Rings have been presented in the bottom of champagne glasses, inside a rose bud or in place of dessert.  Or by carefully removing part of the bottom of a box of Cracker Jacks and swapping out the toy prize inside with some bigger bling.

Some of the more memorable stories I’ve heard during my DJ/Client meetings don’t involve the discovery of the ring at all but the proposal itself.

One required quite a bit of planning that included walking through a large courtyard where a flash mob broke out, the groom not only danced but serenaded his bride-to-be while dropping to one knee.

Another had his friends hiding in the bushes near the clearing of one of the couples favorite hiking trails..  When he pretended to tie his boot, he pulled the ring out and the entire thing was captured on video thanks to his friends.

Guys have also disguised themselves, only revealing their true identity after they were on one knee, temporarily leaving the woman wondering why Santa Claus or in one case during a sporting event, the team mascot chose to incorporate her into the halftime show by kneeling in front of her!  Proposals have also been done on stage at concerts or plays and even written into songs.  One client took his girlfriend shopping and as they casually passed a jewelry store, showcased behind the glass was her ring with his personalized message on a card next to it.

My recent favorite is from one guy who worked with the couples favorite restaurant long in advance of an upcoming dinner date to obtain one of the menus.  He then carefully placed his proposal in her favorite seafood section with matching font and everything.  Safe to say his effort was — priceless.

So guys,  incorporate your own personalities into it, make it move her to tears, laughter or both – but make it memorable!

Photo courtesy of Envirosax

You’ve already welcomed them to your destination wedding with a fabulous goodie bag filled with bottles of water, sunscreen, local gourmet goodies, and bug bite stick, perhaps spa products and other indulgences.

But it’s become a new trend to surprise your guests with a little something awaiting their return to their rooms at the end of each night. At Caneel Bay in St. John, guests return ‘home’ to find a pair of pretty seashells on their dresser, paired with a lovely and elegant printed card bearing a romantic or inspiring quote. My favorite is “Dreams come true. Without that possibility, nature would not incite us to have them.” Each night, you get a new pair of shells and a new quote card. We were almost giddy keying into our room to see what awaited us inside.

Another welcome-home treat is a hand-written note from the two of you, revealing what tomorrow’s activities will be. Rather than revealing all of the plans on a printed itinerary in the welcome bag, it’s more like the ‘date cards’ you see on The Bachelor and The Bachelorette, surprising guests with hints about or the revelation of what the next morning will bring them. It could be a breakfast sail, a kayak tour, lunch on the beach, a hike…whatever your schedule entails.

A bottle of wine and two glasses is always welcome, as are some newly-bought packaged snacks…but there’s one treat I’d love for you to steer clear of: some island habitats are by nature home to insects. And if your guests arrived home to a pretty cupcake on a plate that’s crawling with little bugs, that doesn’t impress. So keep snacks packaged, and keep drinks sealed. It’s just the way island life is.

Share what you plan to surprise your destination wedding guests with…we’d love to hear your stories!

1. Set them out by the guest book so that everyone can take fun photos as they arrive, as they’re signing in, in groups with people they won’t be sitting with.

2. Display them in out-of-town guests’ hotel rooms with a snack display, as an alternative to the guest welcome bag. They can start taking photos earlier in the weekend, such as at the welcome cocktail party.

Photo courtesy of Joseph Toris

3. Set them on the cocktail party tables, so — again — guests can capture the pre-reception action and their not-sitting-together groups.

4. Place one or two on the bar so that groups who are doing a group shot or toasts can snap that photo for you.

5. Place them in a display near the dessert bar, so that guests can snap photos of those beautiful treats, petit fours, mini pastries, chocolate-covered strawberries and more.

I also love to mix up the colors, such as putting some purple on tables, and some ivory, for a stylized color blend and an unexpected look.

Sharon Naylor is the author of over 35 wedding books, including Your Wedding Your Way and 1001 Ways to Save Money and Still Have a Dazzling Wedding, www.sharonnaylor.net

Photo courtesy of vimagestore.com

Selecting  jewelry for your bridal party can be a bit overwhelming. With so many different options to choose from the process can go from fun to complicated fast. But if you keep in mind these simple tips it will help eliminate the stress of finding the perfect jewelry:

*Bridesmaid jewelry can double as your bridesmaids gift

*If your bridesmaids are wearing hair accessories such as combs, ribbons, or headbands, the jewelry should coordinate with the accessories

*Keep the jewelry simple, you want it to compliment their dresses but not outshine the bride

 *Don’t worry about buying real stones, costume jewelry will look just as good

 *The jewelry for the maid of honor can be more elaborate than the other girls

~Jessie-Intern

Here are some great examples to get your creative juices going.  You can choose elements from these cakes to take to your cake designer to plan your cake, or just go with a color scheme.  Cake designers love to have photos to work from so both of you will have a better idea of what the final product will look like.  Look to these photos for inspiration or any other Halloween themed items and bring them along to your cake consultation.

photo by www.pinkcakebox.com

Here’s a fun cake with a classic Halloween couple used on top, Jack and Sally.  Remember to have fun with the topper.  There are so many couples you can use: Frankenstein and Bride of Frankenstein, Herman and Lily Munster, Dracula and Mina.

photo by www.rosebudcakes.com

This one leans to the goth side, but it’s Halloween so that’s okay!  I love the spiderwebs draping over the sides, and the black, red, and white color scheme works well for Halloween too.

image by www.creative-theme-wedding-ideas.com

This is a great design for a wedding cake.  Totally nontraditional in its shape, the house theme can be played up into a spooky haunted house, or tamed down to a Victorian with a fall garden and jack-o-lanterns on the porch.  Maybe even a topper of the wedding couple used on the porch instead of on top of the cake.

Image by www.cakecentral.com

Here’s a perfect traditional cake done in Halloween colors.  You don’t have to have a spooky cake for it to say Halloween.

photo by www.pinkcakebox.com

Here’s a great use of Halloween colors in a simple, traditional style cake that is anything but boring.  The bow is so dramatic against the cream colored background, and the tiny dots in brown and orange tie into the Halloween color scheme.

photo by www.cupcakestakethecake.blogspot.com

And finally, here’s a simple way to do it yourself if you’re on a tight budget.  Trim out a cupcake stand in ribbon to match your cupcakes and use tiny Halloween themed candies or plastic picks on the cupcakes.  Top them off with Halloween sprinkles or colored sugars.  The cutting cake on top can be as simple as you like, or it can match the cupcakes, or you can order the cake from a bakery.