty simple so that was very nice.
Wow, Paula Marie! That is simple. Did you have flowers, at least? And congrats on 17. :-) It must have been a good year to get married.
That’s really interesting. I guess it’s spurred on by COVID? We live in a different world, for sure.
I honestly think smaller weddings are so much nicer. So much less stressful so you can actually enjoy the day and celebrate the occasion. :-)
Lol, no flowers. I carried a handkerchief that belonged to my grandmother.
That is super special!
I have not been able to go to a wedding in a few years due to being disabled. I would not want to redo anything from our wedding 32 years ago. The most important part for me was marrying my husband. God bless you.
Yes! That is the most important part!
My son and daughter-in-law had their reception in a barn and the wedding was outside at the same venue, with the barn as a backup for rain.
The girls all wore the t-shirts at their bridesmaids’ and bride-to-be weekend getaway.
It’s been a while since we’ve been to a wedding, so nothing new to add. We just celebrated 32 years a few days ago. We did a lot of things for ourselves. I designed my wife’s dress from ideas she had and she had a seamstress friend make it. We did pictures beforehand since me seeing the dress wasn’t an issue. :-) We designed our own stage and made the backdrops and decorations. It was a church wedding with traditional flowers (her mom insisted, lol) and a reception in the fellowship hall. It is fun to look back with a sense of pride at what we accomplished for the ceremony. God gets all the credit for 32 years and putting us together in the first place!
Sounds similar to some of my friends. Like one who got married last fall, and it did rain, but then they had the most glorious rainbow in the pictures. :-)
I love that. My Grandpa sat in the floor and drew circles to help my Grandma make my aunt’s dress. I am all about ingenuity in wedding planning. And congrats on 32 years!
My wedding was simple, overlooking the ocean with our closest friends and in front of the Justice of the Peace. One of the ladies made me a homemade cake & we toasted with sparkling apple cider. It was a grand time!
Four years ago for our 20th anniversary, we did a vow renewal at our church. The pastor was retiring that year so it really made it extra special. My son walked me up the aisle, my daughter & grand-girl were my flower girls and we were surrounded by our beloved church family. All the ladies threw a wonderful potluck reception with homemade cake & lots of goodies. There was much laughter and celebration!
I haven’t been to a wedding in a long time so I don’t know what trends are popular now. I think I’m with everyone else though…simple is better. I don’t understand how celebrities spend so much money on a wedding! For me, celebrating with my closest friends means more than a lavish affair. :-)
Your wedding sounds lovely. As does your vow renewal. I agree. Simple seems better.
I would love to have a beach wedding 👰
They always look pretty in the movies, don’t they?