Wedding Ideas

For those of us who don’t look like Pamela Anderson or Halle Berry, picking the correct style wedding dress can be crucial to your overall look. Worrying about if you picked the right dress is the last thing you want to worry about on your wedding day. We all want to look our best and when you look “good” you tend to feel good. This article will give the Do’s and the Don’ts for your body type. Here are the different body types and their definitions:
Apple- for those who gain weight primarily around the waistlinePear-for those who are wider on the bottom and smaller up topHourglass- weight is evenly distributed between the hips and chest areaSquare- weight tends to be evenly distributed throughout the bodyInverted Pear- as you might expect those who have large chests and/or broad shouldered and small on the bottom

The Dos and the Don’ts

Apple Body Type

Dos
Empire waistlines- camouflages a big waistline
V-necks- make the body look more sharp and less round

Don’ts (the following maximizes the waistline)
Corsets
Skirts with lines that cut across the middle
Full skirts
Elongated bodices

Pear Body Type (the following balances out the top and bottom)

Dos
Padded or puffy shoulders

Don’ts
Narrow shoulders
Body hugging sheaths
Full puffy skirts

Hourglass BodyType (to maintain a balanced physique)

Dos
Strapless Dresses-flatters your shoulders
Body hugging sheaths
V-necks
Off the shoulder dresses-shows off shoulders

Don’ts
Beaded or highly decorated bodices-puts on a few pounds
Full skirts-attracts attention to the hips

Square Body Type (to create the illusion of curves)

Dos
Beaded or decorated necklines
Full skirts
Padded, puffy or oversized sleeves or shoulders
Horizontal detailing

Don’ts
Clingy slim gowns

Inverted Pear Body Type

Dos
Simple sleeves
Full Skirts

Don’ts
Puffy sleeves
Empire waistlines
Slim skirts

Robin Williams is the editor of the online magazine www.nuptialparadise.com.
You can reprint and redistribute this article as long as the bio is included.

Robin Williams is an author for the online magazine nuptialparadise.com

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The f-word. Finances. Combining love and money may be the biggest stumbling block on the path of true love, creating more rifts in relationships than in-laws, drug and alcohol addiction, or infidelity.

Financial power struggles challenge even the most solid partnership. Unfortunately, money too often equates to control in a relationship. The delicate balance of power between you is dependent on the successful combination of love and money.

In the majority of relationships today, both members contribute financial resources. Despite the strides women have made toward financial equality on the job, though, men still have greater earning power. In general, with more disposable income, men invest more money and take greater risks than women. Women as a whole are more conservative in their investments because it takes them longer to earn the money. Money attitudes are also influenced by age, family upbringing, religion, and each person’s own unique financial trials and errors.

Everyone has opened a bank account, paid the rent or mortgage, kept the telephone and electricity turned on. When you make the decision to share your life with someone, though, such mundane issues suddenly become complicated.

Do you keep separate bank accounts or do you put all the money in one account? How do you split monthly expenses? Do you each pay a portion or do you pay bills out of a joint account? Should you be able to sign on your partner’s bank account? Did one of you bring assets to the relationship that the other uses, such as a car or a home, for which expenses should be shared?

Financial advice for couples over fifty varies significantly depending on age, economic status and dependents. Every situation is different, but the following is general advice for everyone.

Many modern couples keep their finances separate, while others opt to pool all their funds. Making the decision on the day-to-day handling of what was formerly “his” and “her” money can be a tough one.

There are benefits to keeping separate property funds separate and maintaining certain assets in one name only, which we’ll explain in more detail in the next chapter. Keeping other monies separate may create logistical problems, though, along with a diminished sense of common goals for the future. Combining your funds also gives a couple greater borrowing and investment power.

Determining a financial plan that works might take months; many couples struggle for years before reaching a balance. Defining and discussing your money styles is the first step, setting goals is the second.

Review your financial picture. Are you both satisfied with your knowledge and control of “your” money and “our” money? Are you both knowledgeable about banking, insurance, investments, credit cards?

The routine business of a new life together should include the following:
- Reevaluation of life, health, auto and other insurance coverage
- A change of beneficiary on insurance policies and company pension plans
- Notification to social security of your marriage to ensure eligibility for your spouse’s benefits and change of W-4 withholding
- An assessment of the impact of remarriage on alimony or pension/retirement benefits from a prior marriage
- A consultation with an accountant to learn the impact your marital status will have on your federal or state income tax obligations
- In a remarriage, be aware that the income of a new spouse may impact eligibility for financial aid of college-age children from a prior marriage.

You may need to consult your banker, your employer, your insurance agent, your accountant, your attorney or other professionals to accomplish these tasks.

Your goal in tying the fiscal knot is to protect your spousal rights and save money. Begin your research before the wedding and make sure you follow through.

Loveandthelaw.com should be your first stop - it’s an easy and inexpensive way to stay informed.

Johnette Duff is the author of The Spousal Equivalent Handbook: a legal and financial guide to living together, The Marriage Handbook: a legal and financial guide to your spousal rights, and Love After 50: a legal and financial guide. Nationally, she has appeared on Today, Good Morning America, CBS This Morning and in various publications promoting information on love and the law. Ms. Duff has recently opened a web site titled, love and the law.

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Ye Ha” Western weddings are brilliant. You can`t beat a good beer, a Barbecue and a good old camp song. I hope this lot is some use to you.

Location
See if you can get or rent a barn that will allow to have open fires out doors, it would make a nice backdrop. Think barn dance and check out movies that have those scenes in them, for ideas.

Decor
Bales of hay, rope, gingham and calico, old boots, mason jars, jugs, bunting and swags, washtubs, wire, livestock, garlands of greenery and arrangements of fruit. Tree trunks are ideal for sitting on the outside. Set the wedding cake on a cool bird bath or pedestal wash basin stand. The bride’s dad could carry a prop shotgun for a real shotgun wedding effect!

Invites
Look for heavy rustic papers and for your invitations.

Flowers
Use soft rope to hand tie the bouquets and add wild weeds and hay. Wildflower bouquets are all a cow girl needs. Fill old, odd containers with flowers at the tables. I.e. paint cans, tins, baskets, mason jars, use coils of rope to hide the vases. It should look simple and hand done. You can easily make all the decorations you need just using hay, weeds and herbs.

Brides attire
Look around for old western wedding dresses. Or wear a long flared ankle length skirt with a white shirt. Or a long denim skirt with tassels on and a white or denim shirt. Or you dress casual denim jeans and a shirt. Wear boots and put a bandana on your head if you are wearing any of the latter 3. If you are wearing a traditional western wedding dress wear wild flowers in your hair.

Grooms attire
Find out if you can get cowboy tuxedos. “I`ve heard of them but I think you might have to send away for it from America”. He could wear a denim shirt with tassels on, jeans or vest and blue jeans.

Food
Cowboy`s love their Barbecues so cook as much as you can outside. There are people that have rolling pits that can come to your site and cater barbecue. Don`t you do any of the cooking. Eat on picnic tables and benches and have extra bales to sit on. Drink from tins to give it the real western feeling. Have the cake made to look like bales of hay with plastic rifles on the top joining in the middle.

Transport
Ride to the wedding and the reception on a horse or horse carriage or hay wagon if possible.

Music
Find a band that can do at least one square dance number for mood if nothing else. Violins, banjos and guitar. Look for music to set the mood you are after. Take a long a few tapes with all your favorite music on and a battery operated cassette player.

Favours
Give dead bullets away in tin cans.

Robin Williams
www.nuptialparadise.com

Robin Williams is the author of the online magazine, www.nuptialparadise.com.
Reprint is allowed as long as the URL weddingheaven.com is left in place

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As you might already have figured, asking the father of the bride to pay for the entire event almost seems unfair. If the father of the bride is a millionaire, by all means, let loose, but not everyone is as fortunate. Nowadays costs are split among relatives in a number of different ways. You could split the costs evenly between yourselves, the parents of the groom and the parents of the bride. You could also just split it between yourselves like many young people are doing these days. This is one of the reasons it is important to plan your wedding day far in advance. Some may resort to taking out credit card loans. Be careful in this arena because you may not want to be paying for a wedding 10 years later. If you have to take out a credit card loan, try to save as much money before the wedding so you minimize how much you need to borrow. And last but not least, shop around to get the best price considering quality. This is another reason you need to plan early. You never know what deal may be lurking around the corner!

Robin Williams
www.nuptialparadise.com

Robin Williams is an author for the online magazine nuptialparadise.com

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Wedding favors have always been a nice, personal gesture to include in your wedding preparations. Unfortunately, there are too many “cookie-cutter” type favors out there, which portray the couple’s lack of interest in providing something unique.

Here is a Wedding Favor Creator for you to use for your upcoming wedding or one that you’re planning for your best friend. You can mix and match to your heart’s content and according to the budget you have.

Small containers to use for candies, chocolates, small floating candles, decorative soaps, etc. (many of them can be purchased at your local dollar store)

- tiny wicker baskets or straw hats - egg cups
- candle holders
- flat shells (scallops) - small filigree metal boxes - decorated wooden boxes - coffee mugs
- wine glasses
- small decorative dish - tiny flower pots
- little tin watering cans - small jars
- ceramic spoon rest

Fillings to add to your favor containers

- heart-shaped candies or chocolates - Hershey’s kisses and hugs - small floating candles - gourmet or flavored coffee - enough for one pot - little decorative soaps - wild flower seed packets or small quantity of seeds with planting instructions, wrapped in colored cellophane - flower bulbs
- bath oil beads
- bath salts
- small bag of mixed spice (cinnamon/nutmeg) and your favorite apple pie recipe
- packets of specialty tea - hot chocolate and cinnamon mix - enough for one mug

Sample sayings and poems to write or print onto a small note card along with your names and wedding date (punch a hole in the card and attach a ribbon to tie to your favors)

- Please plant these to celebrate our growing love (for bulbs, seeds)
- All things grow with love (for bulbs, seeds) - Our flame of love will always be bright (for candles) - Hugs and Kisses from the new Mr. And Mrs! (for Hershey’s kisses and/or hugs)
- Heart-felt wishes from the new Mr. And Mrs. (for anything heart-shaped)
- Love lives in happy hearts (anything heart-shaped) - The best gifts are tied with heartstrings (anything heart- shaped)
- May there always be spice in your life! (for apple pie recipe and spice; for hot chocolate/cinnamon mix) - We’re suited to a ‘T’ (for specialty teas) - Nothing can wash away the love we feel! (bath oil, bath salts, soaps)
- Thanks for sharing this special day with us - Thank you for sharing in the celebration of our love (or union,
etc.)
- Thanks for joining us on our wedding day - Thanks for sharing in our special day

Other Unique Ideas

- Personalized coasters made from CD’s (see www.whimsies-online.com/cdcoasters.htm)

- Personalized CD mix of your favorite music - print out a liner for the CD case with your names, wedding date and a nice background or a photo of the happy bride and groom-to-be!

- Fortune cookies with printed fortunes that you create on your computer - or add your names and wedding date (see www.whimsies-online.com/wedding.htm)

- small picture frames that can double as place cards

- Heart-shaped cookie cutters with your favorite sugar cookie recipe

- Homemade bell-shaped or heart-shaped cookies decorated with your names and wedding date in hard icing

Finishing Details

Wrap each filled favor in colored netting or tulle to match your wedding colors or line white or glitter netting with colored tissue paper before wrapping your favors.

Wrap the favor bag with ribbon or lace and add your note card (hole-punched). Tie into bow and add a sprig of dried or silk flowers and it’s ready for your special day!

Heather Diodati is the owner of Whimsies! By DDesign featuringPersonalized Cartoon Designs for all occasions. See our unique Wedding Cartoon Designs personalized with your names and wedding date! 8″ x 10″ size with free mat, they make a truly special souvenir for the new Mr. And Mrs! Wedding favor magnets are also offered; something really special for your favor bags!

Sign up for our free ezine, On A Whim, for your free time management gifts! www.whimsies- online.com

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Article: “Wedding Planning I - Scheduling” Nily Glaser
Copyright: © Nily Glaser 2004

“A-wedding Day” had many requests for information about the chronology of steps for both the wedding ceremony and reception. I hope that the following steps will help you schedule the details involved with your wedding ceremony and reception. It is important that you note that these are general and the actual procedure for your personal wedding may vary according to your preference and these of your officiant as you incorporate your religion, heritage and customs.
I have included steps for incorporating kids in re-marriages and blending families. Ceremony Steps:
The ushers seat guests as they arrive for the ceremony. The mother of the bride is seated last, unless she accompanies her daughter to the altar. The musicians play background music. At the scheduled start time, unless the officiant, the groom, and the best man are in the processional, they take their places at the altar (or ceremony place). The musicians start to play the processional music. Mothers light the tapers for the Unity candle ceremony that will follow the bride and groom’s kiss.

Procession - The most traditional order of the processional is ushers and bridesmaids in pairs, followed by the maid of honor, ring bearer, and flower girl. The bride enters last, escorted by her father or by both parents. The officiant greets the guests. In a religious wedding, the officiant leads a brief opening prayer.
Special readings, songs and or music follow. The officiant’s message. The vows - Bride and groom. In re-mariage the vows - blending family -vows from parents to children.
The exchange of rings and the pronouncement “pronouncing you husband and wife”.
Bride and groom kiss.

In re-mariage giving each child a piece of jewelry and the pronouncement ” pronouncing you a new family”. Bride, groom and kids hug and kiss. Unity candle ceremony (In remarriage, include the kids). The officiant then introduces the bride and groom as husband and wife.
In remarriage, the officiant then introduces the bride and groom and their kids, preferably by names, as a new family.
Exit procession: bride and groom, followed by the adult attendants in pairs, followed by the ring bearer and flower girl.
Take photos while the guests go to the reception.

Reception Steps

The reception starts with a receiving line that includes the bride and groom, parents and attendants. At the same time it is appropriate for waiters to circulate with drinks and hors d’oeuvres while the receiving line is in progress.
Background music played. The bride and groom can open the dancing either before or after food is served.
If you are planning a dinner and dancing reception, the “bride and groom’s first dance” occurs after dinner followed by the bride dancing with her father and the groom with his mother after which other guests are allowed out on the floor. Toasts should begin at the end of the meal. The first toast is the best man’s toast to the bride. In re-marriage, the bride and groom introduce their children before the first toast. Other toasts.
Cake cutting ceremony. The garter and bouquet tosses occur just before the couple is ready to leave for the honeymoon. The guests send the couple off for their honeymoon with a shower of rice, rose petals, or bubbles, balloons, butterfly release or doves release.

After the honeymoon, do not forget to write the thank-you notes.

This article is also available online in HTML format at: http://www.2.a-weddingday.com/weddingplanning1.html Find other articles to publish on your site at: http://www.a-weddingday.com/archives/articles.html

Publishing Guidelines: Please feel free to post this Article as is with no additions or deletions in your newsletter, on your website, and forward it to your clients, customers, friends and / or business associates. If you post or otherwise publish this article, please ensure that the copyrights as well as the author’s entire bylines box remain intact. We would highly appreciate a courtesy copy of your publication and / or a website link. Please E-mail to: http://www.a-weddingday.com/contacts.html

Thank you!
Nily

Nily Glaser is the CEO of A-wedding Day, http://www.a-weddingday.com a very popular Wedding Resource and Information Center, and a discount shopping mall for wedding gifts, supplies and bridal accessories. She is the publisher of the A-wedding Day newsletter and creates personalized unity candles under Candles By Nily http://www.candlesbynily.com/

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He’s popped the question. You’ve chosen a date. And now, you’re swimming in a sea of euphoria with no horizons. Good thing, too, because there are literally a thousand things to arrange before the big day.

You do the research, buckle under and dive in. But you find your fiancé’s ardor for the event itself seems to have cooled. It’s not that he isn’t mad about marrying you; after all, he is a great guy, even if he can’t tell a Vera Wang from a Gunny Sack. It’s that his preparation style is hands-off, to say the least. And planning a wedding isn’t a job built for one.

So what to do? Here are ten ways to involve him without increasing both of your stress loads:

1) Delegate areas that have a prayer of interesting him.

The worst thing you can do is expect him to match your ten to twenty years of feminine wisdom on the relative merits of buttercream vs. fondant.

Here are some probable no areas when roping in a reluctant wedding planner:

- Selecting the cake frosting
- Choosing the favors or favor packaging
- Selecting the wedding colors or floral arrangements

Then there are the potential maybes, fraught with fewer hazards:

- Choosing the photographer
- Choosing the videographer
- Arranging the rehearsal dinner
- Arranging the all-inclusive honeymoon
- Renting big, tricky items like outdoor tents

These are probable yeses, well worth running by your guy:

- Selecting the DJ or the band
- Setting up and maintaining your wedding website
- Researching and selecting charities, if you choose to donate instead of giving out favors - Setting up the carriage, limo or other transportation arrangements

2) If you ask him to help you choose vendors and styles, narrow down the choices first.

It’s a jungle of options out there, enough to give the most natural-born party planner pause. So if you want his opinion on photographers, invites, flowers or cakes, narrow down the options to three or four. He’s less likely to feel overwhelmed, and more likely to feel like an important part of the process.

At times, it’ll feel so good to share the load that you’ll be tempted to drag him into the buttercream debate despite your better instincts. At these times, take a deep breath, count to ten, and call your mother or your maid of honor.

3) Ask him directly for help. Let him know how important his input is to you, and that you can’t do it without him.

Guys like to be needed. Your frank request for help may be enough to pull him out of his comfort zone and onto your team.

4) Try the Art Director/Production Staff approach.

If you think your guy wants to help, but feels uncomfortable playing “art director,” give him “production staff” tasks. Have him make the payments, pick up the food or decor, handle the rentals, do online comparison shopping, or reserve the hotels and reception halls. These are all jobs that will take a load off your shoulders, while freeing up time for the aesthetic stuff you probably enjoy and he doesn’t.

5) Get a calendar and put all the planning in black and white.

Your fiancé probably doesn’t have the first clue in what goes into a wedding.

Get your wedding planner, write it all down, and show him. Once he gets over the shock, you’ll both probably be able to identify areas that interest him. Make lists of the things you’ve each agreed to do, and cross them off as they get done. At the very least, he’ll be far more supportive when he sees what you’re going through.

6) Weave his family heritage/ethnicity/traditions into the ceremony.

What did his parents do? He might be surprised at the question, but it could lead somewhere valuable. He might ask his parents about their wedding, and find your wedding consequently enriched. Look through their wedding album together. Are his ancestors German, Polish, Italian, Croatian, Asian? Incorporate some old-world traditions into your ceremony.

7) Don’t bring him in too early.

Treat your fiancé as a bit of a pinch hitter. Sure, you may be fully aware that you can shave 5K off your costs by starting your favor crafts and reservations 18 months ahead of time. But if he’s like most guys, the wedding won’t become real to him until it draws closer. Expect him to jump in about six months before the actual ceremony, and break into a (relative) frenzy of activity about one month in advance.

8) Talk about something besides the wedding.

Guys aren’t the only ones who complain about brides-to-be talking of nothing but upcoming nuptials. Sometimes, even girlfriends get overwhelmed by all the wedding chatter.

Spend some time alone chatting about anything but the wedding. See a silly movie, split a hot fudge sundae, or watch a basketball game. Do something spontaneous that reminds you both of why you decided to marry in the first place.

9) Check your subtext for hidden meanings.

Tempting as it might be, make sure you’re not using your fiancé as a coin-toss tool (ever noticed how people flip coins to find out what they really want?). When you ask for his opinion, take it seriously. And when you give him ownership of a task, don’t second-guess every step.

Imagine that your fiancé has told you he’s going to draft a dream team in his fantasy football league, and it’s going to cost him $20K to participate. Now imagine that he’s told you your help is supremely important to him.

You’d be a little hesitant to give opinions, right? Some of your ideas might sound feeble, even to your own ears. Hopefully he’d welcome your thoughts, however odd it felt for you to venture them. Now imagine your fiancé feels kind of like that when it comes to the wedding.

10) Remember that men become wedding experts by having one.

Chances are, your sweetheart will open his eyes to the wonder of a wedding by the time the rose petals are tossed. Forever after, he’ll be examining friend’s receptions with a practiced eye, and anticipating the next excuse for a Really Big Shindig.

So keep him around, and count on throwing a first-rate anniversary celebration ten years down the road. In a way, that’ll be the party that really matters, won’t it?

Blake Kritzberg is the proprietor of:
http://www.just-wedding-favors.com

Visit the site for easy, elegant, unusual, and affordable wedding favor ideas, wedding favor FAQ, and free wedding screensaver. This article may be freely reprinted so long as this resource box and URL are preserved.

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Does it seem like the phrases “ecology” and “wedding” could hardly have less in common?

With the average wedding costing well over 15 thousand today, one would think so. And yet, the “green” or ecologically-friendly wedding is gaining momentum across the nation.

The green wedding, like any other wedding style, has its tribal features. By tribal, I mean the signs and signifiers that help tell the guests what the wedding is supposed to mean, and how the couple prefers to appear. From a tribal perspective, a green wedding can be hauntingly romantic, with its outdoor setting, its focus on living plants, and its less-formal gown (often made of hemp) that brings to mind fairy outings from 400 years ago.

In personal appearance, the ecology bride is often the gamine type. Even on her wedding day, her fresh face forms a contrast with the heavily made-up cover girls of bridal magazines.

When it comes to more functional aspects, the green wedding’s shape and flavor flow from three main goals:

- Do no harm,
- Patronize earth-friendly vendors, and
- Reuse/recycle.

1) Do No Harm

The green bride tries to avoid products or activities that could compromise the environment. For this reason, butterfly releases are rare (vendors are not always careful to ship butterflies only to appropriate, native environments). Similarly, beeswax candles are avoided, as is the use of styrofoam or soft plastics at the reception — glass and porcelain are substituted. (Brides are often surprised to discover the caterer charges little extra for this service.)

Many green bridal couples are vegetarian or vegan. In metropolitan or college-town communities, this provides a great excuse to serve dazzling ethnic foods at the reception at a reasonable cost!

Hemp is widely respected among environmentalists, because unlike cotton, it can be grown without pesticides and returns most of its nutrients to the soil. When the green bride buys a new gown for her ceremony, she often looks to hemp fabrics. Surprisingly flexible, hemp can go upmarket (”hemp satin”) or relaxed (cottony separates that can be worn after the wedding).

2) Patronize Earth-Friendly Vendors

Flower petals in paper cones are environmentally friendlier than bubble solution in plastic containers, and require no clean-up. The trick is finding petal suppliers that don’t use pesticides. These growers are more popular in the U.K. than the U.S.

Green brides might also distribute harm-free favors, such as sachets made of pesticide-free herbs, live flowers, tree seedlings, or small packets of organic tea. In fact, some brides register at charitable organizations instead of department stores, and contribute to environmentally-active organizations instead of handing out favors.

3) Reuse, Recycle

Even the most traditional wedding brings opportunities for reuse/recycling. For example, leftovers from the reception can be delivered to food banks, and flowers dropped off at hospitals or rest homes. The green bride often takes this a step further and chooses recycled paper for invitations and Save-the-Date cards, for example. She might also re-use a wedding gown (her mother’s could be ideal, or failing that, one from a thrift or vintage store). Otherwise, the green bride might opt for a new gown that isn’t too formal to be worn regularly after the ceremony.

Just as at the grocery store, eco-friendly does not necessarily mean cheaper. Ecology brides are sometimes surprised to discover their weddings cost 10K and up, just like those of their more traditional sisters.

Still, when she looks back on a wedding that opted for more “nature,” less formality, and less conspicuous consumption, the green bride often finds it was time well spent – and perhaps nurtures the hope that a guest or two will be inspired to follow her path.

Blake Kritzberg is the proprietor of:
http://www.just-wedding-favors.com

Visit the site for easy, elegant, unusual, and affordable wedding favor ideas, wedding favor FAQ, and free wedding screensaver. This article may be freely reprinted so long as this resource box and URL are preserved.

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