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We already know lots of ways to write your wedding vows and to get over your vow writer's block, so we're going to focus on where to find inspiration for personalized vows. We want to make them funny, sweet, and totally your own beast. From movies to inside jokes, let's talk about where to find ideas for personalized vow moments.
Personalized vows idea #1: Use your catchphrases and inside jokes
You likely have loads of inside jokes, pop culture references, and catchphrases that you share with your partner. These can totally be farmed for vow fodder. Holly and Judd met online which spawned a whole catchphrase for their relationship that not only entered their vows, it landed on their cake! Here's the story:
We met on OKcupid and since pretty much the second we met in person, we've had this recurring dialogue/inside joke that goes, “WHERE did I get you?” “The internets.” “OMG squee YAY INTERNETS!” So that was our theme. We really just wanted everything to be as personalized and sentimental as possible, because that's who we are.
Offbeat Bride Tribe Member AngelaMelissa had these ultra personalized vows (more here!):
I vow to use a recipe as a guideline when fixing meals.
I vow to laugh with you in good times and to solace you when you are downhearted.
I will come to mutual decisions with you.
I vow to be a quality roommate.
I will wash more dishes.
I vow to tolerate your icy toes.
I will continue to play with you until we grow old and decrepit.
I’ve seen your kindness and your strength. I’ve seen you patient and frayed.
I will strive to not take you for granted.
Personalized vows idea #2: Find your shared philosophies
Have a discussion with your partner about your philosophies on love and building a life together. You'll likely find affirmations, promises, and vows to incorporate from the areas that overlap between you. Here are some question to discuss:
- How will you adapt to changes in your life together?
- What small things does your partner do that you love?
- What is your most favorite memory of your relationship so far?
- What strengths does your partner bring to the relationship that you lack?
- What's a very realistic promise you can make to each other?
- What's the most important priority to each of you?
- How will we move forward as a blended family (if this applies)
Personalized vows idea #3: Steal from your favorite songs
Song lyrics are the bastion of the love-lorn, love-obsessed, and well, those just in love. So culling from songs makes perfect sense. Lindsay and Val used a song in their ceremony like so:
We started the ceremony with a coordinated dance to the Cher song, “Different Kind Of Love Song.” The song's lyrics really hit home for us. Our wedding party all came out slowly, then we walked out from backstage. Then everyone broke out into dance mode! Hilarious!
Our officiant read about our life together and the (crazy) way we ended up in Chicago. Both our moms read pieces for us. We wrote our own vows that were both funny and sweet.
Personalized vows idea #4: Look to your favorite movies and TV shows
Geeky wedding vows – 10 examples from REAL weddings!
Fellow gamers, book-lovers, pop culture fiends, Potterphiles, Browncoats, Tolkien fans, Whovians, and zombie apocalypse fighters, and all other forms of geekdom in need of nerd-tinged,... Read more
It's likely you're watching lots of movies and TV shows together, amirite? Whovians, perhaps? Whatever your genre, Googling something like “romantic scenes from ____” may be the goldmine you're looking for. Unless you're looking for lines from Breaking Bad or The Red Wedding. Then maybe not so much…
We've collected quite a few in the geeky genres already.
Personalized vows idea #5: Look to your favorite books
17 wedding readings from literature for bookish couples
Bookish couples: we know you and we love you. So we're sharing a whole new batch of killer wedding readings just for you. We've got... Read more
Another treasure trove of romantic lines is definitely literature. You don't even need to have shared interests to scrape some sweet nothings from books. Peruse some of these excerpts from famous books for tons of ideas.
And if books fail you, go ahead and say it like Offbeat Bride Tribe Member CylestTyler did:
I was going to quote some famous author or tell a love story that epitomizes our fated tale. However, I couldn’t because everything I found gave no justice to the way I feel when I’m with you. None of them live up to the way my skin shivers when you smile at me or how bad my face hurts from smiling after one of your jokes.
Personalized vows idea #6: Steal vows from other weddings and adapt them to YOU!
There's no need to reinvent the wheel with vows. Most weddings use the same template, so you can totally take inspiration from weddings we've featured. Readers share them for a reason. Check out the whole archive of ideas and run with it!
- Steal these wedding vows
- Hilarious, tear-jerking, and realistic wedding vow ideas from readers
- Trending topic: #vows
- 30 geek movie love quotes
Need more writing advice for personalized vows?
About the Author: Catherine Clark
Catherine Clark loiters at her local library, makes art, watches movies en masse, plays video and tabletop games, poorly cooks healthy things, cuddles with her feline fur babies, and blogs at BijouxandBits.com.
Wow! Love this article 🙂 Such great ideas!!!
Heh, I did all of this for my wedding vows & ceremony — my vows included text from the book Jane Eyre & the movie Chasing Amy 🙂 http://fishcat.com/wedding/ceremony/words.html
I took part of my vows from the tv show How I Met Your Mother. This is an excerpt from when Lily and Marshall renew their vows right before Barney and Robin’s wedding:
And I promise to keep updating my vows as we go. Because one set of vows can’t cover a lifetime of growing and changing with you. Falling more and more in love with you every day, Lily Aldrin, which is what I vow to do. For the rest of my life.”