Celebrate This Spring and Summer Wedding and Party Season in Stunningly Stylish Maternity Wear

For working woman, the style and look of your clothes is as important during your pregnancy as before because how you dress each morning reflects how you feel about yourself and how you feel about your job. It is important to have the right maternity work wear. Fortunately, maternity wear today is stylish, tailored, sexy and comfortable, not to mention well made.

Generally, when it comes to dressing for the office, women should stick to their normal office wear making a few modifications for their new figure. In certain professions though, a more formal appearance is required and an investment in a good maternity suit in a 'safe' colour, such as black, navy, dark brown or gray is a must have. These are colours that say 'take me seriously' and are associated with professionalism.

If you're used to wearing suits to work, there is no need to stop when you're pregnant because a good suit creates the perception of a competent professional. It's also important to have a power outfit for those special meetings, client engagements and presentations. When looking for maternity suiting, focus on tailored maternity trousers, tailored maternity pencil skirts, maternity blazers and/or a high quality maternity jacket.

It is now possible to find beautifully made maternity suits. When choosing your maternity suit make sure it is tailored and made from appropriate suiting fabrics. There is nothing worse than buying a maternity suit only to find that the fabric is cheap and flimsy. This will never send the right message and contradicts your professional message since most professionals can spot a cheap suit from twenty feet.

Maternity Trousers - Wide-leg maternity trousers look best on taller woman while smart tailored trousers are best for women who are shorter. You can pair them with a stylish flat for a smart comfortable look. Maternity trousers with a belly band are easy to wear and also provide support. Make sure to scrunch the fabric of the trousers before you purchase them though. Ideally you don't want the pants to crumple and crease because you want the fabric to hang nicely off the body, lengthening the legs without creasing too readily. A good tailored maternity pant should have an adjustable waistline that is completely hidden so no one can ever see any embarrassing stretch panels while you're trying to give a presentation in a board meeting.

Maternity Skirts - Your skirt should match your suit jacket and be hemmed at mid-knee or below. Maternity pencil skirts always look smart when paired with a blazer or jacket creating an attractive and professional silhouette.

Maternity Blazer or Jacket - Never underestimate the power of a suit jacket. The jacket is the most versatile piece of maternity business wear that you can have in your wardrobe. With the right jacket you can dress up or down to suit the needs of your personal preference and the degree of casual or professional attire you need to wear to the office.

Add Style and Personal Expression to your Maternity Suiting

Stylish Accessories - Creating style using accessories is easy and affordable. Colourful scarves, statement pieces jewellery, a couple bangles and a chic bag can make you look and feel fabulous.

Jewel Toned Blouses -Jewel tones always look sophisticated. When you pair a blouse with a simple pair of tailored maternity pants and a blazer, a dark jewel tone can add a gorgeous pop of colour. Just imagine a black suit with a silk blouse in deep purple or emerald green. Your wardrobe will go from boring to wow instantly!

Following the key points above when looking for maternity suiting will ensure that you are always dressed professionally during your maternity.

Decorating Ideas for a Barn on Your Dream Wedding Day

It is not easy to decorate a barn for your dream wedding and reception, but with careful planning and creative thought it can be romantic and lovely or country and rustic. There are barns in some areas that are actually built to accommodate weddings and receptions, dances and other social events. In most cases a barn needs tender loving care, creative minds and careful planning to be transformed into your dream wedding location.

These tips and ideas are for you, so read on to see what you can find that will make your barn wedding just as the two of you want it to be. Since a barn is set in an outdoor setting that might be a field, a farmyard or grassy surroundings it is important to make sure that this is neat and as groomed as possible.

Clean-up and Conveniences for Guest

As most barns are not made for weddings it might require a clean-up before you can start to decorate. Clean walls, floors and window to remove dust and dirt. Be sure to check for loose nails, wood splinters anything else that could be a hazard to your wedding guests. You will need to know what or where restrooms are available if any and provide them if necessary.

The other important thing is proper heating and cooling for the guests comfort. You will also want to have adequate outlets for lighting and if you are having musicians or a DJ they will also require electrical outlets. Check too, for adequate parking spaces for you and your guests.

Outdoor Decorations

Corn stalks or bales of hay placed along the pathway to the barn makes it an inviting walk to the barn entrance. Also, the same stalks and bales placed at the entrance gives it a welcoming look as your guest go inside. Hanging curtains or drapes give a warm welcoming look to your entrance doors, too. It's not difficult to hang curtains or drapes on each side of the barn door entrance. The only thing is you must find ones that are long enough. You can cut lengths of fabric and hem each end. An option, is to buy regular curtains and then stitch a wide piece of ruffled lace or tulle across the bottom of each one to make it a longer length. It is likely you will not find a curtain rod long enough to go across a barn door opening, use a separate curtain rod for each curtain. Hang the rods on the inside of the door. Wild flowers growing around the barn or large bouquets of them placed nearby is another idea to consider. A fun idea is a truck load of hay and after the ceremony offer hay rides to the young and young-at-heart.

Indoor Decorations

The Walls

They will usually be large open spaces and unpainted and in need of some tender loving care to transform them into a wedding venue. An idea you might use is to hang Mexican blankets, beautiful handmade quilts, Native American blankets or other fabrics that would complement your theme colors on the walls almost as artwork. Lean wagon wheels and other theme items along the walls or you can even hang them on the walls. For a wedding kind of look drape greenery and tulle around pillars, ledges or from beams. Other decorations that would fit beautifully into the theme and show a bit of a creative flare is to make a lasso into the shape of a heart or color horseshoes in you wedding theme colors and add to the wall decor.

Lighting

As you know barns are most often dark and drab if they are not lit properly. But you can make it dreamy with great lighting I suggest you use candles that are battery-operated and place them on window ledges and tables.

Also, wrap rope lights or twinkle lights around pillars and along the barn beams. Hanging lanterns from the rafter beams also gives the barn setting a magical look. There may be restrictions on candles and things that have an open flame so be sure and clear this with the persons allowing you the use of the barn For a more elegant event couples have hung chandeliers from the ceiling. What a lovely and romantic look this gives.

Flowers

Flowers are a very important part of wedding decorations and do a great job of adding color and a brightness to your decor. Bigger blooms such as sunflowers are perfect, and make good use of farm type accents like pumpkins and fall leaves if a fall theme.

Other suggestions for anytime of the year would be seasonal veggies and potted plants and flowers. Hay will give you a country rustic look as well. As vases and containers try using mason jars, watering cans and galvanized pails or buckets. Great baskets are also good way to display accents for your rustic or country theme.

Tables

This is a wonderful way to express your theme and bring wedding theme colors into the barn. Again remember the barn is probably darker woods so need a lift which you can do with bright cloths and napkins and wedding favors. They might be checkered cloths or cloths of one color and a contrasting color for your napkins. I really like the idea of rich earth tone cloths and a runner of burlap down the center of the table. Here are but a few tips and ideas to get your creative juices going so that you can transform your wedding barn into the perfect setting for your dream wedding day. I truly hope that these decorating ideas for a barn wedding can inspire you.

Pakistani Wedding - Three Top Tips for Selecting Pakistani Wedding Clothes

Three Top Tips for Selecting Pakistani Wedding Clothes

Wedding is a very important day in the life of a Pakistani bride and a bridegroom, as the bride loves to flaunt the elegant Pakistani wedding clothes on this day. Needless to say, intensive preparations are carried out to make this event a grand success, as many features demand the attention of the bride. One of the most important aspects that invite the undivided attention of the bride is the wedding dress, and with extensive variety, the bride looks forward to select the best outfit.

Traditional Dress

When the bride wants to pick the best dress for the wedding, there are many options that attract the attention of the bride. There are wedding clothes that are modern, and there are clothes that fall under the traditional variety. Invariably, brides are known to select the wedding dress that comes with traditional work, as wedding is an occasion that calls for such colorful and wonderful dresses. The traditional designs of the wedding clothes include the whites and pastel shades, which never fail to attract the brides.

Trendy Outfits

For the bride who wants to get dressed in trendy outfits, wedding dress that combines the traditional value as well as the current trends, which cater to the taste of the bride happens to be the ideal choice. There are big trends that tend to lure the attention of the brides, which come in the form of stone work, pearl work and semi-precious stones that increases the charm of the bridal outfits.

The various designs and the attractive colors of these trendy outfits provide the needed choice, and the brides are also known to give importance to the color of the wedding dress, as in a way that the color of the outfit matches with the complexion of the bride.

Designer Outfits

There are many designers who introduce capitulating designs related to wedding dresses, which really look good on the Pakistani brides. The designers in particular introduce the designs related to wedding clothes that embrace the traditional features as well as modern looks to attract the attention of the brides. As a result of this, the brides can come across enticing designs, which carry the looks pertaining to that of a Pakistani outfit as it also carries western influence along with it.

The designers usually make use of colors very well as when they design wedding clothes, and the colors like maroon, cream, pink and gold find the favor of the designers. When the bride wants to possess a contemporary look on this important day, the designer outfits prove to be the right choice, as they contain the right mix of traditional and modern features.

As when a bride waits eagerly to pick the best Pakistani wedding clothes, the many designs, patterns, colors and types provide the needed choice to select the perfect wedding dress.

What Should People Wear to the Wedding?

If you're getting married soon or you have weddings to attend this season, you're going to have to consider wedding dress codes and what they mean. One way to find out what kinds of clothing to wear to a wedding is to ask others, possibly the mother of the bride or the bridesmaids, what they think is appropriate. You could also ask other guests what they are wearing, or as a last resort, ask the bridal couple themselves what they would like you to wear. There are clues you can use to find out for yourself what is appropriate to wear to a wedding. Here they are:

1. Check the invitation
There are clues everywhere in an invitation that will signal to you what is appropriate to wear to that wedding. Is the invitation on embossed linen with lots of big words in fancy script? That wedding is probably going to be on the formal side. Is it a colorful or simple wedding invitation welcoming you to come watch while they "get hitched"? That points to a more casual affair. If you can find out how many people will be attending the wedding, that will help you know if it is going to be a large, small, or intimate gathering. Intimate weddings can be more formal, but you'll want to check with the rest of the clues because they can also end up black-tie.

2. Consider the facts
Where is the wedding being held? Is it in a cathedral? At the justice of the peace? On a farm? On a beach? All of these will have their own wardrobe necessities. Make sure you wear comfortable shoes for an outside wedding, a hat or covering for a sunny beach wedding, and a wrap for a religious wedding: cover those bare shoulders! Also, consider the time of day. Daytime weddings before 6pm have different clothing requirements than those that happen in the evening. Also, consider the season. You'll wear different weights and colors of clothing in the summer than you will in the winter.

3. Use the clues in the wording
Often the invitation will tell you right out what kind of wedding attire to wear. For a daytime summer wedding, a woman will need a light, flowing, or short, "church" dress, a light-colored suit, or a light skirt and blouse. In the winter, she'll need a skirt and sweater set or light-colored suit. For a daytime summer wedding, a man will need a light-colored and lightweight suit, preferably linen, or a dress shirt and slacks, possibly with a light-colored blazer. In the winter, he'll need a wool suit or the dress shirt, slacks, and blazer. They should be light-colored unless the wedding is also formal. In that case, wear darker colors.

For an evening wedding, a woman should wear a short cocktail dress or a dressy suit in darker colors. Avoid sequins unless it is to a black-tie event. A man should wear a dark suit unless for a casual wedding. Then, refer to daytime wedding attire.

For black-tie optional, the woman's dress will become floor-length and the man may choose a dark suit or a tuxedo. For strictly black-tie, wear a formal, floor-length dress with formal jewelry and accessories. The only option for a man at a black-tie even is a tuxedo.

There are several things you should never wear to a wedding. Don't wear all white unless you are the bride. Don't wear all black to a daytime wedding. Don't wear anything sexy or revealing. Don't wear anything torn or dirty. And possibly the most important rule of wedding attire: never wear anything that will upstage the bride.

Various Themes For Weddings and How to Put Them Together

Getting married is a momentous occasion where an unbelievable amount of planning is required. Most couples need at least one entire year to plan and organize all of the logistics that are involved in pulling off the wedding of their dreams. Today, many couples hire a wedding planner or a consultant to help them with the several details of hiring different vendors, ordering unique wedding favors, helping with the wedding toast and tying it all together. Most wedding consultants start with asking the couple what type of theme they would like to have and convey at their wedding. Often times, the theme may be related to the time of year such as a Winter Wonderland theme or the location such as a wine theme that takes place in a vineyard. This article will explore some of the themes that may be used for a wedding and ideas surrounding them.

Many brides say their favorite season is Christmastime and that they absolutely wish to get married during this winter holiday season. One great benefit to this is that many churches and reception locations are already decorated for Christmas with evergreen trees, poinsettias and winter garlands so you would not have to spend hardly any money on decorations. A nice idea for the wedding cake would be to make the tiers look like wrapped presents with fresh evergreen sprigs around it. Also, bridesmaids and the bride could have some kind of faux muff or shrug with their dresses to fit the theme.

Another theme would be a nature centered one that is set in the outdoors or near the mountains. This outdoor ceremony would center on the natural beauty such as a beautiful mountain view to say your vows. Great places for this would be Jackson Hole (WY), Vail (CO) or Lake Tahoe (CA). This theme would be more relaxed in attire with the bride maybe wearing a short sundress and the groom in khakis or shorts with a casual shirt. Handpicked wildflowers would be the best flowers to be used and an organic vegetarian inspired menu to be served would be perfect. End the service by planting a tree in the spot you got married and plan to plant more on your anniversaries.

For Renaissance fair or period lovers, a medieval wedding theme would be fun. Go to a renaissance festival in your area for vendors that sell medieval clothing that would be perfect for your nuptials. Most people that get married with this theme dress in the royal style of the medieval times. Serve food such as turkey, venison or mutton and use wooden plates to set the tone and if you can, find a castle location which would be ideal for this theme. All of these ideas will make you feel like Romeo and Juliet on their wedding day.

If you do not want to do an over the top theme, then simply go with the season and the colors of that season such as reds, oranges and yellow for a fall wedding or bright pinks, and blues for a summer one.

Men's Beach Wedding Attire Made Easy

If you've already decided to have a beach wedding then let me congratulate you on making a wonderful choice. Beach weddings can be some of the most romantic and memorable of weddings no matter what your budget happens to be. After all, the beach and the ocean provide a priceless setting, so all you have to do is properly fill in the details.

When considering men's beach wedding attire the number one rule is to follow the bride's lead. You will want the groom and the groomsmen to be within a certain range of the bride's vision, but after that choosing your clothes can be a simple, painless, and yes, even a pleasurable endeavor.

The simple guide for men's beach wedding attire is to stick with cotton and linen clothing. Cotton and linen are "breathable fabrics" that will allow the men wearing them to look good as well as feel comfortable. Seersucker suits and clothing are basically just another form of cotton clothing, so that can always fit the bill nicely.

Fortunately, there are many places to shop for "dress casual" beach style clothing. There are many "tropical" stores and websites that will have a wide variety of choices if you are going with a Hawaiian feel for your wedding. But don't overlook the Cuban, Caribbean, Latin and South American wear that is also available with the click of the mouse.

Many a groom and his groomsmen have been the hit of the beach wedding (after the bride of course!) when they show up in the beach "dress casual" wear from Cuba, Argentina, or some other culture that the guests are not very familiar with. There are many, many wonderful choices for your men's beach wedding attire if you take the time to look.

Most of the color themes of men's wedding attire are your basic whites, tans, and browns, and even orange. They alone can be classy and comfortable, but don't be afraid go with more robust colors, as long as it adds a little flourish to the brides overall theme. Just make sure it does not clash too much with what the bride is going for or you may find yourself regretting your attempt to add some piazza to your wedding ceremony.

To sum up, remember that you will be standing on a potentially hot beach, fully clothed. Cotton and linen are probably your best choices. Seersucker is also cotton and comes in many looks. Stick with the general tone the bride has set and you should be not just looking spectacular, but feeling good too. Now that you've got the right information I'm sure whatever you choose will be right for the setting and right for you.

Selecting the Best Wedding and Bridal Shower Favors

What kind of wedding favors are you looking for? Do you possibly have a bridal shower or event where you need to find favors fast? Planning a wedding is stressful, and I know you already chose your dress, shoes, tuxes, and flowers. what more can you do? Take this time with your fiance to get together and get to know each other even more, because you do have a lifetime ahead of you. Look for some football cuff links for the groomsmen so they get in the spirit too. By catering to everyone in the wedding - guys and girls, that is - you allow everyone to feel special and make a unique memory for all.

Groomsmen can be picky when it comes to wedding shower gifts, so take the safe route by choosing sports-related favors. It'll show them how much you care and appreciate their involvement in the wedding. Plus, you know they're getting something they'll enjoy and can show off to their friends. What can you do for the flower girl and ring bearer? Find fun toys or games they can play as well. There's so much confusion and planning that goes into a wedding, that you sometimes don't remember to thank the ones that made it all possible!

Discovering the ideal wedding shower favor shows these people the about you care for and love them and will always be a lasting token of your gratitude. Even people who aren't in the wedding,such as in-laws and important relatives, like to receive wedding shower favors as they helped too, and deserve to be thanked. For example, my aunt was very helpful in my wedding so I wanted to find a great way to compliment her personality and being a part of my life for so long; she is my blood, after all.

Many bridesmaids also like to get customized shirts that say the name of the bride to be. Look for unique clothing options that you can possibly screen print in a new way. They'll remember your wedding shower for the rest of their lives because of the uniqueness and the personalization that came along with it, not to mention the free gifts! Women and girls alike love candy, so try to find chocolate bars and gift bags like scented lotions for your girls. Be original and look for a bridal shower favor for each one.Another very popular choice for showers is games. They get everyone pumped up and in the right spirit, and the trophies that can be won are priceless mementos they'll be able to cherish forever. What are some fun games you have played in the past? If you are one of the many bridesmaids this year, try to help out your bride with suggestions.

I personally had a hard time finding bridal shower favors. It felt like I went to every store and I finally had to shop online to find what I wanted. Shopping online is an easy way to see what you may like without the leg work. Even if you have a big or small wedding, you can check out new website that will deliver it all to your own home. Just type wedding favors into the search engine and it will give you a long list to choose from. Wedding favors are an extremely popular thing for weddings, because who doesn't like to get presents?

You know that your friends will truly dig your wedding because you've made them a part by integrating their quirks and likes with the personality of your wedding. It will definitely be a day to remember for not just you, but everyone who attended.

Party Tents for Weddings and Birthdays

If you are planning to host a large wedding, banquet, barbeque or other event where a large number of individuals may be in attendance then it is important to have suitable accommodations. Often it is not possible to host such large scale events indoors and factors such as weather and other conditions have to be taken into account. This is the situation where party tents are a great choice. These very versatile tents can come readymade and customized to suit many outdoor events. They may also come in many adaptable sizes and colors and be suitable for many conditions. The use of the party tent is not restricted by any means to only the once in a while use but can be seen in use in many hotels, clubs and resorts as fixtures.

The cost of party tents varies mainly according to the size and they are more commonly rented rather than owned. The field of renting these tents has therefore become a very popular and lucrative one lately. These tents have the advantage of providing a look that is both classic and inviting. They are normally guaranteed against all types of weather conditions such as both rain and sunshine. The only downfall of some of these tents is that they may be susceptible to wind so it is normally advisable to get a tent with a heavy material if the weather conditions are anticipated to be windy.

The party tents available today are very modern structures that may come with very appealing interiors that are fashionable as well as they may have additional features such as air conditioning for the summer and heating for the winter months. There are generally two broad categories for party tents. These are the pole tent and the frame tent. The pole tent is basically a pole that is covered with a canvas. The frame tent has a large aluminum frame or steel structure that supports the cloth without the need for any support in the middle of the tent.

The party tents available are quite simple to install and normally when rented this includes installation. Before deciding on a tent however several things should be taken into consideration. The occasion being planned is important as this makes a difference in deciding whether a tent with a lot of fancy accessories will be necessary. If the occasion is smaller then the use of a tent that is less fancy will be appropriate. The size of the tent required should also be considered as well as if the tent is going to be used for the view as well as shade as options such as a canopy tent are available. The use of the tent is important as if space is an issue pole tents can be avoided in preference to frame tents that do not have the pole in the middle. There are also many accessories available to the tent renter and these must also be considered and include items such as lighting.

Wedding Rentals Can Help Make Your Big Day Special

When you are planning a wedding, the expenses can add up quickly. Wedding rentals in Edmonton can help you save money on all of your big day needs. You can rent everything from tables and chairs to decorations and dinnerware. Purchasing all of these items could cost a fortune. Renting them will save you time and money. There are many places to look at online.

You can browse through an online catalogue to get some fresh ideas for your special day. Special back drops and accessories can help make your day glamorous and exciting, without making you sacrifice your life savings. Each bride is different and as such has different ideas for how she wants her special day to look.

Whether your dream wedding includes cloth table cloths and wrapped chairs or special place card holders and candelabras, you can find exactly what you are looking for by renting. From covered white canopies for a special reception held outdoors to all white table cloths adorning beautifully decorated tables, you are sure to find exactly what you are looking for by browsing their extensive catalogue.

You can visit their showroom to see their professionally arranged and decorated tables. You can use their pre-created ideas, or decide on creating an arrangement or setting uniquely your own for your big day. You can add your own personal touches by choosing your favors and candles for each place setting. Setting a beautiful table for your guests will make it a memorable day for them, as well.

Exploring options for wedding rentals in Edmonton can help you find the right accessories and items for making your day unforgettable. Thousands of people save a lot of money every day by renting their various supplies and accessories. There are many benefits to using a rental company for your big day needs. The savings will allow you to have a bigger day than you ever dreamed possible.

Mother of the Bride and Mother of the Groom Etiquette FAQ

When your son or daughter gets engaged, a number of questions run through your head. Especially if this is your first child to be married, you might not know exactly what you do during wedding planning, what pre-wedding parties you should attend, or what to wear on the wedding day. This article should shed a little light on some of your questions about your role in your child's wedding.

What Wedding Costs Am I Responsible for Paying?

One of the most burning question for most parents is: who pays for what? Tradition dictates that the costs for the wedding and reception fall on the bride's family, but many couples share the cost between families. In other words, anything goes. So you need to talk about it and find out how you'd like to divvy things up.

What Is My Role in Wedding Planning?

If you are the mother of the bride, you'll be helping your daughter choose her wedding dress, draw up the guest list and seating charts, plus help with anything else she asks you to do. Last but not least, you'll also need to empathize with her through-the-roof stress level while she's trying to plan the perfect day. Remember to stay positive, let your daughter make the final decision, and be constructive if you absolutely feel you must criticize. You'll also need to reserve blocks of hotel rooms for out-of-town relatives, meet the mother of the groom if you haven't already, and buy your dress.

The mother of the groom can largely take it easy during wedding planning. Just be there for your son and let him know you're there to help. Traditionally, the groom is responsible for arranging wedding transportation and planning the honeymoon - so he might ask you to help in those areas. You will also be in charge of reserving hotel rooms for out-of-town family members coming in for the wedding, speaking with the mother of the bride, and buying a dress for yourself.

Do I Plan the Bridal Shower? Do I Attend it?

No planning is required from you - just show up and enjoy. The bridal shower is thrown by the maid of honor or another friend of the bride, and both the mother of the bride and mother of the groom are invited. We know you're already taking a hit to the pocketbook planning the wedding, but it's still appropriate to buy the bride a gift for the shower.

Do I Go to the Bachelorette Party?

A bachelorette party is the bride's "last chance" to just have fun with her friends as a single girl, so it's more typical for her to celebrate it with her peers only. Inviting mothers is more of an exception to the rule, so don't be offended if you aren't invited.

Do LDS Temple Weddings Involve a Rehearsal Dinner?

If the ceremony takes place inside the temple, there will be no rehearsal, but many families choose to go out to dinner together to celebrate the night before the wedding as a nice gesture, anyway. The groom's family typically pays for the dinner.

What Is My Role at the Reception?

At the reception, the mothers of the bride and groom are the hostesses. You should make it a point to greet each guest, chatting with the ones you know and introducing yourself to the ones you don't. Traditionally, you will sit at the designated parents' table at the reception. Mothers typically aren't asked to make a toast or speech, but your children may decide that they want you to. Some receptions involve a mother-son dance, but not all do.

What Do I Wear for an LDS Wedding?

The mother of the bride and mother of the groom at a Mormon wedding (LDS Weddings) should choose tasteful dresses appropriate for a formal event. The old policy of LDS Temple sealing guests wearing their temple clothes has changed. Now when you attend a temple sealing, you simply wear your dress clothes inside.

There are lots of questions for the LDS mother of the bride and LDS mother of the groom, especially now that tradition is more of a guideline than a hard-and-fast rule. This article provides a start, but open communication with your child is key in knowing exactly where you fit in his or her wedding plans.

LDS weddings are all about eternal families and remember that LDS Weddings in the Temple are done "for Time and All Eternity."

Cultural Similarities in Wedding Gift Practices

As an interesting glimpse into the differences and similarities that exist among different cultures, the practices surrounding Tibetan wedding gifts can serve to demonstrate some of the universals that underlie surface differences among wedding traditions.

Within our own culture, we tend to have a sort of unquestioning acceptance of the traditions and practices surrounding weddings. True, we may need to check out specific points of wedding etiquette to be sure we don't transgress or forget some important rule, but we rarely think about the source and reasons that can underlie these traditions and rules.

Tibet is a country so far from the usual in the minds of most westerners that they might expect bizarre and unusual practices to surround wedding gifts. In reality, while Tibetan wedding gifts are still very strongly embedded in the past traditions, they are a hardly a surprise to anyone familiar with how western marriage customs have evolved.

Tibetan wedding gift practices begin when the marriage is first proposed. In general marriages are still arranged by the young persons' parents and may be proposed by either the potential bride's or groom's family. After the "Democratic Reform" in 1959, the extremely strict rules requiring equal social and economic status of the two families were substantially relaxed, though great disparities in status, quite naturally remain rare. Equally, the young couple may have met and fallen in love well before one of families makes the proposal. Usually, the family with whom the couple will live makes the proposal and today there is much less social concern about which family the couple will live with.

At the time of the proposal, gifts are provided by the proposing family to each member of the other family. These gifts, with the exception of the hada, a strip of silk or linen, are utilitarian, but also symbolic, items including clothes and cloth, wheat, butter, mutton and wine as well as what is called "milk" and "apron" money for the mother as an expression of thanks for the raising of the child. It is customary for the proposing family to provide the day's food and at the end of the day, assuming the proposal is accepted, which is the usual case, they will be given hadas and other gifts.

A dowry or betrothal gift is also traditionally presented by the family marrying off their child. The specific nature of the dowry gifts depend on the financial conditions of the family and can range from jewels and so on to more typical and utilitarian gifts such as cloth, clothes, quilts and food. Wedding gifts from guests are again dependent on economic conditions but are generally similar to previous gifts - clothes, cloth, food, wine, money and, today, domestic appliances as well.

While the custom of the dowry is no longer common in the west, the tradition of the bride's family paying for the wedding still is. Curiously, Tibetan customs appear to be ahead of the west in providing a more egalitarian approach to this. In the west, gifts often begin with the engagement which is equivalent to the proposal in Tibet. While the specific gifts vary, they are generally also utilitarian and designed to aid the future couple in establishing their household. In the west also, economic conditions of the giver will affect the specific gifts and the cost.

Aside from the use of marriage as a way to reinforce social ties and bonding and to integrate the new couple into the community, it seems quite obvious that cultures everywhere use the wedding gift process associated with marriage both to confirm that the new union will have a reasonable chance at economic success and, once that is established, to provide specific items that directly support the new couple in establishing their household and a new life. Looking just slightly beyond the surface, we can see that we all, regardless of culture, have common needs and problems involved in major life changes and surprisingly similar methods of responding to and resolving them. In a very real sense, cultural factors and belief structures which often seem to create huge barriers to understanding, are an overlay on our basic human condition and as we learn to see beneath the surface, the world becomes a less confusing place filled with people much like ourselves instead of distant and incomprehensible aliens.

Cheap Wedding Dresses - A Close Look

Wedding brings joy and bliss not only to the bride or the groom but to their parents as well. The parents want their daughter or son to look perfect in designer clothes. These designer clothes bear the logo of well-known and reputed fashion designers which make them very costly. Also they are made with high level of creativity which adds to their cost. But apart from this there are cheap wedding dresses made by other apparel manufacturers that can cost you comparatively at a low price. If you are looking for these types of dresses you can find them for yourself in online stores. These cheap wedding dresses are stitched by an excellent team headed by the person who designs it.

The team here consists of diligent designers, professional operators, sales professionals and quality checkers. The top quality fabrics are used to make these dresses. Embroidery is done either manually or by machines. These cheap wedding dresses might be long, short, high lined, with or without straps or low cut neck. If you wish to buy any of these cheap wedding dresses you can buy them through online stores. These online stores take care of each and every order with great interest. Some of them may charge an extra amount for sales tax at times; learn about it before you make a purchase. If you want to buy these dresses at a low price, order it, at least one month before.

Every bride wants to look fresh and bright on the day of her wedding. Hence, looking beautiful in a wedding gown of low price can save you money for other purposes.

One of the biggest trends for 2010 brides was the cover ups over the gowns. Wedding jackets and boleros are in great trend. An elegant cover up can make a perfect wedding gown. The best thing about the little cover up jacket over your dress in that it provides a traditional look to your ceremony. Having the removable wedding jackets also allows the indulgence in the trend of changing your outfit between the wedding and the reception without bearing the expense of purchasing a second dress. There are short jackets called bolero jackets even available in the market. This wedding jacket ends about halfway down the torso. These jackets often have sleeves, these sleeves can extend all way down the wrists, but they are generally shorter. Bolero jackets are most familiar amongst women while men jackets take on the matador style.

Formal Weddings

In this article, I will discuss the usual characteristics of what is called a "formal" wedding. Weddings, like many other events, are usually considered to be either "formal", "semi-formal" or "informal". Unsurprisingly, formal weddings have the most stringent set of characteristics to be considered "formal". In this article, I will discuss the basic criteria of a "formal" wedding, if that is what you wish to go with.

The wedding itself usually takes place in one of two places. If it is a religious wedding, the wedding will usually take place in a house of worship. However, the level of decoration will be much higher in a formal wedding than in either a semi-formal or informal wedding. Further, the attire (which I will discuss later) will be formal. Nonetheless, most houses of worship don't really distinguish between levels of formality in how they perform weddings. If it doesn't take place at a house of worship, formal weddings usually take place either outdoors or in a large home. Note that formal weddings do not generally take place in reception halls. Formal weddings are "hosted", in the sense that the entire event is arranged by the host (usually through a wedding co-ordinator).

There are usually a number of attendants in a formal wedding, about seven or eight per side. You'll definitely need them. Due to all the extra details involved in co-ordinating a formal wedding, and army of helpers certainly helps. The attire for the wedding party is extremely formal. Men (including the groom) will usually wear tailcoats, a style of jacket in which the back is significantly longer than the front. Women will wear long, formal gowns that look significantly more formal than the typical bridesmaid dress. Cultural clothing is also appropriate, but the couple and wedding party should be sure to wear the most formal attire available in their culture. For instance, don't just wear a kilt, wear a Prince Charlie jacket.

The dress of the guests will vary according to the time of day. In the evening, male should wear tuxedos, while female guests should wear either formal gowns themselves, or smaller cocktail dresses. Since many formal weddings are held outdoors, the weather will often dictate what is most convenient for the female guests. For weddings held during the day, the level of formality for men decreases, and men may wear dark suits, while gowns become more appropriate for women.

The reception itself is usually a served, seated dinner served by waiters if held in the evening, though during the day a buffet may be more appropriate. Because formal evening attire can be difficult to move around in (especially for women), you should avoid a buffet dinner in the evening. Music should be played live, and partly because of formality, and partly because freeform dancing is difficult in formal dress, you should avoid music that is too heavy.

Keeping Comfortable - A Guide to Wedding Over Clothes

Wedding over clothes allow you to wear your choice of wedding dress while keeping you comfortable, warm and stylish. If you're having a church wedding and your conservative priest insists that you keep yourself covered and modest, meaning no plunging necklines or spaghetti straps, then over clothes are your instant solution to this wardrobe issue.

Types of Bridal Over Clothes

The following is a list of the most popular wedding over clothes worn by brides all over the world. Pick the one which addresses your needs and allows you to keep your personal style.

- Bolero: The bolero is a short and small jacket, which usually features rounded front corners. This type of jacket can come with long fitted sleeves or rounded capped or puffed sleeves.

- Shawl: A shawl is a form of fringed garment that is worn around the shoulders.

- Shrug: The shrug is a small, short sweater or jacket.

- Wrap: A wrap pertain to cloaks that can be wrapped around the bride.

- Jacket: A jacket is a type of clothing that falls to the waist or below the waist, similar to the coat but more lightweight.

- Capelet, Capettes and Stoles: All three pertain to a small cape that is worn around the woman's shoulders. These over clothes are usually fastened upfront with ties, buttons or hooks.

- Cape: The word "cape" refers to all the different types of sleeveless over clothes, including the poncho.

- Coat: A coat is a type of garment with sleeves. Most coats are floor-length or shin-length covering most of the body from shoulder down. This type of clothing is usually worn outdoors.

Medieval Weddings

Looking for extra style in your nuptials? Tired of the traditional ceremonies and décor? If you and your other half are fans of the middle ages, then perhaps a medieval themed wedding will bring matrimonial bliss. A knight in shining armor can sweep his damsel off her feet and the guests can join in celebrating their love in this special way. There are many ways to work in the medieval theme to your special event.

The gown, bridesmaids' dresses, tuxedoes, decorations and even the favors can enhance the unique and romantic idea of a medieval wedding. The clothing is central to upholding the idea, so look into different dress designs that would be considered from the middle ages yet still be contemporary. The tuxes don't have to be an old-fashioned design, either. Color choice is important and an easy, inexpensive way to match the wedding clothes to this theme. Make sure, for example, that everyone's attire matches the décor of the whole event.

Themed decorations for the reception can add a ton of fun for all your guests. Look for locations that have a medieval feel or consider having the party outside. Wall tapestries are a great decoration for this type of nuptial. Also, the meal could be a medieval feast. You may even look into hiring some re enactors to joust like knights as entertainment. None of this needs to be expensive, either. In fact, with the right planning it can be inexpensive. It's easy to find cheap wedding favors, even themed ones. One way to save money on the food is to get your friends to help you cook it the night before your big day. Chances are, if you're an enthusiast, you've got friends that love the middle ages, and they should have things that will help you decorate your church or location. The possibilities are endless.

Proactive Arrangements for Weddings

Would you agree that the average person believes that marriage is more important than any other event in one's life? Just think of how much time and effort we put into preparations for weddings compared to birth, christening, first day of school, first job, etc. Of course, this varies between individuals and for different cultures, but marriage generally stands out, especially for the female gender. Often, males are not as interested in the wedding festivities but that can all change if they meet the right girl. Unfortunately preparing for a wedding can be a daunting task!

Here are some of the things you need to think about when preparing a wedding:

• Will your wedding have a theme?
• Who will be in the entourage?
• Who will be the best man and groomsmen?
• Who will be the maid or matron of honour and bridesmaids?
• Getting the Bride's and Groom's clothing?
• Getting the groomsmen's and bridesmaids' ceremonial clothing.
• The guest list - preparation and delivery
• Venue decorations and layout.
• The reception, decoration, layout and seating arrangement.
• Transportation to and from the ceremony.
• Food and wedding music.

All of the above must be attended to in painstaking detail for the wedding event to be successful. The last in the list (food and music), is often the fun part.

Notice how, despite all those preparations, there can often be a problem on the day of the wedding. It could involve people, decorations, equipment, default by supplier or anything that inexplicably mars an otherwise perfect event. But somehow, people manage to easily recover and proceed to restoring the gaiety of the occasion. However, when it is the food and music that goes wrong, the recovery is next to impossible. Guests trickle out with visible dissatisfaction on their faces.

But take note of this. While a slip up in food is almost impossible, in these times of wide-range choices, how can we go wrong? There are reputable food-catering services with proven track records that will always delight guests.

It is, however, different in the case of wedding bands. While we know lots of really good wedding band hire companies, matching the music with the kind of wedding and guests is very important. Another area for concern is availability of wedding bands for hire. Early booking is important to secure availability of the wedding band to employ at the appointed date and time. Hiring wedding bands, just like all other crucially important tasks, should be covered with a service or talent provision contract stipulating any and all terms and conditions of the Wedding Band hire.

Remember, it pays to anticipate.

5 Ways to Choose Jewelry For Wedding

A wedding, of course, is one of the most special occasions in one's lives. And weddings again are a lot about the jewelry you wear. This could be the wedding ring itself to the ornaments that add glamour to your wedding dress. Indeed when talking about weddings, jewelry has to be one of the things that have to be mentioned.

How does a groom go about finding the bride some wedding jewelry? The bracelet, the neck piece and of course the ring, you have to keep everything in mind when you are trying to think about wedding jewelry.

• You have to match the jewelry to the wedding theme. A traditional wedding requires a completely different brand of jewelry and the modern ones have third own distinct ornaments.

• Pearls are usually the favorites when it comes to wedding jewelry. The elegance is the main thing that comes with pearl jewelry. It has become very popular nowadays and the romantic effect which it brings along is indeed unique. But choose your pearls carefully, keeping in mind the design and the quality. The designer you employ should be consulted before buying pearl jewelry because it can often come across as too gaudy or too minimalist.

• Diamonds are also becoming really popular. But then for diamonds you have to have a suitable budget. They after all are quite expensive. The ring is often a diamond ring in a wedding and this has become a stable trend nowadays. But the other jewelry might also be diamond studded depending on your finances.

• The color and the size of whatever jewelry you are buying are also important. You have to know what the bride looks lie in them. The dress also has to match with what you are buying. The skin color has to be taken into consideration. Also everything has to fit and especially the ring and so you have to try everything on the bride well in advance or before buying them. Consult the bride's designer for bets effects.

• We have to also warn you that before shopping for jewelry you have to keep the budget in mind. The calculations have to be in place lest you spend too much.

After you have bought the jewelry and worn it you also have to find ways of maintaining it. Here are a few way of doing that:

• After you have worn the jewelry you have to wipe off the make-up on it and also the skin oils or sebum that it might have collected on its surface. This has to be one gently. Use only a pure cotton cloth. Only the soft pads of your fingers should be used. After you are done you have to store the jewel in a clean bag with tissue.

• While washing clothes or dishes you should never be wearing jewelry of any kind. Neither while gardening should they be worn. Also try and void wearing two rings on the same finger because they scratch each other. Protect your jewelry from getting dull.

Some homegrown solutions are also pretty easy to adopt when you are trying to maintain your jewelry. If there is some spot on your jewelry then try using cotton dipped in lukewarm water to clean it.

The Small Piece of Cloth That Gives You Identity is Your Necktie

When you are dressing up for office, holiday, anniversary or any kind of special events your tie tend to be the most mysterious part of our outfit. Neckties shows wearer's place of the social hierarchy, personality and elegance as well. The Egyptians were the first culture to develop neckties to represent their class differentiation. There are many legend and history about the origin of neckties but we will not go on any debates here. Whoever first introduced neckties to us, it is now a most important part of men's attire.

Ties can be worn in any occasion and they are a must in special gathering like meeting, wedding, birthday party, anniversary, father's day and so on. There are a wide variety of ties is available on the market and they are different in size, shape, color, motif and fabric but according to occasion and outfit necktie choosing is a big challenge to most of us. Here I am giving some tips and tricks to enhance your confident with a perfect necktie.

Wedding necktie

Tie plays a great role in looking presentation especially in a wedding. Unless a perfect wedding necktie your outfit will leave a big measurable memory in your mind for the rest of your life but you can avoid this mass by choosing a tie which is well sized, not flashy, according to the color theme of wedding and have a good quality as well. The best thing is to wear a nice tie with the same color as the theme but you can experiment with huge verities of color, pattern and fabric type in the market. If you are the groom, you have to consider the dominant color in the reception including the table decorations, flowers, and even the wedding cake; if you are attending the wedding party as a guest, you should not whimsically wear anything that could destroy your image on that party. You also have so many options in the market which are specially made for wedding. Remember, a wedding necktie should be classic, formal and elegant. Avoid any kind of exotic, eccentric and tedious necktie. Try to present yourself as elite men in a luxurious touch.

Evening necktie

An evening necktie could be your best friend in any kind of formal occasion. It is absolutely classic and basic. You can easily go with an evening necktie in any ordinary meetings, gatherings and occasions. Find the perfect matched evening necktie with your shirt and suit from a huge verity of collection in the market. You have options when you are choosing materials too like silk, cotton, wool, acrylic etc. in affordable price.

Ethnic neckties

A long rectangular piece of fabric that hangs over the shoulder and wrapped about the neck can be your language and can introduce you with people. Yes, I am talking about necktie that can show your ethnicity and origin. There are so many outstanding neckties in the market that reveals people ethnic identity with their own cultural motifs. You can proud with your dragon motif necktie if you are a Chinese or with a kangaroo motif necktie if you are an Australian. Whoever you are or wherever you from your tie can endorse your ethnic identity now.

Novelty necktie

As we know necktie represent formal and structured elegance either in a solid color or simple geometric patterns but there are some group of necktie stand out with so many exotic and eccentric motif to depict your merriment in any special occasion like holiday, Christmas, birthday party, new year, night out and so on. You don't have any idea how much an unusual design or exotic symbols of your tie can make you the perfect guy in the entire party. Novelty necktie designers use the piece of fabric as a small canvas which is the best men's accessory for a crazy fracas party. You can wear it with any casual attire and remember it will definitely not go right with any formal occasion like office, meeting or wedding. Whether you will be celebrating valentines or thirty first nights there is a novelty tie out there that is designed just for the particular day. Now you can express your merriment much more easily.

So, go and get the right necktie for right occasion and wear confidently. Perhaps one day will come when your boss will start to give attention and good complement about your clothing.

Outdoor Wedding Decoration Techniques - The Surroundings & Decorations Should Complement Each Other

An outdoor wedding have many advantages against the conventional wedding which is always an indoor type of wedding. For one it is cheaper on the pocket and there's basically no shortage of places where it could be held. Whereas, indoor weddings are mostly held in churches, which is something that greatly depends on the availability of the church itself and the celebration.

It is also eliminates the need for the guests and the parties to be wed to travel from one place to another. The need to travel from the church to the reception, in an outdoor wedding, is measured not by the miles, but by the steps to take. In terms of convenience, having an outdoor wedding makes decoration easier as the wedding and reception areas would be one of the same.

Outdoor wedding decorations are also naturally livelier than those made indoors, as the planners can now bank on the outdoor scenery to add to the wedding decorations. It is, in fact, unseemly, to have no wedding decorations when it comes to outdoor weddings. This is good for those who have tight wallets. But if the couple to be wed do have the money then having outdoor wedding decorations along with the outdoor scenery would be quite a plus.

Flowers

This is something that's always present in every wedding and the absence of it makes a wedding dismal. If money is the problem, then select an outdoor venue where flowers are already plentiful so the absence of the obvious flower decorations may be overlooked. You can also use the flowers on the venue itself, as flowers to shower on the bride when she walks down the 'outdoor' aisle.

Attire

In terms of clothing, beach weddings are most likely to acquire beach-wear clothing in the likes of Hawaiian dresses and shirts. This kind of wedding location inspires people to dress-up as casual as possible. Of course, there's also the need to advise the guests as to the kind of location, so they can dress accordingly to the location.

Drinks

Though this may be something that's general for all types of wedding locations, indoor and outdoor, putting up hard drinks in places where the sun is blistering may lead your guests to fall down on your wedding decorations itself.

Lighting

The main thing to figure out is on the decorations you need when lighting is sufficient. In outdoor weddings, there is sufficient lighting when there's still the sun, so there's really no need to put up may light equipment. When nighttime falls, outdoor weddings are more inclined towards being dimly-lit by torches or candles and as little lighting equipment as possible. In this way, the usual clutters of lighting wires that muddle up wedding decorations are minimized.

Also, you should take note of the sun and on where it would be facing on the particular part of the time when the festivities take place. With careful placing of your guests' tables and chairs, the sun's glare would be limited to its effects on the guests and on the photographer's camera. There's should also be sufficient lighting on the pathways, which you can decorate with outdoor lighting equipment or by torches and candles to make it more romantic.

Expert Help

Finally, there's the need to make your outdoor wedding decorations in line with the outdoor settings and scenery. If there's the is no connection between the two then the surroundings and the decorations would clash and contrasting. This is not good, and every decorator knows that both the decorations and surroundings should complement each other.

In the absence of a decorator, there is a need to have an expert help in decorating your outdoor wedding. This will make your wedding as grandiose as possible even with limited amounts of money spent on decorations.

Wedding Decorating Ideas - Don't Make the Same Mistakes These Brides Did!

Have you ever been to a wedding that you thought was a bit ... Tacky? I'm sure that Bride had the best intentions for the Decorating of her big day; nobody intentionally makes a wedding tacky (not that I know of!) So read on to ensure you do not make the mistakes that could make your wedding "one of those" weddings.

Mistake 1 - Too Much Color

A wedding is supposed to be an elegant, sophisticated, "grown-up" affair and while a touch of color here and there adds interest & ties all elements together, too much color or trying to "match" everything will make your wedding look more like a teenage girls birthday party then a sophisticated wedding.

Remember the saying "Less is more". Try to remember this when brainstorming for wedding decorating ideas. Keep to natural colors and just use brighter colors very sparingly as accents here & there.

Mistake 2 - Trying To Match Everything

You don't always have to match the color of the bridesmaid's dresses with the groomsman's ties, or with the table cloths etc. If you have a bright color for your bridesmaids, try to use a more subtle shade of it if you really must "match".

I find it's best to stick natural colors like whites, creams, silvers, golds, browns, greens (natural greens) and black. Choose 1 or 2 of these as your main colors for decorating with and use small accents of your bridesmaids color. For example;

• Cream napkins with a cream table cloth with a black or gold table runner. Then use your theme color in ribbons as napkin holders at each place, or as colored card for the place cards,
• A Centerpiece idea is to use mostly cream flowers and greenery with one or 2 of your theme colored flowers.
• Use all white linen with a green table runner and if you have purple bridesmaids a peacock feather or other purple flower as the centerpiece (purple & green are great together)
• Use all white linen with a Black Table runner and Mirrors on the table with a vase sitting on it with white flowers and black feathers - very Hollywood glamor and will go with any bridesmaid color

If you must use a bright color and match it - try to make white or cream the main color and the bright color just a touch here and there will look very elegant.

However, if you have a very large, empty or bland room as your reception room then you can get away with a little more color. A tip is to stand in the room without decorations and decide if it is boring, busy, or average. If it's boring - turn up the decorations to add interest. If its busy, use all white or all cream with only one light brown or light gold color sparingly to tone down the room and if its average, then follow my above advice.

Feel free to let me know if you have any questions about your ideas, I'd be happy to give you my opinion!

Mistake 3 - Too Many False Elements

Silk flowers and  fake plants are an inexpensive way to add interest to your reception room, however make sure you can't tell they are false (unless you touch them). If you can't afford flowers as your centerpiece it's probably best to just not use them rather than use silk or plastic (please - do not use plastic). Some centerpiece ideas for weddings are;

• Candles are fantastic & relatively cheap from thrift or 2 dollar stores. Buy enough for 3, each of different heights for each table. Then buy a pretty plate (from a second hand store) or piece of mirror or glass for them all to sit on and there you have it, a pretty, cheap centerpiece.
• Feathers can be a great addition to a centerpiece. Depending on your color scheme, you can use peacock feathers or you can buy large feathers which have been died to just about any color from most craft stores.
• Or you can make your own floral centerpieces instead of using a florist. Buy enough tall vases for 1 per table. (you can hire them but it can sometimes be cheaper to buy them from thrift or 2 dollar stores) Then get your most trusted aunt or friend who is not in the bridal party to go to a florist on the morning of your wedding and buy some long white Lily's or any other large tall white strong stemmed flower. Get enough for 3 per table (do not tell the florist they are for a wedding because they will double or triple the price!) use these Lily's with one or 2 long colored feathers and some tall wicker (wicker can be bought from craft stores or florists). Then wrap a wide Black, White or Cream ribbon around the top of the vase for a decorative yet inexpensive centerpiece.
• Tip - prepare the wicker, feather and ribbons in the vase in advance, then all your friend has to do is transport them and carry them into the reception room then place the flowers in with water. Organize this in advance with the reception center so they are aware.

You can make your own floral centerpieces using just about anything but the key to keeping it inexpensive is to use more of other elements and only a few flowers, it is also cheaper to do most of the work/research/set up etc yourself in advance with a friend or aunt setting up on the day for you (make sure you buy them a thank you gift for their trouble).

I hope these wedding decorating ideas have given you something to think about. As long as you remember these 3 things; 1. Keep it Simple 2. Keep it Natural and 3. Get an outsiders opinion if in doubt, then your wedding will be a beautiful, elegant & tasteful affair.

In the end, your wedding is a personal expression of you and your fiance's love of each other so the wedding decorating ideas have to be yours, so try not to stress about them but if you follow my advice you will have friends and family complimenting your wedding decorating ideas and perhaps even stealing some of them for their own future weddings!

Not Sure Which Wedding Planning Guide to Use? - Here Are 5 Tips For Finding Wedding Planning Guides

There are plenty of wedding planning guides out there, but how will you know which one is right for you and for your wedding? It is all well and good to say that if you are having a large wedding, you should look for a like minded guide; if you are planning a small, more intimate ceremony, you should find the appropriate guide for that, as well. But that does not really tell you anything, does it? Besides, all good guides will contain a few things in common. With that being said, check out these five tips for finding the best guides.

Tip #1: The Threads

Planning a wedding is a step by step process. One of the most essential steps involves picking out the clothing. That includes the bride's gown, the groom's tuxedo, and all the clothing for all the attendants, from maid of honor to best man to the ushers and everyone in between. It is important to pick these as soon as possible, because as any good guide will tell you, it can ultimately help you choose your wedding colors and decorations. Even more importantly, you have to have plenty of time to make sure that every outfit is right - that it fits, that all the parts and accessories are included, and so on.

Tip #2: The Guest List

Your guest list is absolutely vital. It does not matter whether you want a small wedding, a large one, or something that falls somewhere in between. The amount of people you want to invite can play a huge part in the venues you choose - as you will see!

Tip #3: The Venue(s)

The best wedding planning guides will all emphasize the importance of choosing your venues - for the ceremony, for the reception, and for the honeymoon - as early as possible. In terms of the guests, the first two are the most important, of course. You need to decide if you are going to get married close to home, in another state, or if you want a destination wedding. Once you have made a decision, you need to make sure that your choices are available and that they can accommodate the guests on your list. Furthermore, you have to have plenty of time to inform your guests about the locations and do what you can to make sure that they can get there and find accommodations.

Tip #4: The Invitations

The invitations are as important as the guest list and the venue. You see, it is another way that you can let your guests know way ahead of time where the wedding and reception will be held. Some wedding guides say that you should actually send out your invitations, complete with RSVP, before you book your venues. That way, you will know for sure how many people are coming. This is important because some venues will only let you hold the wedding there if you have a minimum number of guests.

Tip #5: The Budget

Last but definitely not least, the most trustworthy wedding planning guides will emphasize the importance of not only making a budget, but also of not going over it. When that happens, you may find that you are left with a lot of unpaid bills and extra expenses for which you have not planned.

Cost Effective Weddings

Many people believe that weddings have to be costly. But who says that they have to be?

All those fancy bridal shops, magazines and adverts on TV, want you to believe that
you need to buy the very best of everything to have a good wedding. But, of course
they say this! They want you to spend lots of money with them!

But don't believe them! You can have a fanastic wedding, and at a price range that
you can afford. Sure, if you are a millionaire, it would be nice to buy the best of the
best, and have a fairytale wedding. But not all of us have that much money. It
doesn't matter! There is no need to take out a loan for what should be one of the
happiest days of your life.

Firstly, why not talk to your family and friends and see if they'd be willing to help
you with table-cloths and decorations? Nobody said you have to have silk table-
cloths. Cotton or even paper table-cloths can be quite nice these days, and they
won't break your bank account. The table-cloths are only going to get dirty anyway,
so why waste money cleaning expensive table-cloths, when you could just use
paper table-cloths and throw them out at the end?

Oh no, I can hear people out there, gasping in horror! I can't use paper table-cloths!

Of course you can! They are only table-cloths, and when you think about it, they
aren't really that important. All that really matters is the bride and groom.

So what's next? Ahh yes, dinner settings. These can be very expensive, but you
really don't need costly dinner settings. After all, who's going to remember what
plates they ate off at your wedding?

Well, why not ask family members to bring dinner settings they have? Everyone has
an aunt or relative somewhere that has a dinner setting gathering dust in some
cupboard. Why not see if you can borrow them?

Or maybe go for plastic or paper plates. They are only going to get dirty, after all!

Now, in regards to food, it's nice to have it catered, but that can cost and arm and a
leg. Why not approach your family and friends and ask how they would feel about
bringing a plate of food for everyone to share?

Stop thinking that this would offend people, because it will save you a LOT of
money. And the people you ask will probably feel honoured to be able to help out
on the day anyway!

We all know how expensive food can be these days, and I am sure your family and
friends will be more than happy to help out in any way that they can.

With dresses and suits, all I can say is you should hire, or find a resale shop
somewhere. (Or, if you are so inclined, even make your own) You can always add
things to a plain wedding dress that you buy from a shop, and personalise it if you
want. You can still get great suits and dresses, at a fraction of the price, just by
getting them second hand.

Finally, you can save quite a bit of money by buying silk bouquets, rather than
bouquets made of real flowers. Silk bouquets look very lifelike these days, and you
get the added bonus of being able to keep the silk bouquets after the wedding, as a
memory of the great day. (A Bouquet made of real flowers will not last long without
expensive drying)

The main thing to remember is that you should not be too concerned about saving
money wherever you can. It's hard to believe when you are actually planning the
wedding, but PEOPLE DON'T CARE IF YOU HAVEN'T BOUGHT EXPENSIVE SUITS,
TABLE-CLOTHS, CATERING OR BOUQUETS! All they care about is whether the bride
and groom are going to be happy. Weddings are about people, not the type of
dinner setting you used!

Affordable Elegant Wedding Reception Table Decoration Ideas

Is that special day just around the corner for you and your sweetheart? Well, then boy do you have a lot to do! As exciting as it is, it can be a real headache. After all, this is your wedding day that we are talking about. You are probably so busy thinking about your better half, the cake, the food, the brides maids, the flower girl, where you are going to have the wedding, and the honey moon, that you feel as if you barely have time to think about the reception. That is a lot of things to have to think about, but it has got to be done, especially for an event as special as this. This will indeed be a very wonderful time, and there is nothing wrong with trying to make everything perfect when it comes to your wedding day.

Listed below are some of the most elegant and simple wedding reception table decoration ideas that you will ever find:

1. Decorate your tables in small, white tea light candles and white rose petals. This will definitely give your table a very elegant, and almost angelic look. For a center piece, shape your candles into a heart that surrounds a beautiful vase of white roses.

2. You should always decorate your reception tables with beautiful linen table clothes. For a much more formal look, make sure that you decorate them with the table clothes that reach down to the floor. You do not have to worry about the table clothes being expensive, as you can find them most anywhere at very affordable prices, and you can even order them online.

3. Decorate your table to match the theme of the wedding. For example, if your them is summertime at the beach or something else that has to do with water and seashells, all you have to do is place tiny seashells on the tables, along with a few nice candles and flowers, and you will find that you have a very eye catching reception table decoration.

4. Another idea would be to take a large, decorative glass bowl, fill it up with water, and place floating candles inside of it. Place this bowl in the middle of your table as the centerpiece and surround it with something that represents your theme.

5. Decorate you tables with fruit bowls and food. You can definitely not go wrong with this one. When people think of a reception, they think of good food, dance, music, and fun. Food will definitely be on the table. All you have to do is take a large bowl, fill it up with some nice apples, pears, oranges, and bananas. Then, add some small bowls with small pieces of fudge and cherries. Tell your guests to enjoy! Also tell them that they can take with them what is left over, which will save you from having to clean up a large mess!

So you see, you can have a great wedding reception without going all out. There is no need to spend money on things that are out of reach when you could be saving up for other aspects of the wedding, like the honey moon. Not all of us have money to spare, and let's not even mention how bad of a shape that the economy is in! Save your money buy going to dollar stores to find nice decorations for your tables. You can also find some very nice things inside of thrift stores as well. Just keep your eyes open and shop around. Make sure that what you decide on is exactly what you want. Once you have decided on something that you like, you can be sure that everything will be just right for this spectacular, and very special event.

Wholesale Wedding Accessories - A Few Items You Didn't Think Of

Are you trying to get wholesale wedding accessories to spruce up your wedding and save a bit of money at the same time? Well, here are a few unique wedding accessories that you might not have thought of.

Great Wholesale Wedding Accessories...

Ribbons: Ribbons are an indispensable wedding accessory & decoration. They are incredibly cheap and can be tied nearly anywhere -- meaning they can be used for both the reception and for the ceremony. Ribbons should be colored in order to match and keep in line with your wedding theme.

Candles: Theme colored candles, like ribbons, are cheap and they're a great wedding decor item. Spread them throughout the reception hall as well as the ceremony area to enhance the look and feel of the area.

Napkins: Napkins are often overlooked when it comes to wholesale wedding accessories. Not a great deal of thought is usually put toward the napkins, which leads to poor choices later that cost money. By getting your napkin needs taken care of with a wholesale dealer, you'll save money and be able to get tasteful napkins that actually match the wedding.

Wedding Utensils: If you're doing a sit down meal, then you'll want a nice set of silverware for each guest. However, if you're taking the buffet route (which is cheaper), then colored utensils matching the theme of the wedding will do just fine. Remember, plastic is okay!

Table Cloths: Did this accessory slip your mind too? That's not uncommon. If you're having a large wedding with numerous tables then you'll likely need cheap, yet elegant table cloths. A few of these can be picked up at a very low cost; and rather than being plain white, you could actually get them in the colors of your wedding!

Wholesale wedding accessories like these can be easily purchased online at a bare minimum of expense to you. In fact, with a little searching, you can find everything you need at a price that is WELL within your budget!

Your Spring Wedding - How To Choose The Perfect Wedding Colors

One of the first decisions in wedding planning is selecting wedding colors. The colors that you select will set the foundation upon which you base many other decisions such as the invitations, flowers, bridesmaid and groomsmen clothing, centerpieces, the cake and other decorations.

Due to the far reaching effects of wedding colors and the impact that they will play in crafting the wedding and receptions overall look and feel, it is critical that the colors that are selected are carefully considered. Spring colors are a popular choice when selecting colors for your wedding.

A spring wedding can occur any time during the year. A spring wedding can focus on one or more of the popular spring colors. These include pink, blue, green and yellow. These colors can be used alone or in combination or with other colors. For example, for a yellow spring wedding a bride may want to consider using varying yellows with some orange accents.

A bride may also choose to soften her wedding colors by using white as accompaniment to other spring colors. A spring wedding offers a variety of beautiful of soft colors to the wedding color palate.

If these have been selected for the wedding, it now becomes the time to consider ways in which to incorporate these into the overall wedding plan. The first way to being showcasing them is to use these in invitations and save the date cards. An invitation may be selected that showcases your colors or envelopes lined with the spring color can be used.

Try to select bridesmaid dresses that are consistent with your wedding colors. Groomsmen should also wear coordinating ties or vests. All clothing worn by members of the wedding party and family should be consistent and showcase your spring colors.

Flowers can also be selected in your spring color. Roses are available year-round in many different spring colors. A florist will be able to show a variety of flower options that are available in selected colors during your wedding season.

colors can be shown to the cake designer. This will allow a cake to be created that is consistent with the spring wedding color scheme. Decoration and favors can also showcase your colors.

Whatever the spring color that has been selected, there will be a variety of ways to showcase it in your wedding planning. Remember the wedding colors that you select will play a huge role in many decorating decisions.

Your Wedding Ceremony - Suggestions For Incorporating Children Into Your Wedding Ceremony

You've chosen to have children at your wedding, maybe even in your wedding! That's a great choice -- if it's right for you! Here are some thoughts on how to make your day go more easily and to keep the focus on your wedding, which is where you want it:

Child care/entertainment: Having a formal ceremony and an elegant intimate dinner? Not fun for kids. Consider offering childcare or a list of possibilities for parents with kids attending your wedding.

Give them something to do in the wedding ceremony: If you're going to have kids there, ask them to participate. Their feelings can get hurt if you don't ask. Be aware, however, they're always cuter than you are!

Put someone in charge: Ask someone to be in charge of just the kids. Find someone who can organize the kids without the parents. You want someone organizing the children for the walk down the aisle, you may want them there for the ceremony and the reception.

Clothing: Find clothing for kids that is age appropriate, fabulous and, here's a novel idea, comfortable! No scratching, no straight jackets! However, I have never met a young lady who didn't like a skirt that twirled!

Timing: If the parents are going to be there hours ahead of time, make alternate arrangements for getting the child to the ceremony. Or find them someone to play with as the parents are getting ready. Use a video; they work!

Snacks: No sugar. Not before the wedding. Just makes everyone crazy. Actually, adults too. Protein, protein, protein. Vegetables work as well! If you want them to guzzle sugar after the ceremony, ah well!

Be flexible: Kids are kids. Their needs will not always correspond with yours. They may miss the wedding for a nap. Bless it. Get married!

Be clear: Having important children in a wedding may be what you want. But if it isn't working day of, be prepared to go without them. This wedding is about your getting married -- it's not about the children. Let parents know ahead of time that the focus is on the wedding and you can't rearrange it for the children.

Breathe and Laugh: When all else fails, keep breathing and keep laughing. Remember, this day is about your marrying your beloved and beginning your marriage. Do that. And then live happily and healthily ever after in the marriage of your dreams!

Shades of Matrimony: Turn Your Dream Wedding Into a Colorful Affair!

You aren't getting married because your relationship is a boring, neutral affair; you're getting married because you enjoy each other's company and want to spend the rest of your lives having adventures together. And whether those adventures entail the exciting journey of parenthood or exotic vacations, the one thing that you never want to feel when you're with your spouse is "bored." So it's kind of surprising that despite the riotous changes our society has undergone since codifying the white wedding as "traditional," couples are still adhering to the standard white linens and white flowers in their wedding rental selections. There's nothing wrong with white, of course-it's absolutely gorgeous when done right-but if you really want to make an impression on your guests, you can always inject your wedding with a stunning dose of color.

Choose Your Colors

Depending on your personality and specific tastes, you probably have a certain color scheme in mind already. If you don't, you should remember that choosing a color scheme is one of the most important aspects of wedding planning and it impacts your selection of wedding rental products. It seems simple enough, but if you want to limit or eliminate white, you might need to do a little extra work coordinating your wedding, or hire professionals to do it for you! If you want to go all out, you can even choose a rainbow theme, though you'll probably want help coordinating your wedding table cloths with everything that go along with it. You'll be able to find everything in a variety of colors, including flowers, candles, and linen. Rent or buy items only after making the final decision on what your wedding will include.

Find your Perfect Flowers

Thanks to the efforts of the floral industry, you should be able to find nearly any flower in every color of the rainbow-including colors that don't exist in nature! Floral shops can usually dye plants to match your particular color scheme, but you should make sure they are able to do this as soon as you can. Because floral shops can import flowers from both sides of the equator, it is unlikely that you'll be able to request flowers that are not currently in stock, but you should still check as soon as you have a set date and venue.

Locate your Wedding Linen

An absolutely essential rental item is quality linen. Wedding table linen has advanced quite a bit beyond basic white; you can find everything from bright orange to delicate lavender to riotous prints in the modern linen industry. In order to find the best selection of linen for your wedding, find a wedding linen rental service that specializes in wedding linens and other tabletop accessories. You can usually request swatches, order wedding table cloths online, and examine linen in-store before deciding on the color and texture of your linen. Rent to save money, as you probably won't be able to use 250 napkins any time in the conceivable future.

How I Saved $15,000 on My Wedding - And How You Can Save Money on Yours

Planning a wedding in small-town Sweden is not an easy task. While there are some vendors available, there aren't many vendors which specifically cater to weddings This means you don't get to be very choosy in terms of price or quality. My wedding budget was only $10,000, which made it even more difficult. Small towns notoriously have larger price tags for local businesses. While that may seem like a lot of money to some, considering my dress alone was going to be $1200, there wasn't very much room for the other parts; like new wedding shoes and a tiara. In order to remain in my wedding budget, I thought had to cut significant costs on a lot of the ideas I had planned. I also thought I wasn't going to have any of the things I dreamed about. I was very wrong. It's amazing what you can do to save money, when you have no other choice.

I was forced to re-examine my wedding budget, and I realized the ideas for my reception could be accomplished, if I was willing to do the handiwork myself. My colors were black-and-white, so I began my research for linens in black-and-white. It turns out this small-town has a lot of options available for renting linens, however, costs were something where there weren't a lot of available differences. When I sat down to think about how important the material of table cloths and napkins were, I realized I had more options than I thought. While someone reading this may cringe at the thought, I actually ended up using white cotton sheets as tablecloths. In order to make these sheets look presentable as tablecloths, I also bought black cotton sheets and made runners for the center of the tables out of that cloth. These little tricks saved about $75 per table (10 tables, you do the math =)). I spent a couple of days scouting around the Internet for different centerpiece ideas, and finally decided on candles and vases with Calla Lilies. My fiancé and I then began to research different places to buy the vases, and candles. After few weeks of researching, we ended up saving about $100 total. A couple of hours a week researching, for $100 savings, was well worth the time, in my opinion..

Through the research for my other projects for the wedding, I found many other discounts. For example; I bought tulle in bulk for decorating the chairs. I found flowers wholesale from a local small business owner who appreciated the bulk business, which usually went to his competitor. Instead of buying my dress at the first few vendors I looked at, I enlisted the aid of my bridesmaids and together we looked through hundreds of websites. In the end that few hours of time saved me $400 on the dress.

It's been these countless hours of research into the wedding decorations and dress, among other things, that brought me from a $25,000 budget down to approximately $10,000. If you're willing to spend the time and really research each aspect of your wedding, you will save thousands of dollars. Your budget is in your hands.

Be Prepared When Young Children Are Part of the Wedding

Is there anything more adorable than a ring bearer or flower girl? Little miniatures dressed in tuxedos, top hats, tails, long gowns, lace and frills. It is a mixture of innocents and purity in adult regalia that only add to the allure of children in the wedding.
 
Having young children in the wedding however does require thought and preparation. Obviously, a bride does not want to be responsible for the children on the day of her wedding, so it is important to delegate. Pick someone who will make sure the children are comfortable, fed, hydrated and of course kept clean.  
 
Whether the temperature is rising or falling, when dealing with children you must be careful. It is simple, use common sense. If it is eighty-five degrees outside, how comfortable do you think a layered suit is?  Often the groom and groomsmen are standing around with their coats off because of the heat while next to them stands the ring bearer with his coat on, beet red and sweating. Remember, when a child is told repeatedly to stay clean and stop fussing with this or that piece of clothing they probably are not going to take off their coat until told it is okay.  
 
Likewise, your little flower girl should not have to freeze when it is cold because you want everyone to see her looking like a princess. Have a coat or sweater for the child when it is cold. It is one thing to have to take off a coat for a few minutes while pictures are taken. It is quite another to shiver on the sidelines waiting and then be expected to stand still and smile for pictures.
 
Here are a few tips that will keep your wedding child friendly.
 
Water - Have water readily available. Children dehydrate much faster than adults and teens. Fruit juice and soda pop are not a good idea. Both juice and soda pop will stain or at the very least leave an unsightly spot if spilled and on top of that, they are loaded with sugar.
 
Sunscreen - A child's skin is very sensitive and burns easily, much faster than an adult burns. Sunscreen should be used whenever children are in the sun, especially when the wedding is on a beach or in an area that does not have shaded areas.
 
The best sunscreen for children is made with zinc oxide or titanium dioxide, look for one of those ingredients on the label. The SPF should be 30, a lower SPF is not enough and a higher SPF does not increase protection. Avoid buying sunscreens that contain oil derived from nuts that could cause a severe allergic reaction. Do not be fooled by labeling, there is very little if any difference in regular sunscreen and sunscreen marketed for children other than the higher price.
 
Clothing - Extra clothing is always good. Bring an extra change of clothes including socks, diapers or underpants. If the wedding is in the evening and the child will be up past their normal bedtime, bring pajamas and change them before leaving the reception. Chances are they will be asleep before you arrive home and you can carry them right off to bed.
 
Clothing that works well for the ring bearer at the reception or between pictures and the ceremony might be a pair of black shorts, white short-sleeved shirt, bow tie and sandals. 
To give shorts a formal look, sew a stripe of black satin ribbon to the outside of each short leg. The stripe will mimic the look of tuxedo pants.  
 
Flower girls do not have it quite as bad in warm weather because they do not have to wear layers of clothing   Face it, girls love the swishing sound of the dress and rustle of petticoats. They like the ribbons and bows and the flowers that sometime adorn their hair. They are delighted when they spin and twirl making their dresses flair out around them.
 
When you ask a child to walk down the aisle in front of people they do not know, you must be prepared for them to back out at the last second. It's scary! Never over stress the importance of what they are doing, chances are it will backfire.
 
Telling a very young child to go to someone they know in the wedding party has a better success rate than threats or anger. What a child does or does not do has little to do with the overall flow of the wedding, they are after all minor players, no pun intended. The bride is the star of this production.
 
Food - Please, feed the children. It is common for pictures to begin at eleven o'clock in the morning when the wedding is at two o'clock. Break that down and a child who has had a light breakfast is going several hours without eating. Any mother can tell you a hungry child is not a happy child. Make sure there are low sugar snacks or pre made lunches on hand. You will find youngsters far more cooperative, attentive and well behaved when they have eaten.
 
One last word of advice, careful what you say around children. A five year old came to me after a wedding and said "This is the smallest wedding my mommy has had so far."

While another told me "Thank you for marrying my mommy. My grandma has just had it with her running around". Children are not good at discerning a joke or sarcasm. What a child hears they take literally.
 
Several years ago, good friend of mine married a wonderful man who happens to be very well off. At the rehearsal dinner someone made a joke and she laughed and replied, "Oh yeah, I'm in the money now." to which the groom added, "I'm throwing away all her coupon books". It was all very innocent. The next day at the wedding however, her son who was five at the time, told the groom's grandfather when asked what he thought about his new stepfather "Good. We're in the money now and mommy's throwing away all the coupons."  
 
Children are wonderful we just have to remember to be prepared.

Drink and Be Married: Choosing the Right Bar for Your Wedding and Budget

Wanting your guests to drink and be merry may take a huge chunk out of your budget. When choosing a bar, there are several things to consider. For example, how many guests are you having? What type of reception will you have? What time will it take place?

Look at your guest list--how many "drinkers" are there? What kind are they--the occasional glass of wine with dinner or the top shelf connoisseur?

You have several choices:

1. Open Bar

2. Limited Bar

3. Juice, Soda and Coffee bar

And within those choices are several other options you could use to personalize your event.

With an open bar, the possibilities are endless. Sadly, the same could be said about the bar tab at the end of the night. You could choose to limit your bar instead, in whichever way you deem fit.

Opting for a limited bar allows your guests to choose from a selection that you have chosen with your caterer. Is it necessary to have brand liquor? Are mixed drinks a non-negotiable? With this option, you can choose what alcohol is in your bar. If you have a hard time saying no to people, you could let someone do it for you. You could have an extensive selection of alcohol but "limit" guests to a certain number of drinks. I always recommend the former, as the latter may cause some disdain during your fête.

You could also limit the times that your bar(s) are open. For example, keep your bar open during the cocktail hour, dinner and the toast. During your cocktail hour, have extra waiters pass drinks on trays instead of guests going to the bar. This will lower consumption among the guests. Shut down your bar early in the evening to not only save money but overconsumption and driving.

If your caterer is agreeable, check into bringing your liquor. While you may get hit with the inevitable "corking fee", but the advantages are that not only can you shop around for the least expensive prices, but you can return the unused bottles for a refund or keep them for yourselves.

Another thing that I absolutely love at weddings is the "Signature Drink". Take into consideration your overall theme--it's colors, its meaning, etc. Have a drink that is a culmination of all those things. For example, if yours is a country wedding, fully equipped apples and gingham, make yours a green apple sour with real apple slices. Perhaps it is a tropical wedding--serve Blue Hawaiians garnished with fresh pineapple and rimmed with coconut. Look for great combinations at sites like http://www.idrink.com. With the money you save from only serving the alcohol used to make your drink, you will have enough to rent opulent glasses for the first round.

Whatever you do, avoid going the cash bar route. You risk offending your guests by having one. Typically, guests do not bring cash to weddings, and why should they? They just spent money on travel, clothes and a gift! They are there to celebrate with you. Asking them to pay for drinks is like them sending your wedding present C.O.D. Avoid it at all costs.

Bottoms Up!

Precautions You Need to Take in DIY Wedding Dress Cleaning

It is commonly said that the best way to go about wedding dress cleaning is simply by giving the job to the professionals. That piece of advice notwithstanding, there are situations where you are forced to undertake the wedding dress cleaning yourself. This could be where you simply can't conveniently locate a professional cleaning service where you can get the wedding clothing properly cleaned. It could also be where you are extremely budget constrained, so that you simply can't afford professional wedding dress cleaning. In situations like those, you would have to undertake the cleaning of the wedding clothing by yourself.

Now DIY wedding dress cleaning comes with a number of risks, as you may already be aware. One of those is the risk of the cleaning not being properly carried out. This is a very real risk, seeing that wedding clothing tends to be made of very conspicuously bright colors that simply can't 'hide dirt.' Unknown to many of us is the fact that most of our DIY laundry efforts tend to be lead to less than thorough. Fortunately, as we usually wear clothing that is not too conspicuously bright, the results of our poor cleaning methodology are not that obvious for others to see, and we can manage to pull through the day somehow.

But where we are looking at the extremely bright wedding clothing, it may not be possible to get away with this, and that is why the risk of ending up with improperly done wedding dress cleaning is quoted. Another risk associated with DIY wedding dress cleaning is that of ending up with the wedding clothing getting completely messed up during the cleaning attempt. This is not as improbable as it sounds. The risk of wedding clothing getting shrunk during an attempt at DIY cleaning is all too real, and is one with which serious wedding planners can't take chances.

So, having become aware of the risks that come by way of DIY wedding dress clothing, we can now proceed to explore the precautions one can take, to avoid the incidence of those things (with all the potential embarrassment that would come with).

Now one of the precautions you should take, in DIY wedding dress cleaning, is to ensure that you read the labels on the wedding clothing and follow the cleaning instructions given there to the letter. Most of us don't bother with these labels in our day to day cleaning, but when it comes to a sensitive cleaning venture like that of wedding dress cleaning, it is essential to follow the instructions. It becomes tricky when there is no such labeling on the wedding clothing (which is quite a common occurrence). In this case, the impetus would be on you to research about the type of clothing material and color you are looking at, and establish what the right way to go about cleaning it is.

Another precaution you should take, in DIY wedding dress cleaning, is to ensure that you undertake it in good time - well in advance of the wedding; rather than making it a last minute affair. This would be with an aim to have adequate time to mitigate against problems that may arise during the process. If you make it a last minute affair, there is a chance that something could go wrong during the cleaning process, and you may not have time to correct it; leading to great embarrassment during the wedding ceremony.