Wedding How To: Grand Exits

When it comes to wedding exits, we love to see ALL the unique ideas!

Everyone loves a good wedding exit, and there are so many ways to go about it! You can get as creative as you want to, and they’re a great way to get in one last piece of your celebration with all of your favorite people! We’ve come up with some inspo ideas for your potential wedding exit through some of our very own CJM couples, and things that we would love to see!

Sparklers

We’re going to start off with some things you can use for your exits, like sparklers! Sparkler send-offs are such a fun, nice, and cool way to go out at the end of your big day, and they look good in pictures! A key thing to keep in mind: you need to get the 18-24 inch ones, not the standard sparkler size. They last longer, you can hold them up above the couple, and no one is running the risk of getting hurt! 

Balloons, LED Wands, and Other Hand-Held Options

One of our couples did their grand exit as balloons! We thought this was such a fun and creative way to do a send off, and they looked great! We had another couple use the LED optic wands as their exit, which is even more perfect for when it gets dark! Most of them don’t require any batteries, and they last all night! We also love seeing these during the reception when people are dancing because it’s such a fun way for all of your guests to really have fun, especially as the night goes on!

Other options for grand exit items could include:

• Bubbles
• Dried flower petals
• Streamer wands (especially when the colors match your theme!)
• Paper lanterns

Before finalizing your grand exit, make sure you talk with your venue first to see what all they allow (and don’t allow) – that way no one is breaking any rules!

Ceremony Exits

Aside from doing a grand exit at the end of the night, you can also do a grand exit out of your ceremony. Your day is your day, so you can do whatever you want to – remember, you have total creative control! One of our couples gave out little packs of biodegradable confetti for their guests to toss in the air once they recessed out of their ceremony! It was so cute, creative, and it looked great in pictures! Another great option, especially if you’re getting married in a church, is to do a grand exit while guests line up outside the church. If having photos of these moments are important to you, we highly suggest considering adding at least one grand exit into your wedding day!

Pro Tip: Your photo and video team will LOVE you for planning a kiss while recessing out from your ceremony. At your rehearsal, practice walking slowly and stopping halfway down the aisle. Figure out in advance how you are going to kiss! You’ll thank us later because the photos will be amazing!

Reception Outfit Change

Another way to do something different and fun is to do an outfit change! We love when our couples have a fun dress on the side for after their ceremony or specifically for their grand exit, and it’s actually beneficial! You could go with something totally different from your ceremony dress – maybe your runner-up that you just couldn’t say no to! Or, you could go with something shorter, like a cocktail style dress, or a fierce jumpsuit. The options are endless! When you do an outfit change, it allows for you to not be in your main wedding dress anymore, obviously, which means that you don’t have to worry about it throughout the reception (like drinks getting spilled) or what to do with it when you leave and head to your wedding-night hotel!

There are so many different ways to go about the grand exits of your wedding, and they don’t even have to stop at what we’ve talked about! The best part about your wedding day is that you can genuinely go as big and bold as you want to! Think outside the box, and then push past it. Don’t be afraid to try something new or different!

And if you have questions or need recommendations, that’s what your wedding planner or coordinator are here for!