Wedding Planning Checklist

OK - so you are engaged. Now what?

Now you have some organising to do! But what? When?

Luckily we have already thought of that for you and here is handy wedding planning checklist for you. You can even download a paper copy to print off and keep with you in your wedding planning folder. No bride is complete without one!

Happy planning ♥

Do You Need an Event Co-ordinator?

If you are not getting married or holding your wedding reception in a Hotel, then arranging your wedding is going to involve a whole lot more organisation than if you were.

There are a wide number of wedding venues around the country that provide you with the space to get married in, or the space to put up a marquee in, however these venues are often family homes or have another main uses and so the owners or managers have limited involvement and will simply provide you with the space you need.

Nicky from Blue Leaf Event Hire says:

“There are a number items that couples need to be aware of, so that if their supplier doesn’t mention them, they will know that they may still need them."

Read More......

Wedding Planning Schedule

It is sometimes difficult to know what to do, when and in what order so this handy little wedding planning schedule should help take away some of the stress of this for you.

There are more handy tools on the website so be sure to visit us, register and use them to help you plan your big day with the least amount of stress.

Get the Mrs2Be Wedding Planning Schedule.

Happy Planning ♥

Something Old, Something New, Something Borrowed, Something Out of the Blue

Weddings are becoming more and more personalised with couples choosing to move away from the traditional or at least tweak it.

If the groom's best friend is a woman - who is to say he cannot have a Best Gal rather than a Best Man? There are many of us who sadly no longer have our father - so why not have your Mum give you away?

Other popular breaks with tradition are rather than sitting on a top table along with 10 other members of your family, why not have a romantic table for two? This would actually give you and your new hubby the chance to have a conversation and reflect on the day so far. Or - you could have a round or oval top table.

Wedding Days are becoming Wedding Weekends - more and more couples are making their big day last longer by spanning it over 2 days rather than just the one. We think this is a lovely idea particularly when you have relatives and friends that live further afield and who you rarely see. Wedding days take so much planning with some brides starting 2 years before and the actual day itself goes so quickly that making it a 2 day event gives you more time to relax, enjoy and take in the whole thing.

Can I Get Married Outside?

Today I had a conversation with a bride who wanted to get married in a marquee which is not possible I'm afraid - so I thought I would share the rules regarding licenced premises with you.

A civil licence can be granted on a room or a structure that has fixed walls and a fixed roof.

So for example, some wedding venues have wooden gazebos or summer houses in their grounds, and these can be licenced. The law states that the Registrars, Bride, Groom and the witnesses must be standing within the structure during the ceremony. The guests however, can be stood in the surrounding grounds.

The example shown here is of the gazebo in the grounds of The Cross Lanes Hotel, Marchwiel, Wrexham. On a nice day the garden can be set up for the ceremony though if the heavens look set to open, the hotel will simply set the ceremony room up inside instead.

Personalise Your Wedding Ceremony - The Easy Way

Are you planning on a civil ceremony but fancy something a more personal to you and your other half? The good news is - you can now employ the specialist services of companies such as One Life Ceremonies to help you.

Whether you want to stick to the traditional approach or go for something a little less conventional - there is help at hand.

To find out more read our Wedding Ceremony article - written by One Life Ceremonies.

Christmas Engagements- Congratulations

Christmas is a very popular time of year to get engaged - we should know! So we would like to wish all our new Christmas 2009 Mrs2Be's warm congratulations!

Once the euphoria has settled down and the realisation of the exciting task ahead has fully dawned, we will be here to help you and guide you along the wedding planning path.

So - come and register with Mrs2Be.com and let us help you to plan the wedding of your dreams!

Happy Planning!

Emma & Nicky

The Role of the Groom

In the age of the modern man, we are seeing more and more Grooms to be that actually want to be involved with the wedding planning. This is sometimes a welcome relief for the Bride to be as traditionally the finer detail has been left to the her. Nice as this sometimes unexpected involvement is however, we know that sometimes us women actually prefer to take on the entire wedding planning on our own. And yes we do sometimes also like to moan about the lack of involvement on the part of the Groom to be, even if he has actually offered to help and we have refused! So what exactly does the traditional role of the groom entail?

Firstly the Groom to be is responsible for picking the best man and of course picking wisely. They may want someone who can organise a mean stag party but they also need someone who can ease their nerves on the day, deliver a decent speech and help to organise friends and family on the day. So their task here is fairly simple, avoid the first choice that enters their head unless this person can fulfil not just one but all of these roles!

The groom is responsible for organising his suit and sometimes the suits for the other men of the wedding party. In many cases however, the bride will choose to take control of this aspect of the planning herself, especially as she will usually be looking to colour match the cravats with the bridesmaid dresses and it is a known fact that colour blindness is more common in men!

The Groom's speech is one of the more obvious responsibilities. The speech comes after the Father of the Bride’s but before the Best Man. The Groom must be sure to mention that the bride looks wonderful and how lucky he is to have found her, thank the wedding guests, the best man, the bridesmaids and anyone else he can think of and distribute the gifts not forgetting to once again mention just how wonderful his new wife is!

So there you have it, when it comes to it there isn’t really a great deal for the Groom to be to think about, unless he wants to that is. Over recent years however, we have heard from some of you that your Groom has been keen to become a lot more involved and we don’t just mean helping out with tasting food and wine. We know of examples where right down to the final details such as choosing fabrics and flowers, your Groom has had his say. Heck we even know of one case where a Hubby to be visited the florist and drew various versions of how in his view the flowers should look!

If your Groom has volunteered to help but doesn’t really know where to start, there are many ways to hep him out. Buy him a Groom’s guide from your local Waterstones, drag him along to a few wedding fayres and delegate a few of the tasks to him. As a good money saving tip, why not even split the wedding budget and challenge each other as to who can find the best deals and save the bigger portion of their budget!

Of course, you may prefer to manage the entire planning yourself. If this is the case and your Hubby to be won’t take no for an answer then try and get him searching for the most impossible of items to find or researching online while you go ahead and organise everything else. Failing this try overdosing him on wedding fayres until he will never want to see another venue or wedding brochure again! After all girls, it’s your day so you must decide, do you want their help or not?

Post your comments on the Mrs2Be blog and let us know just how involved your Hubby to be will get!

Happy Planning

Would You Spend £1 Million on your Wedding?

This weekend sees 4 WAG weddings : Steven Gerrard, Gary Neville, Michael Carrick and John Terry. John Terry is reported to have spent £1 Million pounds on his wedding which took place yesterday in the grounds of Blenheim Palace.

Now granted these guys earn a small fortune, but even so, if you earn't that kind of money would you spend £1 M pounds of your hard earned cash on your wedding? Do you think there comes a point when the money is simply being spent for the sake of it?

Setting and sticking to a budget can be hard and stressful - so we have put together an article to help guide you through. Wedding Budgets - How Much is Too Much?

Do you feel pressured to spend more than you want to? Do you feel pressured to live up to other people's weddings? Why not tell us what you think about this sensitive issue?

Marry in Spain..

If you are planning on getting married in Spain, you might want to check out Wedding Guide España. Their website is a one stop shop for those looking to plan a wedding or celebration in Spain! They’ve also recently launched a competition for one lucky subscriber, to their free monthly ezine, to win a Wedding Goody Bag!

Included in the treasure packed bag are unique pearl jewellery, customized bride and groom teddy bears, beach wear, make-up and pampering products, gift vouchers, petal confetti, and more!

Three runners up will also get a years subscription to You and Your Wedding Magazine delivered to their door. So there is plenty up for grabs! The winners will be drawn on August 1st 2007, so plenty of time to get your name down!

So, if you're interested in planning your wedding abroad then this website is definately worth a visit. It provides a handy on-line, national database of suppliers for busy brides-to-be, all conveniently listed by region. If you can’t find what you’re looking for the team will even carry out a dedicated supplier search on your behalf for free!

"Help me..."

Are you one of those people that gets overwhelmed by the amount of things to do, do you often come up with great ideas and then suffer the frustration of forgetting to note them down!? Let's face it we've all been there and when organising a wedding it cannot be avoided! Well, to help, our friends at Busy Girls Guide have come up with some top advice for those 'world just swallow me up' moments! Some of it may seem basic, but they are small things that can make a big difference.

1. Get unstuck

Spent too long staring at the screen of your computer in a blind panic trying to motivate yourself to start the mountain of work in front of you? Staring at that pile of clothes on the floor that need washing, but can't bring yourself to do it? If so, Stop. Turn the computer off, get your trainers on & go for a short walk. Changing environments & engaging in a little activity will trigger a positive mental-shift - you'll feel much better when you get home.

2. Record it

If your mind is spinning & you have all your clearer thoughts when you're on the go (& nowhere near a pen or paper) simply invest in a dictaphone. Take it everywhere with you & when you feel the urge to make a mental list, simply say it into the dictaphone. You'll be amazed at how solutions, not problems, start to flow.

3. Have a laugh

Remember that episode of Only Fools & Horses where Delboy & Rodney dress up as Batman & Robin? What about Duncan from Blue in that yellow lycra ice skating outfit? When things are looking grim, laugher is one of the best ways to shake yourself into a more positive mood. So grab that old Friends DVD & have a giggle. Half an hour of giggling will do far more good than half an hour of fretting.

4. Have one list & limit yourself

If you're a big fan of lists - I know I am - make sure you're not becoming a victim of your own perfectionism. A list is there to brain dump & give you a brief reminder of the big things that need doing - not to make you feel guilty. If you must have a list, limit yourself to only 5 main tasks & start them straight away. You'll feel great for finally getting to the bottom of them all so quickly & will complete less significant tasks without giving them too much weight in the first place.

Great stuff!

Happy Valentines Day!

Well - I hope your other half bought you something nice and romantic this Valentines Day, or perhaps you are going out for a meal this evening or better still having a night away somewhere romantic over the coming days.

I think Valentines Day is a great reminder for couples to take a step back from their hectic and sometimes stressful wedding plans and remember what it is all about. So indulge yourselves, spend time together, talk, laugh - be happy!

The Wedding Plans can wait til tomorrow!

Happy Valentines Day from Mrs2Be!