Need help with program content... please help!

[*Kim*]

i have no idea what to put in for the programs. i know that i would like to have the names of those involved with the wedding (wedding party, officiant, etc...) but what else? an overview of the ceremony of when things are happening??

any help would be great as well as pictures of your programs if you have them.

[carolinalady67]

here are our programs.

Front cover had our names and wedding date/location
http://i197.photobucket.com/albums/aa93/carolinalady67/our%20wedding/IMGP0098.jpg


the next page was a poem my sister, who was my MOH, wrote for us
http://i197.photobucket.com/albums/aa93/carolinalady67/our%20wedding/IMGP0100.jpg


the middle pages had the wedding program, the songs to be played for each group as they came in, highlighted points from the ceremony, reading and by who. And then the other page is the list of the wedding party
http://i197.photobucket.com/albums/aa93/carolinalady67/our%20wedding/IMGP0099.jpg


We had a memory table with a vase of roses for loved ones we have lost, this was telling who they were in memory of.
http://i197.photobucket.com/albums/aa93/carolinalady67/our%20wedding/IMGP0101.jpg


the back was a thank you note from us to our guest. I know the ribbon is covering up part of it, I can find a program and type exactly what it said if you want. It was also my something borrowed because I took it right off of the program from some college friends of mine wedding program, they were at our wedding and didn't even recognize it as from theirs :laugh3:
http://i197.photobucket.com/albums/aa93/carolinalady67/our%20wedding/IMGP0102.jpg




ETA: all these pictures are smaller then I thought they would be, it is late tonight, I'll dig up a program and can give more details later :)

[Sk8ermaiden]

OK, the important stuff is:

Your names,
the date,
the venue,
the wedding party

Also often included is the breakdown of the ceremony. What is happening in what order and what music is playing?

You can include a little about your venue, how you met, etc. Really as much or as little info as you want. We put in a map to the reception and some brain teasers.

http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b272/Sk8ermaiden/ProgramFront.jpghttp://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b272/Sk8ermaiden/ProgramleftPage.jpg
http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b272/Sk8ermaiden/ProgramCeremonyPage.jpghttp://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b272/Sk8ermaiden/ProgramPeoplePage.jpg
http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b272/Sk8ermaiden/ProgramAnswers.jpghttp://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b272/Sk8ermaiden/ProgramRightPage.jpg

[Winter_Bride]

I don't have a picture of ours... I don't know if we actually still have one of ours :scratchhead: Alright, so ITA with Kellie and Lisa. You should have your names, the date, the location, the wedding party, and the breakdown of the ceremony.

Anything beyond that is up to you :) We made mention in ours that all the music was from the choir where we met. You might want to add explination of any traditions you're having that people might not know about (for example, the handfasting).

Hope that helps! :)

[::Amanda::]

Our wedding was outside in June, so we decided to use hand held fans as our program and favor. I only have a picture of the front, but can take a picture of the back if you're interested. The front is an engagement pic with our names, the date, and "This day I will marry my friend..." The back was the names of all of the wedding party and their roles and a short thank you from us to our guests.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v619/eeyore_chic14/Wedding/Saunier_Wedding-341-1.jpg

[*Tanya*]

I'd like to see the back, Amanda. I was thinking of doing fans, but it never occurred to me to have them act as the program too. Great idea. :)

[Amy]

I would also like to see the back Amanda since that's what I have in mind as well!

[~*Kate*~]

We put way too much in our programs. We did a blurb on each person involved-- how we met, where they were going to school, a favorite memory with each, etc.-- but looking back I don't know if I would have done quite so much. What we wrote seems silly now. Just "college friend of the couple" or "hometown friend of the couple" would have sufficed. :lol:

[Deidre98]

Our programs had basically all of the information Kellie and Lisa's had but ours also had the entire wedding ceremony written out, word for word, so the guests knew when they were supposed to respond and what they were supposed to say. I don't have a copy since the leftovers were in my MaOH's parent's car that was stolen that night from the hotel so I can't post them unfortunately.

[*Kim*]

thanks for all the help girls. i am going to try and get the wording done this week so that we can start printing them out.

[MsJessica07]

Also, if you have anything awesome going on in your wedding, i.e. handmade anything or things with stories behind them, include them for your guests! Our friends had a long-ish program, but most of it was like personal ads for their bridal party. Turns out, they had a handmade chuppah that had all kinds of personal meaning behind it - we found out because we happened to be sitting next to and be friends with the artist. Not a word mentioned in the program.

[~*Kate*~]

Personal ads! Yes. That is what we did without meaning to. :lol:
</hijack>

[::Amanda::]

I'll take a pic of the back of my fan as soon as I get a chance :).

[Kelly]

we just did a bried overview of the ceremony, not too much detail and then we also did the wedding party and the photographer and musician

[*Diane*]

As a guest, I love detail. I want to know the order of the ceremony, the name of the songs, all that stuff mostly so, if the wedding is boring, I have something to mark time. :blush: Sad but true! I also think that people are interested in why you have chosen the honor attendants. If you chose a song for a special reason, tell me why. It gives me an investment in the emotion of your wedding. :)

[Mrs. Bebe]

For those making programs, the best advice I have to offer is DOUBLE AND TRIPLE CHECK the following:

1) Do you have all your attendants (I forgot my ring bearer...I still feel like a douche about it even though his mom was super cool about the whole thing)

2) Are the names spelled CORRECTLY? I can not tell you how many times my name has gotten spelled incorrectly in programs. It is really worth looking over again.

3) Did you properly punctuate, use appropriate grammar, used spell check, etc. People will be reading your program through the entire ceremony. They will have plenty of opportunity to check for mistakes so be on the look out for them!

4) Personalize it! Realistically, most programs will have the same basic info (already covered by our lovely ladies in this thread). What can you do to make yours unique? Some of the things I have seen include photos, symbols or emblems, cultural or language based quotes to reflect different backgrounds, explanations of specific traditions being employed, the story of how you met, the story of how you got engaged, etc. Many people keep their programs after the wedding as reminders of your special day- anything you can do to personalize this for them will be hugely appreciated!

Just my two cents! :)

[Sk8ermaiden]

For those making programs, the best advice I have to offer is DOUBLE AND TRIPLE CHECK the following:

3) Did you properly punctuate, use appropriate grammar, used spell check, etc. People will be reading your program through the entire ceremony. They will have plenty of opportunity to check for mistakes so be on the look out for them!

Just my two cents! :)

YES! Poor grammar just looks horrible! There is a longstanding custom of people posting their program and/or invitation wording here so that others can proofread it for them. We have several grammar Nazis who are happy to help you make it perfect.

Rmengarelli had fan programs. I will make her bring one over this weekend so I can put up pictures.