Consult the Experts for Wedding Extras

Every woman can remember the first wedding she attended as a guest during her childhood. Filled with excitement and awe, I remember seeing the beautiful bride and the flowers that she carried, as she seemed to float up the cathedral aisle past me in the wooden pew.

I was thrilled to study every detail of the reception, and examined the monogrammed napkins during the cocktail hour, and the matchbook covers near every place setting. Wedding couples strive to make their wedding personal and meaningful for their guests. And today, brides are searching for unique ways to express gratitude to their guests for coming to the wedding celebration. Stylish remembrances have evolved from napkins and matchbooks to elaborate gifts with distinctive messages.

The Internet will provide any bride with countless ideas for wedding favors or designer paper products for the special day. Most wedding planners will encourage the bride to begin to think about these special extras early in the planning stages. Once the wedding theme, monogram or motif is determined, the bride and groom will begin to decide how to thank their guests for attending that day.

Ideas abound with categories of edible and non-edible gifts often highlighted. Living favors have become popular in recent years, with plants or flowers in individual vases forming centerpieces at reception tables, used as gifts for each couple at the table as they leave for the evening. Custom imprinting with captivating phrases such as: Love is brewing attached to tea bags, mint to be on monogrammed tins, or Love is blooming on seed packets are other choices.

Many companies offer custom chocolates or chocolate bar wrappers, as well as imprinted favor boxes or bags for candy treats. Some brides offer a candy table with an assortment of sweet items and empty boxes to fill with guests’ own selections.

Monique Bridgewater, Professional Bridal Consultant for Sweet Dreams says, “For 2008, monogramming on invitations is big.” She offers menu cards, wedding celebration programs, dining accessories, such as place cards and even thank you notes. “With today’s demands growing, having everything accomplished at one stop makes for a nice experience,” says Monique.

Bridgewater provides for weddings “Just Married” car decorations, with the bridal couple’s vehicle decorated in custom white ribbons, while the bridal party vehicles are decorated in the colors of the wedding. Sweet Dreams will help with Bermuda welcome bags for special guests traveling to the ceremony. By using a canvas bag filled with rum cake, gingerbread, sand or Bermudian remembrances, Bridgewater creates a special thank you.

Kay-Annie Reid-Young, weddings and event planner for Kreative Koncepts is “in the business of catering to the bride’s every need.” She works with every bride to find something for the guests to admire while they are celebrating with the couple at the reception. “The trends now in wedding favors are definitely non-edible items,” says Reid-Young. Plant seeds, items made from organic materials or something made from recycled paper can be designed for the environmentally friendly couple.

Kreative Koncepts will also help the destination bride choose something representative of the island for her guests. “For the most part, the most popular wedding favor is still a beach themed item, like an Adirondack chair, silver starfish place card holder, personalized messages in bottles filled with sand, or even flip flop photo frames,” says Reid-Young.

Personalized chocolates are a specialty offered at Surprise, owned by Corrine Parris. Along with these decadent sweets, cake boxes and napkins are made to coordinate with the wedding theme. Other choices could be tiny Satin bags or sachets that could be filled with sand or shells for the beach themed event.

Some favors will be personalized with special messages from the couple, and The Paper Pomegranate can help with favor tags or other monogrammed paper or designer stationery. Meghan Correia, Art Director and Designer for the company says, “Our designs can be ethnic based for couples wishing to respect their diverse backgrounds. We have designed Asian, Persian and Egyptian products for their special days.” Correia’s website www.thepaperpomegranate.com showcases thirteen designs that can be selected for invitations or other printed items used for the day.

Another unique way bridal couples have expressed gratitude to their guests is by donating to their favorite charity in the names of those attending the wedding celebration. Each guest would receive a card, saying thank you for their participation, with a notation about the gratitude donation. Anthony’s of Hamilton Bermuda offers these cards and numerous other items, including menu cards in the shape of beach chairs. Many beach themed items for the reception, such as, seashell place cards and tinted craft sand for table arrangements are featured on their web page: www.anthonysofbda.com. Of course, their specialty is tuxedos for the bridal party.

Adenike Simmons of All in the Details says, “Brides like to incorporate colors of their maids’ dresses into the many products we supply for wedding planning.” Her studio provides all the necessary printed items for the wedding celebration, as well as many extras. “I supply design, printing, and assembly for everything from save the date cards to table numbers, seating and menu cards,” says Adenike. Every bride has a unique outcome with All in the Details, as the paper line of products offers special elements for each bride and groom. With over 1000 fonts, Simmons says, “We can match almost any color ink and offer decorative cardstocks, translucent papers and tissues.”

Joanne Veney, managing director of Destination Bermuda Limited promises, “We have a team of experts who work to fulfill the wedding wishes of our brides and grooms.” Their business will arrange everything from favors and invitations to entertainment and even the minister for the ceremony. Some of her most popular items include specialized gift baskets which include Bermuda rum, chocolate, fruit and cheese. Other brides use the beach theme and provide sun block and towels for their out of town guests.

Other ideas for special wedding extras include: a monogrammed guest book or photo matted frame for guest signatures, personalized CD’s with the bride and groom’s favorite song, a pocket size book titled The Art of Kissing, confetti for each guest, monogram cookies, or even custom M&M’s. At the Stationery Store, Bill McKenna can help the bride select personalized paper goods to help her create a style for the moment of her lifetime. While Tanya Gordon of Artcetera offers an outstanding selection of Calligraphy pens for thank you notes from the bride and groom.

With so many ways to make the wedding celebration personal, the bride and groom must begin this process of selection early. Take some time to reflect on the style of your wedding, and decide how to communicate that message to your guests. Center on the theme and use the colors of the bridesmaids’ dresses in your line of printed items, favors, flowers, and room decorations. With help from the creative vendors listed, the wedding becomes a celebration for all those who attend.

~ AMY MILLS