As the marriage age grows steadily higher, more and more couples find themselves entering 
marriage with all of the basic dishes, linens, and home goods that are usually listed on a bridal registry. In many cases, the bride and groom may really prefer cash as a wedding gift. While traditional etiquette frowns on this, don’t immediately give in and register for items you don’t need.
Best Way to Ask for Cash Gifts
While it is still considered rude to ask for money outright, there are plenty of more subtle ways to go about doing this. The best way to let your guests know what you want is by word of mouth. Make sure that your close friends and family all know that you prefer to receive money. The bridal party should be in on this as well, as guests may contact one of them (most likely the Maid of Honor or Best Man) to get this information.
In most cases, your guests will understand. Many of the people invited to your wedding are 
likely to be close friends and family that you are able to be honest with. You should let them know why you prefer money if possible. In many cases this may be because you are saving for large purchases such as furniture, a new house, or a car.
Gifts for Charity
Another option if you prefer to forgo traditional wedding gifts is to have money donated in your names to a charity. If you decide to go this route, select your favorite charity and contact 
them. They may be able to offer advice on setting up a special fund for this event and can give you specific instructions on how your guests should donate. Though this is still considered a monetary gift, it is a beautiful way to give back and use your wedding as a way to better the world.
Thank You Note
Remember to keep careful track of all gifts received. It can be especially easy to lose track if you are collecting several checks. Dedicate a special notebook or spreadsheet to keeping careful track of this information. When it comes to gifts, keep in mind that your guests will appreciate knowing what you would really like. By providing this information in a tactful and polite manner, you will be able to get the type of gifts you want without upsetting etiquette and tradition – lastly, do not forget to send a thank you note to your guests
Head Table
and flower girl. If you choose to have children in the wedding, the best idea for the reception is to seat them either with their parents, or at a children’s table if you have one. If they are sitting with their parents you may seat them all at the same table so the children feel that they are still at an important table.
There is a difference between planners and coordinators, although most who claim to be either one are actually both. To start with, coordinators do just that, coordinate! She* may be there just for the day of your event, although you should meet with her a few times before the big day so that she understands your vision and has all the information she needs.
vendors to planning a detailed schedule for the big day. They are great to have around when you have random questions that need answers or wedding-related tasks that just do not fit on to your To Do list.
Even though you may meet with your planner a limited number of times, she does a lot more work than you might think. The average wedding takes about 80 hours to plan. Working with a wedding planner can cut several hours out of your planning process because your planner can do much of the busy work for you. Plus, she should know the best people to work with, allowing you to bypass the hours of combing through vendors to find one you think you can trust.
Association of Bridal Consultants
Equally important is that your wedding planner understands that she is there to serve you. After all, it is your wedding day and it is all about what you and your loved ones want. If your planner is not asking what she can do for you, then find someone new!
So, you have the weight of the wedding world on your shoulders, not to mention the expectations of family and friends, and best of all, the in-laws. One more delay in gown alterations, one more meeting with the caterer, one more critique of the wedding invitation, one more late vendor appointment. What is a bride (or groom) to do?
they think things will not be finished in time. Staying on top of your organizational game will help you to relax and reassure you that you have got a good grip on things. How do you stay organized? Let me count the ways! Surly you have some sort of wedding planning checklist. Create a special calendar with your tasks on it and write when they are due by. Then take yourself seriously. Do not think to yourself, Oh, the invitations can wait another week. If you need to have your invites ordered by the 7th of June, then make sure they are ordered by the 7th of June! Or if you already have a planner/organizer that contains your entire life (like me) get a special pen (try picking one that is one of the colors you are using in your wedding) and write in all the tasks with that pen. That way you can easily see wedding-related tasks and have less of a chance of skipping over them. In the end, do whatever you need to stay organized. We all have our different ways, do what works best for you!
process, here is the last one we will talk about today. Do not forget the reason all of this planning and excitement is taking place! You are getting married to the love of your life, the person you will spend the rest of your life with! That should not stress you out at all. If you are feeling weighed down by wedding things, take a day or two off to just relax with your future spouse. No wedding planning. No post-wedding plans. No work. Nothing stressful. Do something the two of you enjoy together and just let yourselves rest. The time together should help you stay attached and remember the reasons why you are getting married.
WEDDING DAY! It’s a big day, and many times, it sneaks up on you (I know, hard to believe). Even with all that planning and organizing, it’s very possible that one or two (or more) things might slip under your radar. Here is a little list of things that often get passed by or misplaced and how to remember or keep track of them!
How it happens: I can’t tell you HOW important this is – for EVERYONE! The bride, the groom, the bridal party, parents and grandparents, and even your vendors/wedding professionals. Once the day starts and emotions and excitement are running high, it’s easy to get distracted or just push eating aside.
the front few rows (or in all of the pews if you invited a ton of criers!). And for the bridal party, make sure everyone has a tissue tied into their bouquets or in a pocket for easy access. You never know when tears might start!
candles) and don’t have any method of lighting them, you’d have to skip over the ritual for lack of flame! *gasp*
might now know how your feet will react to being in them for such a long time.
overlooked.
Tuyen and Tuan were married on May 2nd, 2009 at the Mahaffey Theater in Downtown St. Petersburg. The day started with a traditional Vietnamese tea ceremony in the morning, followed by a Western Ceremony in the late afternoon on the Lawn of the Mahaffey Theater. Tuyen and Tuan chose Orange and Navy as the colors of their wedding. For the Western Ceremony they had a Bamboo arch decorated with ivory fabric and accented with orange Mokara orchids and lilies. The aisle was accented with Orange Floral Pomanders with navy and orange ribbons braided for the handles. The final touch was the Orange rose petals trailing down the outer edges of the aisle. After the ceremony the guests moved indoors for the reception in the Grand Ballroom overlooking the water. After picking up their placecards at the entrance to the Ballroom, they entered the room to Navy floor length table linens and a beautiful centerpiece in the center of the table with ivory ribbons on the outside and beautiful Orange Mokara orchids inside. The Ballroom was uplight with different colors of blues, purples and ambers supplied by Josh from Inspire 
Entertainment.The wedding cake was placed on top of a glass block cake stand and the Groom was suprised by the Bride with a replica of his dog for the Groom’s Cake.The guests were treated to a 10 course Vietnamese meal by Hao Wah Catering. After some dancing to work off dinner, they guests sent the Bride and Groom off with a fireworks send-off. Thanks to the great vendors for helping pull off such a great day for Tuyen and Tuan.
her. She may be able to figure some things out, but, unless you’re giving up all control to her on this important day, make sure she knows about all of your expectations and all the little details she needs to take care of. (Bottom line: Good communication is key. Keep the paths of communication open and functioning. Don’t be afraid to tell her what you don’t like or what needs to be changed. Don’t be afraid to call or send her an email. She is there to answer your questions. Also, don’t hesitate to ask her for updates. It’s her job!)
planner doens’t want to waste your time or hers. When she asks to schedule a meeting, it’s for a reason. Perhaps she wants to make positively certain that she has the day’s schedule of events down or wants to tripple check the list of songs, or a plethera of other minute details that have very likely left your mind completely. So meet with her that one last time, and don’t be late! (Some planners will charge you for being late to appointments, so ask in advance, just in case time slips away from you easily.)
wedding for a mere five grand. Also, she is working for you and wants to make you a very happy customer, so if she is any good, she’ll go above and beyond to get you what you ask for, but at the same time, when she says something just won’t work, listen to her. Chances are, she’s already tried it.
hired her to make sure if these things do happen, you’ll have a back up plan. So, while it’s easy to be upset that it’s raining on your wedding day (which some believe is good luck!), don’t take it out on your planner. Be happy that she arranged for a back up tent to be set up or that she has made special arrangements for an attendant to be ready and waiting with an umbrella and other rain-repellant objects to transport you from the limo to the reception building.
wedding planner, you’ve probably already felt the weight upon your shoulders that a wedding can bring. Now imagine you are the only one that needs to set up for the reception and ceremony and check in with all the vendors and make sure your day progresses with as little hiccups as possible. Yeah! Stressful! That’s where assistants come in. They do more work than you see and are definitely a necessary helper.
wedding day, but that doesn’t mean that she’s only putting five or six hours into your day! Before you met for the first time she made sure she was prepared to meet with you and answer your questions. Between meetings she contacted vendors, built schedules, organized people and various other little details. And even after the event, there is follow up work involved. So while you may not have a lot of face time, she is definitely hard at work.
somewhat “small” (which, true, is a relative term). That being said, the temptation of hiring family or friends for wedding-related services and products can be a slippery slope when trying to navigate through etiquette, feelings, and everyone’s opinions.
is not exactly how you pictured it or the wording on your invitations is just a little different than what you had expected, you should treat your agreement with any friend or relative you “hire” like any other vendor you hire. Have a written letter of agreement and outline all of the specifics. And perhaps more importantly, make sure she /he takes her/his job seriously as well. If her/his service to you is also her/his career, she/he probably will, as she/he wants you to be another happy customer!
humans! We all make mistakes. And yes, while your wedding might be the happiest day of your life up until this point, for all of your vendors, it’s just another day at work. For your friends and family, of course, they are more connected to you than most of your other vendors and are probably more happy about the day’s events. But, that being said, any friend or family member you ask to help you out will probably be less focused on providing the perfect product or service and more on seeing you blissfully happy which believe it or not, can cause more problems than you’d think. So, prepare yourself for little hiccups and don’t let them “ruin” you day. After all, as long as you’re married at the end of the evening, the event was a success, right?
afford a monetary gift or your helper may simply refuse one, that doesn’t mean you can’t say thanks and really mean it! Perhaps sending some flowers or a basket of goodies would do the trick. Above all else, make sure you include a very well written and meaningful thank you note. Nice stationary, neat hand writing, and mention of specific tasks your helper did for you along with a few lines of how truly grateful you are should work nicely!
volunteers their services or offers to provide something for you, make sure you know exactly what she’s/he’s up for. Perhaps she/he just wants to sew you a ring pillow – not all of your bridesmaid’s dresses. Know what she’s/he’s willing to do and don’t try to push her/him into doing more than she/he volunteered for.
big day (she was always so great at slumber parties!) does a horrible job during the test run and you can’t stomach seeing what she might turn your hair into for you wedding day, make sure you have a way out. Perhaps a note like this: “Thank you so much for doing a test run on my hair! I think, though, that I might just go to the salon instead. That way you don’t have to invest in any tools you don’t need to make my hair look like the pictures I had. And, you don’t have to deal with my crazy nerves and super picky taste! I really appreciate your offer!” And don’t forget, don’t set things like this in stone unless you are absolutely positive that she can provide you with what you want. Save yourself from hurting feelings if you can!
wedding isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Just know exactly what you’re getting yourself into!
guests have to look forward to is the upcoming work week. For the guests that want to linger, or those who just do not want to throw in the towel, think about having an after party for them! After parties comes in more ways than just one. Here are a few ideas if you are thinking about doing a little something for your guests.
night away. Mix it up by creating a completely different style than that of your wedding. Pump the music and let the drinks flow.
Maybe your reception will be coming to a close just in time for an evening pot of coffee. Or, perhaps, everyone will have partied so late that the morning will get there before they know it. Help your guests get back into the swing of things by creating a relaxed atmosphere and serving some coffee, tea, and some light snacks. Create the space from scratch, or talk the owner of a coffee shop near to your venue into opening up extra early.
