The wedding rehearsal is a practice of the ceremony from beginning to end, allowing everybody involved to feel more confident about what will happen the next day. Anyone who plays a role in the ceremony should attend. This includes the officiant, the wedding party, readers, and parents. Walk through the ceremony, establishing the pace and timing, in the order each element will occur, and make sure all of the participants know their responsibilities. Bring the unity candle or anything else you will want to have in place for the following day. It's also smart to have some programs and copies of any readings on hand for people to follow along.


The Rehearsal Dinner
The decisions have all been made, and your loved ones are arriving in town. It's the eve of your wedding and time to relax before the excitement of the day dawns. The rehearsal dinner is a
wonderful opportunity to savor this special moment with good friends and family in an intimate
setting. Depending on the guest list and budget, and the wishes of the hosts, the event can be
anything from a formal banquet to a casual outdoor picnic.


What Type of Rehearsal Dinner Should You Have?
The style of the rehearsal dinner can complement the wedding, but it should not copy or overshadow
it. Some couples opt for a complete contrast. For their rehearsal dinner, Catherine and Jay Madrak,
who were married in Portland, Connecticut, had a casual picnic in the backyard of Jay's parents'
home, even though their wedding itself was quite formal.
Many rehearsal dinners are held at restaurants -- perhaps a favorite date spot or someplace with a
style of cuisine that has special meaning to the bride and groom. If Italy is the honeymoon
destination, for example, an Italian restaurant would be fitting.


When to Hold the Rehearsal Dinner
The rehearsal dinner is typically held the night before the wedding, directly after the ceremony run-through. Despite its name, however, it can be a lunch, or even a brunch, if you like; and its pace is often informal and leisurely. But if it is a dinner, keep in mind that the party should end somewhat early, to give everyone a chance to get plenty of rest before the big day.


Who Hosts the Rehearsal Dinner
Traditionally, the groom's parents are the hosts of the rehearsal dinner, since the bride's family customarily pays for the wedding. But given the more relaxed standards of modern times, other
relatives, close friends, or even the couple themselves can plan and pay for the event. Whoever throws the party should definitely confer with the bride and groom to avoid any conflict with the theme, menu, or decorations of the wedding.


The Guest List
Only those who will actually take part in the rehearsal -- the bride and groom, their parents, the officiant, the wedding party (including any child attendants), and readers -- plus their spouses or dates, need to be invited to the rehearsal itself and the festivities that follow. But the guest list for the dinner may be longer. You might want to include other family members (such as grandparents) and close friends, for example. And many couples invite their out-of-town guests as well, making the dinner into a welcoming party. Written invitations are not required, but still it's a good idea to send them if more than just family will be attending; and the host should mail them right after the wedding invitations go out. The invitations are not as formal as those for a wedding but can reflect its tone.


Seating of the Guests
Because it's typically the first time the bride and groom see most of their close friends and family together, the rehearsal dinner can feel like a reunion. For a more formal dinner, or one with a larger guest list, it helps to have a seating chart so people aren't at a loss about where to go when it's time for the meal to be served. Furthermore, some members of the two families may be meeting for the first time, and relatives may not be acquainted with everyone in the wedding party. Encourage conversation by seating these people together (if you're sure they'll be comfortable), or simply make a point of introducing them personally sometime during the evening.


Toasts at the Rehearsal
Toasts are often a big part of the evening, and unlike those at the wedding reception, where the order may be well planned, rehearsal dinner toasts tend to be spontaneous. In this intimate and casual setting, guests will often feel comfortable sharing their memories of the couple and wishing them well. If the groom's parents are hosting, his father might begin by welcoming all the guests and
offering a toast to the bride and groom. The father of the bride can stand next, followed by the attendants and any other guests who want to speak.
During the toasts, the bride and groom have a chance to say a few words of thanks to all of the people taking part in the wedding. This is also the traditional time for them to present gifts to the members of the wedding party (and perhaps the parents) to thank them for their support.

Personal Touches at the Rehearsal
Finally, the event is a fitting occasion to remember the past as you look to the future. Displaying photo albums or framed pictures of the bride and groom is a charming way to do this.
Source:www.marthastewartweddings.com

It goes without saying that your wedding day will be about love – but it’s not just the connection between you and your new husband that you’ll be celebrating. Weddings are a wonderful opportunity to show your family and friends just how much they mean to you, so why not treat your bridesmaids to something a little special? Here are nine modern bridesmaid gifts to give your girls!


When it comes to buying gifts for your bridesmaids, don’t think you have to spend a small fortune to show them how important they are to you – especially if you have a large number of girls in your bridal party! We always think that small gifts from the heart or with a personal touch are better than extravagant, meaningless presents.
Don’t worry about buying different presents for different girls, either – particularly if you have bridesmaids of different ages. Another option is tailoring your presents for each of your maids, which not only means you can buy gifts that match each of their personalities or interests, but also means you can spend a little more or less on each gift – they don’t need to know the budgets are different!


Modern jewels
Jewellery is a traditional gift when it comes to bridesmaids, but we recommend that you put a little thought into your choice. Often brides will think they’re being clever by buying their girls jewellery that perfectly matches the bridesmaids outfits, but this sometimes means that the jewels in question never get worn again. We much prefer the idea of getting them a little something sparkly that they can wear over and over – even if they don’t actually wear them on the day.



If you want your bridesmaids to have a specific reminder of your day, but don’t necessarily want to engrave or personalize anything, then we love the idea of giving them a piece of jewellery with a knot theme. Just attach a little card saying ‘Thank you for helping up tie the knot!’ and you have the perfect bridesmaid gift!


Personalized touches
Personalizing a gift is a great way to make it extra special. We think that little items like this compact mirror are a great option – plus, it’s perfect for touching up makeup during the reception! Buy things you know your bridesmaids will use, and they’re sure to smile every time they pull it out of their bag.


We love these mini tote bags, fill them with cheap wedding day goodies such as lip balm, sweets and perfume to use on the day, and they can use the bag afterwards!


This gift is easy and cheap to personalize – just fill it with pictures of you and the bridesmaid together! Either that or leave it empty for your bridesmaid to fill with photos of the wedding day.


Luxury for less
Every girl likes to be pampered a little, so why not give your bridesmaids a luxury treat? Buy her a salon or spa treatment like a manicure or facial – or, for a touch of luxury on a budget, buy her a beautifully scented bath oil or candle.


Another option is to treat her to a little something sweet. It comes with a mini bottle of sparkling ros̩, a box of pink Champagne truffles and an Eton Mess slab Рperfect for a girly girl with a sweet tooth.


Beauty buys
This gift is an especially clever option if your girls are doing their own nails or makeup on the day. Just choose a neutral set – this not only makes it more likely to go down well with more bridesmaids (your older sister might not be into neon bright eyeshadows!), but it means that they then have the option to use the kit on your wedding day.


Nail polish is another great gift idea. After the big day, your girls can jazz up their wedding manicure with a sparkly pink topcoat!
Source: www.weddingideasmag.com

Wondering how to pick your wedding day colors and make them work? Here's a guide to creating a winning palette.

The hottest thing happening at wedding receptions isn't just on the dance floor -- it's on the wedding cake, the invitations, the centerpieces, and even the bride's gown. It's big, bold color. Years ago brides used color to accent their white wedding day decor, but now they're using color to cover every inch of the wedding. We've developed a step-by-step guide on color coordination (from choosing it to decorating with it) to help you dream up a bright wedding day.

Choosing Your Color
First things first: location. When deciding on a scheme, you must consider the reception space or choose a space without decor or color. If you've chosen a country club with navy and maroon Oriental carpets, a color scheme of lime green and hot pink won't work.

Next, become aware of color combinations that you like, whether browsing art galleries or flipping through a stack of fashion magazines. You might be able to narrow down your color choices to a half a dozen. To help you choose the exact hue for your wedding details, visit a local fabric store or paint shop and collect swatches or chips of colors you might want to use. This will help you get specific, so that when you decide on green you'll know if it's lime green, kelly green, sage green, or forest green.

If you have access to a Pantone book, use this collection of colors to select your shade the same way graphic designers do. Many invitation designers mix ink to match the colors in this book, and many cake bakers use Pantone numbers as a reference when creating dye for frosting. Can't decide on just one or two colors? Don't worry. In fact, many extraordinary weddings feature a variety of colors, sometimes up to five, that work together to create a specific sensibility -- like an "English garden" with green, yellow, pink, red, and brown, or "Fall in New England" with orange, red, brown, and gold.

Where & How to Execute Color
Where and how you use color really depends on the mood you are trying to create. The best way to get started is to figure out what emotions you want your celebration to evoke. A peaceful, Zen-like retreat? A regal, romantic affair? A jumping, high-energy party?
For instance, a vibrant summer yellow mixed with chocolate brown (think sunflowers and bees) is perfect for a country-chic wedding style; add gold to the mix, and the combination becomes more reminiscent of Northern Italy. As another example, leaf green paired with cantaloupe is pretty for a waterside wedding; but pair this green with copper, and you have a color scheme that's formal enough for a ballroom or an estate setting. If your wedding takes place in multiple spaces, each room can have its own color scheme.

The Elements of Style
 
Attire Your gown doesn't have to be solid white, especially since color accents are increasingly more available. A blue or red sash around the waist is striking and still very bridal. The groom and his guys can also sport color in their ties or on their cuff links. But color will be most prominently displayed throughout the day in the bridesmaid dresses. Some fervent folks might want to match the dresses to the invitation ribbons, the favor tags, and the bouquets but this isn't the only way to define a style. Mixing and matching dresses in varying shades -- pink and orange, or pale green and yellow -- can sometimes make a statement stronger than uniformity.

Invitations Your invitations set the stage for the event, so remember that mood you want to evoke? This is your time to show it off. Coordinating the invitation colors with those of the wedding can be as easy as choosing a color font, ribbon, or monogram or as elaborate as layering colorful cards.

Flowers & Decor No matter what color you've chosen, chances are you'll be able to find flowers in that shade -- but that, of course, does not mean the blooms will be available or affordable. If your dream flowers aren't an option, use neutral white flowers with centerpiece containers or other decor elements in your color.

Wedding Cake The cake is one of the easiest places to add color -- all it takes is the right mixing. The color should reflect the other style elements used throughout the wedding. But when it comes to cake, your color options are the most flexible. White icing makes a marvelous background for colorful sugar flowers, sugar-paste stripes or polka dots, or other effects. Fondant can also be created in any number of shades. For instance, a yellow and brown country-chic wedding might have a wedding cake iced in a light brown basket weave and topped with fresh sunflowers.

Favors Ultimately, it's more important to give something meaningful rather than something that matches, but it can be a nice touch to your favors package in your color scheme. Use gift tags and ribbons to incorporate your colors into your favors. If favors will be left at each place setting, consider how they will look with your wedding linens and flowers.
 
New Ways to Use Color
We should point out that overdoing it with a matchy-match look is entirely possible. (You don't want your guests thinking, Um, yeah, lavender...we get it.) Begin with the five essential wedding elements (attire, invitations, flowers, cake, and favors) and see where you can -- or should -- add more color. Then consider details, such as napkins, candles, signature drinks, your ring pillow, or your guest book, made from the same fabric and in the same color as the bridesmaid dresses.

Whether you’re the maid of honour, a guest or the bride–to-be herself, there’s one pre-wedding event you all can’t wait for – the hen party! Drinks, dancing and general debauchery are all on the cards, but to keep things from lagging you’ll want to have a few tricks up your sleeve to keep everyone in fine form.
 
From fun off-the-cuff games to those that take a little more organisation, experts Chillisauce have rounded up the top 10 hen party games to ensure that your night is remembered for years after the
wedding!


Banned words
Fun, easy and as naughty as you like! Choose a list of words that cannot be spoken throughout the night – make sure you choose words that are hard to avoid! You get to decide how severe the penalty is for breaking the rules, such as doing a shot, paying a fine or doing a dare.
 
Hen night bingo cards
This one takes some organising, but it works a treat over daytime cocktails or afternoon tea. Have guests write down what gifts they think the bride-to-be will receive, and as she opens them, mark off any of the presents written down. Once a guest gets five in a row, they shout out Bingo! The prize can be as silly as an extra slice of cake or a second glass of Prosecco!


Balloon question time
This one is a lot of fun, and manages to take care of the decorations too! Write down 20
embarrassing questions and place them in 20 separate balloons. Throughout the evening, have
guests pop the balloons and make the bride either answer the question or take a shot! Perfect for a
giggle over a few drinks – just make sure your party venue is happy with all the balloon popping!
 
Consequences
This one calls for the following headings:
  • Her name
  • His name
  • Where they had sex
  • What position
  • Who caught them doing it
Fold over each piece of paper after each heading and pass it to the person on the left. At the end,
unfold each piece and read out your story! True or not, it’ll have everyone roaring with laughter.


Male model
This one calls for some crafts, so come prepared! Split the hen party guests into teams and have them create male body parts out of play dough. Double points for realism, or optimism as the case may be! We can all guess which body part most will opt to craft…
At the end, award prizes how you see fit – with drinks, treats, or a dance with the best-looking guy in the bar!
 
Pass the balloon
Another great one for using decorations creatively! Divide the party up into two teams, and using long balloons, each team member must grip the balloon between their knees and pass it up the line to the rest of their team without using their hands. You have to start again if a balloon is dropped or popped! The first team to get their balloon to the end wins.
 
You could combine this game with the ‘balloon question time’ game above, by placing an embarrassing question in each balloon. The winning team can then force the members of the other team to answer the question!


DIY bride
This one can be messy, but is plenty of fun, especially when everyone is feeling giggly! Split the party into two teams and have them create a wedding dress and a maid of honour dress using only toilet roll! You could also try this with safety pins and a sheet. Best dress wins a prize of your choosing, but we think shots will be appreciated!
 
Post-it note game
Each party guest must write a short sentence about the bride, or even a memory they have of her. Once everyone is finished, place them all in a bowl and have the bride pick them out one by one. She then has to read them aloud and guess who wrote which one! This can be a really nice start to the evening.
 
The question game
If you only play one game at your hen party, this has to be it! Light-hearted but hilarious, you’ll need to rope in the groom-to-be to pull this one off. The aim of the game is to ‘test’ the bride to see just how well she knows her future husband. With the cooperation of the groom, devise a set of questions
to ask her about him. You can step this up a notch by having guests wager bets on how many the bride will get right. Take turns asking the questions and get the drinks flowing!


Story time
Last but certainly not least, this great game can be as naughty or as nice as you want it to be. Get every guest to anonymously write down an embarrassing or unusual experience they have had (make it an embarrassing date story if you want to spice things up!). Then put them all in a bowl and have guests take it in turns to draw one and read it aloud. Everyone has to guess who wrote the story, and you can fish for more embarrassing titbits once you find out who it is! This is a great game to get everyone talking and laughing. Mix in a few drinks and your hen is off to a great start!
 
Source: www.weddingideasmag.com
Posted on July 10, 2014 by Isabel Hicks




Do Talk About It
Talk about who will contribute and how much they will contribute before you come up with a budget. Make sure everyone involved is comfortable with their contribution before you start putting deposits down on anything.


 

Don't Assume Your Parents Will Pay for the Wedding
Don't assume that your parents and his parents will foot the entire bill. Today, many couples, especially if they have been living together for awhile, pay for their nuptials on their own.

 

Do Ask Wedding Vendors a Lot of Questions
When booking vendors, ask a lot of questions to find out if there are any hidden fees and to make
sure you can afford the services they're offering. For example, don't agree to any upgrades (colored
table linens, fancy chair covers) without first asking if they cost extra.

 

Don't Overextend Yourself
If you can't afford to have a big reception right away, consider having an intimate gathering and
putting off the big reception for a year or two so you can save up for it.

 

Don't Ever Ask for Money from Guests
When registering or setting up your wedding website, it is not okay to ask guests for monetary gifts. Instead you can register for gift cards or honeymoon adventures through sites like thehoneymoon.com.

 

Do Communicate with Everyone Who Is Helping
Throughout the planning process, make sure that everyone who is helping contribute financially is up-to-date on how their money is being spent so you can ensure there aren't any uneasy surprises.

 

Don't Bankrupt Your Bridal Party
All of the costs of being in a wedding can add up, so you should think about how your decisions will affect your bridal party, says Francesca Abbracciamento, president of Francesca Events in New York City. At the very least, make their financial obligations clear as soon as possible and try to make choices that don't place too much burden on them.

Plan early, and factor these expenses into your budget. Your attendants are among the friends and family who mean the most to you, and you'll want everyone to feel great about your wedding day. 

 

Do Keep Track of Your Spending
Keep track of your deposits and spending, who paid for what, and how they paid for it. This will help you avoid anyone going over budget and help you to stay within your means.

Source: www.marthastewartweddings.com