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General Wedding Advice

Announcements	Attendants	Ceremony Advice	Colors	Engagement Party
Flowers	General Advice	Guests	Invitations	Location
Advice for the Reception	Rehearsal Dinner	Rings	Seating	Showers

Announcements Top	Who do I contact about engagement announcements and what do they say? When should wedding announcements be sent and who gets them? Samples
Attendants Top	What is the bridesmaid's party? Is it the bridal shower or a special party for the bridesmaids? What kind of gifts do you suggest for my maid of honor and my bridesmaids? Something simple or extreme? Does the groom give gifts to the groomsmen? Looking for ideas for gifts for the ushers. At the bachelor party, does everyone bring gifts for the groom. I have a bridesmaid who's mother assumes that I am paying for her dress and her son's (2) tuxedo's for my wedding, I don't have that kind of money, is it alright for me to tell her to pay for her own items? I am a first time "Best Man" and I really don't know what my responsibilities include. I'm looking for advice & suggestions. Is there a place within the wedding planner to keep track of attendants? I'm thinking of several different ways of arranging my attendants (including different numbers and people) and could use a place to keep track of who might be involved and my ideas. I am planning a wedding of approximately 150 guests. I know that you are supposed to have one usher to every fifty guests. Do those ushers also have to be groomsmen? Do the groomsmen have to match the groom? My sister is divorced. Would she be my maid or matron of honor? When we were picking out the wedding party, I failed to think that my nephews would be in it. I thought my niece could be a jr bridesmaid and my fiancé's cousin would be the jr groomsmen. We already have the flower girl and ring bearer picked. My mother thought my nephews were going to be in it. Oopss! Forgot to tell her. Well, she told my sister that the boys are going to be in it. Okay, that is fine, they will look and be adorable. One problem, what part will they have? Any suggestions?
Ceremony Top	My wife and I are renewing our wedding vows and wanted to know proper procedures as well as vows to tell one another. My biological mother is deceased any my auntie and other lady helped to raise me how can I honor them both on that day. I am planning a renewal of my wedding vows and am on a small budget, can you give me tips? My husband and I are renewing our vows next year. I was wondering if my father has to walk me down the aisle. I would like for my husband and I to walk down together. How does that sound? Can you give me the proper etiquette for second marriage weddings regarding the ceremony, gifts, etc.? We want a short outside wedding. How can we make it real simple? Is it bad luck to get married on the top of the hour like 3 pm? I heard you were supposed to get married on the half hour like 3:30 pm? We would like to include the unity candle in our service. Any suggestions on how to do this? I would like to know in what order I should have the following in my wedding ceremony: reading of a poem by a friend, a song by groom to bride, a poem by bride to groom, lighting of candles: stepmother to light votive candle, my mother and mother in law to light taper candles, and then groom and bride to light unity candle. And how many songs should I have prior to the exchange of vows? Is there something special, unique I can do for the groom either at the church or at the reception... a speech or something? Do people do things like that.. We have two questions: (1) How do you include a stepfather who has pretty much supported the bride financially and mentally and the bio father in giving away the bride whom she is close to but he just doesn't provide for her and (2) how do you include a son from a previous relationship who is 2 yrs old and a 1 yr old daughter from this relationship in the wedding? We would like to give a 12 year old daughter a family ring and we would also like to light a memorial candle. We don't have a clue on what to say or do. Please help. I want to plan the ceremony to include my children, I have 2 ages 10 and 8. We will be getting Barry a triple band interlocking ring and we would all like to pledge to him on our day. I was wondering if you have any suggestions about how to proceed with this idea.....such as our own vows, unique ceremony ideas and anything that would make the ceremony special for all four of us, not just for Barry and I....as we are committing to becoming a family. Thank you so much for any help you may offer. This is my second marriage but first wedding. I want it to be really special and romantic. We plan to get married in my home. How would I include my son's girlfriend and my husband to be's daughter, because I only want my daughter as an attendant? Who is the officiant and what is his/her role? What is the usual fee for a person who will sing at the ceremony? Isn't pre-marital counseling the same as meeting with a clergymember to discuss about our marriage? I would like some ideas on the vows, it will be a non denominational, Christian, wedding. My fiance and I are of different faiths. He is Catholic, and I am of an alternative path. We agreed that we would be married by an official of the Catholic church (for him) but have no bible readings. We would plan all readings ... The questions are (a) I heard a Catholic church will not marry a non-Catholic to a Catholic. Is this true? (b) Can we plan the readings ourselves? We decided that we don't want bible readings (for me). (c) Can I include a person of my own faith in the actual marriage process in addition to the church clergy, even though they have no real legal power to marry us? My fiance is Jewish and I am not. Any advice? Can you recommend song other than Here Comes the Bride for the bride to go down the aisle. Could Butterfly Kisses work? I want to know about the procession and lineup of the bridal party. I have attended to a lot of weddings and some were not very organized. I just need a little help with the lineup and do's and do not's. Any suggestions will be helpful. Could you please tell me in what order do people stand in the receiving line. We would like to do a recieving line outside of the church. How much time should we budget for this. We are planning on having about 200 guests. I need to make programs for the wedding on my own and I need a free site trying to keep the cost of the wedding down.
Colors Top	What is the traditionally correct color for a bride to wear for her second marriage? We are having a hard time trying to pick colors for the wedding. We are thinking of maybe black and burgundy. Is there a place that has an array of colors we can look at to get a better idea? The bride has selected a gown that is ivory and has accents of coffee latte color in bands around the waist and the satin stole and lace jacket. The wedding is at 5:30pm - would it be acceptable for the groom and groomsmen to wear a shade of brown tux. We have not selected bridesmaid dresses yet because this is a quick wedding because the groom's mother is terminally ill. They are going to pick something out at Lord and Taylor, but what colors would compliment this unusual wedding gown. The bride doesn't care if the dresses match just so that don't clash with each other and she doesn't want them to wear ivory. Thanks What color and style of dresses do the mother of the bride and mother of groom wear for a formal wedding? I am trying to coordinate my colors for my wedding around the colors of flowers that blossom in the month of August, but I am finding it very difficult to do so. Is there any way you can help me to find out what colors?
Engagement Party Top	Should the bride & groom have the engagement party or does one of our families have it for us? How for away from our wedding should we be having the engagement party. None of the books give a general time. My fiance' and I have been engaged 1.5 years. Do we still have an engagement party and what all do we plan for that?
Flowers Top	Are silk flowers cheaper and just as pretty as real ones? I am doing my own flowers and I wanted to know if there is a good way to get the curl to hold in the ribbon that will be hanging down. My fiance and I would like to have a black and white wedding...I'd like to have a bold, large white flower with a long stem. Are lilies appropriate for a wedding, or should they be kept strictly a funeral flower. Please keep in mind, we are on a budget and may not be able to afford white roses. Thanks! I want my wedding to be perfect, and I'm having a hard time deciding on flowers, and the decorations. I just can't seem to visualize in my mind how it's all going to look. I want it to be beautiful and I'm so confused, What do you recommend?
General Top	What is the best way to figure out the wedding date? Do you have a planner to mail out for documentation of flowers, hall, cake, etc... I notice that hiring a wedding consultant is at the top of the list. What exactly do they do? Do they help with decorations etc.? If you opt not to have a consultant or coordinator, do you then make all your own arrangements as far as finding a caterer, florist, band, decorator etc. Is the florist usually the decorator for the entire party and ceremony or is there a separate person to decorate and do the flower arrangements, corsages, bouquets etc. What is the traditional wedding gift for the bride from the groom? Also, what about to the groom from the bride? Do you tip florist, DJ, photographer? If so, how much is normal? The Limo and the Caterer include tax and gratuity, does this mean I'm supposed to re-tip them on my Wedding Day? Where do you recommend that I register? What if you don't want to register for wedding gifts, but would rather have a money tree or something similar. Is there a tactful way to do that? Do you have suggestions for a source for wedding etiquette? I can't decide on anything for my wedding! Is their anyone or anything that can plan it for me!(Please, I have the worst tastes.) If you can't plan it for me then I'll take my business somewhere else! Any ideas for a very inexpensive wedding dress? I've been scouting the second hand stores but haven't come up with anything yet. When should I start looking/purchasing a dress? I was wondering if anyone could help me? I am having a really hard time finding the right bra to wear with my wedding dress. I need a long line bra. My wedding dress has a diamond opening in the back and if I was to wear a regular bra the clasps would show. I can not find one that has enough support and is low enough for the dress. HELP!! P.S. It can have straps it does not have to be strapless. I want to wear my hair down falling past my shoulders. What is the best veil for that. My wedding dress is going to be simply decorated with a train. How can I plan a wedding that is plain and simple yet elegant in its own way? I don't want big and fancy but I want nice... I'm planning on having a very small, inexpensive wedding in a few months and have very little time to plan it. Do you have any type of planning advice for me? We have a small budget of $1000. We need tables chairs a cake and dinner. Please let us know if you can help. Thank You. What is an average budget on weddings? What does the Grooms mother have to buy (flowers, etc...) Do you have some ideas for couples over 50? We need all the ideas we can get. This is my friend's 50th wedding anniversary and I need help in designing the program. I would like to know where to get ideas for a Hawaiian wedding, but put on in the United States (Boise, ID) Can you help me? Thank you. I am writing to find out if the site has info on the small things that might be in a list form on your site like the ring pillow, guest book suggestions, or stores in general that provide wedding supplies even like the memoirs given out at the wedding. Please let me know what sites there may be available from your site. How do you get your family more involved in the wedding planning? My fiancé and I announced our wedding in January. My sister (who is the maid of honor) was upset I was getting married before her. Now she has announced her and her new boyfriend (who I don't really know) are getting married by a justice of the peace a month before me. What is the proper thing to do regarding bridal showers and a wedding gift. Right now all of my money is going to my own wedding, as well as all my time. What do I do in this situation? My fiance is Italian so we would like to have some what of an Italian themed wedding and reception. Are there any books that I can buy to help me? What is the average cost of a photographer for the bridal portrait and the wedding? Are you allowed to keep the proofs? Does the price quoted include the cost of the pictures or just their time for photographing the wedding? We have about 2 months until the wedding. We are expecting 350 guest. Where do we start. Could you suggest a week by week to do list.
Guests Top	Who is responsible for the out of town guests' accommodations? (bride, groom, or guest) Our wedding ceremony is approx. 35 minutes away from the hotel where the reception is being held. Do you think we should provide transportation from the hotel to the wedding for those guests that were part of the rehearsal dinner or those people that stayed at the hotel Friday night. I spoke with my mother last night about decreasing the number of people and she had a huge problem with it. Is there anyway I could do something to calm her down? Where can I see and purchase a guest book that has pages for guests to write a note to the bride and groom? If you receive gifts before the wedding is it ok to send thank yous at that time, or should you wait until after the ceremony (and then thank them for attending etc.)?
Invitations Top	Invitations Overview with specific Samples I am looking for invitations to send out, I was wondering if you could direct me to some choices. Thank you. Is it appropriate to put "non smoking occasion" on the invitations? When sending invitations, is it alright to include a little slip of paper saying where you are registered at...or how do you handle that? I am doing my own invitations on my home computer. Is it ok to print the address on the envelopes using my computer or should I hand write them? How do I word the invitation to say that there will be dinner and dancing? This is the second marriage for both of us and we prefer "no gifts". Can you suggest the proper way to convey this on the invitations? My parents are divorced, my dad is remarried, my mom does not share my last name, how do I put their names on the invitations? My parents are divorced and I'd like some ideas on the invitation wording. My fiance's biological father is deceased and his mother is remarried, my parents were never married and neither are remarried (I share my fathers last name), we want to include both of our sets of parents on the invitation and don't know how to word it? We are trying to plan a 40th Anniversary for my husband's parents. They are planning on renewing their vows with a reception following. Right now I am trying to find a guideline for wording invitations. When should invitations be mailed out? I've heard this question so many times and no one seems to be sure of the answer. When mailing wedding invitations, what do you do with the tissue inside? Where does it go? And what about the gold sticker/seal - on inside envelope or outside mailing envelope? I have never RSVP'd to a wedding. The only weddings I have been to have been family. The question is: on the RSVP note what does the "M" stand for and do I write our names on that line? Do I have to have an RSVP and if I do, what date should I make it? My wedding is June 8, 2002. Can you make a list where it shows how many invitations you need, not just number of people invited. Thanks. Is it appropriate to invite co-workers and boss's from work to your wedding? Do you have any idea where I can find any Marine Corp wedding invitations.
Location Top	Neither of us are members at a church, but would like a church wedding...what do you suggest? What do they mean by venue? We're planning an outside wedding. Any suggestions? What site would you suggest visiting concerning renewing vows, our first wedding was a "quickie", and we'd like to have a renewal of our vows to remember? What or why do I have to pay for 'site fee', 'ceremony site fee' and ceremony, and officient? What is the difference? I was wondering about marriage prep classes. We are having a non-denominational wedding in a historical heritage church that has been restored. It didn't come with an officiary, but we don't want a justice of the peace. Everyone that I have gotten a hold of says that we need marriage prep classes, but we live out of the town in which we are getting married. Do we have to take these classes in order for them to marry us? What would be some of the advantages and disadvantages of going away to get married? I am interested in taking parents and a couple of close friends along. We are going to get married in Texas but live in Maryland. Could you help us find someone who performs pre-marital counseling? I currently live in CA, but my whole family is back East, groom's family in CA (5 total), he wants to have something out here so his clients don't get offended. I want to do the whole thing back east because that is where I am from....what should I do? Do I just make my plans or try to be fair, this topic has already become a source of argument. I would like to know a few ideas about having a reception for about 100 people and where abouts I could have it? We are getting married in Jamaica. Do we get our marriage license there or here in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area? Also, can we set up our checking account now styled with both our names? Do you happen to know anything about planning a very small wedding by the lake in Chicago? My daughter is planning a beach wedding in Destin, Florida next spring. Any neat ideas? We live in Mississippi, the bride lives in New York City and the groom is in the military, so we will be planning this wedding long distance. Since this will be a relatively small wedding, I would like to make it nice.......but we are on a budget. Any suggestions would be nice. Any suggestions for an outdoor wedding in Steamboat Colorado in August?
Reception Top	We are planning on having a Master and Mistress of ceremony for my son's wedding, can you tell me exactly what their job entails. The Grooms God Parents have agreed to hold this position but are very concerned that they do the right thing at the right time. Please help their wedding is on June 3, 2000. Do you have a to do list for planning the wedding reception. We want to make sure we don't forget anything. Can you give me a list of fun activities to do at the wedding reception? Do you have a list of who is supposed to do toasts at the reception, and what order they should go in? I am at a loss as far as this goes! I need to find out what the father of the bride says in his speech. What type of music should be played to facilitate a fun, party-like atmosphere to a wedding with a family who doesn't normally dance? We plan on having a luau theme reception, do you have any ideas? I am looking for sand castles for the centerpiece on tables. Where can I get more information about making a donation to a charity in lieu of favors? I wanted to know what would be the easiest way to cater my own wedding? Do you have suggestions! The wedding is at a hotel, so of course everything is over priced. We are considering not having an open bar, but a cash bar. Some say a cash bar is tacky. What do you say? And if a cash bar is tacky, do you have any suggestions? Also, what other beverages would be okay to toast with? What would be the normal amount of alcohol to get if you were going to buy the alcohol for your reception of 300 people for beer and mixed drinks and champagne for the toast? Will we save money by having our reception outdoors or does that end up costing more? We are wanting an outdoor reception. We are considering my fiance's parents home or a park. When do we need to think about reserving chairs and tables or contacting the companies for those things? I have promised my fiancé that we can be married in a church and she can wear a gown (we have been both divorced twice). I would like your thoughts on a reception at home, very casual and I would do most of the cooking, i.e., grilling? Do I wear the veil the whole time at the reception? We have the ballroom until 2am. We have a band but I am thinking of having Karaoke from 12am-2am after the band. Is this feasible? How long does the band usually need to break their equipment down and can the Karaoke get set up quickly, or do you think this is too much of a break in the festivities? I'm planning our weddding by myself, so of course I have many questions. One very simple question is regarding children. Our reception dinner will be simple and accurate. My question is, should children be counted as an adult plate, or are we supposed to count 2 children as 1 adult? We don't want to be short food, but since our budget is tight, we don't want mounds of the food left over either, any ideas. A lot of children are going to be attending, enough so that they will make a significant difference. We are having a late (6:30pm)wedding,(7:30pm) reception. What would you suggest we serve - dinner, heavy hors d'oeuvres and dessert, breakfast? We are not sure what we should serve. Any suggestions? I was told by a baker that "whipped cream icing" would not stand up in July here in Virginia. My reception is going to be in an indoor location that has AC. Is there any validity to what we where told. I don't like really rich (sweet) frosting. I'm looking for a place to have a wedding reception, either to rent a hall and have food catered and served, or a banquet hall for 75-100 guests with a cheap price but nice setting. I want to have a cost effective wedding reception, but still include a buffet dinner and provide beer and wine. Am I being realistic to want to keep the cost to $5000 or less? What is considered correct: Is the minister and wife invited to reception if they are not considered acquaintances of the families. What about the soloist and the organist.
Rehearsal Dinner Top	Who attends the rehearsal dinner? Immediate family?
Rings Top	How much should the average engagement ring cost? We bought a bridal set as my rings. How do you wear it. The diamond as engagement ring? The additional band is worn on the outside or inside of the ring? Do you solder them together before or after the wedding? I would like to wear elbow length gloves during the ceremony. What is the proper way to exchange rings when wearing gloves?
Seating Top	My fiance's parents are divorced. His mother is single and still carries her married name, but his father has a serious girlfriend who will be attending the wedding and ceremony. How do we sit his parents and his father's guest at the ceremony and at the reception? His parents get along fine, but it is just awkward. I need seating layout for wedding ceremony. Where do parents, brothers/sisters, grand parents, aunts/uncles and friends sit? Do you have any suggestions on how to seat all the people at our reception? I am having my oldest son and my brother give me away at my wedding because my father has past away and I was wondering should they sit at the head table or just at my family's table with my mother? I want the wedding to be as informal as possible, since it is a second marriage for both. I don't want a head table and I don't want people to feel restricted to where they have to sit. Is that okay? Do you have a seating chart just for attendants, because # of people at those tables vary. Where do I sit the groom's parents? I need to give you some information first. His mother has remarried-so the groom has a step-father. He calls his mother's ex-husband his daddy since this man adopted him when he married his mother but his biological father will also be at the wedding. I have not met his biological father. He wants to escort his mother in and the man he calls daddy. A friend of his is going to be his best man and I don't know how to seat these 3 people. Please help me with this.
Showers Top	Who is supposed to give the bride a bridal shower? I am the groom's daughter. This is a second marriage for both. They are both in their mid 50's. Should we have a shower? I have no part in the wedding, who should put the shower on...if there is one? I have recently started a new job (approximately 1 1/2 months). Everyone there knows I am getting married. Should I invite the girls I work with now to the bridal shower? Do we really register this far ahead? I used to work for Target and I know that if you register this far ahead most of the merchandise will be discontinued before the showers. Would it be okay to wait. When is the last time we should consider registering for gifts? Hello! I have a quick question about the Bridal Shower. Is there a certain time frame that this should be given? I was thinking it needed to be done about a month before the wedding, but am not sure that is correct. Any advise on time frame would be greatly appreciated. Is it ok to send out shower invitations if the wedding invitations have not been sent yet? One shower is in August and the other is in September. The wedding date is 10-21-2000. We have guests that are going to be invited to the wedding. Should they also be invited to the shower, I know that they will not be able to attend and I do not want them to feel obligated to send a gift, but I do not want to hurt anyone's feelings by not inviting them. Please let me know the proper thing to do. My best friend is getting married. It is her 1st wedding, but the groom's 2nd. They have all the household necessities they need. People keep asking her if she is registered anywhere. We are having a personal shower for her and are having a Jack and Jill. Is she still supposed to register somewhere or is there a way to say they just want money without being tacky? She was wondering if they can register at their Travel agency. I hope you can help. This may sound like a stupid question, but are the gifts bought for a wedding shower usually gifts from the registry or are they personal gifts like lingerie.

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Thursday, November 20, 2008
Now 11/20/08 2:12 PM