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Just as in years past, personalization is still paramount in weddings even more now than ever before. Brides and grooms are enjoying the freedom to create an event that matches their personalities and lifestyle and truly reflects the custom wedding of their dreams.
Today, many couples aren’t feeling the need to include all of their family traditions and customs and they don’t want to have essentially the same wedding event as everyone else. Unique is in, and full personalization, where your wedding is truly a one-of-a-kind reflection of you, is now the norm for modern weddings.
Along with this trend comes the embrace of nontraditional bridal parties, such as odd numbered attendants and/or mixed-genders on each side. Many couples are choosing to have a groomswoman, several bridesmen, seniors, pets or an odd number of attendants in the party. And we love that it's getting more and more popular every year!
All this makes sense, as many women include men, especially male family members, among their closest friends… or alternatively, men want to have their sister or best female friend stand in the traditional best man’s role. Or brides just don’t want to cut out a bridesmaid to match the number of chosen groomsmen.
Your wedding party should simply be made up of those you hold most dear, no matter what the makeup. If you want your grandmother to be your matron of honor, go for it! These days, you can tailor your wedding attendants to fit your own life and you're not forced follow the traditional composition. Even our furbabies are invited to walk down the aisle!
Experts do have a few tips to help design a seamless wedding event with a mixed-gender or otherwise nontraditional bridal party:
More bridesmaids than groomsmen? No problem! In the most common processional order today, each attendant walks down the aisle alone anyway. This looks just as nice as the traditional bridesmaid-groomsman match up and is just as easy, if not easier, to plan. You can forgo the pairing of bridesmaids to groomsmen for the exit, too. Just try to keep your party on the smaller side if possible so as not to have your processional and recessional take too long!
With a mixed-gender party, rather than having one or two opposite-sex attendants look out of place in a completely different color than everyone else on their side at the ceremony, just group the two sides by color. No matter their gender, the entire bride’s side can wear a neutral or your prominent theme color and the groom’s side can wear beige/champagne, black, navy or gray. Or choose a different but coordinating color for each attendant in the wedding so no one matches completely.
Also, don’t worry if your wedding gifts to your attendants aren’t the same on each side. Consider simply giving one gift item to all the men and a different gift to all the women, regardless of whether they are on the bride or groom’s side. Or pick a gender-neutral fun or practical gift that will please everyone!
We have several wonderful examples of couples we've filmed who chose new-fashioned wedding parties! Caroline's sweet grandmother was her flower girl, who walked down the aisle scattering delicate petals at her lovely outdoor ceremony at Congress Hall. And Casey chose to mix it up with her bridal party as well, with bridesmaids and a bridesman on her side at her beautiful Horticulture Center wedding event!