Weddings are a joyous occasion. They’re packed with love, friendship, food, drink and general merriness as two people form a union surrounded by those they love.

If you are engaged and planning a wedding, there are many different elements to consider. The cake, the vows, the seat placements, the catering – there really is a long list of tasks even for smaller weddings. In fact, according to Brides.com, there are 42 steps to take when planning a wedding!

Whilst many aspects of a wedding are universal (such as the reading of vows), there are many other features you can change, modernise, and generally play around with to create a much more personal, fun and unique experience. This is especially popular as younger generations begin getting married. A study published in WeddingWire 2020 Newlywed Report, showed that younger couples are increasingly utilising technology, giving wedding guests more flexibility, and opting for more ‘DIY weddings’.

Having a unique wedding will not only make it even more enjoyable on the day but memorable for you and your wedding guests too. It will reflect your couple style, and allow you both to relax and sink into your day with ease.

Unique touches can come in any form, from baking avocado wedding cakes and presenting entirely vegan spreads to implementing modern smart technology, AI and special effects! There is no limit to what you can do, but if you are stuck for ideas, we can help.

Below, we list 3 great ways to make your wedding day unique.

Hire A Wedding Content Creator

Did you know you can hire a wedding content creator like myself to capture the memories of your day?

A wedding content creator captures additional content for your big day and displays it uniquely. It’s an exceptionally modern service, seeing as content creation is in itself quite new. Here’s how it works.

Traditionally, a couple will hire just a photographer/videographer to capture key ceremonial and reception moments. But with technology and trends evolving, there is now a demand for different types of content – such as Instagram reels, behind-the-scenes footage and those candid moments your photographer may not be able to capture when they are busy elsewhere. Given that 1.4 billion people are now uploading TikToks, and a staggering 3 billion people are on Facebook, now is the time for content creation at weddings!

Now, it’s important to note here that a content creator won’t replace your traditional photographer. It is simply an enhancement. A content creator will typically be using a smartphone to capture moments, whereas a photographer will have all the gear to produce high-quality wedding photographs.

A content creator will use a smartphone compatible with popular apps like Tiktok or Instagram, to create unique pictures and video reels and will possess the social media skills to create TikTok videos and similar content for social media, which is a skill your wedding photographer may not have. Many social media apps are built for a smartphone, not for an SLR camera, so this is a great addition to your traditional photography.

So what might a content creator capture? Here are some ideas:

• The setup. They may film a reel of how the day came together, the ceremony being set up, the couple arriving at the venue, or the bartender pouring drinks. This can then all be put together into one smooth-flowing pre-wedding video.
• The makeup and hair/groomsmen getting ready. A content creator can capture fun moments of your makeup being completed or the groomsmen perfecting their ties.
• The ceremony from a different angle. If you already have a videographer, the content creator might capture multiple angles of the ceremony as well as the vows and ring exchange for a more complete package.
• The family photos. A content creator might capture images of the photographer photographing the couple and family.
• The guests. Certain guests might make for a great Instagram picture or funny TikTok moment.
• The reception. There are many fun moments to capture, from the speeches and formalities to the dancing, drinking and being merry.
• Video messages from family and friends.
• Certain wedding trends that you have found on TikTok – can be shown to the content creator in advance so they can produce something that aligns with that trend. The Content Creator will also be keeping up with all the latest trends and can be at hand to offer suggestions. 
• After the wedding when the couple might enjoy some alone time together walking along the promenade or sitting looking at the stars.

When the day is over, you will likely receive your content from the content creator much more rapidly than you would from the photographer, which gives you something to instantly look at and enjoy. You can share it on social media, fully edited, and let your friends and guests relive the excitement uniquely.

Use an Audio Guest Book

As already mentioned, adding a personal touch to your wedding can be a great way to make it unique. One way of doing this is to upgrade from a traditional handwritten guest book to an Audio Guest Book.

An Audio Guest Book is a retro-style telephone whereby, instead of guests leaving handwritten notes in a guest book, they use the phone to leave a voicemail message. The messages can be supportive, funny, wise, silly or sentimental. If you have a grandparent or elderly relative attending, this can also be a lovely way to remember them long in the future too.

So why switch from a handwritten note to an Audio Guest Book?

A handwritten note doesn’t carry quite the same sentiment or personality as an audio recording. An audio recording can capture the nuances and uniqueness of a person’s voice tone, which is something handwriting doesn’t do. If your guests are being silly, sarcastic, or serious, you can hear this clearly in their voices. Also, a digital recording is much harder to lose than a guest book, so you can keep hold of your digital file for the rest of your life and listen to those friendly voices as often as you like.

When you hire an Audio Guest Book service like Calleo, your guests can leave as many messages as they like, for as long as they like, and the Calleo team will edit and compile these into a stunning file, presentable in a number of formats. There are also 3 packages to choose from to suit your preferences.

Audio Guest Books also provide a fun activity for your guests to do. If guests are waiting around (for example, while you are having your photographs taken) they can pass the time using the phone to record you lovely messages.

Choose Unique Ceremonial Rituals

Depending on where you are getting married, and which officiant is marrying you, you can incorporate interesting and unique rituals into your ceremony. We all know the wedding basics – vows, ring exchange, maybe a scattering of poems and readings, and a ritualistic walk back down the aisle as spouses. But there are other things you can include to make your ceremony stand out and be remembered.

For example, you could participate in a handfasting. Handfasting is where your celebrant or registrar can use a scarf to tie your hands together, signifying your union. This is an ancient Celtic tradition, but one that is making a comeback in recent years as couples decide to incorporate more unusual symbols and rituals into their wedding day.

Another interesting and unique ritual is sand pouring. Sand pouring (or sand ceremony/sand unity) is where a couple both take a bowl or cup of sand and pour the sand into a shared vase, signifying the union of two separate parts becoming one. If you want to be even more creative, you could switch sand for another material. For example, you could both have a liquid (perhaps one person has gin and the other has tonic), and then pour the liquids into one glass to create a fun concoction.

Jumping over the broom is also an old pagan tradition at weddings. A broom is placed in front of the couple and, after the exchange of vows, they both hold hands and jump over the broom together, signifying starting a new life and leaving the old one behind.

Lastly, you could incorporate tree planting into your ceremony. As it sounds, a couple plants the seed or seedling of a plant or tree as part of the marriage ritual. It symbolises new life and a new beginning. And, if the tree grows successfully, it can be a place for the couple to visit in the future too.

Remember, your ceremony is unique to you as a couple, and you do not need to be restricted by the traditional ceremonial processes if you would rather not. It is important to remember, however, to check with your officiate as to what they permit as part of their ceremonies. Civil celebrants tend to be the most flexible (and experienced) with unique ceremonies and rituals.

Making It Memorable For Others

While it’s important to have a wedding that you and your future partner will enjoy, it’s also a good plan to make it fun and memorable for people attending. There might be people in your life such as a parent, best friend or child, who is very emotionally invested in your wedding day. You can make it especially unique and memorable for them by incorporating activities that recognise their presence.

Your family and friends will be thrilled if you have thought of them during your big day, and found ways to involve them.

If you’d like to find out how to incorporate an Audio Guest Book into your wedding, visit our friends over at Calleo for more information. You can also get in touch with me about content creator services for your big day. Together, we can make your wedding truly unique.