Wedding Tip #30 - Ceremony Rehearsal - Practice Makes Perfect

In rehearsing the ceremony, the best way to practice is: (1) begin with the bridesmaids and groomsmen already in position at the altar, so they know where they will be walking to; (2) next decide how you want them oriented (straight line, diagonally, semi-circle, etc.); (3) also determine where you want the flower girl and ring bearer to stand; (4) additionally have the guys coordinate how they hold their hands (i.e., in front or behind)so they all do it the same; (5) then do the recessional with the bridesmaids and groomsmen pairing up as they exit; (6) next have all participants, including parents and VIPs, line up in the order in which they will enter, having them pay attention to who they pair up with and those immediately ahead and behind them; (7) then run through the entire ceremony sequence dry, i.e., without music; (8) finally, do a run-through with music so everyone can familiarize themselves with their song cues and the pace they will need to match the beat.

Wedding Tip #29 - Picture Perfect Table Placards

For table placards, a fun thing to do is to display a photo of the couple at various locales (e.g., Las Vegas, San Francisco, Disneyland, etc.) and then assign seating to guests based on their table designation (e.g., Mr. & Mrs. Charles Smith - Hawaii; Ms. Betty Wilson - New York City). If you are having a buffet, for added entertainment your professional disc jockey/emcee can release guests at each table by playing snippets of songs associated with their assigned locale (e.g., Viva Las Vegas by Elvis, I Left My Heart In San Francisco by Tony Bennett, It’s A Small World by Robert & Richard Sherman, Hawaiian Wedding Song by Andy Williams, New York, New York by Frank Sinatra, etc.) This will create some great memories for your guests!

Wedding Tip #28 - Centerpiece Giveaway

A neat way to interject some fun during the meal is to do a centerpiece giveaway where a guest wins the centerpiece to take home at the end of your reception. Selecting a winner from each table: distance – the guest who traveled the farthest wins; birthday or anniversary – the guest whose birthday or the couple whose anniversary is closest to your wedding date wins; sticker – the guest sitting in a chair that has a sticker under it wins; musical chairs – your professional disc jockey/emcee plays a song as the guests circle the chairs and when the music stops the guest sitting in a chair that has a sticker under it wins; dollar pass – one guest takes out a dollar and it is passed around the table, when the music stops the person holding the dollar is out, repeat and the next person who holds the dollar is out too, repeat once more and the person holding the dollar keeps it and the guest who donated the dollar wins.

Wedding Tip #27 - RSVP Has Its Privileges

A fun way to surprise and highlight some of your guests is to recognize the first and last guests to RSVP to attend your wedding. Your professional disc jockey/emcee can announce their names and have them stand or come to the dance floor where you can present them with a special gift. For those who RSVP’d first, you can play songs like I’m So Excited by The Pointer Sisters, Feels Like The First Time by Foreigner or Let’s Get It Started by The Black Eyed Peas. For those who RSVP’d last you can play songs like Mission Impossible by Lalo Schifrin, At Last by Etta James or Finally by CeCe Peniston.