'A cake piñata and 7 other unique things I am doing at my 2024 wedding.'

Micro-weddings, multiple dress changes, dual-stone engagement rings and retro-inspired wedding cakes... there has been a huge shift in what’s ‘in’ and what’s ‘out’ in the world of weddings in 2023.

And what I have been learning on my wedding planning journey is that tradition is on the out and, well, anything is in.

I have always had the philosophy that a wedding really is just a big party – a glorious, usually boozy, fun, celebration of love.

Watch: Prince Harry and Meghan Markle share footage of their wedding. Post continues below.

And for my wedding, my partner and I are planning it to really be a colourful, fun and exciting day. These are the eight ways we're planning to make that happen.

1. A piñata wedding 'cake'.

Let’s be real: no one actually eats the wedding cake. Nine out of 10 times, by the time the cake comes out, everyone is full from dinner and a lot of wine, and sick of sitting through what can sometimes be a looooonnngggg stint of speeches when they really just want to dance.

Given my mantra of “I want to have a big celebration”, nothing will bring more joy for me than watching a cast of my friends and family blindly hit a piñata.

But of course, we are 'weddingifying' the piñata to look like a stunning three-tiered wedding cake.

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2. Dress code: colour.

Life is better when it is colourful, which is why the dress code for my wedding is 'colour'.

We will have bright flowers and decorations, and a bright suite of guests – think oranges, blues, greens, reds and yellows.

3. The groom gets his aisle moment, too.

I am so excited to get to walk down the aisle towards my incredible soon-to-be husband, in my big white dress, with all my friends and family in the room, and I think it’s only fair my fiancé gets to have the same experience.

So we decided to completely rejig the typical order of ceremony.

My fiancé and I are of the belief that you are a product of your family, and with our wedding being a joining of both our families, we have also extended the opportunity to our parents and grandparents to walk down the aisle as a collective to start the ceremony.

This will be followed by the groomsmen.

Then my fiancé. To whatever song he wants (I have a sneaking suspicion he will choose something like 'Eye of The Tiger', but I won’t be in the room yet so what I don’t know won’t hurt me!).

Followed by my bridesmaids.

And then me.

4. My fiancé and I will spend the night before the wedding together. 

In 2023, when the majority of couples choose to live together before getting married, I think it is a little outdated to still ascribe to the tradition of the night apart before the big day.

I am SO excited for the night together ahead of the wedding. We are going to get a pizza and stay up late talking about the day to follow. We will wake up together, go for a walk, have breakfast and say a “see you at the aisle” before we get ready separately. It will be so nice to have those last moments together as ‘single people’ before making this commitment.

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5. Bubbles instead of confetti. 

First, the environment. 

Second, the photos.

Bubbles are just better. 

Image: Getty.

6. Disposable cameras are a must.

Every table at our wedding will have a disposable camera along with a ‘scavenger hunt’-style list of photos the guests are required to take throughout the night. Things like group shots, bride and groom kissing, dancing action shot, an ‘aww’ moment, etc.

This is me being an efficiency queen by maximising the potential for stunning photos throughout the night, whilst also giving the guests a fun activity they can engage in between drinks.

7. All the parents will get to give speeches.

It has been fascinating to me to unpack the number of traditions we continue to follow that are centred around the idea that the bride is an object that is being transferred to another family. First, she is ‘given away’; then she dances only with her dad; she promises to ‘love, honour and obey’, and only her dad gets to give a speech.

Both my parents raised me, and both my parents will have the opportunity to speak at my wedding – and the same goes for my partner's parents.

To give everyone the opportunity to speak whilst circumventing the dreaded never-ending speeches situation, we are opting to have both sets of parents give combined speeches on the night.

8. We are both taking a new last name.

The last name debate is a tricky one! I don’t want to take my partner's last name because, well, I am not property, and that's how taking his name would make me feel.

But I don’t want him to take my last name because isn’t that just the same thing in reverse? I don’t want to hyphenate because that’s a lot. But I also want the same last name as him and my future children.

So, we landed on a totally new name we'll both take, which is just so very 2023! 

Jessica Patterson is a Sales Executive at Mamamia. She writes in her spare time and is getting married in 2024. Find out more about Jessica on Instagram.

Feature Image: Instagram/@jesspattersonn