Wedding day is a celebration of love, filled with happiness and beautiful memories. While the traditional wedding is still the norm, many brides-to-be are deciding on a more casual and fun celebration. The emphasis on these weddings is to enjoy the day without many formalities, and instead spend your day celebrating love in an easygoing and fun fashion. A wedding doesn’t have to be a black-tie event. Put a spin on the traditional rules and you will have a wedding to remember. If you want your special day to be fun, relaxed and talked about for a long time, read on to see our cool and casual wedding ideas, most of which are on a tight budget!

Send an E-invite

We live in a digital age, so, many traditional physical ways of doing things have been transformed to better suit this era. Sending an e-invite is a fun and casual way of notifying your guests about your special day. It’s perfect for couples who are also eco-conscious, as you are not using natural resources. An e-invite can be designed to fit your personal style or the style of your wedding. You can even hire a designer to make digital portraits of you and your partner or a fun illustration that catches your personalities perfectly. For any guest that wants a physical copy, they can easily print the invitation.

Create a Personal Signage

Signage is a fun and easy way to incorporate you and your partner’s personal touch into every part of the wedding. It can be a monogram of your first initials printed on invitations, table settings and any sign throughout the ceremony. Signage can be personalized for the theme of your wedding. A vintage look is perfect for a throwback theme like a 50’s wedding, and more sophisticated signage using calligraphy looks amazing in a boho style wedding.

Organize a Relaxing Ceremony

The ceremony is the most important part of the wedding. Fortunately, it doesn’t have to be formal and up-tight to leave a lasting impression. Ease up the tension of saying “I do” with a more relaxed and laid-back setup. Create a setting that matches your venue. For an outdoor ceremony to match the natural feel, you can go for dark wooden benches. They are perfect for the outdoors, and if you want to make them more comfortable, you can place cushions in natural colours like dark green or tan. Add flowers on the beginning of every row for an accent.

Set Up a Playful Table Setting

Table settings don’t have to be restricted with only plates for guests. Play with the setup and create something guests can have fun with while they wait for the reception. You can place jars with interesting stories and anecdotes from your relationship that your guests can read. Alternatively, each guest can write an anecdote about the couple and place them in a jar. Read some of the anecdotes after the ceremony for a hearty laugh with your guests. If you want to match the setting of your venue, for placemats you can use palm leaves or tropical flowers, sewn plaid mats etc.

Play Fun Games

Most weddings consist of dancing and eating, so jazz up your wedding day with some fun games and activities for your guests. There are many life-size board and tabletop games you can find for you and your guests to play. Research traditional, and maybe forgotten, games and traditions for weddings – they will surely be a hit even for older guests and family.

Give Edible Favours

Wedding party favours are very popular and everyone is excited about them. Sometimes party favours are never used, so it’s better to give your guests something useful. Edible favours like fruit are a fun spin on the tradition. You can assemble the favours for each guest, or for an additional activity, set up a table with various options so your guests can fill up the pouches how they like. Besides fruit, you can offer candies, cookies and small snacks.

Serve Comfort Food

Food is a very important part of any celebration, especially a wedding. For a casual wedding comfort food that is familiar to your guests, or even stems from your heritage, will surely be a hit. For a twist, serve the food in a bite-size form. This way there won’t be a chance for leftover food in plates to be thrown away, and it will be easier for kids to enjoy them too. A buffet-style dinner is also always fun.

Set Up Romantic Lighting

Lighting sets the mood. Oftentimes wedding venues have very harsh and bright lighting. It’s good because you can see everything, but it doesn’t set the right mood for a romantic day. For a fun and casual wedding, setting up lights in a strategic way is important for the ultimate romantic mood. If your outdoor wedding area has trees, you can hang fairy lights in between them. This will diffuse the lit-up area and create focal points. You can also hang lights above tables and seating areas.

Take a Different Route for Photographs

Weddings and any special occasion need a photographer. You can’t let your big day go undocumented. Choosing a perfect location for your photographs can be tricky, so using a backdrop with your favourite pattern or colour can make your photographs pop. For non-traditional wedding photos, you can look into having a photo booth at your wedding or using Polaroid cameras.

Keep Kids Interested

If the children attending your wedding are seated at a separate table, they should have something fun to do while waiting. Instead of decorating their table with expensive vases and decor, you can place jars with cookies, and for their placemats – sheets of paper with lots of crayons and coloured pencils. Giving them an activity will keep them interested and they will have fun with their siblings and new friends.

Final Words

For a cool and casual wedding, you just need a bit of creativity and out-of-the-box ideas. Making your special day even better takes dedication, but it will be worth it. Change up the traditional wedding themes for a day to remember.

Author Bio:

Mia Ackerson is a Melbourne-based freelancer who is interested in beauty, gardening, baking, and cooking, interior design, home improvement, business, and technology! You can follow her on Twitter.