Guests of Honor

Now, if you're like me, you're probably crazy, and this means that you've picked out who's receiving various honors at your wedding months before you need to. Then again, if you're like other people I know, you've totally forgotten to do this and only told people the day before, which isn't that great either. Bear in mind that with certain honors come certain responsibilities - someone signing something at your Chassan's Tisch will need to be extremely punctual, which is unlikely without advance notice; someone reciting one of the sheva brachot at the chuppah should not be tucked in the back, stuck in the middle of a row...et cetera, et cetera. But, to the more important point, who should these honors go to anyway?

The great thing about Jewish weddings is that there's about a zillion ways to honor people. At the very least, you need eight eidim, seven people to say sheva brachot under the chuppah, one person to bench, and seven people to say sheva brachot after benching. (Isn't that nuts? I love it.) Want to add more? If you bring your marriage license to your wedding, that's another two people, and up to four people can sign the Jewish prenup. Of course, you can always ask people to make toasts (although I am so wary of this) and you can even have a couple of girlfriends come with you to a dress fitting to learn how to bustle your dress. (Sounds like a dubious honor, I know, but I did this for a close friend and it enabled me to hang out with her and her husband alone for 10 minutes at their wedding, which was amazing.) And don't forget, there are bridesmaids and groomsmen to be had too!
There may be lots of spots, but not every wedding guest is a viable competitor for each:

Eidim - open only to men who are NOT relatives
Eidei Kiddushin - MUST be frum, preferably rabbis, as they should be familiar with the halakhot of kiddushin. A good way to honor whichever of your rabbis is not the Mesader Kiddushin. They serve under the chuppah.
Eidei T'naim - Can be less frum than kiddushin, but don't push it - Shomer Shabbos is a prereq. They sign the t'naim at the Chassan's Tisch. Perfect for good friends.
Eidei Ketubah - Closer to kiddushin in frumness, they also sign at the Tisch. I personally think it's nice to have guys sign who are close friends with both the bride and the groom, since it happens at his tisch but technically belongs to the woman after the wedding. Just a thought.
Eidei Yichud - These can be the least frum, since I think that technically you only need one, but everyone uses two. Try to choose guys who like each other - they have to entertain themselves for about 10 minutes while you're doing whatever you do inside. (Although, it's true - you really do just eat. And sometimes get jewelry.)

Sheva brachot
Under the chuppah - These can go to family, and so they usually do - fathers, grandfathers, and uncles are all popular choices for sheva brachot, as are rabbis you haven't otherwise honored. These very rarely go to friends.
After benching - These are the only honors that should be given out on the spot, as there's no way to know who will be left. Try to honor people who haven't already been recognized - good friends, family who didn't get brachot under the chuppah, etc.

Marriage license
Most people don't do this at the wedding, but it is a nice way to honor someone at a wedding, at least in New York state. (I don't know the law in other states, but in New York state, the officiating rabbi is permitted to notarize the document, and so you don't need another notary present.) Of course, having to sign it in front of the rabbi probably means it'll happen in the Chassan's Tisch, but this can be signed by women.

Jewish prenup
Not the forum to argue for or against, but do find out your officiating rabbi's policy - some will not marry you without signing one, while other's aren't so into it. You can find it on www.bethdin.org, and two people must sign it for each the bride and the groom, although they are permitted to use the same two people, so anywhere from 2-4 people can sign this document. Like the license, women are permitted to sign.

Benching
Traditionally, a kohen leads benching, so do what you can to procure one. Otherwise, any man will do.

As for bridesmaids and groomsmen, that will be addressed in another post. Good night!