Below, are some creative ideas for guest book signing:

Create a guest book as a scrap book! Put sticky notes or envelopes inside the book and have the guests leave a special wish.

In a jar have your guests pick a card with your own wish to your guests on the back, and in return have your guests sign the front with their wish to you to replace.

On a decorated table your guests can write down their messages to you and then file them alphabetically! Create a file guest book!

A Postcard Guest Book! Postcards have been previously addressed to the couple. Guests are able to write a warm wish to the couple and placed in a mailbox. They will be mailed to the newlywed by a friend.

Make a personalized blanket with various patches of fabric. The guests can write messages on the quilt about you and your fiancé.

Message in a bottle? Guests can write sentimental messages on pieces of paper and place them in a bottle.

You can create safe box for memories. Contain your guest’s messages in a colorful keepsake box.

These are just some guest book ideas to get your brain thinking! Let your creative side out!

Listed below are the top 10 best places to have your bridal registry:

1.)    Macy’s

2.)    Willams-Sonoma

3.)    Boscov’s

4.)    Bed, Bath and Beyond

5.)    Pottery Barn

6.)    Kohl’s

7.)    Bloomingdales

8.)    Charity Registry- Instead of buying gifts you and your fiancé, let your friends and family make a donation to your favorite organization as their wedding gift!

9.)    Amazon.com

10.) Crate & Barrel

These are only ten great places for your bridal registry. Go out and try these stores to see if these are the places for you! Keep looking, you will find the best place for your guests to shop!

Where are you going to register for your wedding?

Brides, if you are thinking that engagement photos are unnecessary, think again. First, search for a professional photographer. Get to know your photographer and what he/she has to offer.  This allows your photographer to get to know you and your fiancé as a couple. They will be able to see how you act together, what makes you smile and your individual personalities. By doing this, it will benefit you and your fiancé’s wedding for the better. If you have never considered taking engagement photos, hopefully this article will rattle your imagination. Kissing in the rain, jumping in the air, clowning around, or just a simple smile can portray a great memory. Think about it. Take a deeper look into the lens and see what your engagement means to you!

Another option could be a sweetheart table! A sweetheart table is when the bride and the groom sit separately from the rest of the guests. There is always the option of a bridal party table. The bride, the groom, and the bridal party will be seated at the front table of the wedding reception. These are just some things to think about when creating seating arrangements. Sometimes having arranged seating is the way to go. Feel free to print out the seating chart worksheet have a pencil and an eraser on hand as this will be a process. Also, review our seating chart article to help you with creative ideas.

Before saying “I-Do” – make sure you begin your Wedding Planning
“To-Do” list with these 5 things…

1. Wedding planning can be very stressful and sometimes overwhelming, but whatever you do, do not freak out! Hire a wedding planner! They are the pro’s and know the in’s and out’s to everything wedding. Browse our wedding planner list and start making those phone calls!
2. Engagement photos are great save-the-date cards! These photos will create the start to a new beginning! Find our top photographers here!
3. Create a wedding budget- and stick to it! We all know how hard it is to hold back on buying something but weddings are very expensive! We have a great wedding budget article to help you create your wedding budget- play around with it and come up with a good budget that you can really stick to.
4. Picking a date/reception venue visiting – Sometimes you know which date you want from the get-go, but what happens if that date isn’t open at the reception venue that you really want to have your wedding reception at? Find the happy medium- either the date or the reception venue will help you find that perfect wedding date.
5. Start compiling your guest list. You know how much you are able to spend and you know how many guests your reception venue holds, now the hardest part- the guest list! Begin adding your family members first and then add your friends!

Enjoy this amazing time as an engaged couple.  Reach out for help when you feel overwhelmed and remember, wedding planning is supposed to be fun!

Good Luck!

There are so many various types of bridal shoes out there to choose from. There may be some pressure to comply to wearing fancy, sparkly  6” heels at your wedding, but wearing heels are not the only shoes to choose from. Think about it. If you wear a pair of nice high heels to your wedding ceremony then to your wedding reception, you will have callused feet for a month. To avoid spending money on a pedicure, try searching for a comfortable, yet pretty shoe. Depending on the type of bride you are, this suggestion may only apply to a small amount of you. A small amount of you may read this article and look into the suggestion, while other brides may read this article and at least give their insight on the suggestion. Both reactions are perfectly fine. A suggestion is meant to help spark any new ideas that you may be having a difficult time configuring. Let’s get to it!

A comfortable shoe…what comes to mind when you think of comfort beneath your feet? Well, personally, slippers are very comfortable, but not necessarily appropriate wedding attire. How about flip flops? Flip flops would be perfect for a 2012 summer wedding. Brides who are having a summer wedding could consider wearing engraved, sparkly flip flops. Engrave your flip flops with sayings such as, “ Just married,” “ Here comes the bride”, etc. Another suggestion would be to put some ribbon on the flip flop and add your own creativity to the sandal.

Another good idea would be wearing bridal sneakers or tennis shoes. Usually when you think of a sneaker or tennis shoe you think: comfortable. The cyber world displays so many creative designs for a sneaker and a tennis shoe. Do not feel obliged to wear heels to your wedding. Heels may look nice, but blisters and soreness play a big role in the aftermath.

These suggestions are just something to think about when searching for the perfect wedding shoe. Just make sure that whichever shoe you may choose whether it’s a heel, sneaker, flip flop, or tennis shoe that it fits!  Comfort really is most important!   Good luck!

When your guests enter your wedding reception they will be awed and excited to spend some time with the bride and groom. As they walk in the first thing they will notice is the menu neatly written out on a chalkboard! Decorate it with a few of the same type of flowers as your bouquet or add some ribbon. If you are doing a theme wedding, such as a beach theme add some seashells! Make it yours!

Menu cards sitting in the soup bowl or plate! These are awesome and add space to your tables to go just a little bit crazier with your wedding centerpieces! Find a cute design and add your wedding colors, then cut them into the size of the soup bowl or plate!

Puzzles are always fun! Incorporate your menu into a crossword puzzle. Letting your guests interact with one another while having fun adds a little more fun to your wedding reception!

Everyone loves wedding favors or a memento from a wedding. Print your menu card out on some fancy cardstock and attach recipe cards of the meals to the menu card for guests to take home!  How thoughtful is that!?

Outdoor weddings are becoming more and more famous especially on those hot summer afternoons. While waiting for you and the groom to arrive at the wedding reception, guests can enjoy cooling themselves off with their “menu fan”! Create your menu card into a personal fan! What a “cool” idea!

I hope your mind is running with some very creative ideas that you can do yourself! By creating something for your wedding, it makes it even more memorable, adds a personal touch and shows off your creative side.

Making a decision on what type of music to be played at your wedding should be stress free. Music is not meant to cause stress. Songs are like mood rings. They are based on your mood. If you are in a bad mood, maybe you would listen to Daniel Powter’s, “I had a bad day…”. If you were in a relaxed mood, maybe Jack Johnson’s, “Banana Pancakes,” would set the mood. If you were attending a wedding, you may be in a happy mood or dancing mood especially after a few cocktails.

Brides, the music playlists on your IPhones, Blackberry`s, IPod`s, etc. are the answers to the question, “What music should be played at my wedding?” As you are seated on the train, take a look at your playlists. What songs make you smile, put you in a great mood, make you think of your fiancé, make you wonder when the stress will end? Those songs that you enjoy should be played at your wedding. When you arrive home, dinner is prepared, so how about you and your fiancé enjoy a relaxing evening listening to both of your favorite songs? This may seem cliché, but at least anxiety is not present. Here are some other things to consider when choosing music for your wedding:

Traditional Wedding Reception Songs:

1.)    Raining Men- The Weather Girls

2.)    The Electric Slide- Marcia Griffiths

3.)   YMCA-VillagePeople

4.)    Cha Cha Slide- DJCasper

5.)    Brown Eyed Girl- Van Morrison

6.)    Mambo # 5-  Lou Bega

7.)    Staying Alive- Bee Gees

8.)    Twist and Shout

And the list continues. If you are the type of bride to stick to tradition, then consider choosing these songs for your wedding.  Even if you think they’re cheesy, people will get up and dance!

If the traditional wedding songs are not your scene, consider choosing more relevant songs from the New Year. Tradition is a good thing, but sometimes new playlists are also good. Here are a few examples:

1.)    Marry Me- Train

2.)    Countdown- Beyoncé

3.)    We Found Love- Rihanna

4.)    Just a Kiss- Lady Antebellum

5.)    Love You Like A Love Song- Selena Gomez

6.)    Are You Gonna Kiss Me or Not- Thompson Square

If you do not prefer the traditional YMCA, Raining Men or solely brand new songs for your wedding, consider combining the two to even out the mood. Ask the DJ or band to play the YMCA for the relatives whose dance moves consist of hand motions, then request a song for the relatives with more rhythm.

I hope that you have come to realize that choosing music for your wedding should not be stressful. Just relax. Pick up your electronic devices and listen to your music.  Incorporate your musical tastes into your wedding day and as long as you and your new husband are having fun and dancing, everyone else will, too!

Picture this, you are greeting guests, slipping off your wedding shoes to prevent any callused feet, stepping onto the dance floor, and singing with your family, friends, and husband while dancing to the YMCA. This sounds like a typical, fun wedding to attend, but wait? Every wedding needs food to fuel their energy for the next dance, right? Well, now that we have that covered, after dancing and singing to about four songs, would you rather sit or stand? This is something to consider when it is time to eat at your wedding reception. Do you prefer a sit down dinner or a buffet style dinner? Would you rather eat and mingle or wait in a line? The choice is yours.

Both a sit down and a buffet have their pros and cons:

What is so nice about a sit down dinner?
- Faster way to eat and get the party started!
- Formal
- A chance to mingle with your guests

What is not so nice about a sit down dinner?
- They tend to feel stuffy and long
- Guests may not like the food choice
- There is a chance that the party may die down after having been sitting for awhile

What is so nice about a buffet dinner?
- Flexibility with food options for guests who may have certain dietary needs
- While waiting to grab food, you and your guests can mingle and continue to dance
- Quicker way to grab food and eat right away
- You can choose whether to have long buffet lines or stations

What is not so nice about a buffet dinner?
- The line! ( The line may take forever)
- More expensive than sit down dinners
- Less formal
- Waiting for the empty tray of food to be refilled

So, what do you think? Is a sit down dinner more your style of eating or a buffet dinner? Whichever you choose is based solely on you and your fiancé’s decision. If you happen to be a little torn between the two, then combine them. Huh? Combine a sit down with a buffet. For example, have a mini buffet bar with various cocktails and alcoholic beverages while having a sit down dinner.

Create a combination! Just be sure to keep the party going! Do not stress out so much about the dinner style, it is your wedding and however you want to eat is up to you!

Just in case!

• List of contacts and phone numbers of all wedding day vendors
• small sewing kit
• deodorant
• bobby pins
• perfume
• aspirin
• eye drops
• hair spray
• a few snacks
• dental floss
• bottle of water (or three!)
• crazy glue
• non-drowsy allergy medicines
• safety pins
• stain-out wipes
• tissues
• white chalk – it hides marks on your gown!
• compact powder case
• brush or comb
• gum or breath mints
• cell phone
• compact mirror
• cash
• pantyhose
• clear nail polish
• pen & small note pad
• Band Aids