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The very best tips for planning your wedding usually come from friends, family and other couples. -Sharing their recent experiences, others can provide helpful insights that are hands-on, thoughtful and really well targeted. Read on for a few comments from some of the couples we've recently met at RainbowWeddingNetwork's LGBTQ+ Wedding Expos, or through our lively FB group!
"We are big gardeners, so we had a very rustic look to our wedding: lots of wildflowers for decor, my wife's dress was accented with lily-of-the-valley embroidery work... The reception decor was so rustic, with little corners at the venue set with comfy chairs and chalkboard signs, etc. This barn-style venue offered long wooden tables with a family-style dinner, and again, lots of mason jars of wildflowers on the tables (and everywhere, honestly!) But the unique part was that instead of traditional gifts, we requested that our guests donate to a fund to help us rebuild the garden in our yard, and for additional landscaping projects. We had recently bought a new home and this idea was just such a wonderful fit for us - made our wedding even that much more personalized and memorable: every time we work in our newly refurbished garden area, we think of Our Special Day, and all our loved ones who helped us feather our nest!"
-Janice & Kaitlin
"We needed a way to include out-of-towners so a live stream of our wedding ceremony and a bit of our reception made sense. We made a point to notify those family members who refused to attend (b/c they didn't support our marriage) and we notified them in a couple of different ways, hoping they would tune in. Some of them did! It meant a lot to us."
-Graham & Alyx
"Handcrafting our own wedding bands was an incredibly meaningful experience! Highly recommend finding a craftsperson or jeweler who will work with you and provide you with this opportunity. You and your fiancee will bond over this experience more than you realize, cherish the memories forever, and the wedding rings will be that much more customized."
-Jason & Derrick
"Not big cake people!! So we had an ice cream bar instead, with a variety of flavors from the traditional and the whimsical (cookie dough, rainbow sprinkles...) to the more refined such as mango and pineapple, etc. We also offered drunken sorbet (Nieve de Garrafa, really... The Sparkling Wine-spiked Coconut Passionfruit sorbet was to die for!)... Instead of the traditional cake-cutting ceremony to top off the festivities at the reception, we instead gathered everyone in front of the ice cream bar, opened a fresh bottle of champagne, and toasted each other. We even said a few words to each other that we hadn't gotten a chance to say during our vows (bc we're kind of chatty that way). It was really touching and no one missed the cake, I assure you!!"
-KC & Daniela
"We wanted to get playful with our guests so going with a theme wedding was the right choice for us. We invited everyone to dress up to fit in with the theme (vintage, 1920's, plus hints of rainbow) and it really made things a lot of fun. One of the interactive games we played was 'Guess Who' to help guests circulate and chat with each other, and they had to take selfies throughout the game - it really worked out so well!"
-Hayleigh & Marche
"I think finding a way to include all the kids who attended in the ceremony helped them own the event a little bit, and helped them stay calm and focused throughout the rest of the wedding. What we did was give each of our nieces, nephews, friends' children (who wanted to participate) a basket of goodies to hand out to the seated guests as they waited for the ceremony to begin. Each basket contained either a fabric bag of flower petals, bubbles, one of our programs or a keepsake favor (a small magnet with our engagement photo and our newly chosen surname: 'Cheers from The Pelhams!' ...The kids enjoyed taking part, the guests loved seeing them wander through the aisles, and it made for some adorable photos."
-Adam & Danny
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