Trendy Wednesday: Crafty Bride

Trendy Wednesday: Jenna Paniccia

Crafty brides never fail to disappoint! Although planning a wedding can be a bit stressful and overwhelming some brides truly enjoy customizing and personalizing aspects of their big day. With prices on the rise, brides are looking for ways to cut costs without cutting the elegance of this spectacular celebration.

By adding DIY projects to your wedding day décor, you are allowing creativity to surface while placing your personal likings on display. DIY projects don’t need to be something extravagant. You can choose how many DIY projects you’d like to invest your time in, and pick projects that will help add character to your wedding without taking away the overall concept.

Favors and place cards are two of my favorite DIY projects. Favors are great because I truly believe the favor should bring out your personality. Sit down with your fiancé and make a list of things you both enjoy. This can be candy, desserts, candles, champagne, hiking, movies … the list goes on and on.  Narrow your list down and think of a DIY project that will help bring your guests into your life.

Here’s the perfect example.  If you both love Macaroon cookies give your guests a few in a DIY box tied with a fabulous ribbon. The thank you tag could read “the sweetest way to end this sweetest day.”

DIY projects are also a wonderful idea for your bridal shower. Walk around a craft store or discount home accent store or even thrift shop. You would be amazed at how many ideas you will stumble across on a budget.

These projects are a great bonding tool for families and bridesmaids as well. If you are making the place cards, or putting together floral arrangements for your bridal shower invite the people you love over to bond and craft! I’m sure you will laugh a lot and get the project done much quicker! Photo Credit: inviteswedding.com, creativeweddingideas.net, fashiondivadesign.com, bargainhoot.com, bugsandfishes.blogspot.com, mostweddingflowerideas.com, weddbook.com, weddingbylily.com

Manic Monday: Made of Honor

Manic Monday by Corine Brosseau

 

Your best friend since kindergarten just popped the question!  No, she isn’t asking for a lifetime of commitment; this is something a bit more short term.  You’ve just been asked to be her maid of honor.  Now what??

Image courtesy of Wedding Chicks

Being asked to be a bride’s maid of honor is something to be proud of.  It signifies just how much your relationship with the bride in your life is valued.  However, the job comes with a lot of responsibility and lots of different hats that you’ll need to wear.  From therapist to trusted fashion adviser, from cheerleader to party planner, you will be the bride’s point person throughout her engagement and on her wedding day.  Your time as MOH will be filled with a lot of fun and some great memories, but it can also be very stressful.

We want to help make your run as maid of honor as stress-free and utterly blissful as possible. Here are some of our tips on how your experience can be wonderful and not worrisome!

• Know what you’re getting into and don’t commit if you don’t have the time or means.  Traditionally, the maid of honor is in charge of the bridal shower and bachelorette party.  These events take time, and yes, money, to pull off.  You’ll also likely have to go on multiple dress hunting trips, fittings, and other meetings that your bride might need help with.  If you don’t feel 100% comfortable with any of these tasks or if you’re simply too busy (be it with your job, your family, etc.), respectfully ask if you can be a bridesmaid instead.  If your bride insists on having you as MOH, see if the other bridesmaids are willing to go the extra mile to step up when you’re unavailable.
• Be budget conscious.  Get to know the rest of the bridal party – if you don’t already.  Everyone has a different budget and it’s important to see what the ladies are willing to contribute for events like the shower and bachelorette party.  Don’t plan something that is exorbitantly expensive if you’re not all comfortable with that.  The bridal party is a team and you don’t want anyone feeling that they are putting in more or less money than anyone else unless they are 100% certain that they’re willing too.  Finances can be a sensitive subject and it’s important that you, as ringleader, handle them as such.
• Don’t let the title get to your head.  We’ve all seen Bridezillas, but there is such a thing as a Maid-of-Honor Monster, too!  Make sure that you don’t treat the other bridesmaids as if they’re less important.  Let everyone’s voices be heard and you can avoid lots of drama.
• Don’t procrastinate.  Plan ahead!  Saving things for the last minute will generally result in nothing but chaos.  You want to create the best possible experience for all when planning events.  If you wait till the last second, chances are everyone will be able to tell that the shower or party was thrown together haphazardly and nobody wants that!
• It’s all about the bride.  Your bride will surely come to you for advice and more likely, approval, on the wedding details.  If she’s clearly over the moon about something that you’re not so crazy about, understand that it’s her day and if she’s in love with something, she ought to go with it whether you think it’s the best idea or not. Be supportive and if you absolutely have to steer her away from something, make sure you have a strong reason behind it, as opposed to just saying you don’t like it.  Offer alternatives that she’ll love instead of just a negative opinion with no other option.
• Most importantly, HAVE FUN!

Have you been a maid of honor?  Share your experience with us in a comment, tweet, or on our Facebook.

 

Shower and Bachelor Parties

Diary of a Bride to be by Lauren Cooper

This weekend I was left to my own devices as my honey was in New Orleans for his Bachelor party!  (Lucky duck!)  He’d been planning the trip for several months  while I was simultaneously planning to occupy my weekend with friends, chores, and a project for his wedding present . 😉  However, as I was trying to find ways to fill my time, a little bird told me to stop trying to make plans and then flew away without revealing any other information. 

Time marched on and finally Sunday came along with plans to meet our Grooms-woman Meghan for brunch.  As we walked to 340 Grill in Hoboken, I had a sneaking suspicion that this was it…the bridal shower.   And I was right!  I walked into a room full of my family and friends all there for a lovely brunch shower.  Cue the whirlwind photographs, congratulations and introductions.  Again, making me SO glad I have the Private Receptions team and a videographer the day of the wedding ! 

I had a great time with my sisters, my moms, and my awesome friends and family that all made the trip from Maryland, Delaware, Pennsylvania and New York!  Whew!  I can’t thank everyone enough for all their hard work that went into arranging this and making it so special for me!  And to top off an already amazing weekend?  I got to pick up an exhausted (but alive and unscathed!) Future Hubs at the airport 🙂 yay!

Diary of a Bride to Be: Registry Battle

Diary of a Bride to Be by Lauren Cooper

So I took a little time this week to look into places to register.  Upon announcing this to my fiance, his initial reaction, of course, was asking to “Do we HAVE to?”.  His reasoning being that if most people just give money for weddings anyway, we can go out and buy whatever we need ourselves.  Ok, that’s kind of a good theory but what about the bridal shower?  Not to mention, it’s kind of a tradition.  Some household items get passed down through generations but starting a  registry is today’s equivalent of a bride’s dowry…being filled by those nearest and dearest to her.  Needless to say, I won the battle for the registry through wit and bridal charm.  And (a pleasant surprise)  he actually has an opinion about where we register.  So here’s our picks so far:

Now, I realize it’s early to start a registry.  But I was bored. Honestly.  So I started with one of my favorite places in the world:  Crate & Barrel.  I looked online and started browsing through kitchen gadgets (I truly love kitchen gadgets).  And little by little I started a list.  Which included an apple slicer and an ice cream scoop.  I mean really, these are essential, I’m not sure how we haven’t had them in our kitchen before.  Along the same lines of fun kitchen gadgets, I looked into Pampered Chef.

I’m sure we’ve all been to a Pampered Chef party.  Truth be told, I LOVE them.  They have some of the coolest kitchen gadgets AND they’re stoneware is indestructible.  (Unless you use soap on them)  If you don’t know, stoneware is much like a cast iron pan.  It absorbs the flavors of whatever you’ve been cooking so each dish has a different personality.  This doesn’t mean that your tuna casserole is gonna taste like lasagna.  It just makes things cook better.  Trust me.

And finally, Bed Bath and Beyond.  The thing I’m most excited about from this store is our picnic basket.  I love picnics and what better way to celebrate the anniversary of our engagement or enjoy a lazy Sunday by picnicking in the Park?  Sigh.

I have a long way to go with registry items but those can wait until much closer to the wedding.  At least we have a few essentials picked!  I’ll let you know how picking china patterns works out in September or so…

The Perfect Bridesmaid

Manic Mondays by Lauren Cooper

Listen up, ladies!  If you haven’t already heard, being a bridesmaid is more than standing with your friend and looking pretty on the day of her wedding.  Since we would all expect our bridesmaids to be wonderful here are some tips to make your friend glad she asked you!

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  Ricky Wong Photography

  Support: More than anything bridesmaids are symbols of the bride’s support system.  Make sure you talk with the bride regularly to make sure that she’s feeling great and keeping her cool.  Offer to help with putting together favors or addressing the invitations.  (This is part of the job anyway but the bride may not directly ask for help) You may not like the dress she’s picked or the cost of being a bridesmaid, but put on a happy face and remember it’s her day and you would want her to do the same for you.

• Plan: Help the MOH and the bride’s family in planning the shower and bachelorette parties.  When you know you’re going to be a bridesmaid make sure you get contact info for the other maids and the bride’s family if you don’t have them already.  Talk to the bride’s planner about any hints she may have dropped about her shower wishes.  As her friend, you may know what she prefers more than her family so don’t be afraid to suggest things…but don’t be too pushy either!!  Check out PR’s article on Bridal Showers for fun and fresh ideas.

• Prepare: A good maid is prepared (and on time!) for any and everything! At PR we carry a fully stocked ER kit for any accidentals; but a bridesmaid should have a few tricks up her sleeve as well! Hiding tissues in your bouquet, carrying mints or having the bride’s makeup handy for any touchups are great places to start!  While getting ready, make sure she’s relaxed and having fun.   Play some music, or recall some of the crazy times you’ve had together.  Those candid shots turn out better with smiling faces!

What to wear before the wedding?!

Stiles on Style- By Rachel Stiles

You should want to show off your style at pre wedding parties and feel great doing it! There are many options when picking out dresses for your engagement party, bridal shower, and bachlorette party!

Herve Leger

Some women look for pops of color and different patterns to stand out while others can’t wait to wear a white dress to symbolize being a bride! No matter what color dress you’re looking for there are so many options for you to stand out! Some trends are one-shoulder, strapless, and chic silhouettes.

A dress for your engagement party should be entertaining and show stopping! It’s a great opportunity to see all of your friends, family, and to talk about the wedding! I recommend something from Diane Von Furstenburg or H&M. For your bridal shower, a more classic style is best. J.CREW has a lot of great looks for the summer like neutrals and patterns. White House/Black Market also has some wonderful white dresses that can be perfect for your shower. For a more expensive designer, go with Chanel! You can’t go wrong with their accessories and dresses, they’re incredible!

Dressing for your bachelorette party should be sexy and fun. Herve Leger has sexy and fitted dresses that are perfect for a bachelorette party. Rachel Roy also has some great designs at a higher price point that would be perfect for your evening out. The most important thing when picking out your outfits is that you are happy, love the style, and feel great!

How To – Bridal Showers

How To by Jennifer Crone

Your bridal shower doesn’t have to consist of you in your maid of honor’s living room awkwardly opening slinky lingerie in front of your groom’s mother and grandmother. It can be fun, unique, and a reflection of you! Here’s How To:

Legendary cake designer Ron Ben Israel at ICC

I recently had the pleasure of attending an event at the world renowned International Culinary Center and thought “This is perfect for a bridal shower!”. Grab your girlfriends and take a class on anything from wine pairing, appetizer making, or high tech cocktails. After you’re done cooking enjoy their adjoining cocktail room to sample your fetes with a view overlooking Manhattan. Educational, tasty, and fun!

A big trend is destination showers, and why not? Get away from the stress with a weekend at a spa, a quaint beach inn, or wine tasting at a vineyard. Try Duck Walk Vineyards in the Hamptons for beach and wine. Because of the cost and travel, destination showers are smaller and more intimate. If you’re stressing about inviting every woman on your guest list to your shower, this is the choice for you.

If you’re searching for something more formal and elegant try hosting a tea at The Russian Tea Room or Lady Mendi’s Tea Salon at The Inn at Irving Place. If you want to do a couple’s shower try a Vegas night with poker and craps for the gents and glitz and glam for the girls! Remember to think outside the box; your shower can be anything you want it to be!