Fresh Favor Ideas For Your Spring Wedding

Spring is a popular time for weddings because it has been long associated with new beginnings. As you celebrate life and love with your new spouse and guests, show your guests you appreciate them with these lovely spring-themed gifts.

Seeds and Flowers

Help your guests start new lives themselves by giving seeds or small potted plants for them to grow and nurture while you and your spouse grow and nurture your own budding life.  If you don’t want to give live plants, consider giving something decorative that is related to the flowers you used in your wedding.

Decorations

Another option is to give a small vase to each family. It’s up to you whether you include the flowers or not. You could even use the vases as decorations at the reception and tell the guests to simply take one from their table as they leave the reception.

You can also give the placeholders you use at the reception as favors. This way, your guests will have their name card in addition to a decorative item to keep as a memento of the wedding.

Butterflies & Birds

Butterflies themselves symbolize new life, as they evolve from a caterpillar into a new and lovely form as a butterfly. Candle holders, key chains, and bottle stoppers adorned with butterflies make a lovely favor for your guests.

Birds, too, are often associated with spring. Give your guests a pair of birds or bird-themed gifts as favors to remind them of the beauty of spring – and your wedding.

Colorful Food

If you’d rather give food as a favor, consider giving bags of colorful candy to again remind your guests of the colors that spring brings back into our lives after a long winter. You can choose the colors from your wedding, greens and pinks, or choose a variety of bright, vibrant colors. Another great food favor is cupcakes: they’re easy to package individually and make a great post-reception treat.

DIY

A large part of your decision on which favors to give will depend on your budget. If your budget is small but you have plenty of time, you might want to consider making the favors yourself. Some examples of DIY favors are birdseed ornaments, bags of hand-picked fresh fruit, or handmade favor bags.

Image Credits:  Miniature Flower Pots, Seed Packets, Gerber Daisy Boxes, White Vases, Tree Place Card Holders, Small Glass Globe Vases, Bird Place Card Holders, Butterfly Favor Wraps, Bird Wine Bottle Stopper, Floral Design Cupcake Liners, Rock Candy, Pastel Flower Cupcakes, Bag of Strawberries, Birdseed Ornament, Fabric Favor Bags

Elizabeth is an undergraduate at Ohio Northern University with a double major in professional writing and creative writing and a minor in psychology. Liz writes for My Wedding Reception Ideas as well as creates multi-modal writing projects for Re:Media, an Ohio Northern University online publication.

Leave Your Paper Guestbook in the Stone Ages with Signing Stones

Not all wedding traditions are set in stone, but your guest book can be. Instead of using a traditional bound paper book for your guests to leave you a message in, consider having them each sign a stone. Guest signing stones are a unique and interesting way to capture your guests' names and good wishes for your marriage, and your guests will love this fun guest book alternative. 

Why? You may be hesitant to let go of the idea that you have to have a guestbook at your wedding, because that’s “what has always been done.” Here are a few reasons to reconsider:

• A book will eventually be placed on a bookshelf, or maybe even in a box, and won’t be looked at except for perhaps on your anniversary.
• The stones can be displayed in a vase or bowl or in a garden or terrarium, where they can be enjoyed by everyone.
• No tradition is forever. If you want to change something, change it. This is your wedding and you can have whatever sort of guest book you’d like!

How? These signing stones are super simple. All you need to do is set up a table near the door to the reception hall. Scatter the stones on the table with a couple markers (a fine point permanent marker writes well on stones) and a note telling your guests what to do. Then relax and let your loved ones write a special message to you and your spouse!

Another great way to incorporate this natural accent in your wedding is to write your guests’ names on stones and use them as placeholders at the tables. Provide one or two markers at each table. Your guests will be able to write their note to the bride and groom while they are enjoying the reception. This will also give them all night to think about what they want to write.

Tell us in the comments below what you think about a stone guest book!

Image Credits:  Glass Vase with Decorative Base, Square Concave Glass Vase with Guest Signing Stones, Stone Place Cards

Elizabeth is an undergraduate at Ohio Northern University with a double major in professional writing and creative writing and a minor in psychology. Liz writes for My Wedding Reception Ideas as well as creates multi-modal writing projects for Re:Media, an Ohio Northern University online publication.

Eloping: Not Just for the Money

Many young girls spend a lot of their time dreaming about having a big, elaborate, beautiful wedding. Usually, as they get older, these dreams remain the same. But more and more women are choosing to have small, intimate ceremonies – or no ceremony at all.

In the past, eloping has sometimes been looked down upon as a way to avoid a scandal. Today, it’s becoming more acceptable, and much more practical.

Perhaps the most common reason to elope is to save money. It’s no secret that weddings are expensive. Renting a venue, catering food for hundreds of people, paying a professional photographer, and everything else really adds up to a big bill. Eloping means you can spend more money on your honeymoon – or save more for the future.

You’ll also be helping other people save money. You won’t have a bridal party who will have to buy dresses or rent suits. You won’t have guests who have to buy gifts for you. Your guests won’t have to spend money on travelling.

There are quite a few more valid reasons to consider eloping.  There can be a lot of drama with weddings. Family members not getting along, friends feeling excluded, and stepping on the wrong person’s toes can all be avoided by keeping the guest list to just the two of you.

An elopement also increases the intimacy of your marriage. A big ceremony often ends up being a big show for your guests. When it’s just you and your partner, you can focus on each other and your love and commitment to each other. 

If you’re concerned about money, or any of the other examples listed above, but still want to celebrate with a large group, there are ways to do that. You could have a small ceremony with just your immediate family and then have a large reception. You could also elope and have a reception when you return from your honeymoon.

The most important thing about eloping is to make sure you and your partner are both in agreement. Talk through all of your options and make a decision together!

Image Credits:  'We Eloped' Couple on Beach, Eloping is In, Elopement Ceremony

Elizabeth is an undergraduate at Ohio Northern University with a double major in professional writing and creative writing and a minor in psychology. Liz writes for My Wedding Reception Ideas as well as creates multi-modal writing projects for Re:Media, an Ohio Northern University online publication.

Shades of Green + Ivory - A Romantic Garden Wedding Inspiration Board

We often see a few bold colors as the main focus of a wedding, but sometimes the most elegant and beautiful color scheme can be found in the simplicity of a single color in several shades, with soft neutral accents. This can be illustrated by a color scheme of soft shades of green and ivory.  

This color pallate is perfect for a spring or summer garden wedding. These colors would also bring a natural feel to your indoor wedding where you want to bring a natural feel to an indoor space.  Mismatched bridesmaids dresses and plant favors will add to the natural feel of your wedding, and an ivory wedding cake with green accent flowers will tie in perfectly. 

There are so many floral options available to compliment this color scheme.  Succulents and Dusty Miller are perfect for bringing different shades of green and textures to bouquets, boutonnieres and centerpieces.  Bay or olive leaves can be used for garland or in centerpieces, and ivory flowers will look stunning with the greens in the background.

Image Credits: Boutonnieres, Centerpiece, Bride's Bouquet, Eat Drink and Be Married Napkins (Find these napkins here), Bridesmaids Dresses, Ivory Wedding Cake, Boutonniere, Table Setting, Succulent Favors, Cocktails, Garland

Driving off into the Sunset: A Honeymoon on the Road

If you’re having trouble choosing the perfect location for your honeymoon, why don’t you choose all of them? Take the road trip of your dreams!

Before you start:

1. Plan your route. What cities are you dying to visit? What landmarks have you always wanted to see? Mark every place on a map so you won’t miss anything.
2. Make sure your vehicle is up to par. Take it to a garage to get everything checked out – you don’t want to break down somewhere on the open road! If your car isn’t very dependable, you might want to rent one.

For the ride:

1. Pack lots of snacks and drinks. Grocery stores tend to be cheaper than gas stations.
2. Put together an emergency kit. Include a battery-powered radio, flashlight, jumper cables, first-aid supplies, tire repair kit, flares, and extra batteries. It’s also a good idea to have an extra blanket or two. 
3. Prepare games and entertainment. The last thing you want is to get bored in the car and start bickering. You can make a few CDs with your favorite music, come up with a few games to play, and tell (or read) stories to each other.
4. Pack a camera and take plenty of pictures along the way. Each time you stop, get the pictures developed. You can make a scrapbook or photo album while you’re driving.

Where to go:

If you’re still not entirely sure of where you want to go, there are many websites that will help you plan your trip. Some will give you routes that they have already mapped out, but others will give you suggestions and assist you with the technicalities of planning. 

If you have the time and money for it, try to plan one stop in every state. Here are some of the most popular destinations within the United States:

• San Antonio
• San Francisco (the Golden Gate Bridge)
• Hollywood
• Las Vegas
• Washington D.C.
• Chicago
• New Orleans
• The Grand Canyon
• Mount Rushmore
• Yellowstone National Park
• Yosemite

If you don’t have any particular places in mind, you could pick a highway and drive up and down that, stopping wherever and whenever you feel like it.

• Pacific Coast Highway: 1,700 miles from southern California to the Olympic Peninsula
• Florida State Highway/Overseas Highway: 600 miles from Jacksonville to Key West
• Newfound Gap Road/Blue Ridge Parkway/Skyline Drive: a total of 606 miles through three national parks – without the semi-trucks, billboards, and traffic on other highways
• U.S. Highway 2: 3,300 miles (if you drive the 700 miles it covers in Canada!) through mountains, the Great Plains, small towns, and Glacier National Park
• U.S. Highway 395: 1,300 miles from southern California to the Canada border

There are so many things to do and so many beautiful places to visit. So why should you stay in one place? Grab your spouse, a map, and a trustworthy car and hit the road for a honeymoon full of adventures!

Image Credits:  Couple in Car with Luggage, Grand Canyon, Pacific Coast Highway

Elizabeth is an undergraduate at Ohio Northern University with a double major in professional writing and creative writing and a minor in psychology. Liz writes for My Wedding Reception Ideas as well as creates multi-modal writing projects for Re:Media, an Ohio Northern University online publication.