Always Great Wedding Speeches - Groom, Best Man

Delivering a wedding speech doesn't have to be a daunting task. With a bit of preparation those few moments at the microphone can end up being the most memorable ones of your life. After all, this is one of your best days and the beginning of a new chapter in your life as well. In wedding speeches a groom has a lot to cover in just a couple of minutes. With a checklist, you can handle all the important aspects of the speech and be well prepared for your big day.

To begin with, you need to start by brainstorming. Think of a few ideas to include in your groom wedding speeches. After all, when it comes to wedding speeches a groom plays a significant role in not only thanking everyone, but must include how you met your bride, funny moments you have shared and anything special you would like to share with the guests. It is about saying the right thing at the right time. Don't let the fact that you may not know some of the guests who may be highly significant to the bride deter you from making your speech. Everyone is a born orator, and even professionals learn to prepare well.

As you will be bogged down with many other responsibilities, it is prudent to prepare your speech well in advance. This will help you overcome any natural nervousness and make you verbalize your emotions well. Most importantly, you need to deliver a speech that's warm, meaningful, with a touch of humor and one that reflects the significance of the occasion. Everyone's eyes and ears are going to be on you, but that doesn't mean you need to chicken out. Besides, your bride will be watching and should be an inspiration for you.

In wedding speeches a groom ought not to say anything that could insult or cause any hurt feelings. Be very careful of what you are going to say, for people may forgive but seldom forget. Don't delve on any past relationships, good or bad. This would only result in plenty of hurt feelings all around. All said and done, give yourself two weeks to prepare your speech. Once you have an outline, it is time to get ready to put everything down to words. Go through it once and note how long you have managed to make it. As long as you hit the three minute mark, you are doing fine. Don't let it flow much longer or else the audience may just begin to chatter or nod off for a couple of minutes.

For wedding speeches groom humor is essential to help you and your audience relax. However, stick to good, clean jokes. If you aren't familiar with jokes there is plenty available online that would be suitable for your wedding. Humor will help to lighten the mood especially when someone in the wedding party may be a bit emotional.

Call up your best man and get him to listen to your speech. He may offer some suggestions that you may need to tweak your speech. Remember, it is your wedding day to celebrate the love you and your better half to be have for each other. Undoubtedly, you will be surrounded by loved ones, which will make it easier for you to give a flawless wedding speech that everyone will remember.

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

Read More

Your Wedding Day - Great Wedding Gifts For Bridesmaids

Finding gifts for your bridesmaids can be quite challenging. Traditionally, brides often give away small trinkets of jewelry, like pearl earrings, brooches or necklaces. However, with the rising costs of weddings, it may no longer be economical to think of very expensive gifts for your bridesmaids.

One great idea for a wedding gift for bridesmaids is salon or spa gift certificates. They deserve these since they have likely spent a lot of time and effort helping you prepare for the big day. They were likely there during the most hectic week before the wedding and you probably asked them to run some last minute errands for you. You did get stressed a lot but you and your husband have the honeymoon as time for relaxation and recreation. However your bridesmaids do not get to go with you so the least you can do is to thank them with a pampering gift certificate so that they can relax as well.

Sometimes, miniature gifts that say a lot are also perfect wedding gifts to bridesmaids. You can give them a photo album that has pictures of them and you, the couple. The picture can even include the entire wedding party. You can get some photo albums and get an engraving of the date of the wedding in front of it. The front picture can be of you and the recipient bridesmaid. This is a great souvenir and wedding gift idea because it is very personal. The bridesmaid can put the rest of her photos during your wedding day on these frames later on.

Other special wedding gift ideas are homemade items. You can create a CD with the favourite songs of the bridesmaids in it. The CD can be different according to the preference of the bridesmaid. You can even put a picture of her with you as the CD cover and include a poem for a touch of sweetness.

Use your wedding theme to help you think of gifts for your bridesmaids and even for your groom. There is no need to spend so much money on your wedding presents. Just remember that it's the thought that counts, and even simple, inexpensive gifts can give the message of appreciation to your bridal entourage.

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

Read More

How to Throw a Great Wedding on a Budget

Everyone knows that weddings can be very expensive events but you can easily cut the costs of your wedding by carefully planning out a few details. Considering that an average, full wedding and reception can cost between $10,000 and $20,000, it is easy to see why most couples these days are looking for clever ways to dramatically save money.

Wedding clothing is generally very expensive although they need not be. Instead of purchasing wedding gowns and tuxedos from exclusive wedding attire specialty shops, you should consider looking for them online.

 Today, there are many retailers on the web who specialize in wedding clothing and the prices are dramatically lower than what you would pay if you were to purchase them in a high-end shop. You can easily find a huge selection online and will be offered outstanding support and personal assistance to ensure that the clothing you choose fits correctly. Most of these online wedding attire retailers know the wedding business very well and will go out of their way to please you.

Wedding rings and bands are also one of the most expensive parts of a wedding. Again, instead of heading to your local jewelry store to choose your rings, take a look at some online jewelers. You can literally save hundreds, if not thousands of dollars by purchasing your wedding bands on the internet. There is no difference in quality nor any lack of selection when you shop online and you will be offered service that is second-to-none when shopping at an online jewelry store.

When it comes time to select the flowers for your wedding, be sure to select only those flowers that are in-season and readily available. Be sure to be up front with your florist and let him know your budget restrictions.

 When selecting wedding flowers for an altar, choose inexpensive flowers such as carnations or snowball mums as these flowers are only viewed from far away. Ask your florist to add a lot of greenery to the flower arrangements to cut back on costs and try to stick to just one or two kinds of flowers as well. You should also plan to use larger tables at the reception so that you will need fewer centerpieces and tablecloths.

It is a great idea to hold your ceremony and the reception in one place as it will cut expenses dramatically and you can also save a lot of money by offering just beer, wine and one special cocktail at your reception instead of a full bar. Instead of hiring a full wedding band, look into hiring a DJ who will play the type of music that you request.

Weddings do not have to be expensive in order to be elaborate and successful. These are just a few suggestions that will help you to dramatically hold down your costs and eliminate away money-related stress when planning your big day.

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

Read More

Great Wedding Invitations For Your Big Day

Nowadays, when a lot of couples are in the process of searching for ideas for invitations, you would find that they would prefer to settle for unique. The traditional type of wedding invitations is still a good choice but the modernistic world that we live in right now demands a more alternative and a hipper option is usually required.

Others opt to have unique wedding invitations so they can make a good impression to their guests while a few more couples just want to have a different twist with their invitations. Your primary decision on what kind of wedding invitations you are to come up with should depend greatly on the overall theme of your wedding.

What is the theme of your wedding? Is it going to be conventional or a lot more contemporary? Such questions can help you be more precise in deciding for which invitations you should choose. In fact, the good news is that you wont be running out of options to choose from to have unique wedding invitations.

If you are adept at Photoshop, then you can just do your own with the use of your computer. If you do not have enough time to think for the design of your wedding invitations, then you can run to your nearest local store to just buy yourself an invitation kit. You can also consider shopping online and end up with possible discounts especially if you will order by bulk.

Nowadays, a lot of invitations are personally made with the use of materials that can be recycled like dried flowers, dried leaves, recycled papers, and many others to just meet the purpose of creating unique wedding invitations.

In fact, you are even free to paint your invitations and add a touch of more creativity with the use of some small pieces of wood, stones, or shells. Some even use CD or DVD instead and record their favorite songs together with some slide shows about how the couple came to know each other.

This could be very memorable since music has the capacity to really bring back a good deal of memories to any person. Every time your beloved guests listen to the CD, they wont fail to remember the wedding event that they once were in. To think of something creative for your invitations is not that hard. You just need to take some time to design the invitations.

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

Read More

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.

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

Read More

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.

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

Read More

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!

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

Read More

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.

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

Read More