• Have invitingly Filipiniana-themed invitations. Why not give your guests a preview of your Filipiniana-themed wedding with your invitations? Handmade or recycled paper is usually associated with the Filipiniana theme; try accessorizing with textured local materials such as weaves (banig), raffia or twine, shells, sand or even dried flowers. You can further personalize your invitations with Balagtas-type Tagalog for true-blue Manileños or idiosyncratic Taglish for a quirky twist. Why not write your names both in regular font and in alibata characters?

• Go nostalgic in your venue. Choose an old church with historical and personal relevance, and see if you can have your reception there as well. Dig through archives for old photographs of the church (if it’s an old one) and turn your invitations, save-the-date cards or even thank you notes into vintage-looking postcards with the church as the background. Added bonus: if you’re thinking of a period-themed wedding, an old church provides the perfect backdrop for your kalesa bridal car and Maria Clara gown.

• Go in style. Kalesas can be rented and decorated to your specifications. If your groom is game, let him arrive on a horse. Or rent a (new) jeepney and dress it up according to your choice of Filipiniana theme.

• Sweeten things with the sound of music. The rich spectrum of Filipino music, from classic kundimans to a capella groups to kulintang instrumentals, has something for everyone. Planning an elegant and formal Filipiniana-themed wedding? There’s the Madrigal Singers or recordings of Cecile Licad. Funky, pop culture weddings can draw from the rich variety of 70’s Pinoy pop or delve into today’s acoustic offerings. Recordings of native musical ensembles, whether rondalla troupes, wind instrument, or kulintang ensembles, can make deep South or Muslim-inspired weddings more special. Can’t find recordings? Why not hire the group instead?

• Dress the part. Brides can update the terno, Maria Clara and baro’t saya with newer fabrics, or they can ask their designers to give them sleeker, more modern cuts using materials such as abel iloco. Rifle through your grandparents’ old wedding photos for inspiration, or brave your mom’s baul for undiscovered finds, and keep in mind that thinking out of the box will usually reward you with the most individual, most personal looks.

• Use native flowers such as gumamela and ilang ilang in your bouquet or weave sinamay into your entourage’s floral arrangements for posies that will go well with their outfits and always look fresh. Plus, they’ll be cheaper yet just as beautiful as the other, more traditional flowers.

• Customize your ceremony; don’t just have a Filipino mass celebrated. Why not leave abanikos in the pews for guests to fan themselves with during the mass? Or try covering the aisle in sinamay and scattering sampaguita and ilang-ilang (bonus: the church will smell wonderful!). Brides can also walk down the aisle on a banig instead of on a carpet. How about raffia twine embellished with pearls for the cord?

• Food, glorious food, is the best part of any Pinoy celebration. Why not serve merienda cena during your reception? Just make sure the food is sumptuous! Serve pandesal, kesong puti, tsokolate eh, lots of kakanin, and other merienda staples. Not only will this help you save, people will remember your reception and how good (and unique!) the food was, and everyone gets to leave early—young guests get to bed on time and older guests can continue the party at another place of their choice. Or you can g o crazy with ideas such as a layered puto wedding cake or a ‘dirty ice cream’ vendor serving up dessert. Go Barrio Fiesta with clay pots as chafing dishes, centerpieces made out of fresh, local fruits in bilaos or mini bahay kubo replicas. Instead of flowers, use tropical fruits (mango, pineapple, rambutan, atis, etc.) as table centerpieces.

• Play it up at the reception. You’re all there to celebrate, so why not have fun? Have your guests serenaded with your favorite haranas, or remind them of summers spent in the province with banana leaf placemats or bao used as placecard holders, capiz for napkin rings, or even tuba instead of wine! Even the traditional bouquet toss and garter throw can be adapted into games you used to play as children: bato-bato pick, pabitin or even pukpok palayok! Give your guests framed old peso bills or jeepney magnets. Dress up the ceiling of the reception hall with banderitas instead of draperies. Name your tables after Philippine cities, heroes, mountains, dances, cultural landmarks, or famous characters in Philippine literature instead of using numbers. Play the guitar and serenade the bride with a harana. Gather the single ladies and play agawang-panyo or hang several blooms on a pabitin instead of doing the traditional bouquet toss. Gather the single men to play pukpok-palayok instead of the garter toss. And if you really want to, do the money dance. It’s a Filipino tradition! (Just make sure your guests are receptive to the idea; if you ask them to skip traditional present-giving to you, then they may be more enthusiastic about the money dance.)

• Bask in the past; if you’re Catholic, why not weave an heirloom rosary into your bouquet as you march down the aisle, or give away rosaries made from local materials? Or your coordinator can get guests to shout, "Mabuhay ang bagong kasal!" and throw native flower petals at you as you leave the church. Instead of using a pillow to hold your rings, how about a capiz or wrought silver jewelry box?

These are just a few of the many ideas a Filipiniana-themed wedding can inspire. All these ideas show the best aspect of Filipiniana-themed weddings: there is no limit but a couple’s imagination when they delve into the richness of Filipino culture.