What Next Now That You're Engaged...

You're engaged!  Congratulations.  First and foremost, take a moment and relish in your happiness.  Enjoy the fact that he loves you and that you are about to embark in a lifetime of happiness.  Next, time to plan, plan, plan.  What to do after he pops the question...

1. Set a Timeline - How long is your engagement going to be?  Are you going to plan your wedding within a year or more than a year?  More brides are stretching out their engagement which gives more time to save money and secure the ceremony/reception site of their dreams.

2. Book Your Hall - Reception and ceremony sites can book up a year or sometimes two years in advance.  Be sure to make this your top priority.  Finding the site for your wedding to be held will help determine the length of your engagement, the size of your wedding, and your wedding date. (Don't forget the officiant!  Someone to marry you is just as important and can sometimes book up just as fast as the ceremony site)

3. Set a Date - Once you book your hall/officiant and set a timeline for your engagement, the date of your wedding should be easy!  It normally follows the open dates of your reception/ceremony location.  Once you've decided on the date, announce your big news.  Tell family and friends with engagement announcements like custom save the date magnets.  Your family can stick them up on the frig to brag to their friends about their pride and joy.

4. Set Your Budget - Talk with your fiancé and any other fabulous people helping with the cost of your wedding.  Determine what you will be able to reasonable spend on your big day.  Setting a wedding budget will help you decide on how many people you will invite and how much cash you can throw at the ceremony/reception site, the dress, etc.

5. Keep Notes - Be sure to get a binder to file all those ideas in.  Make sure it has a calendar for important dates and separate areas to keep inspiration photos for flowers, cakes, table settings, gowns, receipts, etc.

6. Go Gown Shopping - Believe it or not, many bridal gowns can take 8+ months to be ordered and come in.  Don't put this off until the last minute.  Make sure you start researching gowns right away.  Take into consideration the time of year you will be getting married.  Summer wedding?  Think airy chiffon or tulle.  Fall or winter wedding?  Look for more heavyweight fabrics like thick satin or velvet.

What can wait until later?  Be sure to take care of these important six points first before diving into the cosmetic parts of your wedding day.  The colors, centerpieces, and favors can wait until you have set your date and budget.  

Congratulations to you and happy planning!

Allie

Creative and Fun Wedding Trend - Groom's Cake

A creative and fun trend for 2010 wedding celebrations is the comeback of the groom's cake. This is an old fashioned southern tradition in which the bride honors the groom. The best part of having a groom’s cake is how creative a bride can be with any number of ingredients, shapes and styles that reflect the groom’s hobbies, favorite sports, alma mater, profession, or anything he enjoys. The groom’s cake will add a personal touch as one of the most memorable and delightful parts of the wedding celebration.

The flavor of the groom’s cake is typically chocolate with strawberries, rich fruit based, liqueur soaked, candy cakes, brownies, or any flavor the groom prefers. The cake may be presented at any time during the wedding celebration. Serve it at the rehearsal dinner as a toast to the groom and a way of thanking wedding attendants, family members and special guests. Or, at the wedding reception, display the groom’s cake near the wedding cake for guests to enjoy throughout the evening. The groom's cake is cut by the groom or the groom and his family and may be served as an alternate dessert with the wedding cake.

The legend behind the groom’s cake indicates the bridesmaids, or single women, were to sleep with a slice of cake under their pillow the same night they received it and if they did, they would dream of their future husband. A great way to incorporate this legend with your wedding reception is to provide personalized cake boxes to serve as your wedding favors for all guests to take home and enjoy. The possibilities are endless so have fun planning.

Renee

Wedding Candy Buffets are a Hot Trend in 2010

One of the hottest trends for 2010 wedding reception is the candy buffet. A candy buffet will bring out your inner child and is a great way to thank guests for attending your wedding. In addition to candy buffets being a great wedding favor, they are also a fun wedding decoration.

You will want to find some great candy containers and candy scoops. Clear containers usually work best because they showcase your candy selections and have a charming appeal. Use your wedding colors to inspire your candy selections. You can also tie ribbons around clear glass containers to incorporte different colors or even personalize the ribbon with your names and wedding date. Be creative. The sky is the limit when it comes to how you want to present your candy buffet.

Incorporating some details from your wedding theme can help make your candy favors even more memorable. If you are having an Asian themed wedding you can add fortune cookies. If you are having a Valentine’s Day Wedding you can add candy hearts with little sayings on them. The possibilities are endless.

A wedding candy buffet is a great do-it-yourself favor that your guests will not soon forget. Make sure to include favor boxes or bags so they have something to put their candy selections in. Personalized favor bags with a sweet message or your names and date would be a very nice touch. Make your guests literally feel like a kid in a candy store when they join in the celebration of your wedding.

Carrie

2010 Wedding Trends and Styles

Weddings have taken on a whole new world of their own in the past decade. For the coming year the trends and styles have once again changed. Some of the hottest wedding related themes and styles for 2010 are going to be natural flowered bouquets, back yard weddings and receptions, styles of photography that will include videography, and lets not forget the wedding dress and accessories.

Vintage style wedding dresses are the newest trend and while they are still fancy, the hemlines have been pulled up quite a bit. It’s all about being short, fancy and sassy in 2010. Accessorize the knee length or tea length wedding dress with short gloves and a birdcage veil for brides who want to show off their great legs and shoes.

Another great comeback is the birdcage style veil.  The birdcage is a vintage style veil that is designed with a jeweled clip or feathered headpiece combined with netting that only covers the face. It creates a dramatic look and glamorous feel that will compliment the shortened wedding dress. I found a really great website with beautiful and one of a kind hand made birdcage veils by artist and designer Dorene Vandermeer. The birdcage veil depicted in the photo is The FLEUR Wedge that you can order as shown or choose from a wide variety of options to create your own individual styled veil. www.unveiledbridaldesigns.com

Photo courtesy of  Maria Mernal

Renee

Valentine’s Day Weddings

Getting married in late winter, early spring is the most perfect time of the year. This is because we associate this time with new life, new love and happiness. This year Valentine’s Day falls on a Sunday and I am expecting many Valentine Day Weddings.

February is the month most associated with romance and naturally lends itself to a Valentines style wedding. No doubt your theme will be teaming with romance and the color red! Think white, pink, and of course–red. White flowers represent purity. Pink flowers represent passion. Red represents everlasting love. Put the three colors together and you have a powerful combination that expresses your sweetest sentiments to your spouse and all of your guests.

You don’t want your wedding to look commercialized like the window display at a card store. Avoid large cupid cut-outs and gigantic teddy bears. Of course it’s a themed wedding, but you still want to capture intimacy and elegance. For creating your centerpieces, you can consider large frosted bowls filled with water, lit floating votives, and red rose petals. The table can be accented with red silky fabric tablecloths, which can be cut from a fabric store.

It’s quite easy to accommodate a Valentine’s Day themed wedding with favors. You can give your guests Hershey kisses in an organza bag. Heart shaped wedding favors of any kind would be a big hit. Also the word LOVE would be a great theme for wedding favors. Go all out when it comes to this theme. This is the most romantic day of the year to get married.

Carrie