Technology has become so much a part of our lives. It’s rare that I don’t hear of an engagement via a friend’s excited Facebook announcement, or that I’m not scrolling through Instagram of a weekend to see a wedding hashtag pop up filled with hundreds of photos of a beautiful event unfolding.
So today, I wanted to showcase some of my favourite inventions that harness technology when it comes to weddings. I’ve dived into most of these (or just think they’re insanely good ideas) but I’d love to hear your thoughts on your favourites
1. Social Playground Instagram Printer
Everybody’s on Instagram these days and almost every wedding seems to have a hashtag (I definitely admit to stalking some of these on a weekend and pouring over the stunning photos!) The crew at Social Playground have taken the love of Instagram one step further and created a live Instagram printer. Have your guests hashtag their photos and out of the printer they will pop.
I love this idea as a more casual photo booth idea too – guests can capture each other, or themselves and have an actual hard copy of the snap! The printed photo can have your wedding logo on it, and there’s even the ability for an online gallery so guests can see all the happy snaps of the night.
There are plenty of wedding planning apps, but the reason I loved this one is it turns wedding plans into a game without becoming too overwhelming (nothing like logging in to a wedding planning app to see that yes, you have 5550 outstanding tasks to complete by yesterday!). WeddingHappy gives you one to two tasks at a time to complete, rewarding you with achievements (achievement unlocked!), showing you the next tasks to complete and a pie chart with what you’re left with.
The app also allows you to import vendors from your contact lists and add upgrades (like unlimited tasks or sharing your plans with others).
Beautifully designed online registries are hard to come by, but I think Thankful Registry have nailed it with their clean layout and modern styling. The online based registry allows you to bring together items from multiple stores to create one easy to use wedding registry. Your shipping information is stored so guests can easily buy the gift and send is straight to you. The system keeps a running tally of gifts so thank you note writing is easy and you can personalise your registry with a custom domain and imagery.
When I say there’s an app for that, Appy Couple is literally your own customised wedding app. Invite your guests to download your app (which you have of course populated with your wedding information and chosen from one of the 300+ designs to suit your wedding style) and they’ll have all the wedding information at their finger tips. They can share photos, learn your story, allow guests to message each other without leaving the app, and even RSVP!
So when it does get to the end of the wedding day and you want to print off your favourite Instagram snaps, turn to an app like Printic which enables you to print your photos directly from the app.
Choose your pictures, select your friends and they’ll receive printed versions of your Instagram snaps. (I’ve also heard great things about Artifact Uprising and loved and used Origrami myself for Instagram printing).
This one is tried and true because it’s literally the only way Mr Polka and I manage to stay organised and I thought it would be a great addition to my tech wedding roundup! SimplyUs combines a shared calendar (which syncs with other calendar programs like Ical) and to do lists between you and your beloved. Which means if you’re looking for a free date for that dance lesson when you’re both free, or can’t remember the date you’re supposed to meet your photographer you can both access (and edit, add, delete) and check the one calendar. The shared to do lists are great for the must do’s (and you can create as many as you like) and there’s even the ability to message and share photos within the app.
Wish Registry App
Brand new Aussie start-up Wish Registry is an easy to use app that allows you to build your registry from the comfort of your phone. Snap photos of items you love in store, add them to your list and allow friends and family to see. Guests even receive a reminder close to the event! It even has a nifty feature that pops up your gift ideas as the guest walks by the store. You can even upload pictures and gifts from online stores.
Sometimes, as much as it breaks hearts, guests just can’t travel the distance to a wedding. Which is why the internet is so fabulous because you can live stream your wedding easily with plenty of paid and free services. Ustream works from a webcam (though they have a mobile version) and guests can join a “room” where they watch your live stream (which can also be recorded!) and chat together. A virtual wedding hang out for absent guests!
Combining the usefulness of the online website with the portability of your phone or tablet, the Loverl.y app allows you to collect, share and bundle images of weddings and ideas that inspire you. Search by colour, category, style and even blog, to find the pics that can help you pull together the wedding you imagine.
So while Kayak isn’t strictly wedding related I do believe I can class it under the “Awesome organisation for your honeymoon or destination wedding” category. I tested a few travel apps side by side and Kayak is by far my favourite. Forward all of your travel bookings to your Kayak email address and it will automatically import your plans into the app right down to booking numbers, deposits paid, flight delays and even check in notifications. My favourite feature is the taxi feature which allows you to show your taxi driver where you need to go.
Adding all your appointments and times of places to be on your wedding day into your smartphone is becoming increasingly popular, especially the apps where you can share your calendar with others in the wedding party and vendors. They make sure that everyone is on time and on the same page.
Great list! I built an online wedding planning app, maybe it’s useful too! It’s at http://WeddingLovely.com. 🙂
Hi there! This blog post couldn’t be written much better!
Going through this post reminds me of my previous roommate!
He constantly kept talking about this. I most certainly will forward this article to him.
Fairly certain he’s going to have a very good read. Thanks for sharing!
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