Weddings Blogger

Lasting Memories

March 31, 2008

Many couples decide that they would like to have their wedding day captured on video but many have fears that it will be too obtrusive. Providing that they take care to select the right video company, they will find that their fears were completely unfounded and that they didn’t notice their videographer at all.A professional videographer will be unobtrusive and will fit in with you and your guests - they won’t try to take-over your day.

Levels in videographers vary considerably; it is therefore essential that you request to see a show-reel of their work. This will give a good indication of the picture and sound quality, technical ability, editing and filming styles. However, make sure that the show-reel is the work of the videographer who will be filming your wedding. It is also a good idea to see letters of thanks/reference from previous customers, this will show you how they fitted in with the wedding party and guests.

Check if the videographer is a member of a registered trade association like the IOV (Institute of Videography) or the APV (Association of Professional Videomakers). Most trade associations request the member to pass an assessment, and they are only certified if they have reached the required standard in both filming and editing.

Good videographers are sought after. It is therefore advisable to book early (about one year in advance) to ensure that you get the videographer you want. To avoid any confusion, always get written confirmation of your booking confirming the date and time of your wedding.

A good wedding video will provide you with a treasured memory of your special day to be watched by generations to come.

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Useful Lasting Marriage Tips

March 31, 2008

My parents gave me this advice about marriage. They have been married since the 1960s and are still happily married to each other.In marriage, when an argument is about to blow up, remember that takes 2 hands to clap. When one party is angry, the other should be understanding and not argue back. The calmer party should try to listen the cry, the hurt behind the upset.

Marriage is a life long journey together. Not simply a boat you get on together and get off when it does not work out.

Look at the old couples who are still together after so many decades. Their love has matured from a passionate lust to a deep, lasting love. How did they do it?

Every relationship has its ups and downs. You have to work at your marriage.

As you go through life together, you are bound to irritate one another. Nothing is so smooth as the movies might want you to believe. Little things that never bothered you initially might start getting on your nerves. That is normal. Your spouse is not perfect. Neither are you.

Marriage is about love. Love is about acceptance. Forgiveness. A love that is deeper than a rush of passionate lust. Tolerance. Of adapting to one another.

All humans are tempted. Temptation is everywhere. Succumbing to temptation and having an affair could mean the end of a marriage, or at very least endangering it greatly. Always remember your spouse. Consciously stay faithful to protect your marriage.

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Engaged Couples Finance Tips

March 31, 2008

Engagement can be a hectic and overwhelming time for all parties involved. However, by setting a wedding budget and by creating a long-term money-management plan, you can ensure that you will start off on the right foot. Follow these steps for a good marriage preparation:1. Prepare to merge finances

Discuss your spending and saving habits, your debts and assets and your respective salaries. Be sure that you have a realistic idea of how marriage will affect you both as a couple and as individuals.

2. Plan your wedding

Make a realistic assessment of how much you can spend. While the average wedding cost is $15,000, with careful planning you may be able to go lower than that and create memories that will last forever.

3. Decide on whether to have a prenuptial agreement

Prenuptial agreements aren’t always necessary. However, if there is a considerable difference in your net assets, it would be foolish not to have one drafted by a lawyer and signed by the necessary parties.

4. Merge your money

In the eyes of the law (and creditors), a married couple is a single financial unit. This holds true, even for those couples who decide to open joint bank accounts.

5. Go over your taxes

A good accountant may help out in this area. Generally speaking, dual-income families get penalized by tax laws. Evaluate your tax situation and decide if it is worth it for both of you to work.

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Creating Attractive Bridal Shower Invitations

March 31, 2008

A bridal shower invitations should lay out all of the necessary information, yet still be attractive. One way to do this is to have a picture engraved on the invitation. Ask your engraver to add a small design on the inside of your invitation or wherever you have information about the reception. If, for example, an ice cream social is your theme see if there is an ice cream cone or Sundae dish they can emboss onto the paper without taking away from the main body of the invitation. Remember that subtlety is stylish; you don’t want to come across as overpowering with your theme. It may be difficult sometimes to know who to invite to the bridal shower. As a general rule, the bridal shower hostess or hostesses should invite female family members of both the bride and the groom. She should also invite close female friends of the bride and the bride’s family. She may also want to invite some of the bride-to-be’s co-workers. She should be sure to consult with the bride when compiling the guest list. Try to organize the people invited so some will set up the bridal shower game, someone else will set up the bridal shower favor, and so on. Not everyone invited to the wedding needs to be invited to the shower. However, those invited to the bridal shower are normally invited to the wedding.Information needed on a Bridal Shower Invitation

The bridal shower invitation should include the name of the bride to be, the date and time of the shower, and the address and phone number of the hostess/hostesses. If you are concerned about the attendance at your bridal shower, consider including on the invitation a deadline date for the RSVP; usually about two weeks prior to the shower date.

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Seven Great Ways To Celebrate Your Anniversary

March 31, 2008

Your wedding anniversary is a major event. Prepare for your wedding anniversary celebration in advance so that everything goes smoothly.1. Start off right. Get up before she does to prepare a quick breakfast. Serve her breakfast in bed. You might want to plan out the menu and buy the necessary things you need to cook a great breakfast the day before your anniversary. Take a shower after that and return to her side. On the other hand, if you are the sort who makes a major mess of the kitchen whenever you cook anything or even when you make a cup of tea, then skip the breakfast in bed part. She might have a fit when she sees the kitchen after that.

2. Present her with a bouquet of roses. Order the roses a day or more in advance and have them delivered right to the doorstep. She might chide you for wasting money, but she would be secretly very pleased with that romantic gesture.

3. If your kids are still young, book a babysitter in advance. You don’t want your night to be ruined by crying babies at your table in the restaurant when you are trying to have a romantic candle lit dinner for two. Do go for a candle light dinner. Just the 2 of you in a favorite restaurant.

4. Relax together and take a break from your regular routine. If you both can, take a day’s leave from work. Make your arrangements in the office in advance. If you can’t try to go home early for a change, so you can spend more time together.

5. Don’t forget the anniversary gifts. There is a different gift for each year or marriage. You might want to go with the traditional or modern gift this anniversary.

6. Each year, give your loved one a wedding anniversary ring to signify that year of marriage you have just shared together.

7. On your 10th wedding anniversary, have a party. Invite those who are dear to both of you to attend. In the presence of everyone, renew your wedding vows and exchange a pair of wedding anniversary rings, to commemorate the event.

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Gift Ideas For Your 50th Anniversary

March 31, 2008

A 50th anniversary gift commemorates a milestone most married couples wish to reach. What can you possibly give a couple after 50 years of marriage? The most meaningful wedding anniversary gift is one that comes from the heart: to express your love and appreciation towards all that they mean to you, how their staying married through the thick and thin of life has influenced you, to tell about the warm and loving memories you shared with them throughout the years.The 50th anniversary is commemorated by gold and the flower is violet. A gift certainly doesn’t have to be gold, wrap a gift in gold paper or paper decorated with violets.

50th anniversary gift ideas for the couple

• Keepsake personalized anniversary gifts, such as a photo quilt or pillow

• Monthly or quarterly lo-carb, dietetic or fruit gift baskets

• Restore their wedding photo and place in a gold frame

• Have a painting or caricature made out of their wedding photo

• As they probably don’t cook for themselves as much, gift certificates to restaurants would be appreciated

• A gift of theater or concert subscription tickets. Make them a patron with VIP privileges

• The children can create a 50th anniversary keepsake journal gift. Ask family and friends to write a paragraph or two to share a memory with their parents. Or ask for a photo with the couple that the children don’t have and write a caption about it

• Instead of a guest book, buy a music box and fill it with messages of love written on gold or handmade paper from family and friends

• Are they up for a cruise? Take them on a weekend or week long cruise. They probably will enjoy sharing this vacation with others

• What could help them personally? Can you lease a car for them? Pay for a kitchen or other home renovation?

• Do they golf? Pay for private lessons or a VIP membership at their favorite club. Buy 2 clubs, have them engraved and then gold plated

• What hobbies do they enjoy? Give them gift certificates for a spending spree at their favorite craft or hobby store

• Buy tickets to a favorite event and pay for their lodging and food expenses

• Do they volunteer or have a favorite charity? Contribute to their favorite organization. Find out if a plaque or some other special mention can be made in their name

The best 50th anniversary gift for the couple is one that helps them to enjoy life more. Many couples don’t even want to receive gifts. Give a gift of your time and help. Make up “Gift of Time” or “Labor of Love” coupons to take them out to their favorite restaurant, make them a home-cooked meal, chauffeur them on a shopping trip, run errands for them, take them to a show or movie, have a local landscaping company take care of their property, have their home repainted. Find out what will make a difference in the quality of their life.

Your love and attention will be the most appreciated 50th anniversary gift you can give your parents or a couple. Make the time for those you love!

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Effective & Affordable Pre-Wedding Celebrations

March 31, 2008

Perhaps one of the most popular and best loved wedding traditions is the pre-wedding celebrations like the wedding shower and bachelor parties. Usually these parties are supplied by the mother of the bride or the best man etc. Some couples find that they would rather host their own either out of necessity or desire.Really, it does not matter who throws the party because in the end, it should still be affordable. There are ways to make this happen.

1. Throw a jack and Jill party which combines the bachelor and bachelor party together. If it is hosted at a home, your guests can bring their own alcoholic beverages.

2. Have your bridal shower at your own home providing home cooked food.

3. At your bridal shower purchase decorations that can also be used as parting gifts such as personalized candles etc.

4. Celebrate your wedding at a local pub or tavern. This will give you the benefits of having all of your friends with you and none of the financial responsibility. Basically this night is no different than spending an evening with friends to celebrate a promotion, only the focus is on your wedding instead. Many couples will do this together instead of a bachelor/bachelorette party.

5. If you or a family member have memberships at a local legion, you can often convince them to let you use their halls for you bridal shower.

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Three Ways To Save Money On Wedding Flowers

March 31, 2008

With all the things you’ll have to worry about paying for when it comes to your wedding, you won’t want to have to spend a lot of cash for slightly smaller things, like accents, decorations, and flower arrangements. Since most brides do want to have flowers at their weddings, and would prefer to purchase them at a reasonable price, here are some ways to save on wedding flowers that you may want to try:Buy synthetic flowers.

Synthetic flowers may cost a little more when you buy them in bulk because of the material, but they could save you money because they last as long as you need them to. Many people have fresh flower bouquets for the bride, bridesmaids, and flower girls, and these tend to whither rather quickly, especially if the ceremony is indoors. So, you may end up buying more flowers than you actually need in order to keep the flowers looking good for pictures after the ceremony. You can also find colors or types of flowers that may not be in bloom at the time you are having the wedding if you buy synthetic flowers. This way, you’ll have more freedom to create the look you want for your ceremony. If you want to decorate the reception with flowers as well, synthetic flowers may be a good idea, so that you can maintain the look of the room for as long as you need to. And, since most brides want to keep their bouquets, buying synthetic flowers is definitely a good idea.

Plan your bouquet size.

Many brides end up spending more than they wanted to on a bouquet because they didn’t count the amount of flowers that would be in the arrangement, or select flowers that will look good with not-so-expensive accents. Make sure you know just how big you want your bouquet to be, as well as what type of flowers you want to include. And, carrying a single flower down the aisle is wonderful look for a bride as well. You can use a lily, daisy, or even a rose with lace or pearl accents as your bouquet, and add a unique touch to the ceremony. Small bunches of flowers can also be beautiful, proving that, as with most other things, less can definitely be more. If you want to get fresh flowers for your bouquet, selecting flowers that are in season will also help you to save money, since a florist may have to specially order out-of-season flowers, which can increase the bouquet price significantly.

Plan ahead.

Even though flowers for the wedding may seem like a small thing, don’t wait until the last minute to make sure that you have the flowers you want for your wedding. You may have to spend more money to find flowers you want the closer you get to the ceremony, so make sure that you have decided whether or not you’ll purchase flowers from a local florist or order synthetic flowers.

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10 Awesome Tips For Finding Cheap Catering Services

March 31, 2008

When it comes to your catering services for your wedding, there are options to make it more affordable. Generally for larger receptions, catering companies will offer discounts on their own.Saving money on your food and drink can be very easy, but it really depends on how large your reception party will be and what you are planning to serve. I will explain how you can save some money on the catering for your party.

1. You can serve basic entrees where the meals are all inclusive and forego the extras like salads, soups and breads and bring these items yourself.

2. You can choose to go with appetizers instead of full entrees. Many catering companies will offer a variety of appetizers at a special cost.

3. Skip out on the extra services that many catering companies offer such as place settings or servers.

4. Avoid going to a professional caterer and opt instead to use a small restaurants catering services instead.

5. Picking up the food for your reception instead of letting the catering company deliver it can save you a great deal of money.

6. You can always make the food yourself and experiment with many different tastes or prepare all of your best dishes.

7. Tips are generally included in catering packages so you do not have to provide extra tips during the reception unless someone goes out of their way and/or far over the duties

8. Plan your wedding yourself instead of using a wedding planner

9. Limit your transportation costs by booking the services on off seasons or shopping around for the cheapest costs

10. The very last thing that you can do is elope!

These tips can save you a lot of money on catering because when you skip the extras and forego the delivery charges and set up etc. catering companies will give you good prices.

Of course, you can also opt out of full entrees and serve something altogether different. It can be very easy to get good prices on catering services. Perhaps the best way to do this is to simply limit the guests at your reception that you have to serve.

By turning your full reception into a private and intimate celebration, you can limit the amount of guests without offending anyone. Unless you can afford to invite all of your co-workers that you get along with, don’t invite any. It is just good etiquette.

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