Wedding Planning

While wedding planning can be a stressful experience, many people who have been through it vouch for the fact that it can be a fun process. Since a wedding is supposed to be a very happy event, planning the wedding should be enjoyable and exciting too. There are some key factors that can help reduce stress while planning a wedding party. These factors include basics such as keeping a positive attitude when things don't go as planned, working within a budget, starting to plan as early as possible, exercising daily, delegating tasks to the right people and of course identifying and contracting with reliable service providers.

The excitement behind wedding planning includes beautiful moments such as selecting beautiful wedding attire and accessories, visiting many beautiful venues before finalizing one and tasting delicious cuisines and cakes. Wedding planning should be started as early as possible. You could start by gathering ideas from local bridal shows, bridal magazines, interaction with married friends, surfing the Internet and shopping around. Early planning helps avoid last minute pressures and saves time for relaxation in the days immediately preceding the wedding.

It is critical that the budget for the wedding be finalized and expenses worked backwards based on it. The more detailed the budget is in terms of fine details of expenses based on up to date price quotes, the better it is. It is always advisable to allocate some buffer funds after estimating the expenditure.

You should shop around for quality service providers by researching on the net and by checking references from friends and relatives. Some service providers can be brilliant and others are terrible. The service providers can make or break a wedding ceremony.

Finally, it is a good idea to exercise daily; besides keeping the body trim and beautiful, it also helps relieve stress.

Some Additional Planning Tips

While organizing a wedding, there are some vital elements that might just escape your attention and cause chaos. Here are some tips to help make that special day a success.

Always get a sample print of the wedding invitations from the printer before the main print run. Check for any printing errors and ensure that the time and venue mentioned are correct.

Keep an updated wedding guest list and make sure this list contains several contact numbers for each person to facilitate quick communication about any changes made in the arrangements.

Book a photographer with experience in covering wedding functions; you might want to check out some samples of their coverage of other functions to assess their skills. It is always better to communicate requirements in writing and insist on a written confirmation in return. It is safer to double check details with the photographer and not make assumptions about the scope of service.

It is advisable to check with the minister if the wedding service can be filmed. Typically, most of them are agreeable to this, but some can object to a sacred ceremony being filmed. Also many couples like to provide a live webcast to their friends and family who are unable to travel to the ceremony. This requires a venue with a stable Internet connection and a webcasting team with experience with live events.

Before booking a reception at a hotel or restaurant, you must try them out to ensure that the food and service they offer is of high standards. A fancy menu does not guarantee good food.

Parking is almost as important as the quality of the food. Check parking facilities before booking a venue. There should be sufficient parking space to accommodate all the guests.

Wedding Etiquette

Wedding etiquettes are practices prescribed by social conventions or by authority. A few traditional etiquettes followed during a wedding are covered below.

In recent times, bearing the cost of a wedding is no longer the exclusive responsibility of the father of the bride; it is shared between the families of the bride and groom. There are no rigid rules as to "who pays for what", but some of the traditional guidelines are that the bride's family pays for the wedding dress, the wedding ring for the groom and the ceremony while the groom's family pays for the wedding ring for the bride and the wedding cake. With regard to tipping, a sum of about 15% of the total bill is recommended if the services were extra special.

Dancing at the reception is an elegant way to bring friends and family together. Traditionally, the bride and groom should have the first dance. As the music continues, the father of the bride cuts in and dances with his daughter, while the groom dances with the bride's mother. As a general rule, the parents paying for the wedding are the ones who give out the invitations. The groom's cake is a smaller cake served at the reception. It is recommended that the groom's mother bake the cake. The bride must wrap small slices of the cake in tin foil and pass it around to the guests attending the reception.