Our first advice on writing your own wedding vows: don't do it. Think about it in terms of risk-vs.-reward. If you go with the standard, government-issue wedding vows, no one will second-guess you. If you write them yourself? You risk gooey clichés, awkward language, and humiliating mixed metaphors ("I love you like a sun that never ends." )
Like just about everything in life, however, this job can be outsourced. The Wall Street Journal's "Cranky Consumer" did a fairly rigorous test-drive of your available online options. Their conclusions? Their observations include:
Enchantment Online, a service run by a Florida-based wedding coordinator, provided forms with extensive check boxes, pull-down menus and open-ended questions about their story. But in some cases, the form didn't allow the couple to specify which information pertained to which partner, making it difficult to complete. Special Occasion Poetry, a service that provides poems for events ranging from weddings to funerals, uses a form that asks about each partner's traits, hobbies and talents. Ghostwriters Central, run by a speechwriter, asked the couple to answer questions about their history, describe their partner's traits, and indicate whether specific memories, thoughts, quotes or sentiments should appear in vows; our couple found this service's questions the most thought-provoking.
Custom vows took anywhere from six days to 11 days to reach our inboxes, and cost anywhere from $57.95 to $165. Special Occasion Poetry also sends hard copies of vows, printed on the custom paper of the couple's choice.
If you're a poor sap who's actually charged with this task, their full report is worth a read. And for The Plunge's complete advice about wedding vows, click here.
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