Tell us about Wooden Wedding Boxes…
The idea of The Wooden Wedding Box Ceremony was introduced to my fiancé and me before our wedding in 2008, by a wedding officiant.  We looked up additional information about the Wooden Wedding Box Ceremony online and were excited about the unique idea. We were eager to purchase a Wooden Wedding Box for our own wedding, but what we found was that there wasn’t anyone selling Wooden Wedding Boxes.  Therefore my fiancé and I had to purchase the items to develop our own.  We enjoyed personalizing our Wooden Wedding Box together but wished that, in the midst of all that went into planning a wedding, we would have had a place to purchase a finished Wooden Wedding Box. This is where the idea for our Wooden Wedding Box business started.

In the months following our wedding, my husband and I began to develop and plan a website explaining to other couples the origin of The Wooden Wedding Box Ceremony as well as the wording needed to incorporate it into any wedding ceremony. First and foremost, we wanted to give couples the opportunity to make it a part of their own wedding ceremony by offering them the option to purchase supplies from us. We are eager to share it with other couples, and look forward to helping them make their wedding ceremony unique with the addition of one of our Wooden Wedding Boxes.

Where did this idea originate?
The Wooden Wedding Box Ceremony has recently been introduced in the United States but comes from Holland. The couple getting married is to find a strong wooden box that will hold one bottle of wine and two wine glasses.  The couple then writes letters to one another, expressing their thoughts about good qualities that they found in their partner and the reasons for falling in love with each other.   Without reading each other’s letters, the couple is to seal them and put them in the box with the wine and glasses.

The wooden box is taken to the wedding and during the end of the wedding ceremony, the officiant will announce to the guests that the couple has written letters to each other and put them in the box with the wine and glasses.  The officiant will explain that should the couple ever find their marriage in serious trouble, before making any irrational decisions, they must open the box, drink wine together, and read the letter that they wrote to one another to reflect on why they fell in love with each other in the first place.  The hope is that there will never be a reason to have to open the box until the couple’s 10th wedding anniversary celebration.

At this time in the wedding ceremony, the bride and groom are handed nails and a hammer, and each hammers in a nail to seal the box shut.  The rest of the ceremony continues on in the traditional way, but your guests will be talking about what a unique and touching idea this was and will remember your wedding as one that stands out above the rest.

How do suggest couples incorporate this into their wedding and
what are the most important thing for bride and grooms to consider?
I suggest couples first print the information from our website that explains the wording necessary for the officiant or minister in adding The Wooden Wedding Box Ceremony to their individualized ceremony. Couples need to take this information with them to their meeting with the officiant to get things organized for their wedding ceremony.  This ceremony can be used alone or in conjunction with the Unity Candle Ceremony, Rose Ceremony, Sand Pouring, as well as other service additions.   It adds only a couple of minutes of length to the wedding ceremony itself, but adds a lifetime of memories for the Bride and Groom, as well as their guests.  In our own wedding, we added it between the Rose and Unity Candle Ceremonies and simply placed the Wooden Box on the table next to the Unity Candle.

Next, they need to decide what kind of box best meets their wedding needs.  If they are crafty and creative, the couple may want to consider building their Wooden Wedding Box together from scratch.  If they want a refined finished look, we offer our Deluxe Box, which only requires letters and a bottle of wine added for the box to be ready for the wedding day.  A third option would be for couples to purchase our Basic Box, which would allow them the opportunity to add their own personalization to their box without the trouble of starting from scratch.

Finally, I suggest couples make sure they put aside a sufficient amount of time before the wedding to plan and write the letters to each other that they will put into their Wooden Wedding Box.  When writing their letter, they need to relax and write from the heart, making sure to take the time and effort necessary to convey the depth of love and feelings that has led them to wanting to spend the rest of their lives’ with their partner.

Do you know of any “success stories” where the box had a major impact in a relationship?
With our business only being a few months old, we don’t have any success stories to tell about but our own. My husband and I put a great deal of time and effort into the letters we wrote to each other. For me, it was a very touching and enlightening experience. I’ve known all along that he was the love of my life, but seeing all the reasons I fell in love with him written on paper, helped me appreciate what we have together even more. Also, hearing that his letter to me was several pages long was a wonderful reminder that there are many things that have helped us built a strong foundation for our marriage.

My husband and I also enjoyed the uniqueness this added to our own wedding and look forward to opening our Wooden Wedding Box on our 10th anniversary.  We look forward to a lifetime together, but are realistic enough to know that you can’t have too many tools in place when it comes to planning for the unpredictable directions life sometimes brings our way.

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Business Name:  Wooden Wedding Boxes
Website:  www.woodenweddingboxes.com
Phone #: 317-326-1438
Email:  info@woodenweddingboxes.com
Price Range: $75 – $125