Ideas for a Fun and Creative Wedding Send-Off

Favors & Gifts >

You’ve been pronounced married, you’ve had your first kiss and now you’re ready for everyone to shower you with well wishes as you enter the world as a new couple. While tradition dictates throwing rice, modern couples are using more creative measures for their wedding send-offs.

When Margaretta Sacco got married in June 2013, wedding guests tossed handfuls of fresh, white flower petals.

“Years before, a friend of mine had done it at her wedding, and it was a lot of fun,” says Sacco. The end results as she and her husband exited the chapel was “breathtaking,” she says.

Sacco also opted for flower petals because “they’re not only pretty, but they’re biodegradable.”

Before you settle on a send-off, though, be sure to check out your venue’s polices on tossed items. They will have to do the cleanup after all. Even if your venue doesn’t have any restrictions, try to stay away from things that are difficult to pick up, like silk flower petals, confetti, silly string or glitter.

Although sparklers make for a breathtaking photo op, many venues don’t allow them because they’re a fire hazard.

The church where Minneapolis resident Dani Indovino had her July 2014 wedding had strict policies on send-offs – nothing thrown or lit on fire – so she made little ‘Yay’ flags for guests to wave as the couple left.

Options for venue-friendly send-offs run the gamut — from wands with ribbons and bells to glow sticks, bubbles, balloons and even candy sprinkles. Other natural options include tossing birdseed or lavender leaves.

When figuring out what your guests should toss, keep in mind that they are throwing something at you. Ask yourself, do you want to be hit with something?

If being pelted by birdseed’s not your thing, perhaps actual birds are. When Siobhan Barton got married at a horse farm in Kent, Connecticut, in October 2013, she and her husband Jason had a dove release with more than 100 birds that live on the property.

“We have a great photo of the two of us, along with our guests, staring at the doves circling overhead,” she says.

© Brides 365

Tags: send-off, guests