Wedding Keepsakes for Adventurous Elopements
Your wedding is one of the most monumental moments of your life! Obviously, you want to remember it and re-live it in every way possible. As an elopement photographer, I think your photos are the best kinds of wedding keepsakes and should be one of your priority investments on your wedding day! But sometimes it’s fun to have a few tangible objects to remember your day as well. Things that you can display in your home together outside of photographs, custom artwork, and wearable memorabilia are all among my favorite items for wedding keepsakes. I’ve compiled them all here to give you some great ideas on how to memorialize your adventurous elopement!
Why should you plan for wedding keepsakes?
Just like when you get to any ordinary vacation and want to bring home little mementos like a ballcap or a deck of playing cards, you may find yourself hoping for something similar from your wedding day. You might be tempted to take a bottle of sand or pebbles from your wedding destination or pick a few sprigs from the local flora to take home for wedding keepsakes. But these seemingly small actions sadly damage the gorgeous environment we want to preserve!
Since I’m a Leave No Trace Aware Photographer, my job is to educate you on how to take home eco-friendly keepsakes that protect rather than damage the beautiful landscapes we’re using as your wedding backdrop. That’s why I wanted to create this list. These are all beautiful, creative ways to preserve your memories and keep your wedding eco-friendly! Without further ado, read on for my favorite elopement keepsakes.
Pressed bouquet preservation
If your elopement location allows live or dried flowers (some don’t!), you may want to preserve those wedding florals for years to come. You spent so much money on finding the perfect floral combo, why let it go to waste on just one day?! Use your preserved florals to decorate your house or to pass down to future generations. One way to do this is to have your wedding bouquet pressed and preserved.
There are so many different companies and artists that do this! I particularly love these cottage-core style pressed frames from Made eco in London. They ship worldwide and have several different styles to choose from from vintage gold metal frames to wooden farmhouse ones. They also provide shadowbox bouquet preservation if you don’t want your flowers crushed! If you’re more into the DIY version of this, Kim & Ink has a great tutorial on how to do it yourself.
Resin
Another way to turn your florals into wedding keepsakes is by having them cast in resin. This trendy art form is really having a moment in the spotlight! It encases your florals in a clear solid that can be shaped into anything from a tray for your dresser to a jewelry dish or a ring holder for your brand new wedding band. You could even have your florals split up to make all of those things! You can find plenty of creators on Etsy who can do this for you. I’ve known a bride who used Blooming Bowtique Shop and loved her result! The key is shipping your flowers out to the artist ASAP after the wedding day – the next day if possible! While you’ll get much better results by using a professional, there are also DIY options out there like this jewelry dish tutorial from Pura Vida Bracelets.
Custom watercolor painting
Why not have one of your wedding photos turned into a watercolor painting?! There are so many talented artists out there who can do live paintings at your reception or simply turn one of your favorite wedding photographs into a gorgeous watercolor portrait to hang in your house for years to come. Have them paint a portrait of you and your spouse or order a custom painting of your wedding florals. Both are creative wedding keepsakes guests will love seeing when they visit your home.
Framed Vows
Your vows are one of the most sacred pieces of your wedding day. The words you say to each other in your ceremony represent the lifelong commitment you’re making to one another. If you custom wrote your vows, displaying them in your home is one of the most meaningful wedding keepsakes you can get. I love these calligraphy vow prints from papercasestudio It will remind you daily of the promises you made to love each other through anything.
Minimalist art print
I’m always in FULL support of framing your wedding photos as elopement keepsakes, but this art from Still Novel takes it to another level! Not only does it show off one of your favorite photos, but it also tells the story of your wedding day, where it was and what details were important to you.
Jewelry with coordinates
Chances are if you chose an elopement for your wedding, you got married somewhere totally epic that means something to you. Memorialize it by having the coordinates of your elopement destination engraved on a piece of jewelry for wedding keepsakes, like these coordinates bracelets from GLDN. I ordered one for me sister and it is beautiful!
Topographical map of your wedding location
What outdoors adventurer doesn’t appreciate a topographical map?! If you’re planning a national park elopement or other beautiful destination wedding, these are some of my favorites when it comes to wedding keepsakes. There are so many ways to display it. You can choose a topographical map print of an entire area, like these from Mr. City Printing, or you can have a 3D version carved into wood like this art from Beaum Art Shop on Etsy. You could even opt for a print of the specific trail you got married on like this one from Ridge and Valley Co on Etsy!
Backpack signs
I think backpack signs like these from Hardwood and Home on Etsy make for the cutest elopement day photos. And you can take them home as wedding keepsakes too! Choose phrases like “We Eloped” or “Husband and Wife” to give them staying power long after the wedding day.
Elopement announcements
If you aren’t having guests at your elopement, you may opt to send out an elopement announcement after the fact – or have me take photos of an elopement announcement suite as part of your detail shots so you can share it on social media! There are so many options on Etsy like these cute elopement announcements from Niki Press Designs. Traditional weddings may have invitation suites, but you can use these for wedding keepsakes instead.
Prioritizing the most important wedding keepsakes of all
I may be a little bit biased, but I feel so strongly that your wedding photos are the most important wedding keepsakes you can have from your day. While these tangible objects are fun memories, your wedding photos are what will allow you to relive the day over and over in the future. It’s what your kids and grandkids will look back on to know what you and your spouse were like when you founded your family’s legacy. Plus, you can turn them into physical keepsakes when you order a wedding album with me!
I encourage you to choose an elopement photographer that vibes with you, your partner and your vision of the day. I’d love to talk with you more about what you’re looking for in your elopement photos and find out if we can team up to give you the BEST elopement keepsakes ever!