- Instead of buying a traditional guest book in white or cream-colored paper, purchase a journal with black, lined pages. These special books can be written in only using colored gel pens, usually sold in pearlescent finishes. This will not only give your guest book a uniquely contemporary look, but it will also insure that your guests will write in the book with the pens provided, keeping the signatures and messages in the book looking unified.
- Leather-bound journals, ranging from small to large and plain to fancy, are often sold in the same section of book and department stores where you will find ready-made guest books and will work just as well while providing atmosphere to your celebration. These books will easily suggest a sense of adventure and of historic times and locations. For an extra bit of archaic flair, give your guests a fountain pen or a quill to sign with (hint: it can be a fake, ball-point quill if you want to avoid any potential mess).
- If a leather-bound journal isn't historic enough for you, consider substituting a guest scroll for a guest book. Buying paper in the appropriate length for this can be tricky at conventional stationery stores, so check out stores that specialize in historically based paper items, such as Nostalgicimpressions.com. You can also look for a local wholesale paper distributor that sells paper in rolls and build a scroll using a length of paper and two 8-inch long, 3/4-inch diameter wooden dowels. Paint the tips of the dowels (choose any color you like, including your wedding colors), then glue the ends of the paper to the dowels using wood glue.
- Instead of merely having a guest book, why not ask your guests to help you create a wedding scrapbook on the spot? Prepare a blank scrapbook, as well as a table full of scrapbooking supplies, such as glitter pens, stickers and colored paper. When you invite your guests, ask them to bring photos and other memorabilia to contribute, then give your guests access to a Polaroid camera (or perhaps even a digital camera printer) so that they can produce photos of the wedding and reception and place them in the scrapbook that very day.
