wedding tip Archives - Bridal Party Tees

Top 12 Worst Things to Say to a Bride Days Before her Wedding

October 15, 2013October 15, 2013 bridalpartytees Leave a comment

Planning a wedding is stressful enough! The last thing any bride needs a few days before the big day is a guest asking her any unnecessary, rude and obvious questions. These questions can range anything from “I can’t believe you just said that” to “Do you know how many times I have been asked that question?”

To help bring awareness to wedding guests everywhere, we have complied a list of questions not to ask or say to a bride before she is about to tie the knot. Warning to the brides reading this, some of these questions may make you want to punch someone!

12 things no bride wants to hear right before her wedding!

1) “So the forecast says it’s suppose to rain tomorrow, your wedding’s outside right?”

2) “I don’t know if guests are going to like the food options at your wedding”

3) “Are you nervous yet?”

4) “You chose those as your bridesmaid dresses?”

5) “You can still back out.”

6) “What do you think really happened at his bachelor party?”

7) “I’ll probably be there, I don’t know for sure yet.” Or “Can I change my RSVP? I’m the only one that can make it.”

8) “You booked a band for your wedding? Do people still do that?”

9) “Are you sure that wedding dress is still going to fit?”

10) “So when are you due?”

11) “How much more do you have to do before the wedding?”

12) “Are you excited?”

These are just a handful of off-putting statements a bride doesn’t need or want to hear before her wedding. What are some other statements you have been asked or heard people say to a bride that made you shake your head in disbelief?

Best Bridal Shower Games

September 4, 2013September 4, 2013 bridalpartytees Leave a comment

With the honor of being a member of the wedding party comes the fun responsibility of planning the bachelorette party and the bridal shower! The bachelorette party is usually the easier of the two because all you really need are some creative bachelorette party shirts, party accessories and beverages to keep the celebration going! However, when it comes to the bridal shower, a little more thought and planning is needed. In fact, there is one very important part of a bridal shower that can make it an especially memorable event. Food and gifts are essential, but it is the entertainment and games that complete the affair!

If you are planning a bridal shower and need some ideas for games to play, we have selected some of our favorites that will keep the day lively and fun.

1) Toilet paper dress

This is probably the most classic bridal shower game to play, but it is still a good one! Divide the guests into groups of about three or four and give them rolls of toilet paper. Explain to the guests that each group needs to create the most beautiful wedding dress they can out of the core material, toilet paper! They only have a short amount of time to impress the bride who will be the judge of which team created the best dress!

2) Read his mind

About two weeks before the bridal shower, contact the groom and ask him about 15 questions related to himself and his relationship with the bride. You can ask romantic questions like, “Where was your first date?” or “Who initiated the first kiss?” but don’t forget to include questions that would generate a funny answer too! Try asking him questions like, “If you could throw away anything that your bride owns, what would it be?” and if you can, videotape the groom’s answers! Then the bride can’t question whether the answers were his or not, you have the proof to back it up! To take things up a notch, have the bride chew bubble gum while answering the questions and with each question she gets wrong, she has to add another piece of gum! It’ll be a true testament to how well she knows the groom, plus it will be hilarious to watch her try to answer questions with a mouthful of bubble gum!

3) Two Truths and a Lie

If you’re looking for a game that involves the guests a little more in order to break the ice, try this one! Have each guest introduce who they are and provide three stories about the bride, two of which are true and one that is a lie. The person who correctly guesses the lie will receive points toward their score. Whoever has the most points by the time you have gone through everyone wins a prize! Not planning on handing out prizes? No worries! This game is fun enough to just sit back and enjoy all the stories being told! In most cases, you’ll find the true stories are the funniest and most entertaining anyway!

4) Wedding 911

On an index card, write down some of the most outrageous things that could go wrong at the wedding. For example, “What if the wedding cake accidentally gets knocked over?” or “What if a relative gets drunk and starts telling embarrassing stories about the bride?” Once you have a number of scenarios that could go wrong at the wedding, hand a card out to each guest and ask them to write what they would do to handle the situation they are presented with. Collect the cards and read the responses out loud to the group. If you came up with some funny scenarios, you should get some funny responses back!

These are just a few of the many bridal shower games out there. What are some of your favorite bridal shower games?

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Trimming the wedding guest list thumbnail

5 Ways to Trim the Wedding Guest List

August 28, 2013August 28, 2013 bridalpartytees Leave a comment

For a bride and groom, trying to decide who and who not to invite to the wedding can be the hardest and most difficult part of the wedding planning process. It can cause much un-needed stress and crush the excitement you had of wanting to share your day with everyone special in your life. However, every bride and groom has a budget to adhere to and that means cuts need to be made somewhere.

Here are 5 ways to help you trim down the wedding guest list:

1. Put the must-have invitees into one group

The easiest place to start when looking at your guest list is with those who are without a doubt invited to the wedding. This includes mom and dad, grandma and grandpa, wedding party members, etc. Label these invites and put them in one group. It is a simple way to start trimming down the list and once you start grouping and labeling those on your guest list, the rest just falls into place.

2. Think in the here and now

When going through the wedding guest list, think about who is in your life at this moment. They are the people that you talk to on a regular basis and those you are still very close with. Leaving off old high school and college friends that you haven’t talked to in years and second cousins that you haven’t seen at the last couple of family reunions can be another way of getting your list down to size.

3. Don’t feel obligated

Family members and the bridal party will always ask and make suggestions about the guest list because they want to know if their friends will be there. Don’t let these persuasions add to your guest list. Also, don’t feel obligated to invite people that invited you to their wedding. Every couple’s wedding has different situations and restrictions.

4. 50/50 split

Marriage is 50/50 so you might as well start before you officially tie the knot. Let your groom invite half to the wedding and you invite the other half. If one is over the amount of guests they are allotted, then you know who will be making some cuts.

5. Seat the single guests together

When you have single friends, it can be hard to send an invitation that doesn’t allow them to bring a guest to the wedding. Their fear, and yours as well, is that they might not know someone at the wedding. By seating all of your single guests together, you give them the chance to mix and mingle and meet new people.

We hope these five tips help you and your husband on your way to slimming down your wedding guest list to fit well within your budget.

photo credit: LauraGilchrist4 via photopin cc

How To Hire An Amazing Wedding Photographer

August 21, 2013August 21, 2013 bridalpartytees Leave a comment

One of the more expensive costs involved in planning a wedding is when you are looking to hire a professional wedding photographer. A good wedding photographer is one that can capture the best moments of the wedding. Not only will they be focused on you, your groom and the bridal party, they will also be skilled enough to catch some of the more candid shots of your guests too! When your wedding is all said and done, the photos will more than likely be the one keepsake that you can reminisce over for years to come. It can be tempting to skimp on this part of the wedding and to devote more of the wedding budget to something else, but remember: if you hire an amateur, you will probably get amateur results.

We understand how difficult it can be to hire a wedding photographer, especially one you can trust and afford, so we’ve complied a list of things to consider before signing on the dotted line.

Always meet them in person

This way you can see what their personality is like and if they are someone you can ultimately see working with on your wedding day. Get to know their process for taking photos and make sure they have a passion for this career!

View their past work

You can easily find out what type of pictures you will end up with by the type of photos they have taken of other weddings in the past. When you describe your wedding to the photographer, they should be able to find a similar wedding they have done to show and demonstrate their style of photography. Pay attention to the different poses he or she uses when photographing the bride, groom and the wedding party, then make a note of which ones you liked. Looking through the photos of other weddings they’ve done will also give you an idea of how adaptable they are to different venues and locations.

Ask about the equipment they use and if they have an assistant

If their equipment fails the day of your wedding, do they have backup equipment in place to make sure you get the quality pictures you want for your wedding? A true professional will have other equipment and a backup plan in case of an emergency. Also, ask if they have an assistant. While an assistant can help move the process along and keep things organized the day of, sometimes they are an added cost. It’s also a good idea to ask if they use film, digital or both.

Photo packages

Find out what they are willing to take pictures of and what the additional costs are. Some photographers are more than willing to take photos for events other than the day of. Ask what is all included in the package they provide and if other smaller events like engagement photos, a groomsmen golf outing or a bridesmaid luncheon can be bundled together.

Get their commitment in writing

Finally, when you have all the details squared away, get a written contract signed by both parties to avoid the risks that can come with planning such a large event. Outline what you want and have the photographer provide an itemized list of what everything costs. Make sure both you and the photographer have a clear understanding on when payments are due and when the finished photos will be delivered.

We hope these few tips will have you on your way to hiring an amazing wedding photographer who will produce amazing photos for you to look back on for years to come!

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Wedding Tip: Ask for Help When You Need It

August 14, 2013August 14, 2013 bridalpartytees Leave a comment

While there are some brides out there who aren’t afraid to embrace the full bridezilla strategy when it comes to getting things done for the wedding, other brides may not be so aggressive, especially when it comes to enlisting the help of others. It is natural for a bride to feel like she has to do everything herself in order to make her dream wedding happen. However, being stressed out all the time from a huge to-do list can cause you to miss special moments leading up to your wedding. If no one is stepping forward to help with the wedding responsibilities, it is more than okay to delineate tasks to members of the wedding party.

When assigning more critical wedding tasks, here are a few things you will want to consider:

Give details of what you want. By not specifying the nitty-gritty, things may turn out to be more of what they wanted instead of what you had envisioned.
Let them know it is more than okay to contact you when needed, instead making an unsure decision.
Give a deadline. Not having a deadline can put you more at risk of having people forget or procrastinating until the last minute.
Consider who has time and who may not. If you think someone might have a lot on his or her plate already, choosing a different wedding party member would be wise.
Don’t be afraid to check in. If you haven’t been getting the updates you were hoping for, it’s okay to contact them and ask.

Asking for help with the wedding and following these five tips will have you on the path to a stress-free wedding!

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Wedding Tip: Use Pinterest for Wedding Ideas

August 7, 2013August 7, 2013 bridalpartytees Leave a comment

If you’re in the midst of planning a wedding and looking for inspiration on wedding dresses, hair styles, wedding décor or anything else wedding related, you need to be on the social media site Pinterest! Pinterest is a great way to manage wedding ideas that you would have previously had to tear out of wedding magazines and glue into a wedding book. It is the perfect solution for the 21^st century bride!

Once you join Pinterest, you’ll find endless amounts of wedding ideas that will have your creative juices flowing! You just need to find the right wedding experts to follow. We don’t mean to brag, but Bridal Party Tees has some great wedding boards filled to the brim with wedding goodies and would also be a great place to start your Pinterest wedding planning!

Are you brand new to Pinterest? Here’s what you need to do:

Create an account.
Create a pin board and name it something like “Wedding Ideas”.
Search on pinterest for specific wedding terms or check out this category [http://pinterest.com/all/weddings/].
Find an image you like? Mouse over it and you will see the Pin It button.
Click the Pin It button. A layover window will appear.
Choose your Wedding board, and click the “Pin It” button in the layover window.

Before long, you will have an awesome collection of wedding ideas that you can easily browse on your wedding board!

Do you have a Pinterest wedding board? If so, link to it in the comment section below! We would love to see what wedding ideas you have!