The Best Man at a wedding has a set of responsibilities that are not even close to the list of duties for the Maid of Honor, but are just as important to the success of the event.

The traditional bachelor party signifying the groom’s transition into a family man from a swinging single is the Best Man’s responsibility. In some places, the bachelor party has been replaced by a couple’s party and jointly hosted by the Best Man and the Maid of Honor.

One of your duties, as a Best Man, is to attend the wedding rehearsal and the usual dinner afterwards. Another would be to help the groom pack for his honeymoon.

A hundred movies have been based on the antics needed to get the groom to the church on time for his wedding. Hopefully your groom won’t become the focus of another movie, but this is one of your most important Best Man duties. You might also need to help the groom get into his tux on the morning of the ceremony.

Before either one of you takes the first step toward the church, make sure you have the marriage license and the bride’s ring with you. Another good idea is to get the minister’s fee from the groom before you leave his house. You will be responsible for paying the minister privately after the ceremony. Also, determine that the groom has enough money, traveler’s checks or credit cards to cover their trip.

Another responsibility for you is to make sure the groom’s car is packed for the honeymoon trip and ready to leave after the reception, full of gas and any necessary reservation confirmations or tickets. If the new couple is going straight to the airport, your duty is to either take them there or arrange for a limousine or cab. If this is the case, have an envelope full of all the details of their trip, including tickets and reservations, to give the groom just before the couple leaves.

If a ring bearer is part of the ceremony, your task is to make sure that the child knows what he is supposed to do and when. It might be a good idea to make sure he knows that he is supposed to give the rings up at the appropriate time.

Be sure to keep the ushers organized and ready to escort the guests to their seats.

Minutes before the ceremony starts, you will escort the Maid of Honor down the aisle before the bride appears. During the ceremony, you will hold the bride’s wedding ring until it is needed by the groom.

At the reception, you will make the first toast and dance with the bride, both mothers and as many guests as you can. If possible, dance with all the bridesmaids. You will be the unofficial host at the reception and introduce people when necessary and make all the guests feel welcome.

As in any traditional ceremony, there will be duties and responsibilities not listed here. You, as Best Man, have a duty to make your groom’s day as easy as possible. You should be prepared to take care of details you never considered. Check everything and be part of creating a successful wedding for your bride and groom.

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Your wedding day is one of the most anticipated moments of your life. If you are looking to have a memorable wedding without an expensive price tag attached to it then we will show you how you can do this without sacrificing quality.

It’s no secret that the present state of economy has ushered in a “saving frenzy” where people are no longer buying things that they want but things that they need. The same rule should apply when making plans for your wedding. You should only plan to get the things that are “must haves” for your wedding and nothing more. Come up with a realistic budget and prepare a wish list of the things you would like at your wedding, in order of priority. If you don’t stop and think about what is a priority for you with your wedding, then you’re more like to spend more than you need to. There is no right or wrong here, it’s about what YOU want… that will make it the special day of your dreams.

The next step would be to start shopping around for services that you can get at affordable prices. The yellow pages and the Internet are good places to start when looking for a caterer, decorator and photographer for your wedding.

To allow your dollars to stretch even further, you can employ the services of a family member or friend who may also be able to offer you some of these services at a reasonable price. Or you could even do it yourself. Whatever you decide, do not be too hasty to go with the first vendor that offers a bargain. Check out the quality of their work beforehand via a portfolio and ideally get customer’s referrals as well. Ask them questions about guaranteeing their work, if they will actually be doing the work themselves, and if they have a backup plan should a personal emergency arise.

Traditionally, weekends are synonymous with weddings but you will most likely find yourself coming out on the less expensive end if you were to have your wedding during the week. Since not too many people get married during the week your venue of choice will definitely be more reasonable on these days.

However, if you must have a traditional weekend wedding, then rent a site that can double as a ceremony and reception hall. That way you get two for the price of one. For the wedding ceremony, wedding planning experts would advise that you choose a less formal theme for your wedding since it can also save you some money.

Avoid planning a holiday wedding as you will find yourself competing with other businesses that are renting locations, DJ services and more for holiday parties.

Finally, for every transaction that you make for your wedding, make sure that you get everything in writing so there won’t be any surprises before or after the big day.

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Picking the color(s) for your wedding might seem like a daunting task because you realize it’s an important decision not to take lightly. Once you decide, however, you can go on to plan a wedding that will be beautiful and totally fitting for you and your fiance.

There are several things to consider before you pick your color, however, and this article will hopefully help you reach some decisions.

What season will the wedding be in? There are some colors that look better in spring and summer; such as pastels and warm bright colors. The opposite is true for winter where deep colors are more appropriate.

Is the color easy to find? It’s not just a matter of picking a color for the bridesmaid dresses. The color may also be reflected in the tablecloths, centerpieces, flowers, tux vests or ties, etc. Do a little investigating and make sure the color is widely available.

Is the wedding and reception indoors or outdoors? Keep in mind if your reception will be outside that some colors can look washed out in the bright sun. You might want to go a shade more vibrant. If the wedding is inside, then check to see what colors are primarily used on the walls of the reception hall. If they’re neutral or seem to fade into the background, you’re okay.

What time of day will the wedding be? If the wedding is at night, darker colors may be in order to add a sense of glamour. Consider using an element of shimmer in your fabric colors.

Is the color too popular? Obviously you don’t want to use the same color everyone else is using this season, especially if your good friend is using it at her wedding two weeks before your wedding. You don’t want to appear to be a copycat. Do some checking around if you have concerns.

Too much color? Don’t go overboard with one color. You can use various shades of the color, or mix in another color with it, like silver, black, charcoal, or gold. This works especially well if your primary color is a bold one.

Stick to one or two colors only or it will all seem a hodge podge rather than any sort of color theme. Make sure the primary color you choose does have a secondary color that can be matched to it. And keep this in mind – using certain secondary colors such as silver or gold can even make your wedding look more expensive than it is.

The flower choices? Remember your flowers. Are there flowers that go with your color scheme? If you’re adamant about having a particular flower, consider making that color your primary wedding color.

Is the color you? It’s your wedding and you should pick a color that is you. It needs to reflect your personality and style or you won’t be happy with it. Don’t be afraid to step out a little by picking a color like hot pink if that’s what you really want.

Picking your wedding color(s) is just one of the important decisions you’ll make when planning your wedding. Take some time to envision what you’d like your wedding to look like and consider the above points before you make your decision.

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Your family can cause a lot of trouble when you start choosing members of your wedding party. Everyone wants to be a part of your ceremony, especially close relatives.

Choosing your Maid of Honor can create fireworks you never considered, particularly if you have a sister and choose your best friend and not your sister. Close relatives who have been in your life and consider you their best friend, like cousins, can also have a problem if you do not choose them.

If you have an older sister who isn’t married and all the family attention shifts to you and your future wedding, resentment is almost sure to rise and cause stress. You could be involved in soothing hurt feelings, resentments and unfair comparisons based on her unmarried status. Rivalry and subtle attempts to bring the attention around to her are common.

Wedding preparations often consume the better part of a year and that’s a long time for hurt feelings to fester without some fireworks when you least expect them. Your feelings might get hurt as well if you do not understand what is happening to your sister.

For all your life, you two have been together, sharing adventures, secrets and laughs. She feels betrayed by your choice for a Maid of Honor and might show it by sulking silently or sniping at your seemingly endless planning sessions with your mother and friends. It would be a mistake to retaliate in kind and snipe back or cut her out of your celebration.

Friends come and go. Sisters are forever. Some TLC might soothe hurt feelings and avoid losing your sister’s companionship for years. Be the first to try to soothe hurt feelings and get your sister to understand that you really want and need her to be your ally in your wedding.

One important tactic to use is to enlist her help as an important part of your wedding planning team, like a wedding planner, of sorts. Ask her to take over chores that she would like to do. Make sure some of them are critical to your wedding plans. Your sister needs to feel like she is a special part of your wedding.

Include her in all your plans and ask her opinion. One thing to remember is that every single detail of your wedding is not critical to your marriage ceremony. If you put your sister in charge of specific aspects of your planning, let her plan it. If you hit a definite roadblock, talk it out privately and, together, reach a compromise. Don’t forget your mission is to bring your sister into your wedding and rebuild your relationship and not to have a struggle with minute details.

One big project that takes a lot of planning, checking and scheduling is the reception. With all the other details you, the bride-to-be, have to deal with, putting someone you trust, who knows your likes and dislikes, in charge of the reception would reduce your stress and give your sister a true sense of being an important part of your big day. Another benefit would be that, if your parents are paying for your wedding, she would already have real knowledge about their budget.

All your sister really wants is to keep you in her life and that includes the journey to your wedding ceremony. That journey is probably the most important event in your life up to now. She’s been there with you for most or all of your journey. Don’t let her go. Sisters are forever.

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Wedding favors are popular at wedding receptions or parties almost everywhere. Their historical origin is unknown but there’s evidence that they have been popular around the world for a very long time.

There are many theories about what generated the tradition of giving wedding guests a favor for attending the service. Some say the tradition originated with the Romans in the 8th century. Another states that the Romans, during 400 B.C. started the practice of throwing rice and giving wedding favors to guests.

Almonds have been a traditional symbol of good luck and assurances for successful marriages for centuries. Originally, only the titled families followed this practice and their favors were often made of silver or gold. When the custom filtered down to the other social classes, by the end of the 19th century, almonds were distributed in golden paper boxes.

Supposedly, when the groom gave his friends walnuts, he was saying goodbye to his bachelor ways. Walnuts were thrown at the couple during the ceremony and eventually evolved into today’s practice of throwing rice at them.

There are reports from English royalty during the 15th century that they usually handed out symbolic almonds in small boxes of precious metal to guests. Across the Channel, during the Napoleonic era, friends exchanged boxes of almonds as a wish for good luck.

In Russia, the Czars celebrated the christening of their children by giving their relatives and friends specially designed boxes of gold filled with sweets.

Middle Eastern weddings today use Jordan almonds at most weddings to continue this ancient symbolic rite. Guests are given 5 Jordan almonds to represent traditional wedding wishes of fertility, health, wealth and a long life together full of happiness. The candy coating on the almond is said to represent both the bitter and the sweet side of marriage.

In Malaysia, the groom is likely to send wedding presents to his future bride. Children are the traditional bearers of the gifts, which usually include elaborately decorated trays of food, including origami made with currency that represent flowers and cranes. A Korean marriage custom of each guest receiving a beautifully decorated hard-boiled egg to represent fertility is a welcomed wedding favor.

Party Crackers were popular as wedding favors during the Victorian Era and are still used today as favors or for other festive occasions, particularly for the British Christmas season, but not exclusively. They are a popular treat for parties of any theme, especially at children’s parties.

Apparently they were invented by Tom Smith, a London pastry cook, in the 1840′s. On a trip to Paris he was fascinated by a French holiday practice of placing sweets and sugared almonds in a bit of twisted colored paper. He called his creation “Kiss Mottos” and did not have much success with them until he made the paper container pop or crack when it was pulled apart.

Today’s wedding receptions continue the practice of giving wedding favors to guests. Some are traditional, but it has often evolved into themed practices, like wine, hearts, flowers, etc. Seasonal themes are very popular at certain times of the year and are a perfect theme to use around Valentine’s day.

Personalized favors have a strong following and guests might receive a set of pens and pencils engraved with the date of the wedding or a shot glass engraved with the details. One thoughtful gift might be a small silver, engraved frame with a picture of the bride and groom.

The wedding favor tradition has definitely evolved into a successful industry that has provided a solution to the wedding favor quandary and the time-consuming task of choosing the right favor for your wedding.

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