A great idea to incorporate into your wedding reception is to create themed tables.  Whatever the atmosphere of your wedding, there are many creative ways to organize your tables besides numbering them.  Imagine a guest arriving at the reception and having their name card on the entry table letting them know they will be sitting at the “UT Longhorn Fans” table!

This not only adds an interesting and conversational detail to your wedding reception, but it may make it easier to determine how to group your guests.  You can categorize your guests not only by how they know each other, but by topics you know they are interested in.  For example, if you don’t have 10 people to sit at table that includes your husband’s friends from the gym, you can turn the table into the Sports and Fitness table, and add guests that you know are big sports fans.  Another example: “University of XX” table.  You can include all your college friends, even though some might not know each other (dorm friends, sports teammates, roomies, friends from you major).  This way, there will be a common topic of interest for all the guests at that table.  It’s more challenging than you may think to group your guests, but themed tables can make the process easier for you.

Another idea for arranging tables, instead of numbering them, is to create table identifications based on the theme of your wedding.  For example, if you are having a vintage or antique themed wedding, considering choosing characters from the past to use as table markers: the Elvis table, the Clark Gable table, the John Wayne table, etc.  Or if you are having a Disney themed wedding, imagine how cute it would be to have a Mickey table, a Goofy table, a Cinderella table, etc!  These can also make it simple to create unique and interesting centerpieces for each table.

Of course, not all brides want to designate the tables their guests sit at, but I recommend it so as to prevent any of your guests from feeling “lost in the lunchroom.”

A few times a year David’s Bridal runs commercials for their $50 bridal gown sale.  Many brides-to-be flock to the David’s for the chance at an affordable gown, but they generally don’t walk out with the $50 ones.

There really are $50 gowns at David’s Bridal during the sale, but what they don’t tell you is most of those gowns are out of style and generally you can only get the one size that’s on the rack.  If it doesn’t fit you, that’s too bad.

Now, the good thing is, David’s Bridal really does have affordable, beautiful dresses.  They have very nice wedding dresses ranging from around the $300 mark all the way up to the more expensive gowns.

The other great thing about David’s Bridal is you don’t need the full amount of your dress upfront.  They do have financing available if money is an issue.

Whether you need a wedding dress, bridesmaid dresses, a mother-of-the bride dress, or even a prom dress, David’s Bridal really does have something for just about every budget.  Just don’t plan on going in there and finding a real steal for $50.

Do you have bridesmaid that live across the country? Do you want to find affordable bridesmaid dresses without inconveniencing all your bridesmaid by making them find a specific bridal shop in their town?

In this digital age, buying bridesmaid dresses via the internet should be more prevalent than it is. But the ongoing problem with this is the fact the manufacturer and the retailer work separately and with different agendas. Often, purchases from a retailer online don’t allow for returns or exchanges (because the retailer works separately from the manufacturer), something that’s vital with a bridal party that’s likely to have a variety of women if different shapes and sizes.

Based in New York City, the Jump Apparel group created an online division named Bridesmaid by Jump collection (www.bridesmaidsbyjump.com). Available only online, this collection offers shockingly affordable prices for well-designed bridesmaid dresses in simple fabrics and various color options that flatter a variety of figures. While the selection is not overly extensive, the styles are elegant enough to please any bride coordinating her bridal party. The added bonus to these simple dresses is that they can be worn to any type of wedding – whether it be in a traditional church or a barefoot ceremony on the beach.

Bridesmaids by Jump Designs

If you have bridesmaid worried about buying dresses without trying them on first – don’t fret. Bridesmaid by Jump allow returns and exchanges, something rare in the online wedding retail world. The staff is also extremely responsive. Any questions you have, shoot them an email – they usually back to you within the day.
If you’re not set to a certain style or color for your wedding party – also consider having the bridesmaid them browse the website themselves and choose their own dress.

Not wanting to face the hassle of bridal stores for your own dress? The retailer also has a couple of beautiful options for a bride looking to for an affordable dress.

Bridesmaid by Jump Wedding Dress Option

If you’re a chic, trendy bride that’s has a tight purse, but looking to look unique on your wedding day, consider shopping at Jessica McClintock for your wedding or bridesmaid dresses.

This wedding designer has a youthful, yet unusual edge to her wedding fashions, and the bonus is that most of these dresses are barely over $300 dollars – a virtual steal in terms of a wedding dress purchase. These dresses are also a great option for that destination bride that wants a fashionable dress that’s light enough to pack on the go.

Jessica McClintock Wedding Dress

Jessica McClintock also offers designs for other members of the bridal party so browse that sight and check out the various designs and see which dress will match your bridal party’s style.

Jessica McClintock Bridesmaid Dress

If you don’t want to stay in that stuffy wedding dress for your party, Jessica McClintock has a section for reception dresses. Consider making your entrance in your dress, then making a quiet exit to don on another chic dress to dance the night away.

Jessica McClintock Reception DressThe website also has another great section for accessories where you’re bound to find a chic dress purse, funky earrings, unusual jewelry, or a unique headpiece that will be just perfect to compliment that wedding or bridesmaid dress.Jessica McClintock Handbags

If you have a wedding planner on board, she will undoubtedly recommend you create a wedding day emergency kit. When it comes to emergency kits, don’t forget about your fiance and his boys- they may need help on the wedding day, too! As with your wedding, personalize the list of items for your emergency kits- we all have unique needs and may run into problems unique to our own wedding. Our hope is, of course, that nothing will go awry on our big day, but we’ll be prepared with emergency kits (just in case!)

Here are some items you absolutely need on your emergency kit:

• Baby powder (helpful to get spills out of your wedding dress)
• Extra earring backs
• Bobby pins
• White chalk (to cover any stains on your wedding dress)
• Straws (for mess-free drinking)
• Sewing kit
• Nail polish in the color of your bridesmaids shoes
• Aspirin (two kinds- in case someone is allergic to a certain kind)
• Antacid
• Smelling salts (hopefully no one will need them!)
• Mouthwash or mints
• Tampons
• Dental floss
• Duct tape (it can fix anything, right?)
• Digital or disposable camera
• Extra copies of driving directions
• Umbrella
• Safety pins

Here are some items that your fiance can’t leave out of his emergency kit:

• Extra pairs of black socks
• Lint brush
• Corsage pins
• Comb
• Deodorant
• Extra buttons
• Shoe polish

If you don’t want to, or don’t have time, to gather all the items for this kit, you can purchase a made-to-order wedding day survival kit online or at local stores. Armed with these emergency survival kits, you can survive every manageable disaster that may come your way on your wedding day!

Have you ever heard the story of bride who was so obsessed with being tan on her wedding day, that it killed her? Here’s the Cliff Notes version of the story: A soon-to-be-bride decided she’d look a little better in her wedding dress with a little color, so a week before her wedding she went to a tanning salon. The staff at the tanning salon told her that for safety reasons, she couldn’t tan for more than 30 minutes in a single day, but after a 30 minute tanning session, the woman decided it wasn’t enough. She went to another tanning salon, but after a second 30 minute tanning session, she decided she still wasn’t tan enough. The bride then went to a third tanning salon and repeated the 30 minute tanning session routine, then decided she still wasn’t tan enough… and so on. The bride-to-be continued this for four days and although she became a little red, she kept her eye on the goal of being perfectly tanned on her wedding day. She didn’t make it to her wedding though because all that tanning burned up her internal organs and she passed away. Before you repeat this story as the truth to every bride-to-be you know, I should tell you this story is just an urban legend and is not true- in the slightest (if you want to know, it’s impossible to burn your internal organs by sunless tanning.) 

But, the moral of this urban legend is that many brides will do whatever it takes to achieve their idea of “tan enough” for their wedding day. The truth is that your dress color should only enhance your natural skin tone (not require that you change your skin tone) and natural brides are pretty. You don’t want to look like an oompa-loompa walking down the aisle (what a mental image, huh?) For that reason, spray tanning, laying out or doing any last-minute tanning before your wedding, is a veryyyy bad idea. You can’t fix a tanning disaster and you’ll have to live with it in pictures forever, so becareful with how (and more importantly, when) you tan prior to your wedding- if you must.

Not what you want for your honeymoon!

Natural brides, even those with paler skin tones, are beautiful. And you want to be beautiful, right? Just think of brides like Nicole Kidman and Grace Kelly. Women who play up the skin they were born with for their weddings posses the most breath taking, natural skin tones that none of us can forget!

Whether you decide to tan or not before your wedding, choose a wedding dress that plays up your natural skin tone and don’t do anything last-minute. Try any tanning methods you will use well in advance of the wedding to avoid any wedding day mishaps!

While organizing a seating chart may seem an unnecessary item to be added to your already long to-do list, many wedding industry professionals will suggest a seating chart to eliminate wedding day stress and confusion. Some of the top reasons to use a seating chart are 1) you wouldn’t want Grandmom & Grandad sitting somewhere they can’t see/hear 2) couples may be split up without a seating chart 3) it’s uncomfortable for all when the last few guests are wandering around looking for a seat. If you’re not convinced that a seating chart is for you yet, consider that unless you have fewer than 20 guests or there are more chairs than tables, it’s probably better that you conceive a seating chart ahead of time. You may (or may not) be surprised to hear that 84% of polled wedding guests prefer a wedding reception with a seating chart!

Now that you’re convinced to design a seating chart, you have two options. You may assign your guests to specific tables, or go a step beyond that and assign guests to specific seats at specific tables. When making your decision, go with whichever option will make your guests the most comfortable. 

Once you’ve decided where all your guests will be assigned, comes the fun part. You can either name each table (within a consistent theme- like places you & your fiance have visited, or favorite movies) or just number each table. You’ll need name place cards at each seat if you’ve assigned guests to specific seats at specific tables.

Don’t be intimated by the creation of a seating chart, there are numerous software programs available to ease the difficulty of this usually necessary task. Frustration isn’t something a seating chart should make you feel, either. You may as well accept that your seating chart will be the subject of many, many revisions, but the good news is you can start charting relatively early in your wedding planning, because you probably have a good idea of who from your guest list will and won’t attend.

You have a big task ahead of you, but you will be so glad you did it. Before you get started, here are just a few things to consider as you go about assigning tables/seats for your guests:

• Tables near the head table (or sweetheart table) should be reserved for your closest family and friends
• If you’re using round tables, you should generally assign males and females to alternating seats
• Don’t forget to use your guests’ ages and interests when assigning
• Grouping your guests into identifiable cliques (grooms college friends, work colleagues, friends of your parents, etc.) will make grouping guests together at specific tables easier
• Seat children under 8 years of age at the same table as their parents, but if you’re expecting a great deal of 8+ children to attend, you may consider creating a “kids-only” table
• Leave 2-3 tables empty for vendors during their breaks or for unexpected guests
• Have a large diagram of the completed seating chart on hand at the reception venue on your wedding day to solve any confusion

Remember that you only get once chance to get your seating chart right, so it’s definitely worth the time and effort it will take to pull it off!

Just like Audrey Hepburn’s timeless style, her words continue to inspire brides to this day. 

Many brides have heard or read a quote by Hepburn that goes like this: 

“For attractive lips, speak words of kindness. For lovely eyes, seek out the good in people. For a slim figure, share your food with the hungry. For beautiful hair, let a child run their fingers through it once a day. For poise, walk with the knowledge that you never walk alone. People, even more than things, have to be restored, renewed, revived, reclaimed, and remembered’ never throw out anyone. Remember, if you ever need a helping hand, you will find one at the end of each of your arms. As you grow older, you will discover that you have two hands; one for helping yourself, and the other for helping others.” 

For attractive lips, speak words of kindness. Although during the planning of your wedding, someone will upset you, you should really try to speak kindly of them- especially on your wedding day. It’s not worth a bride’s precious time to dwell on the few things that go wrong in the creation of your unforgettable wedding day.

For lovely eyes, seek out the good in people. While many brides do their research and go into vendor meetings believing everything they’ve read about that particular vendor, what you’ve heard/read just may not be true. So do your research and go forth with caution, but sometimes it doesn’t hurt to give someone a chance if what you experience is strikingly more positive than what you’ve heard or read. Give people the benefit of the doubt and look for the good in everyone involved in your wedding planning. It’ll be a more pleasant experience for everyone this way!

For a slim figure, share your food with the hungry. Many couples enjoy the warm, fuzzy feeling they get after donating leftovers from their reception to a local food bank, nursing home or “hungry” cause. What better way to start off your life as a couple than to do something good for someone who needs it?

For beautiful hair, let a child run their fingers through it once a day.  Many couples (and guests) just adore having little ones around on their wedding day. Youngins’ hike up the “AWW!” factor at your wedding and have a way of lightening the mood when a little comic relief is needed. A common way to incorporate little ones into your wedding day is to have a ring bearer and flower girl.

For poise, walk with the knowledge that you never walk alone. You have your fiance, family, friends and wedding party, so through your entire wedding planning process, you literally may never be alone. That’s not a bad thing! By surrounding yourself with people who care about your special day, there’s no way things can go THAT wrong (and if they do, the good company around you will surely cheer you up!)

People, even more than things, have to be restored, renewed, revived, reclaimed, and remembered, never throw out anyone. It will save you a lot of strife if you realize now that everyone in your life may not be just as committed as you are to your big day. So, if a loved one that you can’t imagine not having at your wedding can’t make it, just remind yourself that they may have something else going on in their lives that is equally as important to them. And that shouldn’t change how valuable they are to you!

Remember, if you ever need a helping hand, you will find one at the end of each of your arms. It won’t hurt to do some things for yourself. Besides, DIY projects can add a special, personal touch to your wedding! Whether it’s designing your invitations, picking up the flowers or assembling wedding favors, accomplishing something you thought you couldn’t will be extremely rewarding!

As you grow older, you will discover that you have two hands; one for helping yourself, and the other for helping others. Throughout the planning of your wedding, you will find ways to help yourself and also ways to help others. If you’re in control of the things you can control in your life, someone else may really appreciate your assistance in their life.

Now- if that doesn’t get you inspired as you plan your unforgettable wedding day, you may want to read it again!

You’ve picked out the perfect invitation, settled on the proper wording and all that’s missing now is the “Wow factor.” Calligraphy can add that finishing touch to a simple, classic invitation. 

One approach to calligraphy on wedding invitations is to only use this elegant, elaborate type for just a few words, instead of the whole invitation. This approach is especially helpful to brides who are designing their own invitations or who don’t have the budget to commission calligraphy for the entire invitation. 

For a bride focused on consistency throughout her entire invitation suite, ceremony programs and reception pieces, hand-calligraphy can be used to tie all her individual pieces together.

For the DIY bride, there are calligraphy alternatives for you, as well. You, yourself, can learn to calligraphy and do your own invitations, or can employ a computer calligraphy program to produce the calligraphy for your invitations.

You’ll be glad to hear that calligraphy lends itself to brides of all tastes and budgets, so with a little research, every bride can incorporate this beautiful, timeless type into her wedding invitations and ceremony/reception pieces.

“Calligraphy” can be translated to mean “beautiful writing” and there’s no reason everything about your wedding shouldn’t be beautiful!

Give your guests the simple pleasure of immediate gratification. Many photographers have the capability of displaying images from the wedding day shortly after they are taken. An iMac or any large computer screen displayed on a side table with a few flowers is a perfect platform for a rolling slideshow of pictures from the ceremony, the morning preparations, the bridal party and the outdoor photos.

A spur-of-the-moment slideshow is a great conversation piece for the cocktail hour or for after dinner. Guests feel included in the parts of the ceremony they may have missed, such as the early morning preparations. If any part of your wedding involves guests killing time between events, a casual screen set off to the side is an excellent addition.

Ask your photographer if they offer this service or one like it. It’s a great advertising tool for the photographer as well; alongside the screen they can set out a few business cards. Gabelli Photography in Vernon, New Jersey, is one studio that offers the instantaneous slideshow option.

Entertain your guests with style. After all, you are a modern bride!