It's the little things.

Weddings.

There are hundreds, if not thousands, of weddings on any given Saturday. Fridays and Sundays, too, but mostly Saturdays.

So, what is it that makes YOUR wedding different than all the others?

YOU.

You, your fiance, your personality, the things that make you YOU. As individuals and as a couple.

I've recently come across some really cool "little things" that people have done and are doing to add their personality to their wedding that I thought were worth sharing. Pinterest is, of course, FULL of ideas of things you can DIY, etc., but these were a few I thought were pretty cool.

1. Programs.
   • This "off-beat" idea was awesome and a great way to communicate with your guests about some of the decisions you made for your wedding and what your expectations are for them as guests. I also liked how different it was from the traditional wedding program. The site I found it on calls it the "funniest wedding program ever", which is definitely an overstatement, but, it is still a really neat idea. Check it out at the link below.
     • http://offbeatbride.com/2011/12/funny-wedding-program
2. Save-The-Dates.
   • This is a great place to showcase your personality and who you are as a couple in a more casual way. Incorporate some of your favorite activities into your engagement photos so you'll have some beautiful photos to use, and you can add personal touches by sealing your envelopes with stickers of the two of you!
3. Escort/Place Cards and Favors.
   • Pair your escort card with your wedding favor.
     • This couple chose to give their guests their own secret-recipe BBQ sauce and spice rub as their favor, and paired it with their table assignment. I LOVED this idea. It includes something totally unique to the couple that still has function for the wedding. Also, favors like this tend to be more appreciated and actually used, as opposed to some of the other more traditional favors. Check out the photos from Emily Steffan via Southern Weddings at the link below.
       • http://southernweddings.com/2011/08/22/the-ultimate-southern-escort-card-finalists-emily-steffen/
   • Personalize it for your guests.
     • One of the coolest ideas I saw recently was the use of a photo of the bride/groom with each guest. This may not work for larger weddings if you don't have a photo of yourself with each guest, but for the smaller, more intimate weddings, this would be a fun idea.
       • You have the photo on the front and the you can write the table information on the back, or on the front. You could also use pre-made labels (shipping labels, address labels, etc.) with the table information and a fun memory of you and the guest, or just a special message for them. Maybe even a "thank-you" for making the time to share in your celebration. I love these or these for this!
   • Keep with the theme, and keep it personal.
     • Two weddings that stood out to me for their personal and themed  escort cards and favors were Lauren & Dan and Kathleen & Andrew.
       • Lauren's dad is a beekeeper and they used honey from his beehives as their favor.
       • Kathleen & Andrew had their wedding in a library, and in keeping with that theme, the escort cards were little "books", and each table name was based on a genre of literature or one of their favorite author's names. The other thing I loved was that their centerpieces were stacks of some of their favorite books and were the guests favors to take home.