Wedding Blog

moraht- I would do my best to avoid talking about the wedding in the girls’ presence. If the girls do bring it up, keep the discussion short, but be sure to add that it’ll be a small event.

sausita- My opinion is that you are never obligated to get a gift. That said, it might be nice to send her a card congratulating her on the upcoming nuptials.

Stacy- what about a nice printed card, using your wedding colors or motif, at the base of the centerpieces saying something like:

Following the reception, Stacy & Mr. Stacy intend to honor those that came before them by donating the flower arrangements to XYZ Church Cemetary. They hope the flowers will bring the same cheer to visitors of the Church that they have brought to you tonight.

Or, maybe you don’t want to mention the cemetary and just write that they will be donated to the XYZ Church for the enjoyment of the parish.

I think people read things on the table– looking for menus! If anyone takes them after reading that…

Stacy - I think MJ has a great idea.
morhat - could you have a pretend wedding for the kids? Like a shower for just them, and maybe show them your wedding video after your honeymoon?

Morhat - You could invite them just to the ceremony. How old are they? Could you invite them to celebrate after the dinner is served?

TN - You could, but if it is a more formal event, sending them seperatly is probably better.

Suasita - Gifts are never required, but cards are always a nice way to say congrats without spending money you don’t want to spend.

Stacy - Are you moving tables for a dance? Could you have some of the centerpieces removed at this time? Leaving just a few as decoration for the remainder of the evening (and to be taken if your guests so desire) or like MJ said, a little note somewhere letting your guests know what you are doing with them…

So here’s the deal. I am making trivia cards for all the tables at my reception. They will have pictures of either the groom, bride or the couple on one side and 4-5 questions on the other. I have 10 tables with 8 people/table and want to do 10 cards a table so there are enough for all. I have been to a number of weddings where i know the bride OR the groom and that will be the case with many of our guests. I think it will be a neat way for our friends and family to get to know us. This being said, I need about 100 cards and 4-500 questions (some will be repeats just worded differently.) I have come up with about 150 on my own and now I plead to the hive….do you have any good suggestions? Thanks in advance!

Manda- have some examples of good questions you’ve already come up with?

moraht — If you’re comfortable with the kids you teach watching your wedding ceremony, what a great experience for them. Since there are so many of them, it’s easy to explain that since you can’t afford to invite ALL of them to the reception, you wanted to instead invite ALL of them with their families (someone needs to drive them and supervise them) to the ceremony only.

On the other hand, it’s not the worst lesson in the world for kids that they aren’t invited to everything, either.

Ann — I was kind of having the same predicament. We are having a black-tie wedding in a very formal setting, and I was contemplating getting a second dress for the reception. However, personally, I don’t think a short dress is acceptable. While the dress is lovely, you need to be at least at the same formality levels than your guests, if not more formal. If you are asking others to wear floor-length gown for a black-tie optional affair, you should too. That said, you can still find a lovely long dress which is much easier (and more comfortable!) than a wedding gown, while still black-tie appropriate.

Ann-
I love the dress from that link! But I agree with Julie, that if you’re telling guests “black tie optional” you should be dressed just as formal.

isabella - check out sang along at 230 grand street.
http://www.sangalong.com
they’re our MC/DJ but i think they have lighting equipment too.

Thanks for the advices… but … OK I understand it has to be long, but does it has to be white or a bridal kind of color like ivory, cream etc?(reception dress)

morhat- I had a teacher in HS invite all of her students to the ceremony and then had a pizza party a week later where she showed pictures and and such, it was a nice atomosphere for all of us students because we would have felt awkward at the reception. We all completely understood that it would cost too much to invite all of us to the reception and would make her guest list way too long.

Angela-craiglist or facebook now has a marketplace for almost all the different networks, or of course ebay

OT- in addition to a grooms cake, maybe at the reception you could have it announced and have all the guests sing happy birthday to him. Also have two cake cuttings the one of the both of you and then him cutting his grooms cake and maybe opening a gift from you. A photo album of him through the years could also be really sweet maybe sitting next to the guest book. And of course put it in the program that it is his bday

Ann-
I don’t think that there is any rule about having to be a bridal color. While traditionally it should be a shade of white, there is no reason why you can’t be modern! My own two cents — I would go for a vibrant color that pops, like a bright red or purple, and avoid a color like navy or black, which many of your guests may be wearing. If the reason you are avoiding a long white dress is because you would never wear it again (I know I wouldn’t), I bet you could find a style that you could either dye or have shortened after the wedding — I’ve shortened several old dresses and gotten much more use out of them.

michelle — I ALWAYS take off my ring when putting on lotion, using hand sanitizer or cleaning chemicals. One thing I’ve done to avoid losing it is to take off my watch at the same time, thread the ring on to the watch band (I have a narrow metal link band on my watch), and then clasp the watch. It’s a lot bigger than the ring and hence much harder to lose.

hi there,

i’m trying to decide whether to order my gown now or later. a question for those who have been to lazaro trunk shows:

do they usually custom-make your gowns (not just hollow-to-hem but make a gown according to all of your measurements)? and it is usually complimentary?

thanks!

Thank you all for the advice on the centerpiece donations!

Brides Mom - are you my FMIL’s twin? I swear she said that EXACT same thing to us! I think we’re leaning towards the nursery home route (ok FMIL and I am - we still have to twist FI’s arm!)

Michelle–in addition to taking your ring off when putting on makeup, lotions, etc, one very easy way to keep your ring clean is to fill a glass with dishwashing soap and water (swirl the soap around a little) and then place your ring in the soapy solution. You can leave it in there for 10 minutes or so or soak it all night for the maximum clean. This works especially well for channel set rings with hard to reach grooves. I do this every few nights and my ring looks like new (I’ve had it for a year!)