Whether you’re just starting to plan your wedding or you’re nearing the finish line, there’s one small detail you shouldn’t forget: the wedding guest book. In case you’re on the fence, I’m giving you 5 reasons why you still need a wedding guest book for your special day.
Thank you to Basic Invite for sponsoring this post! The opinions expressed in this post are completely my own, and I only recommend products I personally use and enjoy. For more information, please see my disclosures.
What’s the point of wedding guest books?
A wedding guest book is just as it sounds: a book displayed at your wedding to collect the signatures and special wishes of your guests. But is this tradition a thing of the past?
I would argue it’s absolutely not! In this digital age, it’s the one thing I suggest not putting online.
This year, my husband and I will celebrate our 10-year wedding anniversary. (How is that possible?!) Aside from watching our wedding video, I’m most looking forward to thumbing through our guest book.
Just like you plan your wedding to have a certain theme and color scheme, you can now choose a guest book that fits your own unique style and will still be going strong ten years later.
Basic Invite has tons of wedding guest books to choose from, and I’ll share my favorite picks throughout this post. (Spoiler alert: the new guest books are far trendier than mine!)
Want 30% off your entire order?
Read on to get my promo code!
5 Reasons You Need a Wedding Guest Book
These days, couples have gotten creative with their guest signatures, opting for artwork signed by guests and other digital memorabilia. I’ve seen everything from metal trees with ornaments to super-sized wine bottles (called Jerobaums).
All those options are great, but there’s still a case to be made for the traditional, hard-copy book! Here’s why…
1. Wedding guest books don’t become obsolete.
Let’s face it. There are couples out there with VHS tapes from their wedding (if they were lucky enough to know someone with a camcorder).
How many still own a VHS player today?
Your wedding guest book can get passed down through the generations, and you won’t need version 2.0 to read it!
2. A book doesn’t create clutter.
Marie Kondo would approve of a wedding guestbook! Unlike larger keepsakes, a book fits nicely on a shelf, and you can easily transport it with every move.
3. Guest books create an opportunity for story-telling.
As a young girl, I loved turning the pages of my parents’ wedding guest book. It was an opportunity to learn about family members and hear about the details of their special day.
4. You may never have another record quite the same.
Speaking of family, the beautiful thing about a wedding ceremony is having all the people you love in one room.
My husband and I have lost dear family members over the years, and I now cherish the sweet well-wishes we captured in our wedding guest book that night.
5. Guests love guest books.
One of the great challenges at your wedding reception will be visiting with all of your guests while trying to soak it all in.
Guest books create the perfect opportunity for your friends and family to write a few words of wisdom they might not have a chance to tell you in person.
Why I Highly Recommend Basic Invite
They say you need to put your money where your mouth is, and I have! I became a Basic Invite customer two years ago when I planned my niece’s bridal shower.
Needless to say, I wasn’t disappointed! I landed on this gorgeous floral invitation, which I customized to match the color scheme of our DIY decorations and bridal advice card printables.
Here’s what I really loved about my Basic Invite experience:
- The color options are virtually unlimited. (They literally have 180 different options to customize on your cards.)
- You can coordinate your stationery, thank-you cards, wedding guest books and more.
- They collect addresses for free and offer free envelope printing.
- You can order custom samples before placing a final order.
I’m so pleased with their service that I’m now offering my readers 30% off your entire order with Basic Invite when you use the code FIRSTDAYINVITES!*
–> Click here to shop for guest books
*Note: I may receive a small commission with orders placed using my promo code, at no extra cost to you. This helps support my site, so thank you for your business!
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I’m wishing you a beautiful wedding and a fairy tale ending!
Hi! These guest book ideas are so pretty! My husband and I just had a run-of-the-mill guest book purchased from a card store at our wedding. Yet, with our 25th anniversary coming up this spring, I still enjoy looking at what friends and family wrote in our guest book. BTW, your wedding photo is so cute! TFF
Thanks so much, Lauren! Yes, I hear you on the run-of-the-mill guest book. They didn’t have so many options when we got married, either. Congrats on your upcoming 25th anniversary! That’s wonderful! Thanks for the sweet compliment on the photo, too.
I totally agree with your tips and advice for having a wedding guest book! Loved seeing a photo from your wedding! Nice personal touch! I pinned this to my Wedding Ideas board!
Thank you, my friend! I thumbed through my parents’ wedding album when I wrote the post, and that was so fun. Thanks for pinning!
I love how they will personalize the guest book with a photo of the bride and groom on the cover. I agree that a guest book is something that a couple will treasure for years to come. Thank you for sharing this resource, Crissy. And congrats on your upcoming 10 year anniversary!
Thank you so much, Rebecca! I like that photo option, too. I wish it had been around when I was a bride. Thanks for the good wishes. These past 10 years flew by!
Reading your post makes me want to dig into my trunk filled with photo albums to find my wedding guest book and look through it. I loved seeing your wedding picture. You were a beautiful bride!
Basic Invite has beautiful products. I spent time browsing through their stationary.
Thank you so much, Paula. Yes, writing this post made me very sentimental. I used it as an excuse to go through all the photos from our wedding. Hee hee. It seems like only yesterday we were walking down the aisle. Thanks for stopping by!