Author: Albert Lee

The food newlyweds prepare for their guests on their wedding reception can make or break the whole celebration. If the menu is made up of forgettable cooking which tastes like cheap take-out, it will only ruin the feel of the wedding in general.

It is always wise to venture towards something memorable and contemporary. Use the power of imagination. Don’t be afraid to be daring and feature food that tantalizes the guest list’s senses.

1. Comfort Foods

Who says comfort foods can’t be a wedding reception menu? Clearly, anyone loves macaroni and cheese. You can also have pizza with gruyere and cheese. Hamburgers that are mini sirloin and having blue cheese are also comfort food staple. These can be served family style. It sets a festive and relaxed mood at the reception. Why do you think they’re called ‘comfort foods’ in the first place?

2. Have a Theme

Most of the time, it's the obsessive compulsive kind of individuals who tie everything together. They base their catering menu on the season and theme of the wedding.

For example, you can have apple-maple glazed chicken and a pumpkin cheesecake for dessert when it’s a wedding in fall. You can have lemon grilled salmon with fresh vegetables if it is a summer wedding. You can also have a menu composed of favorite dishes of the family members.

3. Appetizers and Cocktails

Do you want to be different from the usual five course meal? If yes, your wedding will be different from the traditional kind by basing the reception on appetizers and cocktails. This leads to a variety of presentation ideas.

For example, you can serve the drink of your choice at the drink section and serve it with shrimps. Go for the appetizer you wish will be appropriate for you and your significant other. Soon enough, the stimulation of culinary works are flowing because of the eye-catching appetizers and cocktail section.

Conclusion

Just remember that the catering sets the mood for the entire affair. You should also put into consideration the guests at your wedding. What food do they like? You can make the menu original and tasty by not over-spending. Just be mindful of your budget.

About the Author:

To learn more wedding reception ideas, visit http://www.weddingreceptionideas101.com

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/weddings-articles/3-wedding-reception-menu-ideas-135657.html

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Author: Krissy Lanni

Weddings; the day many women dream about since the time they are little girls. Location, setting, decorations, colors, the wedding and bridal dresses, flowers, tuxedos and of course the bridal bouquet; weddings are the day dreams are meant to come true. After the date, one of the biggest, and usually the next decision to be made, is the wedding location and setting. Once this decision is made, the formidable task of looking at the tremendous amount of accessory alternatives available can begin. Matching the accessories with the setting is a remembrance all present will remember. Bridal bouquets are no exception. Selecting the proper mixture of flowers that will create and become the bridal bouquet can be matched in gorgeous and stunning ways to compliment not only the bride, but the wedding setting choice as well.

Since the setting has been chosen, when choosing the bridal bouquet, the colors, shapes and textures can be considered accordingly. Not only all the flowers, but the bridal bouquet in particular, has tremendous meaning and importance in a wedding. It not only is an extremely personal accessory to the bride but is something that will be captured in the vast majority of the wedding pictures. Additionally, in many traditions and wedding reception settings, bridal bouquets are “thrown over the brides shoulder” to some lucky single woman; signifying upon her lucky catch of the bridal bouquet, she is next in line to stand at the altar and become married.

Let’s look at a few tips and variations of flowers composing bridal bouquets in different types of wedding settings:

Modern Setting Bridal Bouquet Ideas: Selected, assorted mixture of: prince garden roses, black beauty roses, some sort of dark flower, such as chocolate cosmos, mixed with zinnias, ash berries and perhaps some type of geraniums, such as peppermint.

Elegant Setting Bridal Bouquet Ideas: Selected, assorted mixture of: garden roses, miniature calla lilies, gomphrena, zinnias, baby tears, gloriosa lilies, hydrangeas, nerine lilies, bittersweet, cymbidium orchids and perhaps acorns.

Including rhinestone crystals in any bridal bouquet will make it more elegant.

Urban/Downtown Bridal Bouquet Ideas: Ask the floral designer for unusual blooms, bold shapes and graphic, embellished ribbons.

Garden Setting Bridal Bouquet Ideas: Selected, assorted mixture of: cabiosa, lace-cap hydrangeas, nerine lilies, snowberries and classic soft colored roses, viburnum, berries, belladonna and amaryliss are ideal for garden wedding settings. Ask the floral designer for lush and romantic, loose bouquets in soft pastel colors that are natural and feminine. This is an ideal bridal bouquet for a couple that is marrying among the greenery of a garden or outside area.

Uptown/Residential Setting District Bridal Bouquet Ideas: Selected, assorted mixture of: monochromatic clusters or blooms with strong colors arranged tightly. What this does is create striking bouquets, ideal for this type of setting.

Beach Setting Bridal Bouquet Ideas: If you are marrying by the sea, pick a free-flowing, whimsical design with a mix of textures in flowers and grasses.

Other Setting Bridal Bouquet Ideas: Other popular flowers often found in bouquets are: tweedia, nigella and dusty miller, colored roses, oregano, wild grasses and seed pods.

The bridal bouquet is the most important accessory a bride carries. She has to feel comfortable and beautiful carrying the bouquet. It is the finishing touch, like wearing a diamond necklace to complete the look of a gown. It is therefore critical and important that the bouquet is designed to accentuate the bride as well as to bring out her personality on one of the most important days of her life.

About the Author:

Le Rhee Bridal Bouquets makes beautiful designs for your wedding day

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/home-and-family-articles/a-bridal-flowering-of-your-own-261867.html

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Author: SA Wedding Photographers

A photo shoot is often something we want to get over with so that we can get back to our guests and get the party started! With that being said, the photo shoot is not something you want to go through half heartedly. By investing time and effort in this you will create lasting memories of your Big Day (and the guests will wait for you - they are not going anywhere!). To survive your photo shoot I would suggest you pack yourself a goodie-bag that would carry you through your photo shoot and the rest of your day - you can ask your maid of honour or a bride’s maid to keep this bag of miracles close-by.

Tissues and wet wipes

A session like this can be quite time-consuming and as a Very Important Person (if not the most), you want to be prepared to get through this and still look like a million dollars! Tissues and wet wipes will come in very handy when it feels like you are melting away - a great tool for damage control!

Touch-up make-up

Standing around with a permanent smile while the sun is beating down on you is no joke, but at least you can ensure that you look absolutely beautiful while doing it. Pack some touch-up make-up, especially lipstick and powder to take away any shine left by the weather (or your nerves).

Brush and clips

The weather (wind) or just going through the motions might have an unpleasant effect on the hair style you spent so much time on - more additions to your goodie bag would be a brush and extra clips or hairspray (if needed).

Props

A colourful sarong that can double up as a prop or a dark blanket to keep your dress clean while striking a pose would be a wise add-on. Ask your photographer whether he/she will be providing these items, if not pack them yourself. This will be used whenever you need to sit down (or get creative) in an open field, on a beach etc.

Bottled water and snacks

The bride is usually way to nervous to eat something before the ceremony and way to busy mingling to have something after the photo shoot. Pack some light snacks to have in between shots, like nuts, a banana and a bottle of still water (cheese curls and Fanta Grape would be a bad choice!)

With this life-saver goodie bag by your side, you are now geared for any unforeseen events. Take a deep breath, bum in, bosom out and smile!

About the Author:

SA Wedding Photographers Online Directory of Wedding Photographers in South Africa which includes wedding photography articles for both the bride and the photographer, weekly newsfeeds, advice from our photographers and much more.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/weddings-articles/5-handy-tips-on-how-to-survive-your-wedding-photo-shoot-363610.html

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Your wedding planning checklist is essential to keeping your wedding day details organized. From wedding invitations to choosing your bridesmaid dresses and grooms attire and tuxedo rentals and all the details in between. Relax and make sure to have your wedding planning checklist close.

Let us begin. These are the critical details for brides and grooms to plan:

One Year to Wedding: Determine your budget and pad this amount by 5-7%. Prioritize your must haves from your desires. Write it down. Discuss with groom to be and your parents and get idea of how much each will help. Think about your location, theme and amount of wedding guests. Discuss how many bridesmaids and groomsmen you want. Decide if you want to hire a wedding planner or consultant.

Choose your date - the larger the wedding and more popular the reception locale the more time you need to book your reception.

Six-Eight months: Shop for bridesmaid attire and mother of the bride attire. Decide on the music you want played. Contact your travel agent and reserve your honeymoon. Get your passport and whatever documents you will need for your trip. Save the date cards that should be sent to out of town guests.

Four-Five Months: Purchase your wedding invitations. Shop for the groom’s attire and choose if you will rent tuxedos. Shop for the groomsmen and ushers attire. Pick out your wedding rings. Select the bakery for your wedding cake and reserve.

3 Months: Enlist the help of your friends and family with planning the rehearsal dinner arrangements. Make sure wedding invitations are accurate in every detail.

2 Months: Get your wedding invitations in the mail. Purchase wedding party gifts. Book yourself a salon day and choose your hair style and make up for your wedding day. Mail invitations. Write vows. Buy gifts for wedding party.

1 month to your perfect wedding day: Contact all vendors and confirm. Apply for your marriage license. Go over the seating chart.

One day: Have lunch with friends or family and know that your wedding planning checklist has helped keep you on track.

For your complete printable Wedding Planning Checklist, and exclusive budget saving secrets visit our web site at: Wedding Planning today.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Roberta_Claus

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With the average wedding now costing �17,000, many couples are now looking for ways to have a �celebrity� stylish wedding, without the celebrity price tag. The first tip is simple � ask for a discount. The worst that can happen is that they say �No�. You might be a bit embarrassed, but what have you lost? We�ve pulled together 5 other top tips to help you create your dream wedding on a shoestring

budget.

1. Choosing The Wedding Venue

Your venue is probably going to be the single biggest wedding expense that you�ll have to pay, with many of the more popular venues charging �2000 upwards. But you don�t need to spend this sort of money to have a fabulous venue.

Wedding Venue Cost Saving Tip:

Many village halls, golf and rugby clubs have suitable rooms available for a fraction of the price. The trick is to see past the existing d�cor and imagine it sprinkled with hundreds of fairy lights or candles � think of Ross�s wedding on the hit show Friends that Rachel ruined!

If you�ve found the wedding venue of your dreams, but it looks as if it will be out of your budget, don�t despair. Many venues offer significant discounts for mid-week or �out of season� weddings which can run into thousands of pounds.

2. Food At The Wedding

Deciding what kind of menu you want to offer for your wedding can be difficult enough without having to see the price tag that goes along with it!

Food Budget Cost Saving Tip:

There are lots of ways to cut back on your food budget, and still have a memorable day. Selecting a venue where you can bring in your own caterers is often a much better value than using the existing venue catering. You can even go as far as preparing all the food yourself, though be careful of taking too much.

If you don�t have a choice about which caterer you use, there are still ways that you can trim your spending costs. Try replacing the starter course with canap�s, instead of having both. Or, replace dessert with your wedding cake � so often wedding cake gets forgotten about because guests have already had so much to eat.

A new idea that brides are buzzing about is the wedding �cheese� cake. Literally, it is three slabs of cheese turned into a wedding cake for that special �cutting of the cake� photograph and ceremony. Why not combine the two instead of having a separate cheese and cake course? Or serve this with crackers, chutney and pate for your evening guests?

3. Drinks At The Wedding

To have a free bar, or cash bar? Such a difficult question to answer. Of course, it would be fantastic to offer a free bar to all your guests, all day, but with limited funds, it�s not a realistic option for most people.

Booze Budget Cost Saving Tip:

The ideal in this instance is to use a venue where you can bring your own booze. I was lucky enough to be able to do this at our wedding and managed to pop across to France and buy 180 bottles of wine and 240 beers, plus Pimms and cassis for under �500. We had stacks left and our guests were restricted to beer, wine or soft drinks, but no one seemed to mind.

Another option is to come to an arrangement with the hotel regarding corkage. A friend got married in a hotel, which charged �10 per bottle of wine. She arranged a flat fee of �500 for all of her beer and wine opening. Although it seems like a lot, it meant that she could afford to supply beer and wine for her guests.

4. Bridalwear

With most bridal dresses starting around �600 and running into thousands of pounds, this is a huge expense.

Bridalwear Cost Saving Tip:

You can still look fabulous for a fraction of the price and feel that you�re minimising the eco-footprint of your wedding by buying a �pre-loved� wedding dress.

Many charity shops have specialist �bridalwear� departments where you can purchase new and designer dresses that have been worn once. You can try the dresses on before buying and you�ll get a warm glow from doing something for �Charidee�.

If you�re a little braver, you can venture online, where there are some fantastic bargains to be had in the �pre-loved� lines. Take a look at some of the �For Sale� forums of the popular wedding websites and you�ll see bridal dresses, veils, tiaras and those Jimmy Choo shoes that you know you want for a fraction of the cost.

5. The Wedding Photography

Many couples feel that photography is a major part of the day and are prepared to pay upwards of �2000 for a beautifully presented wedding album. Photographers have confirmed that it isn�t the actual photography, which is the major part of this expense, but printing and preparation of the formal wedding albums.

Wedding Photography Cost Savings Tip:

Many photographers are prepared to attend your wedding day and then provide you with a DVD of your photos for around �600. With the DVD, you can then use some of the fantastic online services to prepare your own �Photo Book� - costing much less. Or, as many guests will no doubt have digital cameras with them, combine place cards with little notes asking them to share their wedding photos on your online directory.

Another excellent tip for having a photo keepsake of your wedding is to use several Instant Photo Guest Books, which combine Polaroid Instant Photos and hand-written sentiments from your guests. These photo guest books are ready to enjoy the “instant” your wedding is over -- and creating them adds great fun to the wedding reception!

Helen Rankin, Founder of Instant Forever — http://www.instantforever.com and distributor of Adesso Albums in the UK and Europe, helps you capture your wedding memories forever. The Adesso Album is the only guest book alternative that captures your wedding event in an Instant in both pictures and words, and preserves it Forever. Capture your wedding in an instant with a Wedding Photo Guest Book

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Author: TM Lung

You may want to make your wedding cards as special as possible. One of the ways to do so is to hire a designer to help to your create the cards. Of course this will be a more expensive option.

In fact, you will need to take care of various items when you are searching for the wedding invitations. You will need to prepare the save the date card, RSVP card and so one. In order to save money, you can consider creating the cards yourself. In fact, it is not only a good way to save money. You can also make your cards more special by creating them yourself.

However, you may not know what you need to do when you are trying to create your own wedding cards. It is not difficult to do so. You can follow some simple steps and you can do it easily.

1. You will first of all think about the kind of materials you want to use for your wedding card. Since you are going to create the cards yourself, it will be easier if you stick to the idea of printing the contents on paper. There are different kinds of paper you can choose. Yet, one think you need to know is that you need make some test print after you have chosen the material.

You have to do the test prints before you buy the paper in bulk. You are doing this to make sure that you can print on the paper. As a matter of fact, there are some materials which are not for printing. You may not be able to print on this kind of paper. If this is the case, you will need to select other kinds of paper for your invitation.

2. You will also need to consider the size of the wedding cards. This is mainly because of the postage. The cost of postage may be higher if you create a bigger card. Of course you will need to check with the post office to this end. The shape of the card may also affect the cost of potage. Again, you should check this with the post office.

3. You will also need to consider the envelopes. In most cases it will be less expensive if you can use ready-made envelopes. This will go back to the size of the card. You have to make sure that the card will fit into the envelope.

4. Since you are going to create the card yourself, you may not be able to use techniques such as die cutting and embossing. However, there are also some tools for you to do some simple die cutting and embossing. Remember to read the instructions before you use the tools.

5. One last thing is that, you will need to start working as soon as possible. You will need to spend some time in order to create your own wedding invitations. And it is not an easy task at the end of the day. You will not be able to make your cards special if you have to do it in a hurry.

About the Author:
TM Lung designs Chinese Wedding Invitation. He has sites on Wedding Vendor Directory and Wedding Planning and Marriage.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/marriage-articles/5-tips-for-diy-wedding-cards-672330.html

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Author: Stephanie Green

The modern bride and groom reasonably expect to pay $30,000 for their wedding day celebrations. Venue, food, entertainment, flowers, dresses, rings, cars, favours…it all adds up. The ‘Bridal Magazine Mentality’ convinces you all this stuff is essential if you’re to have any kind of ‘proper’ wedding.

But what do you really want? Do you need all this wedding stuff? Is there any reason it has to be this way, other than ‘Bridal Magazine Mentality’? I know expectations of family and friends often influence wedding decisions, but the frugal bride and groom should stand their ground.

Decide what’s important to you and your partner, and scrimp and save on the rest. No one will notice and you’ll feel financially safer and more secure. Here are five ideas for simple and alternative ways to carve the wedding budget to shreds.

1. BYO Alcohol

Find a venue that allows you to bring in your own alcohol. You’ll save thousands. The venue mark up on beer, wine and spirits often exceeds 200% of the retail price, and some venues will charge a corkage fee per bottle as well.

Community halls and historic homes often allow you to provide your own alcohol. If you keep an eye on booze specials throughout the year you can stock up in advance, and the cost won't seem nearly as high. If you order in bulk from a local bottle store they often allow you to return unopened drinks for money back.

2. Skip the Full Meal

A full sit down dinner can cost anything from $20-200 a head. Instead, why not have a lunchtime picnic reception with cold cuts, sandwiches, cakes and scones? What about a classy cocktail and nibbles party? I’ve heard of some couples who’ve had a late ceremony - 8pm or so - followed by a desert reception. Trust me, in the midst of all that chocolate, not one guest complained about not having a full meal!

3. Buy Dresses Online

I found my dream wedding dress in a bridal shop for over $2000, resisted the urge to fork over half our wedding budget for it, went home and brought the exact same dress online for a few hundred dollars.

When buying online I can't stress enough to have your measurements done BY A PROFESSIONAL. Also, it’s helpful to visit bridal shops and try on several styles of dresses to see what suits and what doesn’t. Try on dresses even if you hate them, because you never know what you’ll fall in love with.

4. Enlist the Help of Friends

I know you’re an independent bride (or groom) and you want to do it all yourself, but your friends and family want to help. Honestly. Your aunt the cake maker would LOVE to make the cake, your friend the fashion designer would be honoured to sew the bridesmaids dresses. Your brother's band can’t wait to play the reception.

One of the coolest things about weddings is how everyone comes together to pull the event off. They’re much more fun as a team effort. Your friends and family love you and they want to help. Be gracious and thankful, and they will feel proud to be part of your day.

5. Look for Student Photographers

Ring up your local art school and place an ad for a student photographer. Many students relish the opportunity to shoot for their portfolio. They have access to professional equipment, darkrooms and image manipulation software. They’re enthusiastic and keen to prove themselves.

Ask to see previous work before you hire any photographer. Look at how well the photographer captures people and portrays emotions. Look at their use of colour and composition. Discuss your ideas and sign an agreement. Make sure you have all the details in writing.

When I hire any student and they do good work, I give them a letter of recommendation as a way of saying thanks. These letters are often worth more to them than money.

I hope I've given you some creative ideas for slicing your wedding budget. I’m sure you’ll think of hundreds more once you release yourself from the 'Bridal Magazine Mentality’. I wish you and your partner all the best for your celebration!

About the Author:
Freelance writer and heavy metal fanatic Stephanie Green has free articles, ebooks and resources to help couples plan their gothic, punk rock, heavy metal, medieval, or other alternative wedding

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/marriage-articles/5-wedding-budget-tips-590780.html

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