Outdoor Wedding Themes For a Great Wedding

We are so used to having bridal events indoors that they almost become a bore. Everyone wants to have a wedding inside the church hall, at the hotel or at the town hall. We have almost forgotten that the outdoor life is still exciting and that events taking place in the sun are very exciting for many people. You can have your wedding at the beach or in the open. The best times for such weddings are the summer and spring when there is favorable weather for everyone to be happy. Outdoor wedding take away all the restrictions that occur in inner rooms and halls.

The most exciting of all outdoor wedding themes is the beach wedding. Here, you have a lot of freedom to decorate, dress and even cater for your guests as you like. Beach weddings do not have any extensive protocols so you can customize the event to suit your convenience and personalities. Again, beach weddings allow your guests a lot of freedom to move about the shoreline. You can dress in any type of apparel without sounding or appearing out of place.

You can also have your event at the park. These are open spaces that will give you a lot of room to decorate or seat your guests. The park is actually a large ground where your guests can have ample space to roam about.

Uniqueness is one feature that you can introduce into your wedding to give a great look. For once, you can hold such an important event outside the church or other similar enclosure and give your guests the freedom to roam your wedding grounds, talking to friends and other guests.

 An outdoor wedding will however require that you put in the same effort especially issues about decoration will need to be put right so you achieve the glamorous effect. Once you put together all your decor and protect your guests against any bad weather, you are off to a great start towards a memorable day for all.

Find simple straightforward advice on engagement party etiquette and mother of the groom dresses.

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Your Second Marriage - 3 Great Wedding Etiquette Tips

Not very long ago, people believed in celebrating second marriage as a very low key affair by inviting only close friends and family. It was supposed to be a more formal occasion without any kind of lavish celebrations, especially if the bridegroom or the bride were divorced.

However, it does not hold good anymore as people have understood that there is no point in stopping second time marrying couples from expressing their love for each other and their emotions. They are free to celebrate their wedding the way they prefer it, whether it be a lavish festivity or a low key intimate affair.

They need not worry about what others would think about them if they are being too extravagant in celebrating their wedding. You do not meet a person who can make your heart pound so much every other day, so go on and celebrate it with your mister or miss right whom you have identified a wee bit late. Host a feast to express your love.

Second wedding, however, has its own set of etiquettes which ought to be followed. Try to incorporate them as and wherever necessary to avoid causing blunders.

Wedding Etiquette which has to be followed during the second marriage:

1. Announcing the engagement:

Firstly, you need to discuss about your plans to get married again with your children from first marriage, if any as it would not be very easy for them to adapt to the changes which may take place soon after. Therefore, it is important to talk to them before announcing about the engagement to others. If this principle etiquette is forgotten, it may prove disastrous with the passage of time when you, your new husband, your kids and his kids move into the same house.

Secondly, you ought to inform your parents about the engagement and second wedding before you inform about it to your ex-spouse. In case you do not have any kids with your ex- spouse you are not obliged to tell him/her about your second engagement.

2. Selecting the wedding dress:

Second wedding brides can wear any color dress which they prefer. However, lavender and lilac are the colors which are preferred for widow brides marrying the second time. It is considered better to leave out the tiara and the veil and instead opt for a simple and pretty flower headdress.

3. Inviting your ex-spouse:

Proper Wedding Etiquette for second marriage calls for the bride and groom to sit, discuss and decide who are to be called for the wedding and who can be ignored.

It is advisable not to include ex-spouses and former in-laws in your wedding list as the guests may feel awkward about their presence.

This is so because; it would be really weird and stressful when your ex-spouse, former in-laws, present in-laws and current spouse meet as it is totally unpredictable as to what would happen during their meeting. Hence, it is not advisable to call your ex-spouse to attend your second marriage even if your current spouse assures you that he/she does not have any problem with them attending the wedding.

The proper wedding etiquette in such a situation is to call your ex-spouse for a quiet dinner after your honeymoon so that embarrassing and awkward situations are not faced by you or your present husband.

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Best Man Speeches - Great Ideas For Great Wedding Speeches!

Best man speeches are one of the most important aspect of any wedding, whether big or small, as the speech not only details some important cues about the newly weds but also showers them with good wishes and prosperity in their forthcoming life!

Generally the best man appointed for the wedding by the groom, considers writing wedding speeches to be an arduous task requiring many days of preparation. However, if one follows the step-by-step sequence of writing wedding speeches as outlined below, not only would the best man speech ideas be innovative, but they will also bring the best man accolades and compliments from all present at the ceremony.

Tips For Writing Interesting Best Man Wedding Speeches:

1. First and foremost, the person responsible for delivering the best man speech should do a thorough research on the background of the bride and the groom - how they met, their common interests, likes and dislikes, views about marriage and commitment et al. This will help him prepare an engaging speech involving the views of the couple as a whole.

2. Including the feelings and comments of close family members and friends in the best man wedding speeches is also a great idea as it helps in making the best man speeches warm and friendly rather than being just a plain monotonous speech and also keeps the interest of the gathering engaged.

3. A good idea can be to include brief jokes and anecdotes in the wedding speech. Not only would this make the speech interesting but would also keep the audience amused. However, care should be taken to ensure that the jokes are light hearted and are not targeted at someone in particular to the extent of being rude. Swear words should also be definitely avoided.

4. Best man speeches should not involve only the bride or the groom but rather both of them as a couple. Funny instances from the lives of both of them should be included as the speech addresses the gathering comprising of both the groom's and the bride's family. While quoting instances, care should be taken that they are understood by all and not by a handful, lest the speech gets cited as boring!

5.The best man speeches should always culminate with a wedding toast raised to the happiness and prosperity of the newly wed couple. While raising the toast, the best man should ensure that he showers blessings on the couple on behalf of the entire gathering and wishes them a successful married life.

Best man speeches are an integral part of any wedding and therefore anyone delivering them should try to research adequately so as to present to the couple one of their best wedding gifts - one that they would remember for a lifetime!

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Wedding Party Gift Ideas You Will Love

It is an honor to stand in the wedding of a relative or close friend, but the wedding party also has to organize events for the couple and provide support. Bridesmaids are responsible for getting the bride ready and to plan the bachelorette party as well as the bridal shower. The groomsmen are responsible for the bachelor party and they assist the groom on the wedding day. Show your appreciation to your bridal party with personalized wedding party gifts. This is a great gift idea since they are unique and have sentimental value.

Wedding Party Gift Tradition:

Many couples have a hard time coming up with wedding party gift ideas. Traditionally, the groomsmen receive the same gifts and the bridesmaids also receive the same gifts. For example, you can give the bridesmaids a personalized charmed bracelet that can be worn during the wedding. Customized cufflinks are a good option for groomsmen. Of course, you don't have to follow tradition. You can give them each something different depending on their hobby, favorite sports team, or any other interest they may have.

Personalized Wedding Party Gifts

Brides can find a variety of affordable personalized wedding gifts to fit every personality in the wedding. It takes a little effort and searching online. There are good deals at local stores, but the best deals are found at online stores. You can even call them to see if they are willing to give you a discount. Most of them will give you at least 10 percent off your total order, but you have to ask.

 A great wedding party gift idea is name stamps. They are affordable and can be personalized for each person. The name is put in a fancy font and put on a rubber stamp with an ink pad. The rubber stamp can be used on invitations, Christmas cards and envelopes. Personalized wine glasses, coffee tumblers, and even iPad cases are a great option as well.

A More Personal Touch

Crafts make great gifts and can be customized for the receiver. You can make homemade cookies or jams and put them in a jar with a personalized label. The personalized label can include event details or a personal message. Scrapbook lovers can make miniature scrapbooks with pictures and stories. Another option is taking the bridesmaids and groomsmen on an outing. The women could get manicures a day before the wedding and the guys can meet at the barbershop for a haircut.

Other Wedding Party Gift Ideas

Other wedding party gift ideas consist of beer mugs, personalized shot glasses, flasks, pens, money clips, lighters, flip flops, candles, t-shirts, robes, tote bags and cell phone cases, and travel toiletry bag. Getting married is a special time for the couple, friends and loved ones. You can show appreciation by doing something special for everyone that participated in the event. Everyone involved in a wedding puts in time and wedding party gifts can show appreciation.

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A Guide to Selecting the Most Unique Wedding Party Songs

Your wedding is going to be one of the most wonderful days of your entire life. You want to be sure that you celebrate it with a wedding dance that is meaningful and beautiful. There are numerous wedding party songs that will make sure you have a great time at the wedding.

First of all, there are wedding party sounds that you might want to use to celebrate your wedding in a dance involving all of your wedding party. This is a dance that is typically done after the bride has danced with her father and after the groom has danced with her mother. The bridal party dance is a dance where people who were in your wedding dance together and with you. So, your bridesmaids, groomsmen, ushers, and flower girl and ring bearer will be dancing with you.

Since the diversity of wedding parties, and because of the relationships that might exist between the members of your wedding party, there are some different routes that you can go when it comes to the songs that you are using. Firstly, you could go with the traditional wedding and romantic music. Any love song will probably work for this kind of dance. Songs such as "time of your life" and other romantic or friendship songs also work brilliantly.

Sometimes, you feel like having a little bit of fun with your wedding party. A great and fun song might just be "Thank you for Being a Friend", which is to an extent sentimental, but can also be fun and good feeling as well. Many couples choose to do something even more fun, like "Party Tonight" or other types of fun, party songs.

You can also look at wedding party songs as the tunes that you play for those party sections of your dance. You want your wedding dance to be a mixture of emotional love songs and fun party songs. The trick is to get people out on the dance floor, so many of the songs might be fun party songs.

There are lots of nice wedding party songs that you might enjoy. "Get Down Tonight", "in the Club" and even fun party songs such as "the Chicken Dance" are all great songs that get your wedding going, make it a party, and get everybody out on the dance floor to enjoy it.

Moreover, planning your wedding dance should be as important to you as the other details of your wedding. Even if you are using a DJ, you'll want to sit down with him or her and make a list of the tunes that you'll be playing and enjoying during your dance. Be sure to include a list of titles that you'd rather not have him play during the dance.

Remember that this is your wedding dance, and you should have a say in the songs that are played. Remember, however, that your DJ has a good idea of what is suitable with certain audiences, so if you are unsure, take his word for it. He'll provide you with great wedding party songs to dance to.

Daniel De Henney has been a wedding planner for the last twenty years. During these years, he has accumulated a great wealth of experience and helpful tips, which he shares on his well-known blog Wedding Songs First Dance. Check it out to find more practical advice on how to find the best wedding party songs and related wedding topics, including one of the best resources for free wedding songs samples.

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Exploring Wedding Party Favors

You should not let yourself be restricted by the social conventions that govern our existence. They are a guide for what is acceptable but you should not completely become slavish to them. There is a wide choice of products that you can present as wedding party favors. However you should also have some limits as to the things that you are going to buy. It is no good buying a gift that is just going into the bin the moment you turn your back. That is why you have to make the effort to explore the market before making a purchase decision. In this article I look at some simple ideas: 

1.    Crystal can be one of those great wedding party favors. There are all sorts of crystal products that have different commercial values attached to them. Therefore you should have a very wide choice of things to select for the party. You can either select it as cutlery or as ornaments to be used in the home. This is a long term and valuable gift that will not look out of place in any context. You also have a wide choice of versions to use in whatever context that you are placed.

2.    You might want to look at a good quality watch as one of the great wedding party favors. The Swiss are well known for creating some mind boggling watches. They can range from the very cheap to the simply astounding. You have to decide the price that you are going for and then select the product that you want to give away as a gift. If you choose the right watch, the recipient will be very appreciative of your efforts and they might respond in kind.

3.    A good book might be one of the wedding party favors that you consider. The Bible is a good book if you are religious. Otherwise you might want to check out the local bookstore for inspiration. This is an area where the individual tastes of the recipients will come to the fore. Having known them for some time, you will know that types of books that they like to read. This means that the gift will be a fairly straightforward task. Moreover the bookstores will also publish lists of books that are selling very fast so that you know what might be suitable.

4.    A good bottle of wine might act as one of the most appreciated wedding party favors. By this I mean really good quality wine. It is no good getting the cheap stuff from the supermarket and then expecting that the person will appreciate. You have to ask the shop assistant for a good quality wine so that you are ready to party at the wedding. If the person does not like wine then you can go for a spirit or a liqueur to give that extra touch of elegance to proceedings. At the end of the day this is all about celebration.

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Key Secrets to Great Wedding Party Speeches at the Wedding Reception

Successful Wedding Party Speeches through out the world will have certain things in common. Whether the wedding takes place in the UK, South Africa or the USA there are universal traits that help make great wedding reception speeches. When planning the wedding reception speeches consider the following:

Give Attention to Wedding Speech Details

What makes wedding speeches interesting and keeps the audience engaged? It is in the details.

Each of the Bridal Party speakers will need to do some research on the different types of wedding speeches. For example the Best Man's speech will differ from the Maid of Honor's speech.

Secondly, speakers should be extra careful when proposing a Toast or referring to someone in their speech from the wedding audience.

People are sensitive to having their names pronounced correctly and remembered. It is wise for a wedding party speaker to double check any names of people they will be referring to in their wedding speech ahead of time.

Think about the Wedding Audiences' Point of View

The wedding audience is made up of two sets of relatives and friends. Many of the wedding guests will not know all of members of the Bridal party.

It is ideal to have a Wedding MC (Master of Ceremonies) for the wedding reception speeches. The job of the MC is to introduce each of the speakers at the wedding reception and make announcements.

However, if there is no MC, each speaker must introduce themselves and mention how they know the Bride and Groom before they start to give their speech.

The audience is more interested in hearing the wedding speech when they understand who the speaker is and how they are related to the bridal couple.

Have the Wedding Speech Conclusion Ready Ahead of Time

It is a very common problem that inexperienced speakers will frequently speak too long and without a specific point. For some reason, many speakers feel awkward about concluding their speech and continue on and on.

Compare this to a speaker that holds his head up and says the concluding line of the speech clearly and with some expression in his voice.

The speaker's expressive conclusion clearly lets the audience know the speech has come to an end. The vocal expression also makes the speech more interesting for the audience.

Adapt the Wedding Reception Speeches to Suit the Bridal Couple

Each Bride and Groom should make the Wedding Party Speeches suit their personal tastes and suit their type of wedding.

Historically, it has been traditional for the Father of the Bride, Best Man and Groom to speak at the wedding. However, modern weddings now frequently feature speeches from the Bride, Mother of the Bride and Maid of Honor. This gives voice to the feminine side of the Bridal Party and makes the wedding speeches more interesting.

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Selecting Great Wedding Party Gifts

To thank the people who have stood by you throughout the planning as well as stood next to you during your wedding, you will want to choose the best wedding party gifts. Coming up with wonderful bridesmaid gifts as well as groomsman and best man gifts is always a challenge, but fortunately there are some great choices that are guaranteed to be a hit.

Consider the personalities.

The first step to choosing great gifts is to give some thought to the personalities of the people who will be in your wedding party. Are they adventurous people who enjoy surprises? Are they traditional, and prefer things to be classic and tried-and-true? Your party gifts should reflect the people who are a part of your wedding. It shows you really put thought into it and wanted your wedding party gifts to be truly enjoyed.

Traditional choices.

If you think classic gifts will go over well with your wedding party, there are some great choices. For beautiful bridesmaid gifts, consider jewellery. A lovely pendant necklace or a bracelet is always a perfect choice. Traditional gifts for men include cuff links to be worn at the wedding or fine cigars. Personalised photo frames are also classic wedding party gifts. Maid of honour and best man gifts are generally a little fancier than those for the rest of the wedding party, indicating their honoured role. Try to stick to something similar to those for the rest of the wedding party, and don't make the gift too extravagant, or the rest of the party might feel slighted.

Something more unique.

For a wedding party that is filled with less traditional people, unique and interesting gifts are a good choice. When looking for something a little more unusual, remember that it should be something special that will be kept for a long time. Even if you are looking for something a little more off the wall, it is still a wedding and the presents should still be a keepsake of some kind. Bridesmaid gifts for women who are somewhat less than traditional could include interesting art pieces from local artisans, or one of a kind handmade clothing items like scarves. Visit a local arts and crafts fair for inspiration!

When choosing gifts for men, consider something that might appeal to the sense of humour of your groomsmen. Boxer shorts with amusing logos tend to amuse men, as do shot glasses or beer steins with funny phrases. If you prefer something that is unique yet still classy, especially when shopping for best man gifts, look to things that fit your groomsmen's interests. Sports items like personalised golf balls, or team memorabilia are likely to be a hit with the men in your wedding party.

Don't hesitate to buy each member of the wedding party something different and unique to their personality and taste. The wedding party gifts don't have to be all the same - in fact individual gifts will be more special and show even more gratitude.

This article was submitted by Dean Webb - A Wedding Less Ordinary - Unique Wedding Favours & Accessories.

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