Your wedding is one of the most important days of your life and it’s never easy to spend it without someone who was very special to you. Taking the extra time and effort to honor them on your big day is a great way to include their memory without dampening the joy of the occasion. While there are many different ways to go about this, whatever resonates with you and your relationship to your late loved one is the right choice for you. To help you decide how to incorporate the memory of your loved one, here are a few ideas to consider.
Before deciding how to honor a loved one, check in with yourself as well as close relatives who may be sensitive to the death to gage comfort levels. You don’t have to plan anything special if it’s going to be too much for you on your wedding day. Your inclusion of a late loved one can be as subtle or public as you feel comfortable with. Focusing on the happy or special details they loved is a good way to both honor their memory as well as help you feel their presence on your important day.
Symbolic
Honoring a loved one who passed doesn’t have to be a public display. It can be private with symbolic details included in your special day. Adding a special flower in your bouquet is a great way to incorporate your loved one whether it’s a flower that symbolizes remembrance or a flower your loved one once enjoyed. You could also include a family heirloom as a way to honor your loved one. Sewing a handkerchief to the inside of your gown, adding a trinket your loved one once owned to your bouquet, or attaching it to your jacket offer subtle ways to honor your loved one. Another idea is to offer a special favor for your guests at your reception in your loved one’s memory. A copy of a favorite cookie recipe or a jar of their special homemade jam, a cigar they always enjoyed or item of their favorite past time are creative ways to honor your loved one and leave your guests with a memory.
Public
Choosing to honor your loved one in a display can also be an ideal opportunity to share special memories of them and give your guests the chance to learn more about them. This can be in the form of adding framed photos to your guestbook table or as a part of your décor. Modifying part of your ceremony or reception in a special way to include your loved one is another way to incorporate their memory. Lighting a candle to remember them by, setting a special reserved chair during your ceremony or a small table at your reception, adding a special tribute in your wedding program or a toast at your reception are all heartfelt ways to include your loved ones in your special day without detracting from the overall festivities.
No matter how you choose to honor your loved ones in your big day, focusing on the happy special details they loved instead of their absence is a wonderful way to include their memory and keep your wedding full of joy.
Comments