Attention Brides and Grooms!

The hottest new wedding trend is actually not new at all! Couples have been using sand to symbolize unity for many years, and sand ceremonies in the US are starting to feature these ceremonies in addition, or more often in place of, the unity candle ceremony. It probably started in Hawaii as brides and grooms would stand barefoot on the beach. At the right moment in the ceremony, they would reach down and take a handful of sand from beneath their feet and pour it into a single container. If you're thinking of incorporating a sand ceremony into your special day, you've come to the right place.

Many couples use the same color sand as the accent colors for their wedding- i.e. if the bridesmaid dresses are light blue, then the gentleman uses light blue and the bride uses white, or vice-versa.

Order plenty of the sand and use as accents on the reception tables, even in the flower vases. Small containers with colored sand make the perfect backdrop for shells, decorative rock, or shiny costume jewelry- depending on your theme. Layer the bride and groom sand colors in decorative clear plastic or glass containers and use to accent the food tables.Many people find it helpful to order a sample pack of sand to be able to choose their colors. Order with plenty of time- we ship on Fridays and are closed for many holidays. We are rarely out of stock of any color.

Choose a wide-mouthed container (a wide-mouthed florist's vase works well) for the ceremony, then you may transfer the combined sand later into a permanent display container.

UNITY SAND CEREMONY

Following is an example of wording for the ceremony. Plan to have soft music playing during this part of the service.

After the minister reads the statement below, pour two containers of sand into a third, wide- mouthed, container simultaneously:

_______________ and ______________, today you join your separate lives together. The two separate bottles of sand symbolize your separate lives, separate families and separate sets of friends. They represent all that you are and all that you’ll ever be as an individual. They also represent your lives before today. As these two containers of sand are poured into the third container, the individual containers of sand will no longer exist, but will be joined together as one. Just as these grains of sand can never be separated and poured again into the individual containers, so will your marriage be.

If children are a part of the new family, the sand ceremony can involve them also. Some families choose a different color for each member. (This can be tricky -to get colors that complement each other. Lots of different colors together end up looking dirty and brown from a distance. We advise you practice this a few times using a small amount to make sure you like the results.) This is much safer than having small children handling lit candles!