2 Desember 2009

Looking For Creative Wedding Gift Ideas?

When you are invited to a wedding, it can sometimes be a challenge to decide what gift to give the happy couple. You may wish to give them something special from their bridal registry if they have one, but if you are looking for something creative and unique, take heart! There are lots of unique ways to create a special and thoughtful wedding gift. Here are some thoughts to get you started:

- Investigate the story of how the couple met and what special times they have shared in the interim. With all their focus being put on the wedding, they may appreciate a reminder of the simple and romantic days when they were first dating. You can put together some thoughtful gift ideas by thinking about the things that make them special as people, or what brought them together. For example, did they meet at a baseball game? Buy them great tickets to a game and baseball jerseys to match with their wedding date as the number on the back.

- Illustrate the merging history of the couple and their families. Whether they grew up in different neighborhoods, different cities or even continents, they are now blending their backgrounds. Perhaps you could find some fabulous black and white photos of where each of them spent their childhood, and put them into a multi-frame picture holder to signify their union, as well as creating a piece they will really love in their home.

- Spend some time gathering stories and photographs from friends and family of the bride and groom. Create a high-quality scrapbook of the collection. For presentation, you could hide it in a picnic basket filled with plastic plates, cutlery and napkins, or perhaps a set of high-end storage boxes. This personal and thoughtful gift will warm their hearts for years to come.

These ideas should get you started on coming up with the perfect gift for the unique and special people who have invited you to share in their special day. Get creative, and they are sure to appreciate your thoughtfulness.

NOTE: For tips on wedding planning that can save the bride hundreds - possibly thousands - of dollars, visit Wedding Planning Makes Perfect.

Shauna Arthurs is a writer/editor and founder/owner of a network of web-based help sites, including Wedding Planning Makes Perfect, home of the Amazing Wedding Planning system that helps brides save up to 70% on all wedding expenses - Guaranteed!
Also try: Travel-Like-A-Pro.com

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Shauna Arthurs - EzineArticles Expert Author

Find More : wedding gift , gift ideas , gift shop , wedding gifts , gift shop online , personalized gift

Hit the Road With Your Wedding Gown

Planning a wedding far from your home? Then you will need to know how to select a wedding gown that travels well and what to do to make sure that it arrives at the wedding destination looking great. These are the top tips on how to hit the road with your wedding gown.

Certain types of wedding gowns tend to travel well, while others are likely to arrive in a horrible mess. Whatever bridal gown you end up choosing, it is a very good idea to have an appointment lined up to have your gown professionally pressed or steamed when you arrive at your wedding site. If you unpack your dress and it looks pristine, simply cancel the appointment. But if you arrive and find a major crease down the front of your gown, at least you will have someone to help you fix it before the wedding day.

Lightweight gowns will be the easiest to carry around, and they also are among the nicest options for destination weddings at the beach. Lighter-than-air fabrics like chiffon and tulle will be much easier to gently fold in a carry on bag if you are flying than a heavy or stiff fabric like satin. Never ever check your wedding gown! It must always be carried aboard the plane, even if you have to stuff it into a tiny duffel bag. That is one reason why a filmy chiffon is preferable to a bulky satin wedding gown with a big crinoline and a long train. If you wish to make a lightweight gown more formal, simply layer on special custom bridal jewelry and an embellished veil (put your custom bridal jewelry and veil in your carry on bag, too!).

Another fabric which might not initially come to mind as one that travels well is lace. An all over lace gown will show very few creases and holds its shape very well. Lace wedding dresses can run the range from traditional Alencon to filmy Chantilly, so there is really a style for almost any bride. If you like sparkle,choose a beaded lace. Just be careful when the gown is packed that the beads won't snag the lace if the dress shifts in the bag en route to your destination.

Travelling by car is significantly easier than by air when your wedding site is within driving distance. The most important thing to remember is to pack your gown into the car last. You don't want a big suitcase on top of it crushing the bodice! Lay the garment bag with your wedding gown across the back seat of the car with the hook of the hanger through the dry cleaning handle above the side window. Do not fold the bag in half, as this is bound to leave a big crease across the front of the skirt. And if you are bringing any pets with you to the wedding, have them ride in someone else's car! With a little advance planning, you will be able to get your bridal gown to your wedding site in tip top shape.

Finding the whole process of weddings and all the planning that goes into one fascinating, Laura writes about many of the considerations that brides have to deal with. Custom bridal jewelry can be as affordable as it is beautiful when it is handcrafted with luminous freshwater pearls and dazzling Swarovski crystals.

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Laura Firenze - EzineArticles Expert Author
Find More : Gown Wedding , Gown Evening , Dress Bridesmaid ,

How to Choose Your Wedding Catering Service Properly

A wedding is the biggest day of many people's lives, and the amount of time and energy that goes into planning a wedding is so great that there is even an entire career centered around it - wedding planner. With all of the suspense and the music, and cake, and fancy dresses, it is no surprise that setting up the catering service for a wedding could also be somewhat of a tedious task, if not downright difficult. You have to decide whether you would like it to be buffet style, finger buffet style, or just an all out sit down meal. You also have to make sure your catering makes sense for the time of day it is taking places. Obviously you would not want a lunch buffet if it is dinner time, so it would be wise to plan around the number of guests you are having and what time of day they would be showing up.

Also take into consideration that you do not need to cater to every single one of your guests during a wedding. Most professional catering services agree that seventy-five percent is a good percentage of guests to cater to. You also want to make the decision whether your meal style will be an informal buffet or a formal silver service type meal. It would also be wise to plan around how long your guests will be waiting to eat. If the weeding is going to take place at 3PM, and lunch is served at 2PM, then you are obviously not giving your guests enough time to eat lunch before the wedding ceremonies actually start.

It is also good to be sensitive to specific guest needs and preferences. If for example you know you will be entertaining a vegetarian guest, then it would be kind to serve vegetarian selections. It would also be kind to observe your guests allergies if you know of any, and to avoid having one of your guests stricken with an allergic reaction during the wedding ceremonies, after all that doesn't sound very fun does it? If you are having a good amount of children at the wedding then it would be good to have some sort of snacks for the children like crackers, raisins, appetizers, candy etc etc. Try to customize the catering service to the liking of the bride and groom. This means selecting the right colors for the banquet and the entire setup of the wedding.

Once you have made up your mind about these key issues then it is time to find a good, reliable and affordable catering service to meet your needs. It is a good idea to set a budget and to stick to that budget. Ask around the community or your circle of friends to see if they have anyone they can recommend as a caterer for the wedding. Be sure to make comparisons of multiple catering services in the area. Remember to shop around and to always think ahead, as planning is one of the most important parts in any wedding.

West Palm Beach Catering provided by Alexander Event Catering with over 25 years of experience in the hospitality field. We cater to weddings, as well as corporate functions in West Palm Beach, Miami, Fort Lauderdale and South Florida.

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Praveen Sivaraman - EzineArticles Expert Author

Find More : catering service , food catering services , wedding catering , catering buffet