The tradition of wedding guest books steams from the legal document signed by the wedding couple and the witnesses of the union. Since bigger weddings became more and more common, there are just too many witnesses!
Thus, the guest book was born as a way to immortalise the names of the people who attended the wedding and it turned out to be the perfect way to congratulate and give the best wishes to the newlyweds. Moreover, it has become a true souvenir of the wedding for the wedding couple.
Nevertheless, not all the couples embrace tradition with the same enthusiasm. For those alternative couples who like to break the rules we are sharing our favourite ideas for a guest book that is out of the box.
1. Illustration
Order a beautiful portrait or caricature of you and your partner and have all your guests sign it. Then you can frame it and hang it in your house as a beautiful memory of your wedding.
If you are not up for a portrait, you can also chose a landscape (perhaps an illustration of your wedding venue or honeymoon) and have it signed.
Another execution of this idea is to buy or design yourself, and connecting both the bride and the groom’s home country. Then have your guests write on it and hang it on a wall as a forever reminder of your wedding day and the people who love you.
2. World globe
This guest book alternative is especially interesting if you are having an international wedding with people from different countries. Buy a nice world globe like this one or get one in a flea market and have it at the venue so your guests can sign it and write (maybe signalling the country where they are from) their best wishes to the newlyweds.
Whatever style you like, it will make for a very eye-catchy statement piece in your living room or office, and you will make sure it won’t be just accumulating dust like a traditional guest book would.
3. Postcards
If you are passionate about paper mail and stationery this may be the coolest option for you. During the time leading up to the wedding collect or buy amazing postcards (you can find very nice sets ones on Etsy) and have your guests write their wishes on them. It will be so much fun for your guests to choose the postcard that better fits their personality and they’ll have enough room to write loving words to you two.
You can either keep them in a nice box and go through them whenever you want to remember the day of your wedding, or even better, you can encourage the guests to take the postcards and mail them to you from home. Although… let’s be honest, chances are you’ll never receive those postcards.
Like the previous idea, this one may work exceptionally well if you are having a destination wedding.
4. Piñata
This is a very fun and surprising alternative. Not traditional at all, it consists on getting a piñata and having your guests write their best wishes and advice on marriage and predictions or whatever questions you want them to answer and throw them into the piñata.
For your wedding anniversary, you can break it and read all the sweet messages of your loved ones.
You can buy it or have one of your friends make it for you. It is an easy DIY project and you can customise it with the colours of your wedding or make it in the shape that you like the most!
You can read here about the basic steps on piñata-making. And here you can find a whole tutorial on how to make a cake-shaped piñata!
5. Photos
Another idea is to have your guests write a message on a board and take a Polaroid picture of themselves holding said board. Your guests will always be able to write more in the back of the photo if they wish.
This makes for a wonderful collection of the faces and outfits of your friends and relatives the day you got married, along with their best wishes and characteristic handwriting. We’re sure it will become a treasured family heirloom.
After the wedding, you can either save them in a photo album, frame your favourite ones or just store them in a nice box.
On the other hand, if you are looking for a more environmentally friendly solution you can use a wedding photo app like Wedbox. This app will allow your guests to upload the photo from their mobile phones and then you’ll be able to download all of them and save them in a USB, make a video with them or simply store them in ‘the cloud’ ever after.
Whatever your choice is, remember that you can also mix it up and have a combination of guest books!
We recommend that you have enough space so people can write a long text if they want.