Since you’ve become engaged, you’ve spent endless hours on the Internet researching the wedding planning process. You’ve subscribed to or bought every bride magazine imaginable and studied them until you were bleary-eyed, and yet, you still don’t have all the answers to those nagging, little questions that keep popping into your head late at night, keeping you up till the wee hours.
In an effort to lessen your burden, we’ve compiled the following list of ten of the most common wedding planning questions and their answers. Maybe this list will tackle one of those burning issues that have been keeping you up at night.
1. Do all hotels offer a discounted rate when you block a bunch of rooms for wedding guests?
Not always, it depends on the hotel. Some will give you a break on the rate; others may charge the usual rate but give the bride and groom their room for free. Do your homework and shop around. Your guests will be very appreciative when it comes time for them to make their travel arrangements.
2. What’s the best way to cut costs when you’re on a really tight budget?
A sure fire way to cut costs is by trimming your guest list. Certain costs such as your reception facility and vendors are fixed once you sign the contract, but cutting back on guests does give you some financial leeway.
3. What’s a good way to distribute favors so everyone gets one?
Try setting up a favor table near the exit of your reception hall. Place a note out that thanks guests for sharing your day and reminds them to take a favor home.
4. What does etiquette say concerning the exchange of gifts between the bride and groom?
Exchanging gifts is an optional tradition for the bride and groom. It can be done the night before, the morning of, or after the ceremony and celebration has ended. Gifts can range from jewelry to wear on your wedding day to a neat gift for the honeymoon.
5. Can we see each other before the ceremony?
There is a tradition of the bride and groom not seeing each other before the wedding, but that goes back to ancient times. There’s also the myth that seeing the bride in her gown before the ceremony is bad luck. More frequently though, couples are having photos taken prior to the wedding, and some couples claim just being alone for a few minutes helps calm the nerves.
6. Who pays for the wedding flowers?
Traditionally, the bride’s family pays for the bridesmaids’ bouquets, the groom’s boutonniere, and the flowers for the cake. The groom’s family pays for the bride’s bouquet, the mothers’ corsages, and the groomsmen’s boutonnieres. But, if you and your fiancé want to foot the bill or your parents offer to, that’s fine too.
7. Are there any guidelines for choosing wedding colors?
Not really, your choice of colors is a personal decision. If you don’t have anything specific in mind, just start planning. You’ll probably find that you’ll be drawn to particular shades and hues as you shop for your bridesmaids’ dresses and flowers. Your reception site choice may help your decision too.
8. How do I build the “something blue” tradition into my wedding?
There are numerous ways to do this, from wearing a blue tinted dress or blue shoes to wearing a garter with a touch of blue on it. You could also don some jewelry that’s blue, like a blue topaz ring or pin or braid a blue ribbon through your hair.
9. Is there a wedding “off season”?
In parts of the country where winter is harsh, the months of January, February, and March are less popular (even though Valentine’s Day falls in February.) During these months, you may be able to get reduced rates for your reception site, flowers, and other vendors.
10. What kind of insurance is available for a home wedding?
First, check your homeowner’s policy to see if it has the right coverage should a guest accidentally get hurt. If it doesn’t, take out a wedding insurance policy and an additional policy for personal liability coverage. The latter protects you should a guest sustain an injury and the former covers you if a vendor is a no-show, bad weather forces cancellation of your event, or an important wedding party member falls ill or becomes injured.
Tags:
wedding planning
wedding etiquette
wedding insurance
wedding budget
wedding guide
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