In today’s hive:
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Can someone recommend a good, reasonably priced studio for dance lessons in nyc? Thanks!
ot - we received monetary gifts from friends in similar situations (a college roommate of his, a high school friend of mine, etc) ranging from $25 to $500. The $500 was…oh…a wee bit surprising, let’s put it that way. But my point is, there’s no rule. Pick a number you’re comfortable with.
KDN - Yes, most make-up artists I’ve looked into charge for a trial. A couple apply that cost towards your day-of makeup if you book with them, but that’s been the exception more than the norm.
Andria - I’d go with friend of the bride.
Andria- I would go with friend of family.
Andria - If I were your sister, I would be offended to have my significant other of 7 years referred to as just “friend of…” Why not ask her what she wants? I’d lean towards “Bride’s Sister’s boyfriend” or “Bride’s sister’s partner”
I’ll go one better on JoJo. Why not ask the usher himself how he’d like to be described?
Jen - March is the beginning of Thailand’s “hot” season, so it can be a bit uncomfortable, but it also is the end of their high season, which means there are some great deals to be found and resorts are less crowded. We spent our honeymoon in Thailand in June, which is the beginning of the “hot/rainy season,” and we weren’t really inconvenienced by the weather at all. You get used to it, and lots of places have air conditioning.
In regards to places to stay, we loved the Peninsula in Bangkok (great location on the river). If you are visiting Northern Thailand, the Chedi in Chiang Mai is amazing - gorgeous architecture and fantastic service. Have fun!!!
We stayed at the Sukothai in Bangkok for our honeymoon and it was so incredible. I can’t recommend it highly enough. As far as going to the beach I would really recommend going off the beaten path (not Phuket) if you want to experience good Thai food and culture instead of just seeing European tourists.
Oops, typo - Sukhothai
Thanks for the Thailand responses — what about the Thai beach resorts — any suggestions?
KDN - I don’t know if it’s all that necessary for a bridesmaid to have a makeup trial. If they did, I would almost think that cost should be up to them - that is something quite “extra” in my opinion.
question: Other than Hair/Makeup/Waitstaff/transportatin, who and what is the average amount you tip?
Andria, I’d probably go with friend of the family too. I think bride’s sister’s partner just sounds too awkward (sister’s brother’s cousin’s kindergarten teacher)! 
Hi there
Just would like to ask if anyone can suggest a good spanish bridal song. Thank you so much . Luv yah all!
Jen: There’s a great little island off Phuket called Ko Racha Yai (http://www.phuket.com/theracha/) It’s an amzing little island that mostly hosts day trippers for a couple of hours and you have the beach (and reefs!) to yourself in the mornings and evenings. There are two beaches on the island and when we were there last year the reeflife extended out for at least a couple of hundred meters
RSVP card question:
My fiancee and I outsourced our cards to be printed in Hong Kong. Her relative is helping us find a vendor for the clients after we gave her 2 of our samples, and final draft of how we wanted the wording.
I am a bit of a control freak and detailed oriented, while my fiancee (female) don’t give a shite…about much about wedding planning.
I asked many questions…type of paper used, how thick, fonts, font size, website of printer, sending us a picture of how everything looks, etc., etc. My fiancee complained I ask too many questions, too picky, and all of her friends husbands didn’t do anything and was never this picky. Sigh…
Question is this…so my fiancee’s relative called her, and said things were going smoothly, and mentioned that the printer/printing press will make a tri-fold response card with NO envelope. I am GUESSING the card will be folded, 1/3 from the top, and 1/3 from the bottom, with some type of included tape or sticker for guests to seal the RSVP card. On the other side of the card will be the return address and a stamp.
When I heard this, I panicked and said, WTF?! RSVP with no envelope, but at the same time, it’s not a postcard, but some weird tri-fold card with a sticker?!
I said let’s call them later in the week and find out what’s going on. My feeling is the RSVP card should be mailed in a return envelope. Would something like a postcard or the tri-fold RSVP card be too strange?
Since my sister is the maid of honor, could I put “friend of the maid of honor”? Or would that make it sound like he is only the friend of her and not the rest of the family?
I’m leaning toward friend of the family….
Question for the hive: Has anyone had problems with Macy’s registry online? I also have registries at Williams-Sonoma and Pottery Barn, yet when I “unhide” the Macy’s registry, suddenly the links to our Williams-Sonoma and Pottery barn registries disappear. (Sneaky move, Macy’s. I’m on to you.) Any advice?
sloe-eyed - that question has been asked several times in past beehives like this one: http://www.weddingbee.com/2007/07/06/beehive-208/
linda - here’s a post we wrote on tipping awhile back: http://www.weddingbee.com/2006/03/02/to-tip-or-not-to-tip/
and if you do a search for tipping, it’s also been asked in previous beehives.
hope this helps! 
[...] Ana would like recommendations for a spanish bridal song. [...]
Ana–not sure what you mean by bridal song, but our first dance was Michael Buble’s “Cuando Cuando Cuando” and it is beautiful. good luck
Hi Ana! There are a few beautiful songs in Spanish that I would love to have as a first dance if my fiance actually spoke Spanish… one classic I love is “Que Bonito Amor”, which is especially nice if you are getting married outdoors or in the evening (”Que bonito amor, que bonita luna, que boniiiiiiito sol”). Something faster is the salsa version of Marc Anthony’s song “Tu Amor me Hace Bien” - very emotional. There’s also a ballad version if you like his style. A very pretty ballad is “Mi Buen Amor” by Gloria Estefan. Maybe the most touching lyrics, to me, are the words to La Unica by Juanes. These are just my faves, no idea if they are really traditional ‘bridal’ or first dance songs or what!
ana- as someone else had mentioned, Juanes has some great love songs!!! my spanish isn’t that fluent, but what i could make out of some of his songs is unbelievably romantic!
Beehive
Feature Launched: Aug 31, 2006
About: A forum for readers to post questions and get feedback from the hive, aka the weddingbee community.
Jen - I loved the Davis Bangkok for a hotel. Plush but very reasonably priced. A little off the beaten path but worth it!