Wedding Tips/Ideas for Ceremony

Everyone in the bridal party or in the wedding business has their tips and advice. This is our list: (We couldn't limit it to just the ceremony)

• Ceremony Formation
  
• Traditional Responsibilities of Bridal Party
  
• If you don’t like the color of the church carpet, you won’t like it when you see your photographs. Consider pre-laying the aisle runner. Have your guests seated from the side aisles and rope off the main aisle with a flower garland until the ceremony begins.
  
• If you dream of hearing “traditional” wedding music: some churches will not allow Wagner’s “Bridal Chorus” (Here Comes The Bride) - this music was used for the unsuccessful marriage of Lohengrin, knight of the Holy Grail in a medieval German story or Mendelssohn’s “Wedding March (A Midsummer Night’s Dream) - this music was used for the happy, but non-Christian marriage of Theseus, Duke of Athens, to Hippolyta, Queen of the Amazons in Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream”.
  
• You can stand facing your guests while the Officiant stand in the aisle or to the side. Guests will be able to watch you and not your back.
  
• Plan your receiving line just after the ceremony and not at the reception site. The bridal party can line up after recessional and greet the guests as they are leaving the church/ceremony site. Line up of receiving line: Bride’s Mother, Bride’s Father, Groom’s Mother, Groom’s Father, Bride, Groom, Maid of Honor, Bridesmaids. (The Best and Man and Groomsmen are mingling.)
  
• Tradition: After “breaking in” your wedding shoes, write the names of your single bridesmaids on the sole of the shoes. At the end of the reception, the MC can announce the name of the bridesmaid who name has faded the most is the next to marry.
  
• Choosing a matching number of attendants should not be a major problem. This is a marriage ceremony and celebration, not the passenger list for Noah’s Ark.
  
• Couples may choose to have a woman as the "Best Man" and a man as the "Maid of Honor". They are called Honor Attendants. (Don't call her the Best Woman or Gentleman of Honor - those names would only fit the Bride and Groom.) The woman can wear a black dress to compliment the groomsmen’s tuxedo or a similar dress to compliment the bridesmaids. The man wears a similar style of tuxedo or suit to compliment the groomsmen.
  
• A teenage girl has the title of Jr. Bridesmaid and her dress can be similar in style to a bridesmaid. A Jr. Bridesmaid is not mandatory. There is no Jr. groomsman and the Jr. Bridesmaid typically does not have an escort (or matching partner) for the ceremony.
  
• A flower girl can wear a dress similar in style to a bridesmaid, but typically it is a dress similar to the bride – a white dress, excluding the train.
  
• Consider purchasing the groom’s tux if your lifestyle includes other formal parties/weddings/New Year’s celebrations. A double-breasted or dinner jacket style remains in fashion for many years. Change of shirt style, vest or cummerbund gives the tux a refreshing look. The tux worn about 5-6 times will pay for itself over time.
  
• Honeymoon Tip: Let everyone know you are on your honeymoon. You may get a special treat or special treatment.
  
• Are you one of the last couples in your circle to be married and there will only be children to catch the garter and bouquet? Instead of the traditional garter/bouquet toss, have married couples on the dance floor. While a slow, romantic song (or two) is playing, have the D.J. announce that couples married two years and less to sit down. Wait about 30 seconds and have the D.J. announce that couples married less than 5 years to sit down, continue with couples married less than 10 years, 15 years, 20 years, etc. The last couple still dancing is presented with the garter and bouquet. Optional: Ask the couple to give you marriage-advice. Make sure they have a mic so everyone can hear them.
  
• Create a throwaway fortune bouquet: Gather flowers into small bouquets. Wrap stems of each bunch and secure with a bow. Write or print fortunes on strips of paper and secure one fortune to each bouquet. The fortunes can say: “You will marry the boy next door”, “You will marry your true love, “You will marry Prince Charming”, “You will marry a millionaire”. For the bouquet toss, gather all the small bouquets and toss them over your shoulder. The single ladies waiting to catch the bouquet will be surprised there are many bouquets to catch. (Let the photographer know what will happen so s/he can get the best pictures of the bouquets flying in the air.)
  
• One detail you don’t want to overlook is how your attendants will get to the wedding and back. On the return trip, brides only arrange for their own and their grooms’ transportation, forgetting that the attendants who arrived at the wedding in their limo will need another way to get home. You don’t have to rent a limo for them, ask attendants if their date can provide transportation or confirm car(s) are at the reception to get them home.
  
• You have seen many American flags flying from the windows of cars. The mounts of the poles clip over the top of a rolled-down window and are held tight when the window is rolled back up. Pick up several flag holders (four to a car) and make flags (made from china silk with is both light and strong) matching your wedding color scheme. Attach these flags to the cars of the bridal party so everyone (guests and passersby) knows who is in the bridal party. Take care not to make flags so long that they could tangle with anything (such as a rear wheel) when they trail.
  
• Try not to keep your guests waiting for you while you are having formal portraits taken prior to the reception. Have band leader/DJ/MC instruct guests to go through buffet line. When you arrive, you can cut the cake and have the best man/others propose the toast. Think you’re missing out on a meal? Think again – you will probably miss out on the meal anyway with meeting/greeting guests.
  
• Surprise your guests at the reception – right after the DJ/MC announce you, start your First Dance while your bridal party is standing around the dance floor. The special song is playing as you are announced and walking to the dance floor. Actual dance time will be short and sweet.
  
• Speaking of First Dance – consider dance lessons. Don’t let anyone tell you that you have no rhythm. You may be tone deaf, but everyone has rhythm. It’s a basic feature of life – we are always tapping our fingers or bobbing our heads when we listen to music. If you can walk, you can dance. And you can learn a basic dance pattern in about five to six dance lessons. If you are not interested in taking formal dance lessons (because you are not interested in dance competition), you can find a dance instructor to help you coordinate your First Dance.
  
• More on First Dances and wedding gowns – when choosing your gown try an enthusiastic game of “Simon Says”. Make sure you can lift your arms for those fancy twirls in dancing. Make sure you can sit comfortably – although you may not get too many opportunities on your Wedding Day. Make sure going to the bathroom won’t be too much of a struggle, but then that’s why you have a Maid of Honor. You knew she was your best friend for some reason!
  
• And a little more on First Dances: What dance should you choose if you don’t know a Fox Trot from a Rumba?
  Maybe a little description of the types of dances might help you decide.
  
  Fox Trot – many traditional wedding-type First Dances are Fox Trots. A Fox Trot is a series of steps: slow step, slow step, quick step, quick step. This dance can be a “spot” (dance in one spot) or “traveling” (cover a little more dance floor).
  
  Waltz – once considered a very scandalous dance because it’s the first dance in history where a man and a woman held each other during dancing – in public no less. Waltz has a clear and distinct beat. For every beat there is a step. This might be helpful to those who are tone deaf. Waltz step is in count of three smooth steps: one step, two step, three step, one step, two step, three step and so on. This dance can be a “spot” (dance in one spot) or “traveling” (cover a little more dance floor).
  
  Rumba – similar to a Waltz with a subtle beat. If you can Waltz, you can Rumba. Steps are the same, but the styling is different. Don’t let that scare you – you can learn styling in dance! Rumba step is in count of three steps: one short or holding step, two step and three step are smooth. This dance is a “spot” dance.
  
  Tango –a traditional Tango song is very distinct. Although Tango has its roots in the brothels of South America, it has gained respectability for being a sexy dance. Think Scent of a Woman with Al Pacino. He performed a beautiful tango. Tango is short, quick and smooth steps: slow smooth step, slow smooth step, quick step, quick step and then the traditional sliding of the leg back to position. This dance is a “traveling” dance.
  
  Cha Cha – this playful dance is fun, but can be a little tiring for a beginner dancer with the ‘cha-cha-cha’ steps. Cha Cha has basic rock or step back and three short, quick or cha-cha steps and repeat again with a rock step. This dance is a “spot” dance.
  
  Swing – this type of dance can be used on many songs. You may have seen many people out on the dance floor doing this dance. It’s a simple step – step to one side, step to the other and step back – it’s the hand movements that make it look fancy! This dance is a “spot” dance, but with twirls can take up a lot or a little of the dance floor.
  
  Maybe deciding the style of dance will depend on the song you choose. We have compiled a list of songs with the type of dance you can perform.
  
• Save yourself time and only plan a seating chart for head table and honored guests with a “Reserved” sign. If you have a seating chart, guests may honor it, but will quickly “play musical chairs” to sit who they want to sit with.
  
• Supply the staff with your Wedding Day Schedule so everyone will know what is going on.
  
• If you or your finance wears glasses, make sure your glasses have anti-glare coating to avoid reflections. Or you may want to consider contact lenses.
  
• Don’t be afraid to ask for help. If someone is offering to help with a task, hand it over and don’t worry about it (don’t micro-manage the task).
  
• Depression is not uncommon after a wedding. Over 200 hours goes into planning a wedding. Again, don’t be afraid to ask for help.
  
• A week before the wedding, call and confirm ALL vendors.
  
• Look into wedding insurance: a policy can cover wedding attire, photographs, loss of deposits, cancellation expenses and more.
  
• Make sure you always receive a copy of all contracts of the vendors you hire.