Your wedding ceremony should reflect your relationship and your personalities just as much as the reception will! One of the best ways to do that is by coming up with ways to include guests in your wedding ceremony. Having your guests involved in your ceremony can make the whole experience more intimate, fun, and memorable! Here’s how:

Have a Ceremony in The Round

A ceremony in the round is a layout where your guests will be seated (or standing) in a full or partial circle around the two of you and your officiant. It’s the perfect way to instill a sense of intimacy in the ceremony by having all off your loved ones surround you.

This is also a great option for couples who are getting married under a large structure such as a chuppah so that everyone can get a view of you two.

 

Incorporate a Ring Warming

A ring warming is the perfect way to get all of your guests involved in your ceremony. During the ring warming, each guest holds your rings and has the chance to say a wish, blessing, or prayer for your marriage.

For smaller weddings, the rings are passed through the aisles after the officiant explains the meaning. Couples will typically choose someone to help keep the rings moving between guests to ensure everyone’s done by the time you’re ready to exchange them. If you’re having a larger wedding but still want to have a ring warming ceremony, you can have guests warm your rings as they arrive!

Give Guests Something to Toss During the Recessional

This is such a fun way to get guests involved with the celebration and to get some awesome photos of your guys coming back down the aisle after you’re officially married! You can use flower petals, leaf confetti, dried lavender, ribbons, or really anything you want that’s simple to clean up or biodegradable.

If you’re planning on doing a toss (and just as a general good idea) have your officiant announce at the beginning of the ceremony that you’d like guests to keep their phones and cameras away until cocktail hour. This way, everyone will get to enjoy being in the moment with you two and all the other guests (and there wont be any phones photobombing the photos)!

Affirmation of their Support

Having your guests affirm their support of your marriage is an incredible way to include them in the ceremony. Typically, the officiant will speak to the guests and ask them to affirm that they believe in your love and wish your relationship well by responding with “we do.” Couples who opt to do this always mention how powerful it was having all of their loved ones affirm their relationship during the ceremony.

There ya have it! Four ways to include guests in your wedding ceremony to make for a more fun, intimate, and memorable experience for everyone!