Wedding Invitations
There are many details to include on a wedding invitation. There is a balance between finding the perfect wording and providing information to your guests. I offer the following tips:
1.) Check with your parents to find out if they have any opinions on wording. Conversely, you may draft something and show it to them and ask their advice. You may want a very formal approach where the parents names are mentioned followed by the full names (middle names optional) of the bride and groom. For example:
Mr. and Mrs. Bride's parents
request the honour of your presence
at the marriage of their daughter
Bride
and Mr.Groom son of
Mr. and Mrs. Groom's parents
Date
Time
Address Line 1
Address Line 2
Address Line 3
2.) The bride should be listed first, using first and middle names only. Then the groom should be listed, using both title and middle name. Less formal names would appear:
Bride
and
Mr. Groom
Together with our parents, invite you to join in a celebration of our love.
3.) It is traditional for the date and time to be written out in completion:
Saturday, the eighth of August
two thousand and seven
at half after ten o'clock in the morning
Or less formally it can appear as :
Saturday, August 8, 2007
at 10:30 a.m.
4.) If there is going to be a reception to follow the ceremony, the details can either be included on the wedding invitation or on a separate reply card.
5.) Don't forget out of courtesy, you should mail your wedding invitations no later than 6-8 weeks before the wedding. If you are nervous about people making plans on your wedding date before receiving their invitations, I recommend calling, emailing or sending "save the date" cards.
6.) Be sure to include a date by which your guests must RSVP and information how to RSVP. Set the RSVP date for at least 3 weeks before the wedding. This allows enough time to give a head count to the caterers, arrange for beverages, make place cards, order Wedding Favors, etc.
7.) For more fantastic suggestions on invitation wording visit www.versethis.com
US $85.00
Is marriage really forever?
Imagine a scientific breakthrough that allowed you to live FOREVER! Would you still say "I do"?
If someone gave you the chance to live frozen at age 20 for eternity, would you say "I do" to that? A fellow blogger, Scott Wainner, has a challenge right now offering $20 for blogging about Longevity Research. Following a recently attended an Emerging Technology Conference, he brainstormed the top 6 reasons why people are opposed to the idea, but he also gives tons of reasons supporting it.
After reading his very informative article (highly recommended), it made me think long and hard about the concept. Your cells would never age, you would never suffer from age related diseases and every birthday would be your 20th! Also, your husband or wife would always look just the same as the day you first laid eyes on him/her.
As you prepare to walk down the isle and speak your vows, be sure that you have found your life-long partner because that technology might just be around the corner!
Choosing your wedding guestlist
Deciding who to invite to your wedding can be very challenging. You'll want to have all of your friends and family present, but some things can limit inviting everyone you know. Budget tends to be the biggest limiting factor. Once you calculate dinner and drinks and favors for everyone, you're looking at upwards of $100 a head. By limiting the number of people, you can save a ton of money, but sometimes at the expense of people's feelings.
Another big challenge is space. Will your ceremony and reception venues hold enough people?
Lastly, you may just have family or friends who don't always gel. For example, did two people just break up and want to come, but with their new dates? Now you've gone from 2 happy people to 4 people who would rather not be in the same room. Not to mention divorced families and battling inlaws!!!
Here are some tips to help you design a guestlist:
- Start by writing down EVERYONE you'd like to invite. Include even those that are acquaintances and low probability, just to get names down on paper and brainstorm so you don't forget anyone.
-Now, start classifying each name with a category. I recommend the following scheme:
1) Definitely going to invite
Tally up your definites. At this point you have to compare to your budget and space.
You may have to decrease this number further by regrouping everyone by priority.
2) Maybe
For those guests in the "maybe" category, I offer a few suggestions:
a) Determine if the both the bride and groom feel the same way?
b.) Will feelings be hurt by not inviting someone?
c.) If you play on a sports team or club, it can be difficult to draw the line, but impossible to invite the entire team or club. I had this dilemma and invited only those who had either been to my house (or I had been to theirs) or those who I hung out with regularly outside of the club.
d.) Can you afford to invite everyone?
3) Unlikely
Maybe send out a second wave of invitations if a bunch of people say no.
** Please note: Statistics show that approximately 20-25% of wedding guests will not attend the wedding, and as you increase the distance, the rate of attendance also decreases.
No matter who you invite in the end, what matters is the happiness of the bride and groom. You should feel like you are surrounded by all of the important people in your life on your special day. Once you have it figured out, time to send out some invitations!
Don't know what information to write on your invitations? Stay tuned for my next blog!
Making your own Wedding Invitations
I decided to make my own wedding invitations. I've included a picture to show just how well they turned out!
Top 6 reasons why I would suggest making your own invitations:
1.) You can incorporate the exact wedding colors you have chosen in every aspect of the invitation. As you can see, my wedding colors were pink and yellow. You can add color by using different types of paper, ribbon, gems or flowers. Different textured paper and layering also can create a nice effect and allows multiple colors to be incorporated. Velum paper adds a very nice and delicate effect, for example. I bought all of my paper and rhinestones at Michael's (a popular art and crafts retailer).
2.) Wedding planning can be chaotic and moments together, away from family and all the turmoil become important. Making invitations together is a great way to spend time and bond with your future husband or wife on a creative project.
3.) It is way cheaper than paying someone else to do the assembly. I priced three different alternatives: a.) for a company to make my invitations (most expensive), b.) buying a kit that I assemble myself (expensive), or c.) making my custom designed homemade invitations. The third option was definitely the most cost effective. Weddings can be extremely expensive it is important to save money whenever you get the chance.
4.) You can bring out your creative side. Try a bunch of practice invitations until you come up with a template that you like. Try gluing something here or tying a bow there. Once you find one you and your partner are happy with, begin mass production.
5.) It adds that personal touch that everyone will love. Anyone can go out and buy invitations, but when you receive a handmade one, you appreciate so that much more knowing how much thought and time went into it. Every time I went over to a friend's place and saw it displayed on their fridge I was proud of my creation.
6.) You will have an end result that is very unique! You definitely won't risk ever sending an invitation that someone has seen before. If you get married around the same time as all your friends or family you don't want to risk the horrifying possibility of a duplicate.
The only thing to keep in mind is the amount of time this option will take. Otherwise, I say do it. You might even surprise yourself. I sure did!
Top five ideas for a bachelorette party
Now that all of the important aspects have been taken care of (dress, caterer, venues), it's time to start doing the fun planning: an event for you an all your close girl friends.
A bachelorette party is a great way to relieve some pre-wedding stress. The planning can be left up to the maid of honour and bridesmaids to add an element of surprise, or can be planned by the bride to ensure it has all the components she desires.
Here are 5 ideas for a super entertaining stagette:
1.) A night out on the town. Head to your favorite night club for a night of dancing. A theme with costumes is fully
encouraged. BuyCostumes.com offers the largest selection of costumes and party supplies online. Dress up as the bride's favorite sport's team or celebrity. Be sure to dress the bride-to-be in something flashy so she is sure to stand out and get the attention she deserves!
2.) Alternatively, stay in and have a house party. Games, movies, snacks. It will be sure to remind you of slumber parties back in the day.
3.) Vegas, baby! Party capital of the universe and non-stop entertaining guaranteed. It will be one of the more expensive options, but worth every penny! Go to shows Las Vegas Event Tickets, stay on the strip, head to a fancy nightclub or even do a bit of gambling. Luck should be on the bride-to-be's side!
4.) Head out of town for the weekend on a nature retreat. Grab some tents, sleeping bags and some marshmallows. It surely help to stress relief in the calming outback away from the decisions for a while.
5.) Hold a lady's day at your house. Invite a make-up artist or a pedicurist/manicurist for all the women to get pampered. You can plan this closer to the wedding so everyone has nice fingers or toes for the wedding day.
Also, don't forget to use the stagette planning as an excuse to get all the ladies together for a brainstorming session 
If you need to improve on my suggestions, Bachelorette.com helps you plan a great bachelorette party.
Capturing your wedding on film
Hiring a photographer can be a difficult decision. Before my wedding I spoke to a few girls at work who were all getting married. They were appalled that I was getting my friends to take my wedding photos since they said that is the most important aspect of a wedding. However, I am so glad we went the way we did.
We paid our friends $500 (so that it was more professional and would be taken seriously) although they had offered to do it free. They had to take pictures for the ceremony only and as we didn't care about photos during the reception. We told them we wanted them to be involved in our wedding some way since they are good friends and that we didn't want to ruin our friendship over it if it didn't turn out. We also told them we wanted at least a couple of good photos and anything after that was a bonus. They were very hesitant since they didn't have much wedding experience but have only taken sports and travel photos to date.
In the end they gave us hundreds of photos (over 500) on a cd and about 70 of them were amazing. They used 2 different cameras (Canon Digital SLR EOS 30D and 5D) for 2 effects. They also offered to come with each of us (the male with the guys getting ready and his wife came with us ladies as we got our hair and make-up done) in the morning. It meant a lot just to have them hanging out with us the morning of the wedding.
The benefit was the cost, and having people you know hanging around instead of a stranger since it was a good 3 hours of photos. We brought and a picnic basket of food and some ice cold beverages to the park for the process (highly recommended!). Also, when someone you know does it, they will probably give you all the whereas photos to print some professionals keep the photos and you have to pay to get them printed.
The biggest problem doesn't tend to be the photographers...it's the people in the photos. Not looking at the camera, having a stupid expression, closing their eyes. Out of all the photos that didn't turn out, none of them are our photographer's fault (not blurry or anything). It's the moron's in our wedding party/family with the lack of attention span.
Wedding Gown Styles
Searching for hours online gave me an idea of what I would come across before entering the bridal shop for my first time. Even with a bit of research under my belt, it was a very overwhelming experience. Trying on the first dress gave me goosebumps and gave me a taste of reality! There are many styles to choose from including: A Line/Princess, Empire, Column, Mermaid, and Ballgown.
A Line/ Princess: This style is flattering on almost all body types. Named after the letter "A", this dress is tight around the bodice and then flows out to the ground.
Empire: This style starts off snug just under the bust and flows out as it decends. It acts to accentuate the neckline and is a fabulous choice for those women with a small bust.
Column/Sheath: Best suited for lean figures, this simple style flows directly down from neckline to hem, giving it it's column-like appearance.
Ballgown: Just like Cindrella, this is a fairy tale of a dress. It's a fitted bodice, with a full skirt base. Ideal for slender or pear-shaped brides.
Mermaid: This style of dress contours to the body from the chest to the knee, then flares out to the hem from the knee down.
I recommending trying one of each style on just to get an idea. Dresses to look much different on then on a hanger. You will find you will narrow your decisions quickly and as you find things you like and you can veer off a certain direction.
Other options to try include various necklines, sleeves, lengths and colors, of course!
White is the traditional color, but today more and more brides are livening things up with various colored gowns.
How to choose the perfect wedding dress.
As I learned from experience, you should buy your wedding dress no later than 6 months before your wedding. It can be done in a shorter time frame, but your selection will be limited as you will not have time to order one.
When you order a wedding dress it takes at least 6 months to be made and shipped. Unfortunately nobody gave me this advice until it was too late, so I was forced to buy one "off the rack" and make alterations for it to fit me. I had picked out a dress online that I loved, but hadn't left myself enough time to order it, so had to settle for something else. Fortunately I was able to find a dress that I loved in the end. I hope you find your perfect dress too!
Selecting your wedding caterer…mmm food!
If you ask anyone that's been to a wedding lately about the little details, chances are they won't remember. They will however remember what they ate and how it taste.
What were the chairs like? Don't know.
What did they have as centrepieces? Can't remember.
How was the food? Incredible!!! We had a full course meal, chocolate cake for dessert, blah blah blah.
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I have 3 suggestions for finding a caterer:
1.) Ask anyone you know who recently got married or attended a wedding to suggest a caterer. To receive an unbiased opinion refrain from asking the bride and groom as their day will be wonderful and even a mediocre meal would be remembered as being fantastic. Instead, ask their guests. Anyone attending a wedding recently can give you an unbiased opinion of the food. If it was given a raving review, don't hesitate to ask the bride or groom who they had catering the meal.
2.) Check a wedding website. I personally used weddingbells.ca (a Canadian Bride forum) to get ideas. People offer all sorts of advice in the forums and are brutally honest at times. Wedding forums are a great resource for many opinions in addition to caterers.
3.) Look through the phone book. Almost every catering company in town should be listed so you can get an idea of how limited you may be.
After you have figured out your budget, you can call around and get pricing and check your date availability from a few companies. If the price is affordable and they are available, start exploring menu options. Buffet? Served?
I suggest meeting with a few caterers and discussing the finer details. You should get a good feeling from your caterer right aways as it will be important on the day of the wedding for the food service to go flawlessly.
Pricing may include linens, dishes and other extras. I recommend going with a caterer who will provide the entire package for one price. That makes it more simple and easier on the day of your wedding. They bring everything in, set up, and take all the dirty linens and dishes away at the end.
I used Vintage Catering in Calgary and was thrilled with their service and food. The best part however was the advice I was able to get from the caterer. She has been in the wedding industry for ages and tons of tip to offer on dresses, flowers and decorating. What an excellent resource!
Booking a hall for your wedding reception
Tips for booking a hall for your reception: (highly recommended!!!)
-The best advice I can give is to pay a little bit extra if possible to have the hall clean-up done for you! It is worth every penny. This extra fee saves you from worrying about taking down chairs and tables, moping, etc. There is nothing your close friends and family will appreciate more than getting to leave at the end of the night without any responsibilities once they have seen the bride and groom off.
-Make sure the hall is available the evening/ day before so that you can go in and decorate as well as bring all your wedding supplies over early. You don't to be setting up the hall the same day as your hair, make-up, etc. Way too hectic.
-If you want to save on costs and are providing liquor to your guests, be sure to get a liquor licence. Also, check your local legislation on bringing home-made liquor onto the premises. For example, in Calgary it is prohibited.
-a great website for finding halls and their capacities in Calgary is:
http://www.calgaryarea.com/facilities/communityfacilities.htm
