Budgeting – Wedding ideas How much will it cost? Getting married is notoriously expensive. Some couples are more than happy to spend out a great deal on this, the most showy day of their lives; others may have to save money wherever they can, especially if the bride and groom are footing all the bills themselves. Although the bride’s father traditionally pays for the largest part of the wedding, these days many couples contribute to the costs. Whoever is paying, it is worth finding out beforehand just how much each stage of the wedding is likely to cost so that you can budget accordingly and cut costs if necessary. That way all of you will be saved nasty surprises when the bills arrive! (more…)

Sending invitations The invitations should be sent out by the bride’s family (generally by her mother) if the bride’s parents are hosting the wedding. If the bride and groom are doing it themselves, the bride should send them out. By convention the invitation is addressed to the wife if it is sent to a couple; the wife replies, addressing her reply to the bride’s mother. On the invitation the couple can either be addressed formally as Mr and Mrs Robert King, less formally as Robert and Anita King, or informally as Robert and Anita, depending on how formal the wedding is and how well the hosts know the people being invited. Always make it clear on an invitation whether children are invited; this saves embarrassment later. If you are inviting a whole family, the invitation can read Mr and Mrs Robert King and family; Robert and Anita King, Harriet, Emily and James; or Robert, Anita, Harriet, Emily and James. (more…)

Wedding wording There are rules for the wording of very formal invitations, but do remember that these can always be varied if the wedding is anything other than the most formal high society affair. The most important point to clarify on the invitations is the relationship between the bride and whoever is hosting the celebrations. If the bride’s parents are hosts: Mr and Mrs Alan Brown request the pleasure of your company at the wedding of their daughter Ann to John Smith… If the bride’s parents are divorced, but hosting the wedding together: Mr Alan Brown and Mrs Jane Brown… of their daughter Ann… If the bride is marrying for the second time but the parents are still the hosts: Mr and Mrs Alan Brown… of their daughter Ann Jones… If the mother is widowed and is the sole host: (more…)

Guest list wedding Use this list to record the people you have invited to your wedding, their answer, the number of children they will be bringing, and any special requirements they have.

Before you start planing your wedding ceremony think about buying your e wedding bands on time from our goldsmiths in Germany!

Invitations Your invitations are the first part of your official wedding stationery; they serve both a practical and a decorative purpose. It is worth putting quite a lot of thought into your invitations and how they relate to any other stationery you will be using; the invitations should be a pleasure to send as well as to receive.

The information (more…)

Choosing guests list Choosing the wedding guests can be one of the most contentious parts of the wedding preparations, as the different people involved may have different priorities. Parents and parents-in-law will often want to invite relations of all degrees as the wedding is a rare chance for a full-scale family get-together. Bride and groom are often more interested in inviting friends that are more immediate – colleagues from work, close friends from school and college days, etc. So you will all need great tact and consideration to avoid falling out over this most crucial question.

Relations Happy the bride and groom with few relations! This makes for a guest list that is simple to put together. However, if you have numerous relations scattered all over the country (or even nearby), you will have to make the difficult choice of which ones to invite and which ones to leave out. Are they close family friends as well as relations? Have they always taken an interest in the bride or groom, or have they rarely seen them? Will they expect to be invited? Will they be offended if they aren’t invited? Are you going to set a limit of consanguinity – for instance invite anyone up to a first cousin, and no-one beyond that? (more…)

Wedding traditions There are numerous traditions about the best time to many; the most common time in this country is in the summer, generally because it fits well into people’s work and holiday schedules, but if it suits you and yours best there is no reason why you shouldn’t be married at any time of the year you choose. Weddings are generally not allowed in churches on Sundays and in synagogues on the Jewish sabbath (sundown Friday to sundown Saturday), but other days are generally acceptable. Most people choose to get married on a Saturday as this ensures that the maximum number of guests will be able to get time off work to attend, but if you are having a quiet wedding, particularly at a registry office, you don’t need to be tied to a Saturday. Here are some traditional rhymes relating to the month and day of weddings.

(more…)