Cheap Invitations

When you’re trying to decide what words or saying to engrave inside each other’s wedding bands, make sure you’re not saying something to cutesy or an inside joke or sexually suggestive with the words you inscribe. This lasts forever, and you’ll be wearing these rings when you’re older. Your kids will ask about the inscriptions, so think forward and choose something heartfelt rather than in-the-moment amusing.

When you start your wedding planning process – or if you haven’t done so yet, now is the time to distribute a contact list to everyone in your bridal party. The list should have everyone’s e-mail address so that they can all contact each other directly with their questions about the gowns, their deposits, the shower, and any of the other details of your wedding. That way, they won’t have to funnel all of their messages through you. It will take a ton of work off of your shoulders. Be sure and send out an e-mail asking each of them which e-mail you should use to contact them…do they may have a preference of which e-mail they would like you to use. Never give out their office e-mail addresses. The best e-mail is the one they check the most often, so it’ll be an efficient tool for them.


Have you thought about your pets during your wedding and or your honeymoon? Is there someone who would volunteer and take your pet during your wedding day? What about while your on your honeymoon? It’s best to make arrangements now. Visit several great boarding establishments. Always use a reputable boarding house, preferably one that other friends have used. If you’ve never boarded your pet before, it can be worrisome for you. If so ask a friend or relative if they can watch your pets for you. You may want to plan pre-visits with your pet to wherever they will stay to establish some familiarity with the location, the friend’s other pets and the friend who’s taking them.

Sometimes guest drag their feet or just forget to RSVP. If you have some guests who haven’t RSVP’d by the date you’ve included on any invitations, it’s best to call them. You should ask them if they are coming. You may feel this is being a bit too pushy but you’ll prevent a big etiquette faux pas of guests not having received their invitation! They do get lost in the mail. If you call, you won’t have an offended relative or friend who thinks they got left off the list. Plus this will give you a much more accurate count for catering and could save you hundreds of dollars.

Something you may not have thought about. You’ll be using your cell phone a lot in the coming months as you plan your wedding. With so many vendors and friends calling you for wedding details, and you calling them, the minutes can really add up. Ask them to call you on your regular phone, or call them right back from your home phone. Save those cell phone minutes so you don’t get slammed with overage charges, which can be in the hundreds of dollars

Many of your wedding guests will be sending gifts to you after the wedding. It would be a good idea to ask a neighbor to check your front, side and back doors for any package deliveries made while you’re away. You don’t want to risk any gift being stolen or damaged by the weather.


Have you thought about your first dance? Learn several different dances. You don’t want just your First Dance to be impressive. Arrange with your deejay or band to play some unique dances that your guests will love, try a cha cha, a samba, a tango, ask friends for some ideas too. Dancing With the Stars is a big TV hit. Let your guests show off their dancing talents at your wedding. And be sure you can join in the fun too.

You are probably planning a money dance. Make sure you have a purse you can put the money in. Many guest will bring gifts of cash or a check in an envelope. Plan on making something special to put these envelopes in. You could make their own cake-shaped gift box for the guests to insert their money envelopes into. Or how about a decorated bird cages, or a beautiful, satin, beaded ‘money handbag’ that you could also use for your money dance. What’s your plan?


Seating all your guest can be a real frustration. If you’re having problems creating a seating chart for the reception because not everyone of your family and friends are just not fitting into those 12-seater tables try this. Ask the event facility manager if you can mix up the table sizes. See if you can use some 12-seaters, some 10-seaters, and maybe a few 8-seaters if that will help solve the seating dilemma.


Your bridal party would rather have an inexpensive keepsake gift, such as a framed photo or a bracelet from Target – something they can hold onto – than have you pay for their shoes or their tuxes as your ‘gift’ to them. So that’s good news! You can spend under $20 per bridal party member and make them happier!


At the start of your planning, create a Who Pays for What list. Forget about the old-fashioned traditional lists you see online, the ones that say the bride’s family pays for everything or that the groom’s family pays for all the alcohol. Today’s wedding planning model has each group custom-designing who will pay for what, and how much, so approach parents with ‘how would you like to help us plan our wedding?’ Come to an agreement that everyone is comfortable with. Make some notes so if there are any questions later you can refer back to them. Also take into consideration that there might be grandparents who would like to pay for something specific….like maybe even your dress. Be prepared on how you will handle people / relatives who either want to help, don’t want to help or can’t help. Sometimes not accepting someone’s offer to pay for something can cause hurt feelings…so be aware, and be prepared.

When you are choosing your honeymoon location remember that cost is only one factor. Check out which season you‘ll be there. You don’t want to book your honeymoon during hurricane season or bug season, or the off season when some of the restaurants or attractions are closed. Check with your travel agent when the ‘shoulder season’ is for the locations you ‘d like. “Should season” is the time between peak and off season when prices drop but everything at the destination is still pretty much the same as it is in peak season.

Different house of worship have different rules. It’s a good idea to meet with your officiant and find out the specific rules of the house of worship you‘re going to be using. You could be surprised to find out that they don’t allow flash photography, the throwing of rice, or the placing of and/or lighting of candles. Obviously you’ll want to know this ahead of time, before you invest in any expensive décor that might get turned away, or before a guest does something inappropriate.

When working with your DJ or band you know you can make up a Play List for the songs you want to hear during your reception. But did you know that you can personalize it even more by creating a ‘When To Play List’. You can make it so slower songs are played for the dinner hour, fast songs are played during the dancing hours, and then again slower songs for the dessert hour. This way you actually get to design all the aspects of the music for your wedding day, and your DJ or band gets specific guidance on what you want to hear and when. It really does make it easier for them too.
 

Create a plan for who you want to hand out programs as guests enter your ceremony area. Child attendants can do it, and parents have even expressed interest in this task so that they can greet the relatives and friends before the ceremony starts. An honored couple can also be chosen for this task. I advise against setting programs on chairs for outdoor weddings, since they can blow away in the wind.

 

Beauty gurus advise the best color for your lips is determined by your eye color
Blue/gray eyes: Choose lipstick colors with blue or mauve undertones, neutrals with rose and mauve undertones, light pink to fuchsia, peaches and reds.
Brown eyes: Choose colors with yellow, orange or brown undertones, orange to terra cotta, corals and reds and warm neutrals. No mauve or blue undertones.
Hazel/green eyes: Choose colors with burgundy or brown undertones, neutrals with brown or rose undertones, medium pinks with rose undertones and reds.


Why is it that some wedding reception guests just can't get enough of the bride and groom kissing? They love to clink glasses at the most inconvenient times so the bride and groom barely get a chance to eat their dinner. This can
get boring to the bride and groom and to other guests.
A fresh idea is to make it a game of "copy this".
At the clinking command to kiss, select a couple. Choose people who are romantically paired: your parents, the maid of honor and her husband, the best man and his girlfriend, your brother and his wife, etc. The selected couple kiss in their most dramatic style. Then, the bride and groom have to copy their actions and kiss.
This game can add laughter and love to your reception.


Ask your photographer to capture some non-people shots, such as your gown hanging up, your jewelry laid out on the dresser, your shoes, your groom’s tux, your bouquet. These item shots are so beautiful, you’ll be glad you asked to NOT be the center of every picture

When you’re making your seating chart, make sure you seat elderly, pregnant or special needs guests closer to the buffet, or in an easy-access location they can reach without too much walking between guest tables. They’ll appreciate it.

 

A new top trend for groom’s gifts: great tickets to a sporting event. He likely has a top-notch watch, and cufflinks are great, but you can’t wear them every day. So give him the gift of a great experience, such as tickets to a playoff game, VIP box seats to a regular season game, courtside tickets. Check the website for his favorite team to see if they have special promotional seats and on-sale tickets…pro and minor league teams offer great discounts on fabulous packages.