My next career move: wedding planner

We are getting nearer to summer and I'm bursting with cool ideas for great weddings.

Actually I only have two ideas. And they're both for practically the end of the wedding, when the bride and groom come out of the church/synagogue and people throw rice or confettis at them.

My first great idea is taken from Australia: instead of rice, guests are presented with boxes of butterflies and when the bride and groom walk by, the guests would open their boxes and out come swarms of colourful butterflies. It's pretty, and much safer and cleaner than doves or other birds. Some of the butterlies are so beautiful, transparent and all. Or you could also use artificial butterflies and dragonflies made from twigs, leaves and petals. Look at these splendours: [http://www.weedfullthings.com/Catalog.html]

My second idea comes from Japan, land of cool stuff. Well, apparently, they... oh heck, read it yourself, I'm too excited:

愛媛県今治市の塗装会社「スナミヤ」が、結婚式の披露宴でぬいぐるみのクマが飛び出すクラッカーを共同開発した。

　◇パラシュート付きで、クマがその場で舞い降りる仕組み。ブーケの代わりにクマのぬいぐるみを投げるのが流行しているのに目を付けた。

　◇５月から業者向けに販売する。同社は強盗に塗料を付ける「カラーボール発射装置」を販売しており、「カップルの心も捕えたい」と期待。【土本匡孝】

What? You don't read Japanese?

Oh sorry... Well, a Japanese paint firm is hoping to add color to wedding receptions in Japan with a new device it has jointly developed -- a gun-shaped party cracker that shoots out a teddy bear.

Sunamiya, a paint firm based in Imabari, Ehime Prefecture, announced the development of the device, which blasts a teddy bear equipped with a parachute into the air. The teddy bear parachutes down afterwards.

Developers hit on the idea after noticing that it had become a trend for people to throw teddy bears into the air instead of bouquets at wedding receptions.

In addition to paint products, Sunamiya produces a paintball marker used to fire paintballs at escaping criminals so they can be identified and captured. (I'm thinking: perfect for the caterer when the groom or the father of the bride try to make a dash to the parking lot without paying for the food).

"We're hoping to capture the hearts of couples," a company representative said, commenting on the new device. The crackers will go on sale in May, and will be marketed to businesses.

Here's a picture of the Teddybear gun:



Now if that cool gun and the butterflies don't make you want to run out of the house and marry the first person you see, then you, my friend, have a stone inside your chest, instead of a heart.

Leave a message in the comments if you want to hire me as your wedding planner.