Category Archives: Wedding Party

Don’t forget the lighting

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Many people forget about lighting when they are planning their wedding reception –

“Wedding Lighting is a key area that people find difficult to get right, yet it is so important in creating a stunning atmosphere and making sure that you and your guests feel comfortable, relaxed and have a good time.”

Night and Day

If you are planning an evening reception, look at the room that you are going to use for the reception after dark, as well as in daytime. You can then see how the fixed lighting in the room works and think about what lighting you need for your reception to add the right atmosphere. Uplighters might be the perfect solution to bring the room to life at night.

Dancefloor divas

If your reception is a venue where the dancefloor, tables and chairs are set up in different parts of the same room, use different coloured lighting to separate the two areas and build up the atmosphere. Make sure your dad’s moves are in the limelight while he’s busting his moves! (…or keep him and those moves in the dark.)

Mood setting

Coloured venue lighting really adds atmosphere to a room. Use different colours to really set the mood for each part of the evening – from the welcomes drinks right through to the meal and dancing. This can be pre-programmed and done at the touch of a button if you use an intelligent lighting system.

Light the way

If you expect your guests to use outdoor space in the evening, ensure that steps and uneven services are well lit to avoid accidents. Create a magical atmosphere by hanging lanterns in your venue’s outside space, or if you are on a budget, why not try tea lights in old glass jam jars and use them to light up the paths or shrubbery?

Great lighting can be set up around any size of budget – think about what you want to do first, talk to your venue and then take advice from an event planner or lighting designer. Even the simplest of lighting schemes can impress your guests if they are done right.

Mother of the bride

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Even though it’s all out of the goodness of their hearts, the Mother of the bride and the mother of the groom can get a little too involved in the Wedding. Here are a few things that they definitely shouldn’t be doing – where you know they’ve crossed a line…

Obviously, with their child getting married, both sets of mothers are bound to get excited. Your diaries will be filling up with lunch dates with you and your mother, or you and your groom’s mum where every single thing you could possibly talk about when it comes to weddings, will be mentioned.

It’s good to see brides accepting help from others so they get a bit of stress relief, but don’t let that mean that no part or no detail of your wedding is planned by you. It’s not uncommon to see that motherly tendency of ‘taking over’ – whether subtle or slightly more aggressive – so be warned. If you want something done in that way, don’t let your mother’s words sway you. Your day, your way – and that’s that.

As we said, by no means refuse ALL the help the offer, because at the end of the day, it’s saving you a job and it’s saving you time. But when delegating wedding duties around your friends and family members, make sure that both you and the recipient are realistic in the amount they are taking on.

No matter how eager and keen your mother-in-law may sound about taking on 12/20 jobs you’ve got on that to-do list, remember that she still is human, and her eager excitement for the wedding plans may wear out before she’s even finished her second task of writing out all the place cards. At that point, you won’t even DARE to mention the handmade favours she agreed to do…

It’s a common stereotype of mother-in-laws – both of the bride and the groom – that they can be quite… disapproving… of everything. Of course, we don’t believe in that stereotype, but there might be times where you can understand where that common image of mother-in-laws have come from.

Taking her along to your wedding dress fitting can quickly turn from a lovely and thoughtful idea, to maybe changing the aim of the shopping trip to buying an axe, and a shovel. And her constant comments about your hubby-to-be not making enough effort? Just no. If this is happening to you, calmly let her know what she is saying is upsetting you, and most importantly, don’t let it affect you!

Wear White

Oh come on! This is number one of the wedding rule book, isn’t it? If wedding guests aren’t allowed to wear white, neither should your mum. This is the point when the question will be raised, by you, by your groom, and by everyone else: “Is she pretending it’s her wedding?”.

We’re almost sure your mum would think this one through, but do ask her what she’s wearing before the wedding day actually comes.

Match with the bridesmaids

On a similar note, unless you’ve actually specified for her to do so, if your mum or mum-in-law is deliberately matching her outfits to your bridesmaids – essentially, assigning herself as an extra bridesmaids– that’s another line crossed!

If she wants to make some kind of link to the bridal party, suggest the idea of a corsage in the same colour as the bridesmaid dresses. It would be a really nice touch for the photographs, and make your mum a little bit happier. But remember, make sure that both sets of mothers go with this idea so that one isn’t left out.

From offering the bride advice and knowing exactly how to calm you down, to readjusting that strand of hair that’s a little out of place after you’ve finished getting ready, your mum should be there for you on your wedding morning! She shouldn’t show up late and think you won’t notice.

That goes for the rest of the wedding planning process, too – all the arranged appointments, lunch-time meet ups to talk about table plans, and so on. You should never underestimate the usefulness of a mum around your wedding time, and neither should she!

Wearing white on the day is one thing, but taking complete control of everything that’s going on, pointing out every little detail she helped with, and not letting the bride or groom get a word on their wedding day is on another level! Either the excitement of the wedding has got a little too much for her or her glass is getting topped up a little too often, either way, there comes a point when it’s acceptable to just say ‘STOP’. I mean, she didn’t even help with that bunting!

To be honest, we’re sure that you won’t have to deal with any of these extremes, but you might witness a few hints of this kind of ‘Mumzilla’ mode. Just always be careful how you approach it and what you say. Want more advice on that?

Same Sex Wedding Tips

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Wedding planning is stressful enough. It gets even more confusing when most of the advice out there revolves around a bride and groom—and you’re both one of the above.

1. Don’t worry about what you “should” do

Instead of worrying about how to make your ceremony line up with (straight) tradition, view it as a chance to throw an event exactly your way, without any of the old-school “must-haves” that don’t mean anything to you personally. “Because many same-sex couples don’t have gendered roles in their relationship, they really have the freedom to reinvent the wedding.

2. Get creative with your wedding party

Who says a woman has to have maids of honour and only guys get to nominate best men? Choose the guests you want up at the altar with you—whatever sex they are—and name them accordingly. You could have bride’s men, groom’s maids, a man of honour or a best woman, for instance, or give the whole gang a fun name like the “I Do Crew” or “Bridal Brigade.” Or skip the guests altogether and keep all eyes on you and your partner.

3. Social media is your friend

Can’t visualize what your invitations, vows or any other part of your wedding should look like? That’s what Pinterest is for.

4. Put your own stamp on the ceremony

Many traditional wedding ceremonies feature a groom waiting at the altar for his bride to walk toward him down the aisle. So what happens if you’ve got two grooms or two brides? It totally depends on what you and your partner feel comfortable with. Some ideas:

Walk down the aisle one right after the other.

Walk each other down the aisle, perhaps arm in arm or holding hands.

Walk in unison down separate aisles leading to the altar.

Flip a coin before the ceremony to decide who proceeds down the aisle first.

5. You can still have your own pre-parties

There’s no reason you have to forego a party with your best mates just because you’re both stags or hens. So go ahead and plan your own celebration, whether it’s a weekend in Amsterdam or a trip to the seaside. One thing that’s really common is two partners having separate parties on the same night and then meeting up at the end.

6. A planner may be worth the money

Though a wedding planner isn’t in everyone’s budget, a coordinator can help you save time by steering you toward venues and officiants that he knows to be inclusive of same-sex weddings.

7. Vet your honeymoon destination before you book

Once you’ve come up with a list of dream destinations—particularly international ones—do a little research first and cross off any that don’t afford the same legal protections and cultural acceptance that same-sex couples have here. That way, your honeymoon can be just as blissful as the wedding itself.