Question: Don't uniquely themed weddings trivialize the wedding taking what should be sacred and turning it into a joke?

Answer: In short, no. Not necessarily.

However, we have all heard of weddings where that seemed to be the case and I have no doubt that themed weddings have been used that way. As a result, if this question is so deeply ingrained in your thinking it is probably best that you choose to make use of tradition and / or elegant touches such as silver and crystal to maintain the special nature of the event in your own mind. Having a uniquely themed wedding is not worth feeling guilty because you violated your own conscience.

That said a uniquely themed wedding can, in fact, add a level of solemnity to a ceremony. How? Through personalization. By personalizing the wedding with a theme that is unique to them a couple has an opportunity to say, in effect, "This is our commitment ceremony. It is deeply personal and we take it seriously." By resisting the cookie cutter approach and embracing a theme the couple is forced to think through what is important to them making the over all celebration potentially more intimate and therefore more solemn.