Love Wedding Planning

              cake, save the date, place card holder, bouquet, boutonniere, cake topper, cookies, gift basket

Can you believe it’s baseball season already? We thought it would be fun to create a baseball wedding inspiration board for all you baseball fans!

What teams do you root for? Do you and your groom cheer for the same teams?

Or is there a friendly rivalry going on?

Happy planning,

Dorna Love
Love Wedding Planning

All brides are beautiful. But I mean beautiful on the inside as well as outside. The ideal bride-to-be is a charming, glowing, happy individual, who sees the world through the traditional rose-colored glasses.  Unfortunately, the actions of some of her “sisters” , who may have earned the 21st century media title of “Bridezilla”, tarnish that view of a bride. Have you seen the TV show of the same name that features brides at their worst?

Thankfully, we’ve never met a “bridezilla” (and hope we never do.)

We want our brides to be happy as they plan the wedding of their dreams, but we also want them to be the focus of warm thoughts from relatives and guests who see them at their very best – gracious and focused on others. The beautiful bride is one who doesn’t focus only on herself, but who shares her happiness with family and friends.  Would you really want to be referred to as “bridezilla”? How embarrassing is that? (more…)

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Including children as ring bearers, flower girls, or junior attendants in your wedding party can add a special touch to the ceremony. But children can be unpredictable. They may find it fun – if perhaps a little intimidating- but only you know how involved you’d like the children to be, especially if the wedding will be held later in the evening (well past usual bedtimes).

If your including children in your bridal party, try to make them feel comfortable in their role.

• Assign the younger children someone also in the bridal party to keep an eye on them before and during the ceremony. (Like Pippa at Kate and William’s wedding)
• Read them a book about being a flower girl or ring bearer
• Let them practice walking up the aisle carrying their flower girl basket or ring bearer pillow so they get used to it.
• Let them know exactly where their parents will be sitting (preferably in seats close to the front and the aisle so the children can sit with them during the ceremony and parents can take them outside if they start to cry.
• Remind parents to bring them a change of clothes for the reception so they can eat and run around (you know, normal kid stuff) without ruining their “wedding clothes”.

If you’re including children in the wedding party and as guests, you may wish to consider a “mini” reception for them. Consider having a separate bar set up at the reception just for the kids, and provide juice, water, milk, punch, or soda. Have tables set up just for them with games, coloring books, dolls, and other toys to keep them from getting bored.

For wedding celebrations with many children in attendance, many couples arrange for the children to to spend some time at the reception and have a separate room for them set up with movies, games, and entertainment such as a clown or magician. Hire babysitters or young adults to supervise the room.

Providing the children with things to keep them occupied will ensure they have a good time, and so will their parents.

Related articles

• How to Get Ring Bearers Down the Aisle (beadinggem.com)
• 15 Fabulous Alternatives to Ring Bearer Pillows (casasugar.com)

Because the reception is usually the single largest expense of any wedding, much has been written about it. Most receptions have been designed with an historical or traditional flavor. But times have changed. The economy is different, the bride and groom are different, and the focus on the reception as the celebratory segment of a wedding has changed somewhat.

We offer these notes of advice on the reception:

Whatever your budget for the reception, DO IT WELL!

If you don’t have the money for a sit down dinner, have a buffet. Just don’t skimp. Do what you can afford to do beautifully. Switch days, switch times, switch venues – do whatever gives you the most beautiful ceremony and reception within your budget. Don’t try to reach a level you can’t afford. Skimping always shows.

Cut down the guest list!

You don’t need to have the biggest wedding and invite as many people as possible. Invite only those people who matter to you both. Surveys have shown that several years after the wedding when couples look at their wedding photos, their amazed at the number of guests they can’t name, and they regret having invited those people to their wedding. This is your special day and you should surround yourselves with those nearest and dearest to you.

The first rule of entertaining guests is to consider their time and attention.

That means cut down the time between the ceremony and reception. Don’t make them wait several hours between events. Work hard to have the venues for the ceremony and reception close together.  Be considerate of your guests and don’t make them drive an hour or more to get from one event to the other.

Leave the reception before your guests.

It used to be the “rule”. The wedding couple would change into their “traveling clothes” and leave the reception to begin their honeymoon. Today’s couples have challenged that tradition and are frequently the last to leave the reception. In some cases, it becomes a waiting game. No one is sure who should leave when, so no one does. One can only speculate on this need to leave the pary last, but it can prove to be very awkward. Be gracious and leave before your guests begin to nod off at their tables.

Today’s wedding couple wants to be both connected to traditional wedding values and able to express their own strong individuality. They’re more likely to want a ceremony and reception that is uniquely theirs but one that pays homage to weddings that have gone before. At Love Wedding Planning, we specialize in helping couples make their weddings uniquely and wonderfully theirs, no matter what their budget may be.

Creativity is the answer.

Here are a few ideas to consider.

The “something old” is traditionally a piece of family jewelry or a handkerchief handed down from mother to daughter. Some brides even choose to wear their mother’s gown. But for those who want their own look, (or for those whose sizes don’t match), consider clipping a piece from the train or skirt of mom’s gown and having it stitched into your gown. You can customize your gown even further by having your new monogram sewn into the train.

Some brides are choosing to have their shoes as their “something blue”. If it fits with your color scheme, choosing a pale blue (or having them dyed) can be a wonderful accent to a gown with blue ribbons or beading, and can be a nice change from the traditional blue garter.

Consider letting your bridesmaids select their own flattering style of gown from a collection that shares the same color scheme, fabric, and degree of formality. This works great when you have a wedding party of various sizes and shapes, and increases the odds that they’ll have a gown that they can wear again.

If your wedding reception will include a cocktail hour, consider having a special drink created for you. Serve it along with one other non-alcoholic drink for those that prefer it. It can simplify the bar service and save you money.

For a look that says opulent without spending a lot on flowers, consider renting green plants for both the ceremony and reception. Plants provide a warm and elegant environment and can hide architectural “blunders” in many reception halls.

Let us help you create a wedding that is truly YOURS.