Monday, 24 May 2010

Music Can Add Fun to Your Wedding

Food and beverages are considered as an important component of wedding planner checklist but mind you music has equal importance. A wedding without music would be boring and dull. So you should have any kind of music like DJ spinning tunes, live band, and recorded music from a boom box, a string quartet or any other to make it livelier.

Well music is not just meant for dancing you can include numerous activities you can do around the music and certainly will add an element of fun to your lovely occasion.

Perhaps most popular is the musical chair. It is indeed fun for kids but perhaps adults would mind it so musical chair with a little variation can be a fun. Like one option is men acts an chairs and women slightly sits on their knees as any one of them falls down the couple is out this continues until we have a winning couple.

A few brides and grooms prefers to play musical chairs to give away the table centerpiece, guests really appreciates this. So instead of allocating figures and giving it to person holding it, it is better to have a musical chair of each table until one person is left who would definitely win the table centerpiece.

For intimate wedding where almost everyone knows the wedding couple, perhaps the best rousing game in this situation is "name that tune". Well in wedding planning checklist this task is included as well to get information about the favorite songs of the bride and groom then to create a CD of those songs. Guests will be divided in two teams and they need to guess the song when a small clip of each song is played.

As guests hear the first clip they need to make a bid that how quickly they can name this song. Let us say in 10 seconds while the other group has to make either less than or greater than this bid, if group one fails to answer this then the second group can answer this. This involves everyone, delightful fun for everyone.

You can choose many games from wedding program templates but it all depends upon the wedding style you prefer. There are many games in which you can ask bride or groom to join you on dance floor. If you are planning to have a very large elegant wedding these games choices may not work for you as every place has its etiquette and demands. On the other hand in a casual small family centered wedding you can have more games more fun.

"Call Out" is the other way to ask couples to come on the dance floors, but for this first guest themselves needs to perform on dance floor in their special way. In addition to this guest at times have to perform to get the bride & groom kiss just another way to get involved guests making the day memorable for the wedding couple.

Picking a Wedding Theme

If you are a typical girl, you have probably dreamed about and planned your wedding since you were a little girl. However, your plans likely changed as you grew older and your tastes matured. The strategies you used when planning your wedding as a little girl though are probably the exact same ones you should use when planning your wedding today. Here are some helpful tips when beginning to plan your big day.

Having a theme for your wedding is so very helpful to guide you in choosing items that complement each other. The beauty of a theme is its versatility - you can base your wedding around a color, flower, time period, style, animal, or anything else you can think of. For example, when I was little, I used to love looking through the Wilton cake catalogs my mother had. My favorites were of course the wedding cakes and I chose a classic one that I loved. Years later, after I got engaged, I revisited the picture of that same cake and found that it was the colors that I really loved when I was a little girl, and still liked as an adult. I also had a particular flower that I knew I wanted in my wedding bouquet: lilacs. They had grown outside my window when I was little and I associated them with all my girlish romantic dreams. Having these two items made it much easier to plan my wedding - I chose a spring time date when I knew lilacs would be in blossom and easily obtained and I picked out bridesmaids dresses based on the colors of my wedding cake.

So, how do you choose a theme? It's very simple. Start by brainstorming with your fiancée about your favorites. List everything you can think of: favorite flower, favorite song, favorite food, etc. and then look at your choices with your wedding in mind. Do you both love Mexican food? Then consider if a more casual western theme or formal Mexican wedding theme appeals to you. Is there a movie you and your fiancée are avid fans of? Can you incorporate it into your wedding? Even in you and your fiancée seem to have nothing in common, listing out your favorites will probably give you a great starting place to begin thinking about what is meaningful to you and what you want to add to your wedding celebration.

How to Register For Your Dream Wedding

With the average costs of a traditional wedding soaring near $30,000, many of today's newlyweds are saying "I do" to premature debt. Sure, they might have received plenty of gifts from their wedding registry, but all of those toasters, linens, and picture frames won't help pay off the steep bills from reception halls, photographers, and other vendors.

There's no rule that says wedding registries have to be limited to appliances and household items. Today's savvy brides and grooms are taking a new, economical approach to wedding planning by funding the ceremony and reception with cash gift registries.

Instead of skimping on your big day, why not use your bridal registry to help fund the wedding of your dreams? When you use your gift registry to cover the expenses for your big day, you'll get to indulge in some of your dream wedding ideas without the guilt that comes with maxing out your credit cards before you've even changed your name.

The cash registry is growing in popularity among modern couples, allowing well wishers to donate the amount of their choice. But how can you make the request for cash gifts tasteful and personal for your guests? The answer: instead of simply requesting money, break down the specific expenses into individual gifts. For instance, you can invite family and friends to contribute a cash gift on your online registry to fund any of the following:

• Your dream wedding dress, shoes, and accessories
• Bridesmaid's dresses, shoes, and accessories
• Tuxedos for the groom and groomsmen
• Wedding rings
• Flowers, music, and wedding décor
• Musical entertainment
• Photography and/or videography

You can even gracefully request money gifts by creating a honeymoon registry, so you can relax and enjoy your first adventure as a married couple without the anxiety of expensive airfare, hotel accommodations, and activities.

Don't be shy about accepting cash donations for your shower registry-chances are, friends and loved ones will appreciate the convenience of instant online gifting, and will be happy to know that their contribution will be put towards your wedding wishes and your new life together as a married couple.

To add a personal touch, follow up with a thank-you card and photo that shows their cash wedding gift in action. For instance, if someone donates $50 to the purchase of your dream wedding dress, you can send a photo of yourself wearing it and include a hand-written note expressing how they helped make it possible for you to feel like a princess on your magical night.

Why Destination Weddings and Vow Renewal Ceremonies Are More Popular Now

Planning a wedding today is a lot different than it was just 20 years ago and certainly a totally different event than it was 50 years ago. Twenty years ago, the event was all planned by the bride and the mother of the bride primarily who handled all of the logistics from the venue, food, music, flowers and everything else. This made for a stressful time for the family that planned the wedding. Fifty years ago, wedding receptions were often at a home or a restaurant with just the immediate family in attendance. Quite often this was a luncheon following a church wedding service and was very low key. Now weddings are huge events that require professional help from consultants and wedding planning books in order to get to say your wedding vow to your beloved.

Besides a traditional wedding in your hometown, couples are choosing destination weddings and many couples want to celebrate a big anniversary with a vow renewal ceremony. Both of these events have risen in popularity over the past few years. This article will explore how to plan a destination wedding as well as some ideas for planning a vow renewal ceremony on a special anniversary for the couple who is happily married.

Destination weddings are appealing to more and more couples for many reasons. One reason is that they are actually cost effective in combining the wedding ceremony with the honeymoon while celebrating this special vacation with some close friends and family or completely alone as a couple. Another reason these weddings are becoming more popular is that couples are getting married older and do not see themselves with the big princess dress in the cathedral getting married anymore. The final reason is that many people have moved around a lot and do not have a real hometown or do not live in their hometown any longer so getting married in a special place to the couple is more fitting. Many wedding consultants now work specifically planning destination weddings so that may be something to look into.

Another newer trend is the planning of a vow renewal ceremony to celebrate a special anniversary. Because the divorce rate is so high today and is at least 50%, many couples want to celebrate their long lasting marriage by having a special ceremony where they renew their vows to their better half. A lot of couples also like to plan these while on a vacation celebrating their anniversary. There are many websites that cater to these events, especially in tropical destinations where many people wish to get married or celebrate an anniversary. Many couples include their children in the vow renewal as well making it a special family moment too.

Whether you decide to get married in a different location or want to celebrate your special anniversary with a vow renewal, there are many professionals that can help you to pull off this special moment. Both of these events can be as elaborate or simple as you want.

Various Themes For Weddings and How to Put Them Together

Getting married is a momentous occasion where an unbelievable amount of planning is required. Most couples need at least one entire year to plan and organize all of the logistics that are involved in pulling off the wedding of their dreams. Today, many couples hire a wedding planner or a consultant to help them with the several details of hiring different vendors, ordering unique wedding favors, helping with the wedding toast and tying it all together. Most wedding consultants start with asking the couple what type of theme they would like to have and convey at their wedding. Often times, the theme may be related to the time of year such as a Winter Wonderland theme or the location such as a wine theme that takes place in a vineyard. This article will explore some of the themes that may be used for a wedding and ideas surrounding them.

Many brides say their favorite season is Christmastime and that they absolutely wish to get married during this winter holiday season. One great benefit to this is that many churches and reception locations are already decorated for Christmas with evergreen trees, poinsettias and winter garlands so you would not have to spend hardly any money on decorations. A nice idea for the wedding cake would be to make the tiers look like wrapped presents with fresh evergreen sprigs around it. Also, bridesmaids and the bride could have some kind of faux muff or shrug with their dresses to fit the theme.

Another theme would be a nature centered one that is set in the outdoors or near the mountains. This outdoor ceremony would center on the natural beauty such as a beautiful mountain view to say your vows. Great places for this would be Jackson Hole (WY), Vail (CO) or Lake Tahoe (CA). This theme would be more relaxed in attire with the bride maybe wearing a short sundress and the groom in khakis or shorts with a casual shirt. Handpicked wildflowers would be the best flowers to be used and an organic vegetarian inspired menu to be served would be perfect. End the service by planting a tree in the spot you got married and plan to plant more on your anniversaries.

For Renaissance fair or period lovers, a medieval wedding theme would be fun. Go to a renaissance festival in your area for vendors that sell medieval clothing that would be perfect for your nuptials. Most people that get married with this theme dress in the royal style of the medieval times. Serve food such as turkey, venison or mutton and use wooden plates to set the tone and if you can, find a castle location which would be ideal for this theme. All of these ideas will make you feel like Romeo and Juliet on their wedding day.

If you do not want to do an over the top theme, then simply go with the season and the colors of that season such as reds, oranges and yellow for a fall wedding or bright pinks, and blues for a summer one.