7 Awesome Ways to Ask Friends to Participate in Your Wedding

“By My Bridesmaid” Champagne Bottle via FlairDesignery LLC  
Last week we discussed how to determine the size of your bridal party, so today I thought I’d offer up some creative ways to invite people to be your attendants. Remember that being a member of a bridal party is a huge financial and time commitment, especially for honor attendants, so be careful that you choose people with that in mind. Here are a few ways to make asking people to be in your bridal party fun and memorable:


1. Present them with a bottle of champagne (or another celebratory beverage) and tie a large gift tag on it in one of your wedding colors. Hand-write the invitation on the gift tag. One invitation I read said, “You’d make me a very happy bride sipping champagne by my side.” Another one read, “I can’t say I Do…without you.” There are also companies like personalwine.com that make custom bottle labels you could use instead.

2. Remind them of one of your best memories together. Were you both band geeks in high school? Write an invitation on sheet music. Do you compete to see who can finish the Sunday Crossword the fastest? Create your own crossword and have the invitation hidden in the answers. These kinds of invites will be keepsakes your attendants will cherish forever!

3. Send them a singing telegram. Talk about the unexpected! One of my past brides did this and her attendants still talk about it to this day.

4. Treat them to a night out. Get your potential party together for a girls’ night. You can either give a speech where you ask them all to be your attendants, or present them with invitations like these popular ones on Etsy.

5. Having a destination wedding? Consider putting your invitation inside a luggage tag. Better yet, gift them with a piece of luggage along with it!

6. If your friend is a Starbucks fanatic, ask the barista to write your invitation on her skinny latte.

7. Give ‘em a laugh. I’ve seen invites like this one on Pinterest and other sites that go for the lighter side of being a bridal party attendant. Ask if she’ll help calm you down when you lose your cool, wear any color even if she doesn’t like it, and tell you when you’re being a “bridezilla.” After all, what are friends for?

There are lots of creative ways you can invite your friends and family to stand up at your wedding. The more personal you can make it, the better! Make sure each person knows how important they are to you, and they’ll surely want to be standing by your side on your special day.