All but gone are the days of sending a bride and groom off from their wedding with rice and bird seed (unless the wedding is in a field, mountaintop or a barn). Most rental facilities don’t even allow confetti as a decoration on your tables with the risk of the mess that potentially could be left for them to clean up – let alone bird seed or rice being thrown outside their doors. Fortunately there are some fun alternatives to the traditional send-offs.

For a day-time wedding and send-off, purchase little containers of bubbles and decorate them to match your theme and colors. Have a friend or family member distribute them to your guests at the end of the wedding celebration, on their way outside to see you off. You will have beautiful send-off photos with bubbles floating through the air everywhere.

Another alternative for evening weddings are sparklers. They’re not just for the 4th of July anymore…although it is a great time of year to buy them and stock up for your nuptials! Take 1-2 sparklers and wrap them with a ribbon of your wedding color(s). Have your friends and family pass them out, or even leave them on the tables with a note attached to them. Provide matches (away from kids reach) for the sparklers, and ask your guests to join you outside and light them when you are leaving. They will give you beautiful photos with the sparkling lights all around you, providing a runway for you to run through to your get-away car.