Getting Married? Display that Wedding Certificate or Announcement with PRIDE

Simon and Jonathan's rustic-chic wedding certificate

Unless you've been living under a rock that is under another rock, by now you know the US Supreme Court judged in favor of Marriage Equality (Obergefell v. Hodges) in a 5-4 vote on June 26, 2015.

Know what that means? MORE SUMMER WEDDINGS! YAAAAAAS! And it also means more wedding invitations, wedding announcements, and sweet marriage certificates. And while all of these things may not typically be something you would consider framing, when history is this huge, you put it on the wall — and make sure you never forget the monumental day we became a country one step closer to true equality for all.

While of course you'll want to hang pictures of your wedding and other family photos around your (new!) shared home, hanging your wedding license up in the room of your choice isn't cheesy — it's a prodigious symbol of a herculean effort borne on the backs of those who fought for generations before us.

Besides, there are some very cool ways to hang your marriage license and other wedding day keepsakes — we know, it seems impossible to believe a marriage certificate could look cool — but check these ideas out:

Make your own homemade wedding certificate in any style you want

It was your day and it's also your wedding certificate. So while you may want to put away the official certificate in your file cabinet, making your own wedding certificate with fun metallic sharpies, glitter, calligraphy pens, paint, parchment paper, and whatever else you want brings the event into a space of joy. Then have it professionally framed with the perfect matte and a frame that is a resplendent match for your handmade marriage certificate — now you've got a lifetime of memories that began with a weekend project with your soulmate.

The framed monster wedding invitation and certificate collage with photos

First, you're going to have to hunt for a really, really big picture frame, and this project turns out especially cool if you use a clear glass picture frame so the wall behind the frame is visible. We LOVE the 36" by 24" clear frame with distressed walnut finish from Craig Frames for this project.

Next, you'll pick out your favorite two to four pictures from your wedding day — you'll use these throughout the collage, which will also display your wedding certificate, wedding invitation, wedding announcement, and anything else you want to throw in there. Do leave some negative space so that when you hang it up on an accent wall that's painted your favorite tea green, lavender, or scarlet red the color will seep through, creating a real piece of wall art.

The Andy Warhol wedding certificate project

Andy Warhol-inspired: truly unique!

As the name suggests, this is an Andy Warhol-inspired wedding certificate display. Now, there are two ways to go about this: go and get four legit wedding certificates from the county clerk's office — these usually run anywhere from $10 to $25 depending on where you live. So if you don't want to drop that kind of scratch, you can take your original marriage license to the printers and have them copy the license on heavyweight parchment or whatever other paper you like the most.

There are two ways to get the four-panel Warhol look: the easier route is to simply have the marriage license printed on four different colors of heavyweight paper. But, if you want it to really have a cool, one-of-a-kind vibe, print all the licenses on the same kind of paper, ensuring the ink used is laser so that it won't run when it gets wet.

Next, you'll use food coloring in green, yellow, pink, and blue. You'll dip each license into a paint roller tray filled with food coloring mixed with water to create your desired tone. Once you pull them out, you'll hang them dry with clothespins or air dry them on paper towels. Once totally dry, you'll add features with bright acrylic paint in yellow, red, blue, or any other colors you want.

You'll adhere all four Warholian marriage licenses to one piece of hard card stock or cardboard. Once dry, cut the edges of the card stock or cardboard so all the edged are flush. You're ready for your beautiful frame — for this post-modern piece, we recommend black or chrome frames.

The shadowbox: a classic yet rare choice for marriage licenses and announcements

The beauty of shadowboxes is that they come in so many different sizes, depths, colors, and more. When you use the YOUHANGIT shelf hanging system, you can hang any size shadowbox easily, even those with double keyhole hardware. You can fill your shadowbox with vintage-styled photos of your wedding day coupled with your wedding announcement and license. If you want to make a miniature version, you can make a half or quarter-size copy of your license and add it to a smaller shadowbox. This is adorable as a wall hanging by the front door or the entryway to the bedroom. Larger shadowboxes make great living room or den art — spruce it up by adding watercolor finishing to fiber paper images and your announcement and license. This adds an unexpected pop of subtle color for a nostalgic feel.

No matter how you decide to showcase your wedding license, wedding announcement, or photos, just remember how important that special day was — it took a long time to climb this mountain, and now we have these moments frozen forever in time to remember the glory and the joy.

PRO TIP: For info on what NOT to do when hanging various types of hardware, check out our blog about how your Uncle Bob is totally wrong.