Alternatives to Bouquet and Garter Tosses
More and more couples I serve each season are opting out of the traditional bouquet and garter tosses. Couples these days desire wedding reception activities that all their guests can participate in, activities that aren’t stuck in old traditions. If you’re one of those couples seeking options, here are my favorite alternatives to bouquet and garter tosses:
Anniversary Dance
I’m a cryer. I cry at every wedding, and the anniversary dance is one that usually will move me to tears. Seeing — oftentimes — your grandparents dancing together, twinkles in their eyes as everyone admires how long they’ve been married, gets me every. damn. time.
The anniversary dance is one where all married couples begin dancing on the floor as the DJ calls out increments of time for couples married less than that many years to leave the floor, until ultimately one couple is left. My favorite touch on this is when the DJ has you join the longest married couple on the floor and asks them to give you a piece of advice on how to love so long in your marriage. They ALWAYS have quality answers!
Dollar Dance / Money Dance
The dollar dance is where your wedding guests are able to pay their way to dance with you and your new spouse individually. It’s a great way to save extra money for your honeymoon! I will offer a warning and my idea of a modern take on this dance though… if you have more younger guests, it can be harder to have a money dance as most young people don’t carry cash!
I was discussing this with one of my 2019 couples recently and we laughed about changing it to a Venmo dance! How awesome would that be?? Seriously – if you do a venmo dance PLEASE have someone document it and tag us on insta! I’m dying to see if this catches on!
Shoe Game
A fun trend that has come up in the last few years is the shoe game. This is where the couple sits back to back on the dance floor, their partner’s shoes in hand, to answer questions put to them by the DJ. This is usually a fun time to admit who does the cooking, who hogs the blankets, who is more likely to forget an anniversary, and how said “I love you” first – usually to tons of laughter from your guests! I would recommend keeping it to under 15 or 20 questions, though, as guests will often want to continue to get their boogie on!
Lawn Games
In Colorado it’s most common to have outdoor weddings and receptions. Why not give your guests (especially if you’re having lots of kids!) lawn games to play if they’re not into dancing? This is a great alternative to traditional activities like the bouquet and garter tosses that keep your guests entertained and offer alternatives if your group aren’t dancers!
There are so many other alternatives to bouquet and garter tosses, but I hope these have sparked some ideas for you! Let us know what alternatives you’re doing for your reception in the comments below!
