cherany

I'm wondering the same. I'm so in love with it, but it looks difficult. Maybe the ruffles are already in the fabric? I don't know...

Sorry about the repeat post. I don't know how to delete the first one, where the image tag was used (didn't realize we had to upload to this site). Here's another picture of the starfish idea. I love this, too. Having trouble deciding if I prefer this, or the ruffles I shared above. I think the starfish would be easier to DIY, but the ruffles are perhaps more unique? I have plenty of time to decide, of course.

I'm in love with these! Would do brighter beach colors, myself, in place of the taupe/blush color, but the white looks very nice!

I'm in love with these! Would do brighter beach colors, myself, perhaps mixed with white.

I feel the same about splashes of bright color against the natural colors of the beach. We are doing orange, fuchsia, aqua blue, lime green, and possibly bright yellow. Very similar to your scheme! My vision is tropical, with plenty of bright colors and real flowers to represent the gorgeous paradise we'll be in, as well as the culture of Mexico.

I'm a May 2013 bride, as well! May 4 is our date, and we're a Playa del Carmen wedding. We've been planning for a while, but we're just now to the point that we can start booking things, so I'm getting all kinds of nervous butterflies (the good kind)! We're in the process this week & next of telling our friends about the event & asking the wedding party to be part of our day. I'm sending STDs in the next couple of weeks. Perhaps that's early, but I really want to put something concrete in everyone's hands to remind them of our location & date. It'll be the first big wedding thing for us, so I'm incredibly excited about it!

I don't think it's wasteful to enjoy what you pay for, and I intend to fully enjoy my dress in a TTD shoot. Nothing to feel guilty about.

Good to know. We haven't booked yet, but are looking at a non-AI. Our guest list is small, around 20 people, but perhaps we can still negotiate. The worst anyone can say is no. Wedding is March 2013, so we have plenty of time to plan. Most of the decisions, we keep going back and forth on, because it's not crunch time. I'm sure as things progress, we'll go with what we feel and then be happy with our choices. I just want our guests to have a great time, too.

Wow, I'm really surprised at how early some of you sent yours! My wedding is March 2013, so I would feel ridiculous sending them now. Maybe around October of this year, so 2013 doesn't sound like it's two years away, when it's really not. That would give everyone about a year and a half to save and plan.

I think we're going to skip this altogether, for several reasons. The first is that I'm not close with my dad, but my partner is close with hers. It would be weird to have only her dancing with her dad, because it would call so much attention to me not dancing with mine. It would also be weird for me to dance with mine, just to even things out. The second thing is that a same-sex wedding between two women sort of creates a question of whether it's our fathers we should dance with in the first place. I mean, isn't the idea that you are stepping away from your dad being the man who takes care of you, to your husband being that man? Does this mean we should dance with our mothers? Ridiculous, right! Neither of us is close with our mother, so it would be doubly awkward. We're just planning to jump right into the normal reception dancing by having our wedding party and other close friends go for it straight away. FI will discuss with her father before the wedding, so he knows it's not a slight to him. She says he'll probably be relieved not to have to dance in front of a crowd like that.

I love the idea of giving the bouquet to the longest married couple! It could turn awkward for us, though. The longest married couple would be my parents, if they come, and I'm not close to them at all, so it would feel weird shining a light on them for any reason. If they don't come, the longest married couple would be FI's dad & second wife, which could be embarrassing for FI's mother. Not sure it would work for us, but it's a lovely concept, especially for those who will have grandparents they are close to at the wedding.

I'll wear a garter, but no garter toss. It'll really just be for the pictures of me getting ready, and I'm sure it'll show in our TTD photos the next morning. The bouquet toss, I'm undecided on. I've caught the bouquet at two weddings, the first of which there were a whopping 3 of us standing there for it (at a 200+ guest wedding!). I never felt awkward, being singled out b/c we were single, but I could tell the other women standing by me (at both weddings) did.

My partner & I are definitely doing this! And it was never a question as to wearing our real wedding dresses. Not like we are ever going to wear them again! Aside from being a ton of fun for us, these pictures will provide a lifetime of shock and awe from friends & fam, especially when framed and displayed in our home.

Wow, that brings a different perspective. Make sure you want her in your wedding before you say yes, if you really feel that's her reasoning. It would add a lot of fuel to the fire if you did it and then did not ask her to be in yours, since she's obviously not over the exclusion from the first wedding. It's too bad she's playing a passive-aggressive game; that really dilutes the honor of being asked.

I went to a wedding last year where they had hula hoops and guests doing that was the call for a kiss. The longer a guest could go, the more passionate the kiss. It was fun to see older guests have a go, and when more than one guest wanted to do it, it turned into a friendly competition. I hula hooped alongside two other women, and one of them outlasted me and the third by several minutes! The bride really laid a big one on her groom after, grabbing him by the tie and taking him out of the room, as if to get more intimate behind closed doors. Lots of cheers from the guests on that one!

We haven't told our parents yet, as the wedding is scheduled for 2013, but we already expect my side of the family to have a fit over the cost of the trip. Most of them are people we don't want there, so we feel it works to our advantage. It saves me the awkwardness of explaining why they are not invited. My parents may not be there, due to the cost, but I'm not close to them and will not be the least bit bothered, one way or the other. I think it is so different for each person. Consider whether you cannot imagine getting married without your parents there, or whether you cannot imagine getting married at home. For me, it's definitely the latter.

The people on our guest list who are likely to come alone are long-time singles and married people whose spouses might not attend, so they're unlikely to be scrambling to find a date and will plan on coming solo from the get-go. We have a small guest list and feel comfortable suggesting pairings/groups via e-mail, based on similar interests and personalities and/or whether they've met or not. So far, no one has stumped us with a disagreeable personality. Most of our friends are used to bunking up with others to save money.

I guess it depends on the reason. One of my BMs is 4'11" and constantly mistaken for a child. People are always asking her to be the flower girl at their wedding (sometimes joking, sometimes not), and it seems rather degrading and not complimentary at all. However, if that's not the reason, it could be any number of things, most of them understandable and not at all negative. Do they want a flower girl and can't think of a young girl they'd like to ask? Are they having an adults-only wedding, but still really want a flower girl? Is it a way to include you, without you being a groomswoman? (Not sure if this is your future SIL through your FI, or through your brother.) If I were asked, I'd base my decision the same as I would being asked to be a BM. Most likely, there's nothing tacky meant by them asking, so I wouldn't interpret it that way.

We're a same-sex couple, so rules about guys being on one side & ladies on the other is kind of out the window for us already. I will have three bridesmaids in green dresses. My partner will have two bridesmen in blue shirts and one bridesmaid in a blue dress (same style as my girls' green dresses). We talked about pairing or not pairing when they're walking down the aisle, but felt men walking down the aisle alone seemed funny, so we're pairing them up. Two girls will walk down together, but I've seen that a lot at weddings and am not concerned about it looking odd. As for the brides, we're each walking ourselves down side aisles, so we can walk at the same time, yet still go it alone.

Thanks for the advice on the welcome cocktails. I've been debating what I want to do (or not do, on account of our budget) to welcome guests. Thinking about it, it would definitely help loosen everyone up to get tipsy with guests they don't know. We're not having a lot of guests, but those who are coming will be from various areas of the country. Even those in the wedding party are mostly unacquainted, but we're planning to rent penthouses for them to share while they're there. It's the kind of thing that could go beautifully, or turn into a huge disaster. I want everyone to get along, obviously. I'm also struggling with how much I'll have to do once we're done there and how in the world I'll have time to relax. I do not want to be a stressed out bride; I turn into a very demanding, unforgiving person when that happens, so I need a Bridezilla prevention plan in place ahead of time!

As shocked as I am to read about people asking/demanding to be in the wedding party (rude beyond belief!), I know I will run into some hurt feelings/awkwardness with at least one friend I am not asking to be in the wedding, and if I don't handle it early, I'll have the same problem with her thinking she is in the wedding when she's not. Reading how others handled this is helping me to form a game plan, so I can talk to her about it early on. I think I will explain truthfully that I have three groups of close friends from different stages of my life (and different locations, as I now live thousands of miles away from where I grew up), and to avoid chaos with a double-digit bridal party, I have chosen one person to represent each group. I'll have 3 bridesmaids, with no MOH (can't choose between them). The only thing is figuring out how to explain that she's not the chosen one from her group. I would think she would understand, since the person I'm asking is my best friend, but there's always been some competitiveness between the two of them, so I fear there will be hurt feelings, regardless. I like the idea of putting her in charge of various tasks at the wedding, so she doesn't feel left out. She is the type to feel extremely flattered when entrusted with big responsibilities, so I can see her getting excited about that and possibly even feeling more important than a bridesmaid. I'll give her a fancy title and put her in the program, which will definitely help.

Quote: Originally Posted by daisymable We had some drinks at my MOH's house which was all decorated 50s style with a life size Betty Boop, juke box, records hanging from the ceiling, etc. They surprised me with vintage cars showing up outside and we drove around town in the cars. Next we went to a couple of bars in town and danced the night away. It was great! You have VERY cool friends! This is the most unique bachelorette party I've ever seen. I love it!

I feel the same about not asking for gifts, since we're already asking guests to travel so far. However, I know there are a few people who are going to give us something, no matter what we do/say, and I'd rather it be something we actually want, since those particular people are likely to spend a lot on it. I also know there are going to be family members who cannot make it to the wedding, who want to get us something. We've decided to ask for "gift certificates" for our chosen photographer. We're still in the process of choosing one, so the details are not ironed out yet, but however we do it, it will help us out when it comes time to order prints. We do plan to put a note about gifts on our website, stressing that guests' presence is present enough, but if they are determined to give us something, we've set up an option for them. If anyone doesn't like it, we're not going to worry about it; the note that we don't expect or need gifts covers that, we feel. I know I have a few family members who will send us traditional gifts, like coffee makers and toasters, but not so many of them that I'm concerned about it. The people I expect will do that are not likely to spend more than $20, so nothing we'll feel bad about giving away or donating.