(Our) My Favorite Things | Wedding Themes

Mandee | January 11, 2012 | 0 Comments

One of the coolest parties I have been to is a "My Favorite Things" party. The guests all bring one or more of their favorite things to share with each other. (Full party instructions at My Favorite Things Party Theme).

I have noticed, however, that some brides are adapting the concept and using it to make their wedding and reception that much more personal and inviting.

How to Host a My Our Favorite Things Wedding

Since there is no hard and fast rules, brides and grooms are winging it when planning their My Favorite Things wedding theme. I think the easiest way to come up with ideas is to write a list of favorite things and go from there. You may not be able to include everything but sharing things that are important to you as a couple with your guests makes for a more intimate occasion.

Write your list of favorites. It can include almost anything but here are some questions to get you started:

Favorite Colors/Scheme
Favorite Season
Favorite City
Favorite Sport
Favorite Pastime/Hobby
Favorite Flower
Favorite Tourist Attraction
Favorite Book
Favorite TV Show
Favorite Movie
Favorite Food

This is, by no means, an exhaustive list but one that will get you into the mood. You have to identify what your favorites are and work from there. It's really fun to have the bride and groom each list their above favorites and see how many match up and then concentrate on incorporating those ideas into your wedding and reception.

My Favorite Things Wedding Centerpieces

Centerpieces are one item that most brides agonize over. They want theirs to be beautiful and memorable. What better way to accomplish both these goals as well as making them personal.

One of my personal preferences is for centerpieces NOT to be a "Sea of Likeness". It is more appealing to the eye to travel up, down, left and right, finding different places to rest. If everything is exactly the same, the eye doesn't find a resting place and tends to graze over everything, not really seeing it. That's not the goal of most couples.

Do the answers paint pictures in your mind?

Go back to your list of favorites -- we are going to add to them. Next to each answer, write the first few things that come to mind when looking at each answer.

Your revised list might look like this:

Favorite Colors/Scheme -- Blues and Browns -- Tiffany blue, chocolate brown
Favorite Season -- Spring -- renewal, meadows, flowers blooming, birds and trees
Favorite City -- New York -- Broadway, taxi's, hot dog and pretzel vendors,
Favorite Sport -- Football -- Giants
Favorite Pastime/Hobby -- Scrapbooking, decorating, reading -- cozy fire, cuddled up
Favorite Flower -- Gerbra Daisys in hot colors -- single flower in a bud vase
Favorite Tourist Attraction -- Empire State Building, Central Park, Statue of Liberty, Ferries,
Favorite Book -- The Great Gatsby -- 1920's, mansions, New York, Parties, fancy clothes,
Favorite TV Show -- Soprano's -- Wealthy, mob, Italian, family,
Favorite Movie -- When Harry Met Sally -- New York, friends, lovers, New Year's Eve,
Favorite Food -- Italian -- pastas, pizza, wine, cannoli,

Are you starting to see the possibilities? Each table can be a physical representation of one of your favorite things. Use the keywords you came up with to build centerpieces that are the physical representation of your minds-eye pictures. Create little vignettes of each theme, add photos of yourselves that go along with each favorite.

For instance -- for The Great Gatsby Table, have a black and white or sepia photo of yourselves dressed in 1920's clothes, a hardback copy of the book, a top hat, white gloves and a long string of faux pearls draped for effect -- there's a centerpiece. (More ideas for themed centerpieces).

Variations of My Favorite Things Wedding Theme

Is there an underlying theme? Like favorite books, cities, colors, foods, etc... Is that something you could build off of? If you look at the above list, you will notice there is a decidedly "New York" theme running through it.

You could use that as the main theme and then have each table showcase something about New York that you love. This is a more niche My Favorite Things variation. The possibilities are endless!

Maybe you notice in your list of answers that your favorites have a travel theme running through. Build on this -- Our Favorite Places. Use photos of yourselves, landmarks, maps, luggage, compasses, vintage cameras, etc... to build your themed centerpieces.

Maybe it's sports, vacation spots, literature, a movie or tv show. Build on it --You get the idea.

Here's an inspiration board to get you in the mood: