Archive for the ‘getting married’ Category

Getting the Groom Involved in the Planning

Saturday, January 2nd, 2010

Wedding planning isn’t just for the bride; the groom should take some responsibility and have some input in the process too. However, traditionally the arrangements are covered by the bride and her mother. That means that many people don’t know how to get the groom involved. Let’s take a look at a few ways to help him avoid feeling left out of things or run over by your plans.

If you’ve just gotten engaged, you’re going to want to make the announcement. Both of you can create an announcement card to send out by mail or email, or share the responsibility of calling friends and family. Together, make the list of people you’d like to invite to the wedding.

Food is another important portion of your wedding. Your fiancé can help you with the budget, help figure out the catering situation, and maybe come up with a few creative ideas that you haven’t thought of. If one or the other of you is a skilled negotiator, consider delegating that person to work with the vendors to get the best price. Remember, every task is an important one!

You may wish to write your vows together, too. Collaboration can help you come up with the perfect words to say to one another to express your love. Other things you can do together include building decorations for the reception, researching the music and deciding on the DJs, and choosing the videographer or photographer. You’ll want to talk about just what each of you wants out of the wedding.

For many grooms, the wine and other drinks that will be provided at the reception are extremely important. If this is something your guy cares about, or if he loves food, let him handle the food and drink. Resist the urge to micro manage! Each of you has the ability to put together something great without supervision, as long as you’re clear on what needs to be done in advance.

Other things the groom can do to take a little bit of the load off the bride’s shoulders include choosing suits for the wedding, contributing his opinion on colors, theme, and size of the wedding, and choosing the transportation for the big day. He can also handle wedding present registrations and handle mediation with your families if there are problems. He can even talk about the toast with the best man if you’re feeling nervous about it.

It’s a great idea to involve your groom in the wedding planning. Just make sure to include him in the decision making as well as the labor, and relax about his ability to handle things. He can get the job done just as well as you can, and it’ll keep you from feeling quite as stressed and unhappy. If you’ll be married soon, you’re going to be entering a life where you do a lot of things together. Planning your ceremony and reception is a great start.

Technorati Tags: , , , , , , , ,

Some Questions That Might Need Answering

Saturday, December 26th, 2009

Dear Ms. Etiquette,

I recently got engaged and I’m doing a lot of thinking about the upcoming wedding. I have a few questions. Okay, a lot of questions, about what’s considered proper wedding etiquette. I hope you don’t mind answering them for me; I’d feel much better knowing I’m handling situations in the right way.

Q: Do I send a wedding announcement and an invitation to everyone I know?

A: Certainly not. The announcements can go to everyone, including the newspapers, but the invitations only go to people you want at the wedding.

Q: Can I send wedding invites via email?

A: Even though many wedding traditions seem to have gone out the window in recent years, there are some time-honored traditions that remain. Sending real, physical, beautiful wedding invitations via snail mail is one of them.

Q: For financial reasons, I need to limit my wedding to 100 people. How do I invite some and not others? Where do I draw the line?

A: Sometimes it’s easier to limit the wedding to an even smaller number, such as family members and very close friends only than it is to limit it to 100. Start with the “must invites” and work outwards in your circle of people. It won’t hurt to send out invitations to those who live farther away when you know they won’t travel. Aunt Mabel will be tickled to have the invitation anyway.

Where it becomes fuzzier is with coworkers and those in the outer periphery of your circle. Depending on the circumstances, you may opt for honesty and tell those not invited that you had to limit your list to a small number because of budget constraints. This makes for fewer hurt feelings.

Q: I’ve heard we have a year to send thank you notes for the wedding gifts we’ll receive. Is this true?

A: Humph. Let me put it this way… I would be embarrassed for you if you sent me a thank you note for a gift I gave you 364 day ago. Keep on top of it. As soon as you get a gift, jot a nice note and send it. If you do it as the gifts come in, it won’t overwhelm you. Don’t even ask me about sending thank yous via email.

Q: I’m hoping my maid of honor will throw a shower for me. Will she automatically do this or should I ask her?

A: There is no written rule stating the maid of honor or any of your friends have to host a shower for you so if you have someone in mind, you’ll have to ask them. Before you put the burden on them, though, decide if they are really the right person for the job. Can they financially afford to do it? Are the dependable? Would they even like to do it?

Q: Can I invite people to my shower that I’m not inviting to the wedding?

A: No ma’am. The exception would be if it’s a workplace shower with a large number of employees or a shower back in your home town if that town is at least several hundred miles away.

Q: What about the rehearsal dinner? My soon-to-be husband’s parents are both remarried. Who pays? Who gets invited?

A: Traditionally, the groom’s parents pay for the rehearsal dinner, but this does not have to be so. His parents and step-parents may work out a combined hosting, or the bride and groom can pay for it themselves.

As far as who to invite, it should be all parents and step-parents, the wedding party and their significant others, any children you or your intended have, plus your siblings. After that, it’s up to you. If you have close family or friends from out of town who have flown in you can certainly invite them to the rehearsal dinner if it’s okay with the hosts.

Q: Truthfully, as far as wedding presents go, we’d rather receive cash than gifts because we’re saving for a down payment on a house. Is it acceptable to put a note in the wedding invitations or tell people?

A: No, no, no. It’s considered bad form to put any sort of note in a wedding invitation that mentions anything about gifts or gift registries. Get the word out to a close friend and a family member or two and ask them to spread the word. It is acceptable for them to let others know what you want.

Thank you for enlightening me, Ms. Etiquette. I believe you’ve answered all my questions regarding wedding etiquette.

Technorati Tags: , , , , ,

A New Twist On Traditional Wedding Receptions

Monday, November 16th, 2009

The traditional church weddings and formal receptions are not that attractive to many of today’s brides. Weddings are taking place in hot air balloons, on beaches, in airplanes and in fast food parking lots, to name a few currently popular non-traditional sites.

An emerging trend, highly creative wedding receptions, is a total flight from tradition and will make memories for your wedding guests that they won’t easily forget. You and your new spouse can add touches to your wedding reception that highlight your whimsical side, major interests or elements of your personalities.

Some couples have hosted two receptions, brunch for the family following their ceremony, with some of the traditional aspects their mothers wanted and the relatives were comfortable with.

Later that evening, they host a less formal reception for their friends. This reception could be an old-fashioned ice cream social or a barbecue on the beach, with youthful music and a party atmosphere. The bride’s wedding dress and the groom’s tux are abandoned for casual attire. Friends truly happy for the new couple, a relaxed, unfussy atmosphere, a tub of iced cool ones, chicken on the barbecue and dancing barefoot on the beach in the moonlight, would definitely make memories of your special wedding.

Even if you want a reception with familiar trappings, you can still jazz it up with some creative presentations.

If your reception hall is not huge, inflate balloons, with a small, light favor inside them. This favor could be a small token, like a map to the real favors hidden in the hall or a small snapshot of you and your new spouse. It does not have to be elaborate. The appreciation would be in the presentation.

Tie them off with a ribbon long enough to reach without ladders and have a guest’s name hanging from each ribbon, including the children at the reception. Let them hang from the ceiling around the walls, so as not to interfere with the meal or buffet you will be serving. This decoration would not only be colorful, but it would give your reception an intimate, closer feeling. At some point, have the guests find their name and get their wedding favor.

The way you present your food can add dramatic accents to plain food. Buffet tables are perfect for creative presentations. Tiered plates of strawberries dipped in chocolate are always an attraction at buffet tables. Consider dipping the strawberries in the hot chocolate mixture and letting them set up on a chocolate spoon. The dramatic effect could be enhanced by dipping the berries in white chocolate and then placing them on chocolate spoons. Other fruits can be strung on a bamboo skewer, dipped in chocolate and presented in silver goblets.

Martini glasses with their stems wrapped with pretty ribbons can be used to present almost any vegetable, fruit or candy. Instead of sit-down dinners of chicken or meat, served by caterers, consider bamboo skewers loaded with anything you can combine that doesn’t need to be kept warm in a sauce.

Try ice-cold shrimp, lightly brushed with a shrimp marinade and strung on a skewer. Separate the shrimp with red or black grapes. Creative salads can be put on a skewer and marinated with an elegant dressing before placing on the buffet table. Load salad skewers with cherry or grape tomatoes, chunks of red, green and yellow Bell peppers, whole, pitted olives, cocktail onions or slices of red onions, other veggies of your choice.

If your guest list is smaller, consider a river cruise with dinner, dancing and maybe a turn at the gambling tables, if they have them. Your wedding favors could be small bags of chips for your guests to try their luck at the tables.

You could schedule a hay ride by moonlight, with a surprise barbecue or candle-lit buffet tables arranged around a fire pit at the end of the ride. Be creative.

Instead of an organized wedding reception, you might try having a mystery party, like Clue. Some cities have Victorian houses you can rent for parties and events. Let your guests have some fun discovering “Who Dunnit.” Have a special prize for the one who unravels the mystery and smaller ones (themed favors) for the rest of the participants. In one room have a buffet table and a few bottles of wine.

There’s no reason to follow the old traditions with your reception if you don’t want to. Make it fun and memorable in your own way.

Technorati Tags: , , , , ,

Don’t Forget To Get Your Sleep

Wednesday, September 30th, 2009

Planning your wedding is a big deal and can use up a lot of energy. If you’re going to married soon, you’re probably finding yourself running all over, and you might not be getting enough sleep. However, that’s a bad idea. There are lots of unfortunate side effects that come from not getting enough rest, and they could put a crimp in your plans for the big day. Let’s take a look at the reasons that brides need plenty of high quality sleep, especially the night before their weddings.

Did you know that sleep prevents disease? If you get less than the amount your body requires (and some of us need more than others) you’re putting yourself at risk for faster aging and more diseases. Sleep keeps your heart healthy, and can reduce your risk of cancer. It also helps you reduce your stress levels, since sleep deficiency elevates stress, raises blood pressure and increases muscle tension. Not enough sleep can result in aches and pains, as well as trouble getting through the day.

Get enough sleep before your wedding to be fully alert, capable of remembering everything you need to, and even help you with that last minute diet so many brides go on (just don’t do it after your alterations have been finished!) You’ll feel smarter and be happier, and your body will be in better shape. Skip the sleep, and you may find yourself feeling and looking exhausted before the big day even gets started!

Of course, some of us get so nervous that sleeping can be tricky, even if we make an effort to get enough. There are a few things you can do to help yourself sleep, even the night before. Don’t turn right to sedatives or other chemical sleep aids, though. Try changing your behavior first – it’s easier on your body.

Maintaining a regular routine, instead of going to bed at all different times, can put you in much better shape. A regular schedule helps your body be ready for sleep at about the same time each night. Keep that schedule even on holidays, weekends, and special occasions to keep your internal clock ticking correctly.

Get up at the same time each morning, too – even if you didn’t sleep as much as you’d like. That might sound counter intuitive, but it’ll help train your body to sleep properly the next night. Likewise, avoid going to bed extra early, even if you’re tired. That keeps your body trained.

Remember that sleep should be a priority, and make plenty of time for it. It’s not a waste of time – it’s an investment in your health, your happiness, and a great wedding day. Create a comfortable environment for sleeping, with a temperature and bedding that feel good to you. If you’re tossing and turning, the quality of your sleep is going to be reduced. Try a warm bath before bed, or scent your room with relaxing smells like lavender, to improve your chances of a good night’s sleep before the wedding. You’ll appreciate it when the big day comes.

Technorati Tags: , , , , ,

10 Questions to Ask When Looking for a Wedding Photographer

Thursday, September 24th, 2009

When it comes to preparing for your wedding, you are probably up to your elbows in magazines, paperwork, bills, and glitter. But even though there seems to be a never-ending list of things to do in order to be properly prepared for the big day, you have to make sure that you are not skipping certain details.

Here are 10 questions to ask when checking out wedding photographers. This is not just about making sure that you are spending your money wisely but it is also about making sure you are going to end up with photos you will be able to proudly cherish for the rest of your life.

1. Will he or she be the exact person at your wedding taking your photos?

If he or she cannot guarantee that, you will want to look somewhere else. You want to make sure you are interviewing and reviewing the work of the exact person who will be at your wedding taking photos. The last thing you want is to be surprised on the day of your wedding and end up with photos that are not worth a dime.

2. What styles does he or she specialize in?

Photos are not just photos. Every photographer out there has their own special style or way of doing things that you want to be familiar with. Do you like the photographer’s style? Is it your style? In order to be a happy bride, make sure that you are getting a photographer that is capable of taking the shots you want on your wedding day.

3. What kind or type of camera will be used for your photos?

It is important to make sure that some inexpensive 35mm camera available at any Wal-Mart is not being used. There is nothing wrong with an everyday camera for everyday photos, but your wedding is special. You want high quality photos so make sure that your photographer has the right equipment.

4. Is there a backup plan?

What happens if that camera breaks? Make sure the photographer has a back up plan such as having spare cameras on hand and an assistant who is qualified to work in his or her place should an emergency occur.

5. How large is the photo package and what is the price breakdown for each photo?

By understanding all of the pricing and what you get within each package you will be able to make an educated decision on what you should be going with. Ask questions if you don’t understand. It’s better to not be surprised when the bill and the proofs come in.

6. How long before the proofs are ready?

You will want to know how long it will take for the proofs to be finished for your review.

7. Do they automatically give the negatives/cd or is there an extra charge for this?

Some will give you the negatives free of charge while others will not unless you ask for them and then there is an additional charge.

8. Is he or she covered by liability insurance?

In case something goes wrong or there is an accident, the photographer needs to have liability insurance to cover costs.

9. Can you request specific types of photos to be taken?

This will help to ensure that you are getting exactly what you want. If the photographer seems rigid and uptight about your input, you should look elsewhere.

10. Is there an additional cost for staying longer then scheduled?

If there is a delay or the event simply lasts longer than you expected you probably want the photographer to stay. Is he or she available to stay longer, and do they charge extra for doing so?

Your wedding photographer can be like a magician creating beautiful photos of your very special wedding. Don’t hesitate to ask questions when you’re deciding who to hire – it’s that important.

Technorati Tags: , , , , , , , ,

Congratulations – You’re Getting Married

Tuesday, September 22nd, 2009

Now that you have shared your happy news with family and friends the fun really starts. It’s time to actually start planning your wedding; wedding reception ideas, bridal bouquets, wedding favor ideas and dress ideas will be swimming around in that little loved-up head of yours!

Take a deep breath and relax because the BIG question you’re already asking yourself is… “Where do I start?”

Well, the only way to successfully plan your perfect wedding is to start with your wedding reception ideas. Treat yourself to a few bridal magazines [you've always wanted to buy one and now you can with that rock on your finger!]. Start looking around in haberdashery departments and put together a collection of the materials, styles and colors that appeal to you. These will provide the essential ingredients for your wedding reception ideas board or scrapbook or however you choose to present them.

Your ideas can then spiral off in a multitude of different directions as you start to consider wedding themes, wedding favor ideas, color themes and style themes, etc. It is truly essential to set the tone of your wedding first and then everything else falls in to place. For example, if your bridal gown shop knows you are going for a traditional “ivory and gold” theme, she can then advise you on gowns to suit this theme. In addition, you can then advise your wedding favor supplier that any ideas for wedding favors must fit within this theme.

Wedding favors come in all different styles and design. They range from candle favors, chocolate favors, cd wedding favors, beach themed favors and many more. You can even personalize your favors to make them unique to your guests.

In these early days, there is no need to ask for the groom’s comments – wait until you have narrowed down some ideas before you present them to him. He won’t really respond to “do you like this?” and “what about this?” being thrown at him 50 times a day. It is far better to approach your groom once you have narrowed down groomsmen ideas, color ideas, wedding reception ideas, wedding favor ideas, etc to a minimum. You will also get a more honest answer from him. Don’t forget, even though ideas for wedding favors have completely taken over your life for the moment, he might not share your enthusiasm at this early stage of the preparations.

Throughout your ideas stage, you must not forget your wedding guests. Fundamentally, it is your day, however every girl wants their wedding remembered for its class and elegance. The one way that guests will treasure your wedding memories is by the giving of unique wedding favors. Second to your wedding themes and wedding reception ideas, you must consider wedding favor ideas carefully. Once your beautiful day is over and you’re embarking on married life, you want your guests to look back at their favor boxes and bomboniere and reminisce!

However you plan your wonderful day, and whichever of your original wedding reception ideas and ideas for wedding favors you choose, have a special day and a magical married life thereafter!

Technorati Tags: , , , , , , , ,

Invaluable Tips For Wedding Planning

Friday, November 21st, 2008

Wedding planning might appear to be an indomitable task; but if it is done systematically and with perseverance, it can prove to be an enjoyable and successful experience. The best advice that anyone can give you is that you should involve your friends and relatives to the maximum extent possible. The following tips can prove to be very useful:

Start Early: If you are going to do it yourself, invest in a Wedding Planner book. It’s always better to give yourself plenty of time to accomplish all the objectives of the wedding planning checklist. Start your planning process about one year before the wedding so that you get enough time to look for bargain offers and find the most appropriate vendors. You must remember that you can take out only a few hours every week from your busy working schedule. As such, if you don’t want anything to go wrong during the wedding, you should start early with your preparations.

Involve Others: A professional planner would be ideal; but if you can’t afford one, you should take the help of your friends or relatives. The Internet is a very good source for a timeline, a budget guideline, and a list of vendors. You can also look up a few books on wedding planning.

Make A Budget: There is no doubt that your wedding is your biggest day and you want the best of everything to make it a glittering affair. However, most people are restricted by the amount of money that they can set aside for this purpose. You should, therefore, make a budget indicating the total amount of money that you can conveniently spend and then allocate portions of the budget for each aspect of the wedding planning. This will help you in selecting the various items and services that you need to get and checking whether you have strayed from your budget.

Organize Your Guest List: An important aspect of wedding planning is the mailing of invitations. Spend some time to feed the names and addresses of all your guests in either a word processing document or in a spreadsheet in your computer. When the time comes for sending out the invitations or thank-you cards, this information in the database will be immensely helpful. You will be able to check whether all invitations have been sent and also the number of RSVPs received. This record will enable you to store the addresses of all your guests for the future as well.

Help Is Always Around The Corner: There are so many aspects of wedding planning that it is very difficult for you to do everything on your own without faltering at some step. This can lead to a lot of tension. You should not, therefore, hesitate to accept the help of your near and dear ones, who will be more than pleased to extend a helping hand.

Just follow the above tips for wedding planning and you will find that all aspects will fall in place like a jigsaw puzzle. Best of luck!

Develop A Systematic Wedding Planning

Wednesday, September 17th, 2008

The most important day in your life is your wedding, and there is no doubt that you would want this day to be a grand success. Making a proper and effective wedding planning should be your top priority if you want your wedding to be remembered by all your relatives and friends for a long time to come. However, the development of the wedding planning needs to be done systematically and thoroughly so that the various steps are accomplished in an orderly fashion without any stress.

Start Early And Make A Checklist

You should start early with your wedding planning and make a proper checklist of all that needs to be done. This checklist should also be accompanied by a budget plan that matches the various expenses needed to fulfill the various activities of the checklist. Preparing the checklist should be done with proper thought and with plenty of time. Whereas you might have all the bright ideas for the checklist, it would be a good idea to consult your parents who can offer valuable suggestions based on their experience.

Decide On The Venue

The other important things that need to be included in the wedding planning are the venues of the marriage and the reception. The venue for the wedding would depend on whether you want to have a church wedding or a civic wedding. There are many people who like to have their wedding in unconventional and non-traditional places such as a ship or in the mountains or even aboard a plane. However, if you want to have your wedding in a unique place, you will have to start very early with the wedding planning.

Reception Arrangements

The arrangements for the reception also need to be included in the wedding planning as you might like to hire a singer or a musical group for providing live entertainment for the guests. Moreover, the other aspects that need to be decided well in advance are the food, the wedding cake, the flowers, and the decorations. Besides these, you would also have to organize the various clothing items such as morning suits for the men, hats for the ladies, the wedding dress for the bride, and the dresses for the bridesmaids.

Finalize List Of Invitees

Perhaps the most important aspect of the wedding planning is finalizing the list of the invitees. The activities connected with this aspect are: finalization of the wedding invitation cards, sending out the same to the various people, and making out a seating plan in such a way that there is minimum resentment among the guests.

Other Miscellaneous Arrangements

The wedding planning should not overlook many other small arrangements that have to be made. These include appointments at the hair salons for the bride and the bridesmaids, the rehearsal dinner, gifts for the bridesmaids, distribution of gift lists by the couple, center pieces for the various tables, and plenty of confetti.

A proper wedding planning can go a long way toward ensuring the success of your wedding functions.

Computerize Your Wedding Planning

Tuesday, August 26th, 2008

It’s the age of the computer and the Internet, which have given immense benefits to mankind. You can use these tools to great advantage when you apply them to your wedding planning. With the help of these resources, you can have all the information that you need regarding the various aspects of your wedding planning by just clicking a few buttons on your computer.

Your computer can slash your workload, and you can utilize the available time to think about other matters. Your workload and worries are bound to increase as the wedding day comes nearer, and at this stage your computer can be your friend in need.

Choosing the right wedding planning software is very important, and you should take care of the following aspects:

Important Considerations For Choosing Wedding Planning Software
1. The wedding planning software should be user-friendly, and it should have a free tutorial program so that the user can know about its operations and intricacies. It would be ideal if a free trial is available.

2. Since the checklist for wedding planning needs to be constantly updated in order to keep track of the progress and shortcomings, it is essential that the software offers suitable facilities for doing so.

3. Keeping track of the money spent vis-a-vis the budget is very important at every stage of the wedding planning. The software should offer proper budget determinants that keep you aware of the budget variations. It is also essential to have a timeline that will keep reminding you of when certain actions have to be taken and how much they cost.

4. The starting point of planning for a wedding is a checklist and the possible sources or a list of vendors associated with each activity in the wedding planning. Having software that provides a list of vendors can be a great help.

5. The wedding planning software should not merely be a provider of information but it should help you stay in control at every stage so that you can have the type of wedding that you have been dreaming about. The software should make your actions easier, quicker, and without any stress.

The wedding planning software should be your trusted companion that can do a lot of your wedding planning work. Basically, it should keep on giving a proper feedback of what has been done and what is still pending and about which way your budget is heading. It should help in printing of invitations and give proper information regarding the address book so that the guest list can be properly finalized. It should also help in tracking the approximate number of people who will attend the wedding based on the RSVPs and also help in the seating arrangements.

You need wedding planning software that will help you with every aspect of the wedding planning process.

A Guide To Wedding Invitations

Thursday, August 21st, 2008

Wedding invitations are an integral part of a wedding’s theme and the “mood” you want to set for your ceremony. After all, if the purpose were to solely inform the guests of the details of the event, then you could just send an email or postcard. However, the invitation also serves as a souvenir of a special occasion, and an announcement of a couple’s love. Like the wedding ceremony itself, it must be beautiful and personal.

Selecting the Wedding Invitation’s Design

There are thousands of ready-made wedding invitations to choose from; simply select a design, send the details, and the printer can have it ready within weeks. With such a wide selection, it may be difficult to pick which one is best. Here are the things to consider: * Formal or casual. You want a wedding invitation to complement the overall theme and mood of the wedding. Is your wedding formal or casual? A formal wedding may need classic script fonts, formal wording, and the traditional double envelope. A more casual invitation may use more modern fonts and more natural wording (i.e., instead of “we cordially invite you”, say “please join us…”), but care must be taken to retain the solemnity of the occasion. Let’s say you want to enclose a photo of you and your fiancé—not typically done for traditional invitations. Wear appropriate clothes to the photo shoot: shorts and tank tops simply don’t work.

* Color. You should always choose a subdued color. If you are using a rather bright color for your motif, like turquoise, opt for a delicate ribbon trim or small accents at the sides or corners rather than applying it to the whole invitation. This makes the invitation look more classy, and again, is in keeping with the nature of the event. It’s a wedding, not a night dancing at a trendy club.

* Personal Touches. You can add a short poem, a photo of the couple, or a song lyric from the wedding ceremony.

Wedding Invitation Inserts

Most wedding invitation companies can provide a selection of templates where you just have to fill in the specific names, places and dates. However, many couples prefer to make their own, to make the invitation less stiff and more personalized. If so, here are a few guidelines:

* It is not necessary to put the entourage in the invitation. However, you can have a separate piece of paper listing the members that can be inserted in select invitations—specifically those that go to the entourage themselves, and to the more immediate family and friends. They would appreciate the souvenir; plus, it is a way of thanking them for their participation.

* You’d never forget to put the date and the venue, but many couples forget to put a map to the church and/or reception area. A map would be very helpful, and would save many guests any inconvenience especially if the wedding is located in a place they are unfamiliar with.

* If you are trying to control the number of guests, insert a small card that says, “We have reserved # seats for you.” This is a subtle and polite way of minimizing the headcount.

* If you are moving to a new home after the wedding, you can include another small insert announcing your new address.