I have been asked to a bridesmaid for a friends wedding. She has 5 bridesmaids in total. All of us are paying for our own dresses, shoes, accessories, hair, makeup etc.
She is having a hen’s night that has progressed from an original idea of dinner and drinks (like the normal), to a weekend away, with lunches, dinners, cocktails, games etc and we are all supposed to be paying for this. She has told us to put an asking price on the invites for the other women of $70 to cover costs.
This I can put up with and i will try and fork out the money (should cost me around $200 before we take into account dresses etc as mentioned above for the actual wedding day) even though I have a mortgage to pay and financially can’t really afford it.
She wants to have all the bridesmaids stay the night before the wedding but I have two new puppies and two cats at home whom i can’t find someone to looks after whom I trust. She is now very cranky at me about it and trying to put the guilts on me, but i simply can’t leave my animal babies overnight. Not that i want to in the first place but they will destroy my home.
What do I do? I don’t want to upset her, which I clearly have but is she being unreasonable or am I not performing correctly as a bridesmaid? I am not the maid of honour. And she will not be alone the night before the wedding, she has 4 other woman to stay with her?
Opinions?????
There is always controversy for brides to be when they decide to buy a wedding dress. Cause we all know that it usually cost girls about thousand dollars when buying a beautiful wedding dress. But after wedding what can we do with those wedding dress? First, we don’t want to keep it until throw them away. Second, we lost too much money when selling to a second hand store. This is puzzled me. However since we could buy dresses online, things seem to be change. We can buy gorgeous wedding dresses on ambersbridal.com, or other bridals online with inexpensive price.
Is the problem solved? No, girls get new problems to concern. Is online shopping risky or the dresses quality good enough？
As a girl like me with economical ideal, we decide to choose a good online shop with fair reputation, good CS and good quality. And what’s your ideal, girls?
This is the wedding dress what I bought online. http://www.ambersbridal.com/sheath-column-strapless-floor-length-organza-wedding-dress-with-ruffles.html
How is this like? Similar with Vera Wang, ha？Luck for me, the dress are very good in quality. While it only cost me about $300.
What is your dilemma now?
The issue is about a friend I have from school and her boyfriend.
She and her boyfriend were together for a year before he proposed. She told me that she was nagging him to propose to her for months before he actually did. She treats her boyfriend like crap, she cracks it at every little thing and he looks miserable all the time. They’re both still young (the guy’s 19 and she’s 20) and every time my friend and I go out with our friends she bitches and moans about how she wants to leave him and how he isn’t good enough for her. Then she goes back to him and starts treating him like **** again.
She’s still planning the wedding though she wants me to be her maid of honour. I feel so bad for this guy (he’s best mates with my boyfriend) and I hate that she treats him this way. But I don’t feel i’m in the right place to say anything. Should I let her get away with this and be in the wedding??
What should I do??
I have a large family (about 78) and I was planning to have a smaller wedding. I want to invite all my aunts and uncles (17 people), but when it comes to the cousin, that will add a whole bunch of heads. I am not terribly close with a bunch of them. However, I do want to invite two families of cousins no matter what because we are close. Is this an all or nothing thing? Can I invite some cousins and not the others?
For those of you who don’t know, we are getting married this June. We were hoping to send out the invitations by this week-end and all was going as planned until we were offered another apt. in our building. It is not a sure thing yet BUT our current address (with our current apt. #) are already on all of the invitations. We won’t be moving until at least next week-end. What should we do? 
My fiance and I are Afrikaans, however he is half Greek. He speaks English to his Greek family as he can’t really speak Greek. We are going to have to send out invites in 2 different languages: Afrikaans and English. My mother suggested that we word the invites (in both languages):
Mary & Tim Smith (my parents)
and
Carol Green (his mom)
invites you to the wedding of
Susan and Brad (our names, but printed in gold and “bound” together by curls and swirls)
But now my fiance says that he wants his late father’s name on the English invites (for his Greek family) as it’d be important to them. On the English invites he wants to put the traditional
“Susan, daughter of
Mary and Tim Smith”
and “Brad son of
Carol and John Green”
But this would mean that the insides of the invites would be different and it’s mess up my entire design (I want his and my names written together as we’re both nearing our 30’s and not marrying out of our parents’ homes.
My mother wants their and his mom’s names to appear in the invites as they’re pretty much paying for the wedding and my mom considers herself the hostess.
What should I do?? How can I word it?! (My mom suggested saying “In memory of… or in honor of John Green” somewhere on the invite, but my fiance doesn’t like this idea)
So I’m planning to get married in approximately 1.5 yrs. I’ve anticipated a problem and need some advice.
My grandfather is a preacher and was the officiant at my sister’s wedding as well as my father’s second wedding. I’m close to my grandfather and do not wish to hurt his feelings, but I don’t want him to do the wedding. My bf and I are both very close to this other preacher and we both want him to do the wedding. He’s even doing our premarriage counseling.
How do I break the news to my granddad without coming across as unloving or uncaring to my family? What are some other ‘jobs’ I could get papaw to do instead of the wedding ceremony?
When it comes to your wedding reception you may feel the need to design a seating plan so that you assign your guests a particular table with other guests that they will feel comfortable with. However, in some cases a seating plan may not be necessary. When it comes to this part of your wedding planning, read these tips first to make sure you organize your seating to perfection!
Do I need a Seating Plan?
If your wedding reception is small & informal then a seating plan may not be necessary. However, if you are having a large number of guests & a formal sit down dinner then it is a good idea to draw up a seating plan so that you guests can find a table quickly & efficiently. Many of your guests will want to sit with family & friends so a seating plan will prevent a mad rush of guests all trying to sit together at the same tables! Having a seating plan that places people who will get along together will help to create the happy atmosphere that you want for your wedding meal & will make a difference to your guest’s enjoyment of the day.
Within your wedding planning you will find a number of options available for your seating plan. These range from:
No plan at all – best for standing buffets or small & informal events.
Assign guests to tables – you allocate guests to tables but the choice of seat is theirs.
Assign guests to seats – you specify the seats at which each guest will sit.
When it comes to deciding on a seating plan, bear in mind that you should do what you think will make your guests most comfortable.
The Top Table Dilemma
The traditional top table is a long table on which sits the bride & groom in the center & the rest of the wedding party beside them. Whilst this is still the favored choice, there are other alternatives being used as family structures become more complicated.
Traditionally the top table would look something like this:
Chief Bridesmaid–G.Father–B.Mother-Groom-Bride-B.Father-G.Mother-Best Man
Alternatives are used where parents are divorced & maybe remarried or have a new partner. Another popular choice is to do away with the top table altogether & just have a table for the two of you.
Top Tips for Other Tables
1. Seating families or close friends all on one table may not do much to encourage mingling between guests, although these guests will be relaxed. Sitting people who don’t know each other may be daunting for those concerned & again may not do much for the atmosphere. The best advice is to mix the tables up so that there is a combination of new & old friends. Consider your guests ages & interests also & try to seat like for like together, they are more likely to get on & have fun that way.
2. Singles can be a dilemma, especially if a large number of your guests are couples. It can be tempting to try a little matchmaking but this could back fire, making both parties & you uncomfortable & embarrassed. Avoid a singles table & try to place them on tables with other likeminded guests whom you think they will get along with.
3. Etiquette rules apply depending on the shape of the tables you are using. For round tables sit male & female guests alternately. If you are using long tables sit couples opposite one another & alternate male/female along the table.
4. Reserve the tables closest to yourselves for close friends & family.
5. Make sure each table has a name or number to identify it. You could theme them according to things relevant to you both, for instance name after your favorite places you have visited together, or your favorite films. Your venue may make these cards for you, but make sure they are shown on your seating plan.
6. If you want to assign a specific seat to each guest then you will need to write out name cards which you can then place at each setting. Aside from the traditional name card, you can use menus or wedding favors for the same purpose.
Creating your Seating Plan
Start putting together your seating early in your wedding planning. You can start even before you have had back all of your RSVP’s as you will know already who is definitely coming.
When you start ask your venue for a plan of how the tables will be arranged on the day & decide on which shape of table you will use. You will also need to know how many guests you can seat at each one.
Putting together your plan can take some time & may involve many revisions to get it right. A good tip is to write each guests name down on separate pieces of paper & do the same for each table. You can then arrange the tables out & assign guests to each one. Experiment by moving them around until you find the right layout for you. In recent years there have been numerous software programs developed to help with organizing your seating plan which can save you time & a great deal of stress as well!
