Planning a double wedding with your sister or best friend can and you save half the price of your wedding right from the beginning.  The prize word here is compromise and lots of it …but if you’re willing to give a little and your friend is ready to give a lot! (LOL)  Oh, I mean, if your sister or friend is willing to do likewise,  you will both save thousands of dollars!

Is this double trouble or double the fun?  All kidding aside, a double wedding often means weeks of negotiation, concession and conciliation. There will be a lot of give and take on all sides and finding the middle ground is necessary to ensure you are still friends for life.

If after serious discussion you both feel this is right for you – then it’s time to bring in the men in your lives and both families.

It is of utmost importance to find yourselves in general agreement so far as date, budget, ceremony style, your officiate, music and your guest list is concerned. Comparing each other’s list of your dream wedding will give you an opportunity to see if you are too far apart to logically compromise, at which time you should agree to make other plans.

If however, you are in agreement, it is time to begin planning your double wedding and in the process double your joy and that of your family and friends.

Children are an integral part of most weddings! Be it formal or informal, you may find you just cannot leave them out. It’s the little ones who increase the ‘cute quotient’ at weddings especially when they stand before you as flower girls, ring bearers and page boys. Also, having close family and friends with small children makes their invitation “almost” absolutely necessary.

The question arising is how do we keep them composed throughout the ceremony and out of underfoot during the reception?  No one wants to see the children fussing or running amuck across the dance floor or scattering confetti while you take your first spin together!

The answer lies in wedding favors for children; ones that are specially designed to keep them occupied for a while. Small surprise gifts as a favor would increase their excitement and make them feel special and pampered, allowing both their parents and other guests to enjoy the occasion.

If you have already begun looking for special favors for the children in your wedding party, you will notice that they are not nearly as expensive as those compared to the ones you’re planning to give your adult guests.  And you can’t name a child who doesn’t get excited when they see a gift of sweets and tiny presents in a brightly wrapped package!

Unlike the almond- sugared candies that are commonly seen given to adults you have a great assortment of sweets to choose from beginning with jelly babies, marshmallows, lollipops, toffees, chocolates, nuts, animal shaped biscuits, tiny muffins and innumerable other sweet treats. A quick trip to your local candy shop can give you an idea of the assortment of treats and sweets to include in your children’s favor.

If you would rather steer clear of sweet treats then there are a multitude of other gift ideas for the children in your wedding party.  Little fancy plastic boxes that have the shape of animals or cartoon characters and double up as lunch boxes, pencil boxes, small jewelry boxes or just to store all the little treasures that children love to collect. Ideas are endless!

Once the parents know that their children are happily occupied they themselves can enjoy your wedding celebration even more!

Personalized Pirate Ringbearer Lunch Box

Personalized Flower Girl Lunch Box

Personalized Pirate Ring Bearer Backpack

Personalized Quilted Butterfly Flower Girl Backpack

Personalized Quilted Race Car Ringbearer Backpack

Personalized Children Art Kit for Wedding Party

Personalized Kid’s Sign

Pastel Jordan Almonds Favors – Box of 10 lbs

The first step in coming up with your wedding budget is to sit down together with a pencil, paper and a calculator. Figure out what you really want to have, what would be nice to have and what you can actually afford. Once you have made this determination, then it is time to speak with both sets of parents or anyone who is contributing to your wedding costs. Show them the budget you have come up and tell them exactly where their money is going.

Traditional breakdown of wedding expenses.

To be chosen as a best man is always considered to be an honor.  Traditionally, the best man’s shoes are filled by someone who is very dear or close to the groom. He is usually someone the groom trusts deeply and will be his main source of support throughout the entire occasion.  It is the best man’s role to stand by the groom’s side before, during and after the wedding. In other words, he is the male equivalent of the bride’s maid of honor. However, this distinction requires responsibility.

Of the various tasks a best man is responsible for, one of the most important is the best man’s wedding speech.  The speech should be well thought out and thus should be prepared and practiced in advance. It is delivered during an important part of the wedding program where toasts are made to the newly married couple offering the guests a glance into the more personal side of the bride and groom.  Much like all other complementary speeches, a best man’s speech should be kept simple and short. However, though it is important to observe the five to ten minute limit to the speech, it is the content of the speech that will resonate in the hearts of the bride and groom.

You can start off with a personal introduction and perhaps a brief background on how you were chosen as the best man (perhaps you and the groom grew up together, or went to college together).  You can follow with an anecdote about the couple (make sure that the story will not cause humiliation on either the bride or the groom) then end the speech with an appropriate toast. The speech should be insightful, funny and again, short.   Light jokes are always acceptable. However, always take into consideration the people in the crowd. Parents, colleagues, relatives, friends and even children from either side will be present in the event. Sensitivity to the choice of words and the delivery should always be noted. The last thing you would want is for someone to get offended from what you may say.

An effective speech requires effective delivery.  When making a best man wedding speech, it is important to keep good composure. As alcoholic drinks are always a constant at weddings, remember to take in only small amounts or be a teetotaler until the speech has been delivered. This will prevent you from making potentially embarrassing drunken ramblings and thus making a fool of yourself and ruining the wedding. You should always bear in mind that this speech, no matter how short or long it is, will be remembered for posterity.

The Early Bird Gets the Dream Wedding

A wedding is one of  life’s  most important events, and as such, it is meant to be a memorable, beautiful and poignant affair.  But before the actual ceremony can take place,  you know there is a tremendous amount of planning that needs to be done.

A bride has a certain vision of her ideal wedding – where it is supposed to take place, a particular time for the celebration, color theme for the dresses and the decorations, who will be part of the entourage, what dishes will be served during the reception, the list goes on and on.   What makes the whole thing more difficult is if you were working on a tight budget.

Meeting your dream wedding expectations under a budget is tough but totally possible.  The idea is to plan ahead and then have a plan B.  Planning ahead means knowing what you want and how much exactly it is going to cost you.  You have to face the cold, hard truth about budgeting and how sometimes, you may not always get what you exactly want.  That is what the plan B is for – to deal with snags and hitches.

Planning a wedding will be both one of the most exciting and nerve wracking experiences in a person’s life.  There are so many components in a wedding that need to be addressed such as the bride and groom’s wedding attire, wedding rings, entourage and their dresses, flowers, venue for the ceremony, reception venue, food, music, chairs and tables for the reception, wedding cake, wedding tokens and the photographer or videographer.  It is exhausting even just to think of all that must be done to create the wedding of your dreams!

What will greatly ease the burden though is planning early.  A comprehensive list of all the things that need to be done, venues to be secured and professionals to be booked must be printed out and carefully studied.

Plan every minute detail and angle especially if you are planning to hold your wedding during the peak months of June or September.  Make special adjustments in your plan especially if your wedding is near important dates like Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day or Christmas time.

Plan ahead – I cannot stress this enough.  This will give you the advantage of booking people and venues in advance and perhaps it might even get you a discounted rate simply for booking early.  Identify ahead where you want to hold the wedding ceremony and book it.  Same goes for the reception (in case you are planning to hold it in a separate venue).

If you are having a custom-made wedding gown, book the services of the designer early on.  Make schedules for gown fitting too.  Same goes for your wedding rings.

People whom you would like to be part of the entourage need to be informed at the earliest possible time so that they can clear their calendar and make the necessary arrangements (should they need to fly in from certain places).   Schedules need to be made for the fitting of the bridesmaids’ dresses.

The bridal bouquet, as well as the entourages’ flowers, needs to be ordered ahead of time.  Special care needs to be taken if your wedding coincides or is near to a special event like Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day or the graduation season where flowers are in high demand.  Securing the placement of your order early provides you with a reasonable cost and guaranteed availability.

The food that will be served during your reception also needs to be identified (this is done by having a menu tasting hosted by the caterer) and finalized.  Don’t forget to take into account your guests that require special food arrangements (those with allergy to nuts, those who are diabetics, etc.).

Musicians or DJs, if you prefer, as well as photographers and videographers need to be booked also in advance.  Be sure to clarify your expectations from them and secure a written agreement to ensure that you will be covered for any digressions or non-compliance from the said agreement.

Another important part of the planning process is having a Plan B.  When you plan early, this usually means planning as early as a year in advance.  A lot can happen in a year and this is the reason why you should have a fall back plan.

By making plans early and executing them on time, you can be rid of the hassles of dealing with canceled appointments, unavailable venues, mismatched cutleries and fully booked caterers.

Essentially, this allows you lesser worries and a greater time to enjoy making your dream wedding come true.

Strapless: MIA

For years, strapless gowns have been the big seller in bridesmaids and wedding gowns. But not all women enjoy having to worry about their biggest assets popping out during the Chicken Dance at the reception. This year the strapless gown is MIA – Missing in Action. Instead, the styles are focused on elegant necklines and unique strap designs.

For example, the one shoulder strap is a popular style this season. With this style, your bridesmaids can show off a little shoulder without having to worry about everything falling out when she bends over. You can also find a variety of classic necklines, such as the bateau, coming back this season.

Bold Colors

In the past, bridesmaids’ dresses tended to be a little “girly” for the average woman. Pinks and other pastel colors were the dominant hue in most bridal boutiques. This year that has definitely changed. One of the hottest colors going down the aisle is charcoal gray. The color is almost as body flattering as black and works beautifully in almost any silhouette and with most fabrics. Plus, the color can really pop when combined with other bold colors, such as red or purple.

Speaking of red and purple, the other big color trend is rich, dark, and vibrant colors. Ink blue, royal purple, and sunset orange have all become top color choices for bridesmaids in 2010. These colors may not be exactly what wedding audiences are expecting but they make a vivid statement and look beautiful. Plus, bold colors tend to be sexier and more alluring – a definite plus with the adult women who have to wear them down the aisle.

Interesting Length Choices

Just as the one shoulder dress finds beauty in its asymmetry so do some of the hems of other popular bridesmaid choices. With most of these dresses, part of the hem is significantly shorter (usually around knee length) than the other part of the hem. This might sound like a horrible designer error but the look is actually quite stunning. The dresses are both modest and sexy plus they create visual interest that has long been missing from most bridesmaid gowns.

Floor length gowns, particularly those in soft chiffon, are also making a comeback. These are great choices for traditional or classic weddings. However, they are now being offered in some beautiful pale colors that will make your entire bridal party look more floating angels than bridesmaids – a great look for an evening wedding lit by candles in a gorgeous Gothic church.

While the wedding should be all about the bride, there’s no reason to force your bridesmaids into layers of chiffon that hide all of their curves and attributes as well. Why can’t all of you look stunning walking down the aisle? If you’re confident enough in your own fierceness, here are some ideas for bridesmaid dresses that could make your whole bridal party stunning.

Showing Some Leg

Men love to see women”s legs, especially in high heels, so one sexy idea for these dresses is to let the girls show off their legs instead of hiding them under piles of fabric. If the wedding takes place in the spring or summer, choose a shorter dress, perhaps a cocktail-length dress. These dresses come in an array of colors, can be purchased off the rack at most department stores (that means your bridal party will save a bundle), and can be worn to other occasions. Remember you can never go wrong with a classic black cocktail dress, especially if you’re having a black and white or black and red color combination for your event.

Another idea is to choose longer dresses with equally long slits to show off just a hint of that sexy leg as the bridesmaids walk down the aisle and dance at the reception.

Flattering Necklines

While a woman’s legs may be sexy to most men, it’s not the only way you can make your bridal party look more alluring. Deep V-necklines on the bodices of the dresses have become increasingly popular and aren’t likely to raise too many eyebrows at the ceremony (although some might bother your grandparents a little bit).

If your bridal party isn’t equally endowed in the bosom department, don’t worry. You can find plenty of undergarments meant to shape, lift, support, and enlarge the assets so they look fabulous in this plunging neckline.

Classic Style

Of course, sexy doesn’t always have to be about showing off the endowments. Sometimes it can be about what you don’t show. For example, a popular trend in bridesmaid dresses is the bateau neckline, also sometimes referred to as the boat neckline. This look may not sound sexy but it was popularized by some of the most classically beautiful women in the world, such as Audrey Hepburn, and could be a lovely way to flatter the bodies of your bridal party.

Go Unique

One of the best ways to make your bridal party look fabulous is to be conscious of differences in their body styles. Don’t try to fit all of your bridesmaids into the same style of dress because the silhouette may not look good on all of them. Work with your bridesmaids to find a style that matches your overlook look while making them look gorgeous!

Stardust CZ Bridal Chandelier Earrings

Looking for just the perfect earrings to set the mood for a spectacular bridal look?  Well, search no further!  These exquisite earrings include a dazzling array of cubic zirconium crystals, and are the perfect way to add dramatic sparkle to your wedding day ensemble! Stardust CZ Bridal Chandelier Earrings

Eye-catching and unique, these earrings shimmer and shine in daylight, moonlight or candlelight for an unforgettable romantic glow.You’ll definitely want to wear these earrings again and again…on New Year’s Eve, to holiday parties and on your anniversary, too!

These Stardust CZ Bridal Chandelier Earrings feature dozens of glittering cz stones! A starburst pattern on top leads to strands of teardrop-shaped crystals. Rhodium-plated to prevent tarnishing, these earrings have post backings for pierced ears.

These elegant cz diamond earrings are also the perfect gift for your bridesmaids, adding just the right amount of bling to their bridesmaid dresses! For a bridal jewelry set, pair our Stardust CZ Bridal Earrings with our Teardrop CZ Pendant Bridal Necklace (sold separately). Size: 2.5″ long

Stardust CZ Bridal Chandelier Earrings

Miriam Swarovski Crystal Heart Bridal Jewelry Set

Crystal Drop Bridal Jewelry Set

White Mia Pearls Necklace

Pure Romance Bridal Jewelry Set

Vera Chandelier Earrings

Pam Pearl Bridal Set

Sparkling Hoops CZ Bridal Earrings ]]> http://aweddingguidebook.com/2010/02/bridal-chandelier-earrings/feed/ 0 http://aweddingguidebook.com/2010/01/how-to-determine-the-number-of-wedding-attendants/ http://aweddingguidebook.com/2010/01/how-to-determine-the-number-of-wedding-attendants/#comments Wed, 13 Jan 2010 22:49:31 +0000 Ask Fran http://aweddingguidebook.com/?p=905

As a bride-to-be, one of the most difficult decisions you will face will be to determine the number of attendants you should have.  Obviously, there will need to be fewer attendants than guests, even though you don’t want to make any of your family or friends feel left out. Think about who you want to be closest to you during the preparation and the celebration of your big day.  You will be spending a lot of time with whoever you choose because it is the responsibility of both groups of attendants, the bride’s and the groom’s, to help plan and take care of the wedding details.  Don’t forget, they will also be in your wedding pictures, and they won’t ever go away!

Here are some principles to follow to help you choose the perfect number of attendants for your wedding:

A Simple, Close Knit Ceremony

If you are planning a simple, close knit wedding ceremony with just your family and friends that are closest to you, you won’t need a large number of attendants.  If you plan to have less than forty-five guests, you may decide to just have one attendant each.  At the very most, it would be best not to have more than a maid of honor and one bridesmaid plus the best man and one groomsman.

A Medium Sized Ceremony

A medium sized ceremony is one that would include anywhere from 50 to 200 guests.  In a ceremony of this size it would be proper to have anywhere from one to six attendants for each one of you.  The key is that the fewer guests you have, the fewer attendants you should have, and the more you have, the more attendants you will need.  A good way to determine the exact number is to remember that you will need one usher per 50 people.  Since the groomsmen may serve as ushers, too, that will help you determine the number of attendants.

A Large, Luxurious Ceremony

If you are inviting 200 or more people to the wedding, you will need a minimum of five attendants for each of you.  For a ceremony this large, it is common to have both a flower girl and a ring bearer.  Because of the size and the enormous amount of things to take care of, it is not uncommon to have groomsmen and ushers.  You will need to consider recruiting family members and friends to help with the organizational part, making sure that everyone is where they should be at the proper time.

The two main things that you need to consider when determining the size of your wedding are the cost and the amount of stress that will be created.  The larger the wedding the easier it is to end up with hurt feelings because someone close to you feels left out.  Those you chose should be available to help out in any way necessary, and they should be free to attend any parties, fittings and rehearsals that you schedule.  If you have to work around everyone else’s schedule, the stress becomes too much.  Regardless of the size, you can have a stress free ceremony if you follow these principles that have been laid out.

]]> http://aweddingguidebook.com/2010/01/how-to-determine-the-number-of-wedding-attendants/feed/ 1 http://aweddingguidebook.com/2010/01/unique-wedding-proposal-ideas/ http://aweddingguidebook.com/2010/01/unique-wedding-proposal-ideas/#comments Tue, 12 Jan 2010 07:01:40 +0000 Ask Fran http://aweddingguidebook.com/?p=1005  

Every groom or sometimes bride wants to make a wedding proposal that is truly unique with a story that can be told for many years to come. Some proposals are planned to the last letter while others are spur of the moment affairs, but nevertheless each has its own story to tell.  

These are a few ideas that might inspire you.  

• Create an album with memories, letters or notes and photos of the two of you. At the back of the album you can cut out a section for the ring. Once she has worked her way through the album a dazzling ring will await that she won’t be able to resist.
• Book a trip for two to the world’s most exiting city with a ride on the tallest Ferris Wheel in the Western hemisphere – the London Eye – and while high up in the sky with a unsurpassed view of London and the Thames ask the big question.
• For a fairytale proposal nothing can beat Disney World where all the storybook characters are ready to assist you. With the help of a travel agent you can book a dinner at the Castle. Arrange for the Walt Disney World cast members to bring out the ring on top of a glass slipper just before the start of the fireworks. It will create that perfect magical moment for your proposal.
• A hot air balloon ride is always very romantic and different especially if both of you like adventurous outings. To make it even more exciting you can get four boxes from small to big. Put the ring in the smallest box and then put the wrapped boxes into each other until you have a large box to wrap. Take the box along and give it to her while you are marveling at the beautiful scenery. For a less expensive proposal you can also use the box idea as a Christmas gift.
• If you both enjoy ice skating, a trip to New York’s Rockefeller Centre can create the perfect proposal opportunity. If you plan it well you can be alone on the skating rink when you present the ring.
• If your budget won’t allow for extravagant ideas there are many other less expensive but dually creative ideas. Use a themed puzzle that is not too busy and once she has compiled it the words “Will you marry me” should stand out.
• During Christmas time you can also use your holiday lights and assemble them outside your house to create your proposal. 
• If you are a computer wiz you can create a slide show of your special photos and at the end have the words “Will you marry me” appear on the screen.
   
• Be different and instead of popping the ring in a glass of champagne, as in the movies, get her favorite romantic movie and pop the ring in the popcorn.
• Christmas time is always special for proposing, so get some carolers to sing the big question or Santa to deliver the ring personally.

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