Unique weddings make a statement

In 2008 there were 2,162,000 marriages in the United States. That’s about 180 per day, every day for the year. We've got some tips to help you set your wedding apart from the other 179!

Splash of color

White wasn’t always the bride color. When Queen Victoria married in a lacy white gown in 1840 English women adopted the custom. White later became known as a symbol of the bride’s purity. In America, women generally wore their nicest clothes, or a new dress that could be worn again, until the 1930s when Victorian gowns came into fashion. Dress to suit your wedding’s theme colors, or just add a colored sash or scarf. For more adventurous brides, dare to try a black evening gown. This black dress by Vera Wang shows that a bride in black is sure to turn heads.

Dressed in time

Class vintage designs return like clockwork. Go way back and try a cut from the roaring twenties or the nifty fifties. HIt google to help you narrow down an era and a look. Then google around for vintage stores in your area, like the Vintage Wedding Dress Company, that can help you track down the dress of your dreams.

Hats off to you

In the sixties women looked to Jackie Kennedy for inspiration and found her trademark pillbox hat. The hat can be worn alone, or dressed up with a birdcage veil to really set your wedding style apart. A great source of beautiful handmade wedding hats is the on Etsy, a site for creative crafters to sell their wares. You'll also find one of a kind cake toppers and ring pillows.

Get Crafty

Clicking through Etsy sites may give you a few crafty ideas of your own. For a smaller wedding why not try making your own hand lettered invitations on artisan paper. Not so confident in your art skills? Visit Zazzle to create and order your own invitations. You don’t have to be a designer to create something lovely, and the site offers printing and delivery.

Lose the limo

Make an entrance in something other than a standard town car. Rent an italian sports car and have a groomsman agree to drive you of to your hotel after the festivities. Check your local area for unusual limo companies like the limo hearse, or complement a vintage dress with a Rolls-Royce and tuxedoed driver.

Do Them a favor

Think outside of the box of mints when you’re choosing guest favors. Why not try shortbread cookies shaped like hearts or gingerbread brides and grooms. You don’t have to roll up your sleeves and dig into the flour yourself - a local bakery - or online supplier like Bridal Cookie can create exactly what you are looking for.

However you choose to tie the knot, make it your own. And don’t forget to thank your bridesmaids for all of their help with a bridesmaids gift as unique as you are.

Wedding Videography Tips: DIY Can Be Fun!

If your only option for a lasting memento of your day is a DIY wedding video, then consider these three quick ways to help produce the keepsake you want at a low-budget price you can afford.

Call upon your friends and relatives
Anyone who is bringing their camera to the occasion should be only too happy to pass on to you their final results: video, photographs etc. If you are worried about putting pressure onto too many people, ask a couple of specific individuals to take some particular recordings, eg: a bridesmaid’s mum to video the bridesmaids in action, whilst another relative films the bride and groom. Don’t forget though, that however well intentioned they are when they agree to this, such things are easily forgotten after the event, so it will be up to you to gently harass people to pass these on as soon as possible after the honeymoon. You could offer a reminder at the same time as offering an invitation to come and see the final product: this helps to remind others of their necessary contribution towards it!

Contact your local college
Find out if there is someone on a media course who would be interested in filming your wedding, or editing your gathered results from everyone else. The end result can be of surprisingly good quality, but do ask to see the portfolio of any prospective student first, just to make sure they have the necessary skills.

Ask the venue about the security camera
The recent wedding ceremony of a friend of mine was captured on the security camera of the venue – they found this out from a guest who was a little late and could not come in because the ceremony was underway! As a result, he watched the whole thing from the camera and added his own voice-over. If the venue is willing to let you buy a copy, you could have real fun adding your own D.I.Y commentary, even if the sound of the event has not been recorded!

This article was written exclusively for Groomsday by Chloe Wilson whose Wedding Video Hints website offers advice to those about to get married on what to expect from wedding videography services.