Since I live on an island here on Northwest Florida, I see beach weddings all the time. They are very popular here as well as in other beautiful coastal areas all over the world. These wedding can range from very casual and inexpensive to sophisticated and very costly. Either way, the beautiful view and the whole ambience of the setting is free and at the same time priceless.

Beach weddings can present a bit of a dilemma for the bride as far as shoes go. I know when we had ours on the beach my wife just went barefooted and so did I. We had a very casual wedding though, she wore a beautiful sexy prom gown she borrowed from a niece, and I wore shorts and a pastel polo shirt.

For most people they will want shoes, plus not every one has the powder soft sand that we have. The best bet for a simple beach wedding is probably to just go with a simple pair of slip-ons that can be matched to whatever your wedding's colors are. If you go with a slip-on bridal shoe it will be easy to get the sand from between your toes and shake off your feet when you get out of the sand and begin entertaining guests. They are also very good if your feet get wet as they will dry quickly so you don't have to worry about getting your feet wet during or after the ceremony if you choose.

If you haven't chosen a color for your wedding yet, some good suggestions for beach wedding shoes are gold, white, and silver. However, if you have a certain color theme in mind slip-ons come in a wide variety of colors so that even if you want to go with a light teal or aqua to go along with the beach scene you can do it quite easily.

Feel free to customize and accessorize your shoes as well. You can play around with things like rhinestones and other gems that will add a little playfulness to the whole ensemble. To keep it toned down so that they don't compete for attention with your wedding gown keep them clear and colorless.

Stay away from any kind of leather as far as the material they are constructed from. Satin and synthetics are best since they dry easily and do not hold water. Whatever you choose just be sure that the shoes are simple, open, and easy to remove sand and water from so that your beach wedding will be as enjoyable and care free as possible.