The Guest Book: A Tenderhearted Time Capsule
Whether you’ve gone all out glamorous for your wedding, including a full weekend brimming with activities and fantastic features, or celebrated in a scaled-down manner with a simple party to bring your friends and family together, documenting the day is a vital piece of capturing the memories.
This is a perfect time to record the day’s events and the people in attendance in a way that speaks specifically to you and your partner. Get creative with it! Show your loved ones who you are as a couple in a way they can be involved in.
Cover Image Photography Credit: Emily Stonelake Photography
Bound-Books
The classic and eternally timeless way to document any type of event is through a beautifully bound journal. There are plenty of variations in this category on its own: lined, dotted, or blank; cardstock, glossy, canvas, silk-finished, or colored pages? Portrait or landscape – or any shape! Leather, velvet, canvas, papier mache, or even an upholstered book!
For those looking for an elegant and elevated approach, a simple color and the couple’s last name or wedding date, or both, written in a distinguished cursive or flowing font, is the frequent favorite for all occasions. Looking to recreate an art piece, pattern, or style specific to your relationship? There are plenty of places to find or specially order these guest books to fit the color scheme or perfectly encapsulate the feeling of each relationship.
Photography Books
In two variations, the photography book can either be already filled with beautiful photos of the happy couple, throughout their relationship and leading up to their special day, with the intent for their guests to sign their names and messages throughout the pages; or, if you’ve chosen to include a poloroid camera at your reception, request your guests sign and leave one from their selection in your guest book for an added medium and wholeheartedly wholesome memories.
Either route you choose to remember your monumental moments, these guest books are the perfect coffee-table displays to look back on with friends, or together during relationship milestones.
Customized and commissioned wall art
Another perfect example of customizable fun for everyone involved is to commission a piece of art, such as a poster, a painting, jersey, or a wall feature, for your guests to sign and leave fun notes and quotes to look back on wherever you decide to display it.
For example, the roadtripping lovers might request a romantic poster of themselves in front of a notable landmark or in a state park in which they share a love for; or a pair of cinephiles might request a rendition of their favorite date-night movie featuring the two of them as the leads. Whatever the theme of poster or art piece the pair chooses, it’s typically simplistic enough that signatures and well-wishes will not take away or distract from the endearing nature of the big picture.
For those looking for something a tad different from the framed piece of artwork, hanging a commemorative feature, such as a piece of driftwood, a retired bicycle, a road sign, or some portion of a landmark reminiscent of a sentimental location that speaks to your relationship, has become quite popular within the interior design realm. These features still leave enough surface space for signatures, doodles, and heartfelt words of advice, while allowing you to always revisit the memories and admire the earnest beauty on display with the rest of your art.
Romantically wistful game nights
Do you and your partner love a cute little game night? Over a cup of tea or a cocktail, unwinding after a long week or day, board games and puzzle games can be a great way to pass the time while talking and making new memories with your friends and significant other. An endearing way to look back on your special day is to incorporate your guests’ signatures and comments from your wedding by having them sign your favorite or frequented game.
Jenga is a popular choice for many, some using the Jenga piece as a name plate for seating guests for dinner, and providing the table with an assortment of permanent markers and perhaps a few prompts to sign and write to their hearts’ content. Some may leave date ideas, some may leave learned advice, and some may simply leave a shared memory; whatever is written and read, a smile arises.
Some couples opt for a puzzle for their guests to sign while pieced together, for the couple to then box away and put together again on quiet nights; or a board game, such as Scrabble, chess, or a Wisconsin classic, cribbage, set up at the cards or gift table for guests to sign. Recently couples have even been doing recipe cards as their guests to leave them.
Milestone memories
For the couples who like to celebrate their milestone markers by looking back at their wedding day, what better way to look back on who was in attendance than by having your guests write to your future endeavors?
Similar to the Jenga-piece nameplates, leaving blank index cards or cardstock for your loved ones to leave loving letters, and date-night ideas for you to open for future holidays, birthdays, or momentous milestones, such as 5, 10, or even 50 years of marriage, can be a fun and inspiring way to celebrate how long you’ve loved each other.
A recent twist to this handwritten tradition involves couples utilizing a rotary phone that records their guests’ words of affirmation, encouragement, and love. These recordings are then compiled onto an audio file, USB, or any other form of audio medium for the couple to revisit whenever they please. Pair this with a photo album from the night’s shindigs and shenanigans, and you have the perfect combination to look back on your love with perfect memory.
There are numerous ways to commemorate the unification of your love and the presence of your friends and family on this monumental occasion. To help your planning process flow smoothly in this step, keep in mind how many people will be in attendance at the wedding, and how you’d best like to look back on the memories in the many loving years to come.
Sources
https://www.brides.com/best-guest-books-4796753
https://www.brides.com/gallery/alternative-guest-book-ideas
https://www.theknot.com/content/wedding-guest-book-alternatives-creative
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