Photo from Katherine & James' barefoot eco-friendly forest wedding by Lucy Spartalis

Every once in while, we notice a particular topic that has a crazy spike — it's the phrase that most brides are searching for. Or it's the topic that's suddenly pinned everywhere. It's the topic that basically dominates our most-read posts for the month. This month? That trending topic is VOWS.

How to write your wedding vows

We've got a ton of great posts about writing your wedding vows, and more generally, how to structure your ceremony. Check out a few of these:

How to write heartfelt, sniffle-worthy wedding vows: five quick tips to making the magic happen. Wedding Ceremony 101: A brilliant primer on how to build a ceremony from scratch that reflects you and your partner 5 steps to getting over your wedding vow writer's block: Ugh, writing important things is HARD! Wedding vows for blended families: Great ideas for involving kids from prior relationships in your wedding Cute twists on vows

Because sometimes you just want to make your vows feel a little bit off-kilter, y'know? Here are a few ideas…

Nerd up your vows with a little audience participation (because isn't "…AND MY AXE!" perfect for a wedding ceremony?) How to make your own Mad Libs wedding vows Seal your vows with a pinkie-swear!

Photo by Michael Porter

Do rock-paper-scissors to see who does their vows first.

Thanks to rcarver for the photo!

Cue guests to participate in your ceremony with wedding cue cards

Photos by Love Me Do Photography

Examples of other people's vows

When it comes to writing your vows, sometimes you just need to glean a little inspiration from the Offbeat Brides who've come before you:

Steal These Vows: Dozens of examples of amazing vows in real offbeat weddings. So many vow examples on our Ceremony ideas and wedding vows repository board on Pinterest. Pages and pages and pages of real offbeat weddings featuring the couples' real vows: read our vows archive!