I Now Pronounce You Paid In Full: Who Pays for What During the Wedding Celebrations

There’s no two ways about it: weddings are expensive. Paying for every detail is enough to drain any family’s financial coffers and – even worse – leave them wrestling with debt. Especially for new couples paying their own way during the wedding, the expenses quickly add up.  The following is a traditional guide to dividing expenses equally and fairly among the four major participants in planning the four main parts of the wedding celebration: rehearsal dinner, ceremony, reception, and honeymoon. These are guidelines more than rules, and are intended to show tradition more than carved-in-stone etiquette.

The Bride’s Family
There’s a popular misconception among the unmarried of the world that the bride’s family foots the entire bill. That’s not entirely true, though unfortunately it may feel that way for the father of the bride! Traditionally, the bride’s family finances the reception dinner with all its facets: the food, drink, venue, service staff (including tips), flower arrangements, wedding favors, and any other miscellany. The bride’s family also pays for many of the necessities leading up to the ceremony: these usually include the bridal gown, the wedding invitations and save-the-date announcements, as well as the engagement and wedding photographs. Finally (!) the wedding ceremony costs, the photographer and videographer fees, the cost of the ring bearer and flower girl accessories, the transportation costs and bridesmaids bouquets are all picked up by the bride’s family. Honestly… if you’re the parent of a young girl, start saving right now.

The Bride
Compared to her family, the bride gets off relatively easy. Brides traditionally pay for the groom’s wedding band, gifts for her bridesmaids, the bridesmaids’ luncheon, her blood test fees, and the wedding day lingerie. In the strictest traditional sense, the bride should also pay for her out-of-town bridesmaids accommodations.

The Groom
Okay, guys. Time to pony up. Following the engagement ring (that two-month’s salary guideline is passé, by the way) you’ve still got a few things left to buy. You’ll pay for the honeymoon, the marriage license, and gifts for your groomsmen. The gentleman groom, however, also pays for the bridal bouquet and corsages for your mother and your new mother-in-law. You’ll also pick up the boutonnieres, ties, and accessories for the groomsmen, and finally the bride’s wedding ring. Gifts for the ushers and for your parents go the extra distance to showing your class. You should also pay the honorarium for the judge, justice of the peace, or clergyman who officiates the ceremony, too.

The Groom’s Family
Besides their own attire, the groom’s family is responsible for the rehearsal dinner and all its details.

The Maid of Honor
Bachelorette parties and wedding showers are the responsibility of the maid of honor. This includes all the details, top to bottom.

The Best Man
The best man is master of ceremonies and godfather of the bachelor party, from the planning to the execution to pouring all the guests into cabs at the end of the night. It’s a dirty job, but someone’s got to do it.

The Groomsmen and Bridesmaids
Most of the attire – for example, the tuxedo rental and costs of the gown – are the responsibility of the individual wedding party member. They also give a gift to the newlyweds. Groomsmen arriving from out-of-town are also expected to pay for their accommodations.

My Wedding Favors has a complete selection of elegant yet inexpensive wedding favors to fit any taste and style. They also carry a complete selection of groomsmen and bridesmaids gifts. Visit their store at www.myweddingfavors.com to browse the complete catalog.

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Unique Wedding Cake Toppers

Cake toppers come is a variety of styles, from elegant to whimsical. You can use a traditional bride and groom cake topper, with interchangeable brides and grooms to match your hair and skin color... or a funny bride and groom, with the bride dragging the groom by the collar! For an elegant wedding cake, a popular choice is to use a monogram cake topper, enhanced with Swarovski crystals! From hearts to photo cake toppers, you'll be able to find the perfect touch to top your wedding cake!

You've decided on the perfect cake, now choose the perfect Wedding Cake Toppers from The Wedding Channel Store! Here's some of our favorites:

Script Initial Cake Topper

Personalized Acrylic Heart Cake Topper

Interchangeable Cake Topper

Sparkling Love Cake Topper

Lettered Swarovski Crystal Cake Topper

Sweetheart Cake Topper

Announce your wedding in style with wedding stationery from PM Custom Weddings. Unique and tasteful designs abound in Save the Date Cards, Wedding Stamps, Thank You Cards, Wedding Invitations, and more.

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Tips for Fall Weddings

Fall is a wonderful time of year for a wedding. Fall temperatures are cool and weather is good. When planning fall weddings there are a few things you should keep in mind. When choosing the colors for your wedding, stick to deep, rich colors rather than muted or pastels. Deep colors look perfect against an autumn background. Consider choosing a natural palette that goes with almost any other burst of color.

You can often more easily locate a venue in the fall. There are some stunning locations to choose from when considering fall weddings. Outdoor weddings are particularly romantic in the autumn. The fall colors are abundant, giving a rich appeal to the background. Keep in mind that the temperatures can still be quite warm. Provide coordinating pashmina shawls to the bridesmaids as stylish evening wraps.

Your bridesmaids don’t need to wear heavy fabrics and the groomsmen needn’t wear dark suits. Choose the materials and colors that you prefer, regardless of the season. Choose an interesting bright color to add highlight to the earthy tones. Some good choices include mango, gold, navy, chocolate, and hot pink. Almost any color that you choose will mix well with the neutral tones of fall.

Outdoor weddings can be beautiful in the autumn. Fall weddings offer the best of both worlds. If possible, choose a venue that offers a patio or garden setting. Guests can stroll outdoors or may stay inside if they prefer. The crisp evenings offer a nice temperature comfort level. You’ll also have plenty of choices for décor. The tones of autumn can be used in many natural textures to create a warm, earthy effect.

An autumn wedding is often easier to plan when time is short. Many venues that are booked up in the summer months may be available in the fall. There is also often better availability for churches. This means that you may have the ability to get the church and venue that you prefer.

Shop PM Custom Weddings for a beautiful selection of fall wedding invitations and fall wedding stamps to set the tone for your perfect day!

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SALE - 35% off Wedding Invitations!

We're having a summer sale! Get your wedding invitations or save the date cards at PM Custom Weddings and save 35% through August 31. It's a great time to order your fall wedding invitations, or your save the date cards for your spring wedding! Click image below to shop now!

Use Promotional Code: INVITE4EVENT

* 35% of the invitation net sale price will be deducted when ten or more qualifying invitations are purchased and the coupon code INVITE4EVENT is applied at checkout. The net sale price is the price of the product (excluding shipping and taxes). Offer is valid through August 31, 2011 11:59pm PT. This offer does not apply to past purchases and may not be combined with any other Zazzle promotional or volume discount offers. If a volume discount applies to your order, you will receive either the discount set forth in this offer or the standard volume discount, whichever is greater. Offer valid on purchases through Zazzle.com only. Expires 8/31/2011.

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Selecting Your Custom Wedding Stamps

Why would you consider using custom wedding stamps? There are many reasons that these can be of tremendous benefit to you. For one thing, they are a good way to actually reduce the cost of your wedding stationery. This is because you could use the simplest and plainest invitations and envelopes when relying on custom wedding stamps that feature your engagement or wedding photos.

There are more than just a few types available and they can use custom art and images, be selected to match the style or theme of your wedding event, or even be relied on to serve as the focal point of the mailing.

Need an example? Let’s say that you have a very basic invitation style. For our example we’ll say that you have a cream colored card stock and matching envelopes. You have opted for a charcoal grey ink, and this leaves things a bit on the “plain” side. You decide to liven up the envelopes using custom wedding stamps. The main envelope has a stamp with your engagement photograph on it in full color. The RSVP envelope has a stamp that matches the color scheme you have selected for the wedding décor. You also opt to order stamps for your bridal shower invitations too, and these are in the same hues and shades as the RSVP card stamps.

You like the looks of this so much that you decide to stick with the more basic stationery for the thank you cards, and you have one of your favorite wedding photographs printed on the custom stamps.

Choosing this route would allow you to create a tremendously personalized set of wedding oriented stationery, and all without breaking the bank. People would probably opt to keep your mailings and even the envelopes as souvenirs of a memorable event.

Shop PM Custom Weddings for our full selection of wedding stamps

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SALE $5 Off Custom Wedding Stamps!

Get your custom stamps now and save $5! Offer is valid on all of our custom wedding stamps and photo stamps at PM Custom Weddings through June 19, 2011.

* $5.00 of the Zazzle Custom Postage Sheet net sale price will be deducted when one or more qualifying Zazzle Custom Postage Sheets are purchased. The coupon code PHOTOPOSTAGE must be entered during checkout to receive the offer. The net sale of Zazzle Custom Postage Sheet price is the difference between the price of the Zazzle Custom Postage Sheet (excluding shipping and taxes) and the face value of the postage. Offer is valid through June 19, 2011 at 11:59 PM PT. This promotional offer may not be combined with any other Zazzle promotional or volume discount offers. If a volume discount applies to your order, you will receive either the discount set forth in this offer or the standard volume discount, whichever is greater.

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Wedding Theme Ideas for 2011

Wedding Theme Ideas for 2011 - By Guy Antonelli

A great place to begin planning your wedding is by choosing a theme. Having a theme will give you direction and make it easier to design a cohesive wedding that all flows together. Get inspired for your wedding by checking out these great themes for 2011 weddings.

Whimsical Tea Party. Some of the top colors for spring 2011 weddings will be light and fun hues like spring green, flamingo pink, and lilac. Used in combination, these colors lend themselves to a whimsical tea party theme. For centerpieces, arrange flowers in polka dot teapots. Set the tables with very feminine china in mismatched sets - one place setting might have pink and white china, another could have aqua blue dishes, lilac plates at the next seat, and so on. Design a sweets table with cupcakes, pastries, and cookies all frosted in shades of lilac, flamingo, and green with fun details like polka dots, stripes, and flowers. Dress bridesmaids in an array of organza dresses, with each in a different signature color. A wonderful detail for the bride would be custom bridal jewelry made from Swarovski crystals in pink, lilac, and green. A whimsical necklace would be a great accent against a solid white wedding gown.

Summer Forest. This theme would be beautiful with the soft natural hues coming into style for 2011 weddings, such as moss green and mushroom brown. Certainly a forest clearing would be a perfect setting for this wedding theme, but it could also be done beautifully indoors. Picture something from "A Midsummer Night's Dream", especially when it comes to the bridal gown and bridesmaid dresses. Ethereal gowns of layered chiffon in muted colors would be absolutely gorgeous. A pale tea-dyed color dress of chiffon or English net would be perfect for the bride, and the moss color will suit the bridesmaids. Add custom bridal jewelry made with Swarovski crystal leaves to complete the woodland fairy effect. The decorations for a summer forest theme wedding should be very natural: loosely arranged wildflowers in shades of purple and ivory, lots of moss, and garlands of flowers strung between the trees. For an indoor ceremony, bring in potted trees and use custom gobo lights to project a woodland scene onto the walls.

Retro 1950s. Bridal gowns inspired by classic 1950s dresses are a huge trend for 2011. Take your inspiration from this to design a fun '50s theme wedding. It could be done in two ways; either classic elegant bridal white 1950s style or a more cheeky retro style with lots of cherry red accents. Use some of the favorite mid-Century wedding motifs such as lovebirds, wedding bells, and bride and groom cake toppers. The bride can choose a gown from among the many '50s inspired strapless sweetheart designs available and wear it with pearl bridal jewelry and white gloves. Shawl collar tuxedos on the men would be a great retro detail. You could bring in some fun '50s things such as a retro soda fountain complete with a white-capped "soda jerk" mixing up cherry Cokes and root beer floats. Hire a band who can play all the classic music of the 1950s (can we say Elvis song for the first dance?!), and get ready to have a wonderful time at your wedding.

Any of these wedding themes would be fun and fresh for 2011. Use them as a starting point to plan your own unique wedding full of personal touches. It will surely be one of the most memorable weddings of the year!

Read Guy's other articles on weddings,society and fashions and let us know what you think. Call us at http://silverlandjewelry.com/ for help with your wedding jewelry or gift needs. We offer an exclusive collection of custom bridal jewelry and all jewelry orders over $99 receive free shipping.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Guy_Antonelli

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Visit PM Custom Weddings to view our selection of theme wedding invitations, including beach theme, fall weddings, baseball theme, and whimsical wedding invitations!

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