Once you’ve mailed your wedding invitations and are spending your days waiting expectantly by the mailbox for replies, you might start thinking about all those other lovely paper details needed for your big day. One such detail is the ceremony program.

So, what exactly is a ceremony program?

Ceremony programs should outline for guests a basic run-down of what will occur during the ceremony.  They often also outline who’s who in the wedding party and families of the couple. Some types of information you may want to include in your program:

• Order of events: this might include processionals, readings, prayers, the exchange of vows, etc.

• Specific details about the ceremony: this could include specific music that will accompany the wedding party processional, names and origins of readings, music heard or performed throughout the ceremony, etc.

• Names of parents, grandparents and celebrants/officiants

• Names of the bridesmaids, groomsmen, flower girls, ring bearers and ushers

• Any notes or explanations about specific cultural or personal traditions that will take place during the ceremony

• Any notes of remembrance for friends or family who are no longer with you or who were unable to attend

• Any notes of thanks to your friends and family for their presence and guidance

Of course, your program should be a reflection of your event, your personalities and what feels right to you. There is no wedding police and every program is different so do not feel that you need to include everything listed above.  Instead, just think about what you would want to or care to read if you were a guest at your wedding.

What do ceremony programs look like?
Ceremony programs come in all shapes and sizes and those shapes and sizes largely depend on the amount of content you’d like included and your vision for the piece!

Will you be including each reading and prayer written out?  Then perhaps a traditional bound booklet or flip-style program will work best and provide the most room for larger amounts of content.

Getting married on a hot summer day? Program fans are fun and functional!

Opting for a minimalist style or on a tight budget? Flat panels provide a perfect space for a to-the-point program.

Feeling creative?  Programs can be designed in all sorts of creative ways to complement your event style, themes or your venue.  Scroll programs for an English garden wedding? Sure! A chalkboard program for a sweet backyard bash? Of course!

The sky is the limit to how creative, or how sweet and simple, you can make a ceremony program and, in the end, as long as the schedule ends with you getting married, it will be a success!

Design and Letterpress Printing of all the above: Gus & Ruby Letterpress

Gus & Ruby Letterpress is a member of the Designer Rolodex – check out more of their beautiful work right here or visit the real invi­ta­tions gallery for more wedding invitation ideas!

Photo Credits: Brea McDonald Photography for Gus & Ruby Letterpress