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Do you have good table manners?

05/15/2012 23:40:00

Unsure if your dining needs refining?

Why not watch yourself chow down in front of a mirror to see what it's like to sit across from you at the table.

If you don't like what you see, chances are no one else does, either.

Table manners play an important part in making a favorable impression. They are visible signals of the state of our manners and therefore are essential to professional success. The point of etiquette rules is to make you feel comfortable - not uncomfortable.

1. Unfold your napkin and place it on your lap. When you are finished, place it
loosely on the table, not on the plate and never on your chair.

2. Eat quietly. Chew with your mouth closed. Don't
slurp when you drink.

3.     Knife in right hand, fork in left hand holding
         food. After a few bite-sized pieces of food are cut,
         place knife on edge of plate with blades facing in.
         Eat food by switching fork to right hand (unless you
         are left handed). A left hand, arm or elbow on the
          table is bad manners.

4.     Never blow your nose at the
        table. Excuse yourself and walk to
         the bathroom or a private area.

5.     Scrap the cell phone at the table. Unless someone is ill or
         you are a physician on call, there is no excuse ever to have a
         cell phone at the dinner table. Need to make an urgent call
         during dinner? Excuse yourself and walk to another room to
         place the call.

6.     Wash up before sitting down. Never come to the table with dirty hands or
         nails. There's nothing worse than noticing someone's filthy nails while you're
         eating.

7.     Don't make a fuss if the food served doesn't fit within your
         our diet.  Even if you have dietary restrictions, it is inappropriate to
         request food other than that which is being served by the host at a
         private function. If you have serious dietary restrictions or allergies,
        let your host know in advance of the dinner.

8.     Always taste your food before seasoning it. Usually the hostess has gone to
         a lot of work making sure the food served is delicious to her standards. It is
         very rude to add salt and pepper before tasting the food.

9.      Once used, your utensils, including the handles, must not touch the table
        again. Always rest forks, knives, and spoons on the side of your plate or in the
         bowl.

10.   Say "Excuse me," or "I'll be right back," before Leaving the table. Do not say
        that you are going to the restroom. -a simple "Excuse me, please; I'll be right
        back" is sufficient. At other times, a brief explanation is in order: "Please excuse
        me while I check with the babysitter." Leaving without a word is rude

12. Whenever a woman leaves the table or returns to sit, all men seated with her
should stand up.

Etiquette for Kids:

Talk about the no-no's of "double-dipping," slurping, licking fingers, or the ever-tempting dragging a finger across the side of an item to taste it (i.e. icing on the cake).

Remember, the point of etiquette rules is to make you feel comfortable - not uncomfortable.

Q. If another guest asks for the salt or pepper (what should you do?)
A.

Contact us for more on "mind your manners" to receive a free download version

Dressing the Groom & Groomsmen

01/10/2012 23:43:00

TRADITIONALLY, the groom and groomsmen wear tuxedos. Many times the groom's tuxedo will be a different color than his groomsmen.

Timing is Everything: Regardless of what kind of tuxedo you choose, it’s important that you keep timing in mind. It’s crucial that you and your groomsmen are ready for your wedding day. Make sure you decide on a tuxedo early on in the planning stages and that everyone is measured and the suits are tailored well in advance.

While the bride to be may be responsible for a large part of the planning, as the groom, you don't get off scott-free. Your soon-to-be wife will look exquisite at the altar and you need to make sure you look grand too. Choosing a tux for you and your groomsmen is one of the responsibilities you will have before the wedding day. Make sure you and the guys look fabulous by following these tips.

Should We Rent or Buy: It usually best that your groomsmen rent their tuxedos, especially if they are responsible for the costs. Talk to your guys about how often they see themselves wearing a tuxedo in the future. If they see themselves dressed to the nines often, then it may be possible to have everyone purchase their tuxedos. Regardless of which route you choose, you should get everyone together and decide what is best.

Shop Around: Before you make any final decisions it’s a good idea to shop around at different men’s wear or formal wear stores. Different shops may have different styles, colors, and prices, so make sure you check them all out so you can find the best deal for what you want and what matches the bridesmaids attire. Most shops will offer a free tuxedo rental for the groom with five paid rentals.

What will the Bridemaids be Wearing: While your wedding day is really about the two of you, often times she may be the one calling the shots. Before you and your groomsmen choose tuxedos it would be a good idea to check with her or a bridesmaid and find out what they will be wearing. By finding out what the bridal party is wearing you will be able to match your tuxedos to the bridesmaids’ dresses or the flowers your bride has chosen. I usual recommend that if the bridesmaids are shopping and or buying from Davids Bridal (www.davidsbridal.com), the groom and groomsmen should shop and or buy from The Mens Warehouse (www.menswarehouse.com), for the best color coordinating.

Pay Attention to the Details: Tuxedos come in many colors and styles. When choosing tuxedos for the guys, you will have to figure out what style you want. You’ll need to make decisions concerning the number of buttons you prefer; which style coat you prefer; as well as what kind of material you would like the tuxedos to be made of. Many of these details are personal preferences that you or your guys have, while others can be determined by the time, season and place the wedding and reception will be taking place.
Accessories: Accessories are very important to the appearance of your tuxedos. Your tux will not be complete without either a bow tie, neck tie or a cummerbund. The cummerbund and ties can be all black, white, or match with the bridesmaids’ dresses; it all depends on what you and your bride prefer. It’s also a good idea to purchase matching shirt studs and cuff links to complete the tuxedo.

Don't forget your shoes and socks!

What's your style?

IF THE WEDDING SHOE FITS!

12/13/2011 03:05:00

Every bride dreams of looking like a princess on her wedding day, so it is important that your bridal shoes are not only elegant but also comfortable.

When I exchanged my vows almost 16 years ago, and doing the process of shoe shopping with my mother (the wedding director), it was WHITE SHOES FOR ME. I really like the colors and styles of the shoes that the brides are wearing now. Color coordinated! Check out a few of the our brides choices for their wedding.

Certain considerations are absolutely essential when buying a pair of wedding shoes. Apart from the special look and color, comfort is a very important factor. It should be remembered that your weddings will involve hours of walking, standing, posing for your photographs, greeting guests, dancing, and of course and most important, walking down the aisle. Therefore, the main decisive factor should be the comfort level provided by the shoes when worn for a very long duration.

So, when selecting shoes for your wedding, see to it that they are comfortable and weather/venue appropriate. For instance, do not go in for high-heeled shoes for a beach wedding as they will make you feel very uncomfortable. Also, once you have selected your wedding shoes, walk in them for a few days in your house, to get comfortable. This will ensure that you enjoy your wedding day to the fullest, without any worries, in your beautiful shoes!

Tips on How to Decorate Wedding Shoes (By Aastha Dogra)

Pearls, Beads, Rhinestones, Lace...
The simplest thing that you can do for decorating your own wedding shoes is to add a few faux pearls or rhinestones or a delicate lace to them. For this, all you have to do is to get hot glue, put it on the area of the shoe where you want to add these embellishments and then stick them on. Choose amongst pearls, rhinestones, beads or lace, depending upon the wedding dress. If the dress has lace, use the same on the shoe. If the dress is a bit plain, add some rhinestones to up the glamor quotient. If you do not want to go over the top with embellishments, simply stick some beads to the shoe heels and give them an interesting twist!

Ribbons...
Add some colorful ribbons to your shoes. If your dress is knee or calf length, you can add the ribbons to your shoes, take them up to your lower leg and then tie attractive knots with them in the front, for everyone to see!

Painted Designs...
Want to attract the attention of all the invitees to your feet? Simply have a few unique designs painted on your white shoes in some bright color! You can either get it done by a friend who is good at painting or you can do it yourself by using stencils. Paint designs that are so you - fairies, butterflies, stars, paint anything or any symbol close to your heart!

Feathers...
Add feathers in different colors to your shoes. Stick a few in the front and some at the back, near the heel. The feathers can make the shoe look heavy, so consider this embellishment for a winter wedding or for a traditional wedding at the church.

Clip-on Accessories...
These days, there are clip-on accessories available, which are especially designed to enhance the look of wedding shoes. These accessories can be added to the straps of your shoes, to the toes and near the heel as well. You have a wide variety of designs and shapes in clip-on accessories to choose from. Flowers, hearts, stars - choose any shape and make your shoes attractive.

Silk Flowers...
Get a few flowers stitched in silk fabric and stick them on your shoes. Choose the same flowers as those you have selected for your wedding bouquet. Or get the flowers stitched in the same fabric color as is used in most of your wedding decorations. Stick these flowers on your wedding shoes, to lend them an airy, natural and spring feel.

I love www.myglassslipper.com for dyeable shoes, they have them in a wide array of colors. Take a look at the site and let me know what you think.

Remember, it's your wedding and you have the final word. We would love to see the shoes you have chosen. Call us if we can assist you in your big day!

The Name Change Dilemma - (Sue Shellenbarger)

05/16/2011 13:37:00

More women are taking their new husbands' names after marriage, research shows. But the decision continues to spark debate and confusion.

The trend toward women keeping their maiden names after marriage peaked in the 1990s, when about 23% of women did so, then eased gradually to about 18% in the 2000s, says a 35 year-study published in 2009, and increasingly, studies show women's decisions on the issue are guided by factors other than political or religious ideas about women's rights or marital roles, as often believed.

Well-educated women in high-earning occupations are significantly more likely to keep their maiden names, the study shows. Brides in professional fields such as medicine, the arts or entertainment are the most likely of all to do so. Age makes a big difference too, according to a 2010 study in a scholarly journal entitled "Names: A Journal of Ono mastics." Women who married when they were 35 to 39 years old were 6.4 times more likely to keep their names than women who married between the ages of 20 and 24.

In fact, the idea that women who keep their maiden names are better breadwinners is becoming a stereotype that some people use as a basis for judging women's ability. In a Dutch study published last year in the journal Basic and Applied Social Psychology, researchers had 90 students compare hypothetical women they had met at a party based on whether they took their husband's names. Those who did were judged as more caring, dependent and emotional, while those who kept their names were seen as smarter and more ambitious.

Researchers also asked 50 students to screen e-mails containing hypothetical job applications from women. The candidates who had kept their maiden names were more likely to be hired and were offered salaries averaging 40% higher than their name-changing peers.

Either way, picking a last name can be fraught with complications. Still, changing your name mid-career, as some of my colleagues have done, can lead to confusion among co-workers, clients or in my profession, readers and sources. before their weddings trying to decide what to do. For women who change their minds later, some vendors even offer "

Splitting the difference by keeping both names, as many women do, "is a recipe for confusion," one woman writes in an email. She kept her maiden name professionally but uses her married name sometimes outside work. Now, "I never know how to introduce myself," she says. Her driver's license bears one name and her voter registration the other, and she receives summonses for jury duty in both names.

When I got married 15 years ago, I decided to drop my first name (I hadn't use since the third grade),now my middle name as my first and my maiden name is my middle name, and and was glad to add my husband last name. Win, win for everybody!

Have any of you changed your names mid-career or can't decide on if you will change your last name? We want to hear from you!

Rehearsal Dinner

03/04/2011 14:52:00

While this is traditionally the responsibility of the groom's parents, many brides are involved in planning this event. Use the following according to your needs:

Time & Location: Typically, the festivities are held on the evening before the wedding in the hours following the rehearsal. The location options are countless, from the host's home, at the host hotel or a restaurant.

Hosts: Traditional etiquette dictates that the groom’s parents host this event, but in today’s world this can be thrown by either the bride’s and groom’s parents or the couple themselves.

Invitees: Members of the wedding party (including any child attendants and their parents), immediate family members, any special ceremony participants (such as readers), and the officiant, and the spouses or significant others of all these people. Often, the hosts invite out of town guests as well.

Style: Usually less formal than the wedding, the rehearsal dinner can be anything you want, from a family prepared dinner at the church to a sit-down dinner, to a low-key cookout in the backyard.

Invitations: Like the rehearsal dinner itself, invitations tend to be casual in style. Often, hosts opt for the do-it-yourself rather than having invitations professionally printed. It is also acceptable to invite guests by phone or email.

Toasts: Typically, the hosts of the party toast the happy couple, as does the best man, but any number of people can stand up to say a few words. It is gracious for the couple to toast their hosts and thank their guests. The toast tend to be casual.

Gifts: Couples often present their gifts to their attendants at this event.

Reduce your workload and heighten the relaxed mood by having open seating.

Enjoy your special day!

Was this helpful? We would love to hear from you.

Guest List

02/18/2011 13:19:00

GUEST LIST

The guest list affects many of the wedding decisions you will make, including the selections for wedding stationery. So, before any of the invitations, Stationery, and so on can be purchased, you have to set the guest list and determine the total number of guests.

The guest count has a trickle-down effect on just about all matters related to the wedding. If your list is extremely long, you both may want to ask only a handful of close friends and family to the ceremony and invite everyone to the reception. The size of the guest list can also affect the mood and tone of the day, as well as the size of your wedding party.

There are three steps to making a guest list:

Do first things first: Some couples like to set a guest count first and then set the budget accordingly. This is appropriate if you know up front that you’ll have a generous budget. Other couples like to set the budget and then determine how many guests can be invited. This is appropriate if you think funds will be tight.

Divide the list by five: Divvy up the guest list between five categories: the bride's list; the groom's list; the couple's list of common friends; the groom's parents' list; and the bride's parents' list. (Sometimes it's easiest to allocate all family guests to the respective parents.)

Whittle:Now begin removing names until you both hit your mark.

When it comes to the guest list, you both are likely to have some sticky situations. Remember, this is your wedding; within reason, the guest list is the bride's and groom's decision. But if you both find yourself growing weary or confused, here are a few hints:

*If you both haven't seen or spoken to someone in over a year, he or she can probably come off the list.

*If you both need to make cuts, select an entire group, like all business associates or all club members. If anyone complains, simply explain that you're planning a small wedding, or both have very large families.

*If you both decide against having children at the ceremony, and the Jones respond that they are coming with all four kids, handle it tactfully and directly. Call them and say, "I'm sorry, but we are having an adult reception.

Tell us about your guest list challenges/nightmares.

WeddingWire Bride's Choice Award 2011

01/25/2011 13:31:00

PRESS RELEASE

Durham, NC- January 25, 2011 – WeddingWire, the nation’s leading wedding technology company, is thrilled to announce

A Prime Example Events & Wedding Planning has been selected to receive the prestigious annual WeddingWire Bride’s Choice awards 2011 for Wedding Planning.

Recognition for the Bride’s Choice 2011 is determined by recent reviews and extensive surveys from over 750,000 WeddingWire newlyweds. Our past clients are among those that shared their experiences on WeddingWire, the largest wedding review site in the nation.

A Prime Example Events & Wedding Planning stands among the top five percent of wedding professionals in the WeddingWire community, representing quality and service excellence within the wedding industry. Awards are given to the top wedding professionals across 20 service categories, and were based on the overall achievements throughout the year.

“WeddingWire is honored to celebrate the success the top-rated wedding professional within the WeddingWire community.” said Timothy Chi, WeddingWire’s Chief Executive Officer. “With the annual Bride’s Choice Awards program, WeddingWire has the unique opportunity to recognize the best wedding professionals across the US and Canada. We applaud

A Prime Example Events & Wedding Planning for their professionalism and dedication to enhancing the wedding planning experience last year”

We are happy to announce the A Prime Example Events & Wedding Planning Wedding is among the very best Wedding Professional within the WeddingWire Network, which includes leading wedding planning sites WeddingWire, Martha Stewart Weddings, Project Wedding and Weddingbee.

We would like to thank all our past clients for nominating us to receive this award. "We work hard for our clients and we love what we do"

Thanks again from all of us at A Prime Example Events & Wedding Planning.

How to Avoid Family Drama During the Holidays!

12/23/2010 21:07:00

HOW TO AVOID FAMILY DRAMA DURING THE HOLIDAYS!

Sometimes the biggest turkeys at your holiday table are the irritating relatives, from either your or your partner's side of the family. From little annoyances like Snoresville conversations and tacky personal questions, to big beefs like combative cousins and meddling mother-in-laws, we know that holiday get-together can try a parent's patience. Here are eight easy tactics for making sure your holidays are as happy as they can be!

Call Your Best Friend When your MIL (mother-in-law) gets so OOC (out of control) that you think you're going to burst, grab your cell and head to the pantry or porch to call your BFF (best friend foreverandever). You'll be able to get out your frustrations in a much-needed venting session and she'll help you see the humor in yoursituation.

Get Out of the House Offer to head to the store for that forgotten recipe ingredient or volunteer to take all the kids to your neighborhood park. What would seem like a chore on a regular day can be a very welcome escape from holiday turmoil and family members that drive you up the wall.

Play Your Favorite Songs In charge of hosting the holiday and making the main meal? Stressing out in the car over coming confrontations? Load up your iPod or CD changer with some shake-your-booty music and tune out to your favorite tunes. Pull together your best bad-mood-busting anthems to blast as you mix up the mashed potatoes or "head over the river and through the woods" to the family reunion.

Make Out With Your Partner Before your guests arrive, grab your partner and pull him into the powder room for a hot and heavy make-out session in the middle of dinner to spice things up, or initiate a fast and furious quickie. You'll distract yourself from sweating the small stuff, and instead work up a sweat that's sure to make your partner grateful for having a hottie like you in his life.

Pretend to LookInterested When annoying Uncle Al insists on going on and on about how Wall Street could have avoided the crash, or your irritating sister-in-law starts telling you in painstaking detail of how hard it was to choose the right granite for her countertops, hit the invisible mute button. Tune them out, give them your best fake interested stare and start planning your dream vacation (or just replay that bathroom room make-out session from earlier!).

Start Planning Your Memoir What better way to plot against your crazy family than using them as comedy material? Take mental notes on each and every piece of unsolicited advice given out and every terribly tacky sweater worn for your humorous, best-selling, David Sedaris-style memoir about your family. submitting a Spill!

Volunteer to Wash the Dishes If at the end of the holiday meal, your relatives and fellow guests are grating on your nerves so badly you'll do anything to be free of them, volunteer to wash the dishes. Sure, you'll be taking on extra work at the end of an exhausting day, but the peace and quiet in the kitchen—and the brownie points you'll earn in everyone's eyes—just might be worth it.

Find an Open Restaurant Still not convinced that you'll be able to survive a big family reunion? Then go ahead and bail! Call the host with your apologies that you cannot attend (sick kids are always a GREAT excuse!). Then head to a nice restaurant in your town where just you, your partner and your kids can enjoy a special and quiet celebration. Sometimes bowing out of "quality time" with the relatives and forking over some hard-earned cash in favor of saving your sanity is TOTALLY worthit!

How do YOU beat holiday stress? We're dying to know! Tell us.

Newbie "Wedding Planners

11/17/2010 19:43:00

I ran across this article today, and just had to post it.

Newbie "Wedding Planners" Plague the Professionals

Mar 24, 2010 2:11 PM, By Lisa Hurley

Along with price-shopping brides who haggle over every penny in the wedding budget, veteran wedding professionals face another headache these days: the newbie wedding planner. Often armed with little experience—other than their own wedding—the newbies drive down fees and taint the value of experienced wedding pros, many in the business say.

Newbies are not a recent phenomenon, explains Joyce Scardina Becker, president of San Francisco-based and founding president of the "However, they do come in waves," she says, "and right now it feels like a tidal wave!"

The San Francisco Bay area sees "at least one newbie a week," says Jenne Hohn, founder of Napa, Calif.-based. nne

Although the recession has pushed the newly jobless to try to break into weddings ("I've heard of corporate planners who said they would never touch weddings now seeking advice on how to plan them," Hohn says), she thinks the problem started while the economy was still healthy. Many planners and vendors "saw that the wedding planners were doing well and decided to add planning to their repertoire a way to get a piece of the pie."

DAY-OF DILEMMA

One of the most galling trends, Scardina Becker says, is the low-cost, "day of" wedding coordination service many newbies offer.

"I'm not sure how the term 'day of' coordination originated, but it is a term that needs to be eradicated from the vocabulary of the wedding industry," she says. "No wedding planner of sound mind, experience and education would simply show up on the day of a wedding, wave their arms in the air like a symphony conductor and expect everything to flow flawlessly." Instead, she says, a professional wedding planner would spend from 30 to 45 hours a month out from the wedding date, making sure all plans are in place.

Note: Hohn shares her thoughts in "The Myth of 'Day Of' Wedding Planning";

Until 1995, weddings in England and Wales had to take place in a church or register office. But when the law changed, a wide range of venue options became available to brides, and wedding planning blossomed. Craven-Robins notes, "In the U.K., wedding planning is still a growing industry, and a difficult one to get into if you are not setting up your own business. Consequently there are always new planners setting up." She adds, "Most don't survive long as they have a somewhat rosy view of what the job really entails! I get on average four CVs [resumés] a day from people wanting to be wedding planners."

Although her strong brand has protected her business thus far, Craven-Robins sees the same problems with newbies in the business. "A number of planners have complained about the novices starting up and seriously undercutting on price," she says. "In the long run, it does no one any favors. They will be unable to sustain a business on such small fees, it devalues the brand, and makes the industry unnecessarily cutthroat."

REPUTATION AT RISK

Along with driving down fees, some newbies are compromising the reputation of wedding planning by their ignorance or—or disdain for—professionalism, some veteran planners say.

Colette Lopez, head of Santa Barbara, Calif.-based, said she was "floored" a few years ago when her client posted photos of the wedding Lopez created on the Web site of the new "planner," claiming they were her work. "I see a lot of blogs that are showing just table designs and set-up shots instead of actual events," Lopez adds.

Tara Wilson, founder of in Fort Worth, Texas, has been pestered in recent months by callers pretending to be prospective brides. She knows why they ask detailed questions about her pricing and services: "It's very frustrating to have newbies calling and pretending to be brides to pick my brain," she says. "I would much prefer a start-up planner ask to take me to lunch and discuss her questions rather than try to sneak answers past me. I would be happy to share my insights about this challenging and unique business with the right person, but honesty is the best way to go about it."

Besides knowing little about the wedding business, many newbies know little about business period. For a presentation at The Special Event 2008, Scardina Becker polled wedding planners and learned that 45 percent did not carry business insurance, and 13 percent had no license. "This was a motivating factor for me to help start the Wedding Industry Professionals Association," she says; WIPA members are required to have a business license and insurance.

WEDDING-DAY WOES

Yet the shortcomings of the newbie planner show up in time. "I hear all the time from my vendors all over," Lopez says, "that the florist, photographer, band emcee or head captain ends up taking over the event to keep it on track with planners that are not experienced."

Janice P. Blackmon, with more than 25 years in wedding planning, was called on recently to bail out a newbie herself. The head of in Atlanta—a market "saturated" with wedding planners, she says—tells the story of a newbie planner so ill-equipped to handle a wedding "that on several occasions she even asked the client what they should be working on next," Blackmon says. The worried bride checked with her venue for a recommendation on a planner, and Blackmon's name came up. "I was able to come in with two weeks until the wedding, pull everything together, and create and produce the flawless wedding that the bride had been dreaming of," she says.

Blackmon hopes for the day to return when clients "understand that to have the event they desire, it takes quality vendors and professionals to work together to achieve that goal." But with the bumper crop of inept newbies, "I fear we will continue down the road as we are today," she says, "with having to spend extra time explaining why we charge what we charge for our services and why we can't just give away our time and expertise."

Hohn, however, is more optimistic. "Ethical planners have held a constant fee structure as a way to maintain the integrity of the industry," she says. "These planners have found ways to reword their assistance structure and more clearly define what it is that they do. Not only that, they are educating brides along the way. This type of education is what will save the industry from the 'attack of the newbies.'"

The Myth of "Day of" Wedding Planning: A Guest Column by Jenne Hohn

Wedding Planners Battle Price-shopping Brides

Wedding Planners Develop New Strategies to Battle Price-shopping Brides

5 RULES NOT TO BREAK AT YOUR WEDDING

10/22/2010 19:59:00

5 RULES NOT TO BREAK AT YOUR WEDDING

Having a little fun with tradition is what makes your wedding unique and totally you! We get it. Having your future sister-in-law as the "best man"? Awesome. Ditching the flower toss to present your bouquet to Grandma (who's been married for 60 years)? Touching. However, there are five rules you just shouldn't break...ever.

1. Make sure there's no more than an hour of downtime between the ceremony's end and the start of the reception. It's just not nice to force out-of-towners to kill the better part of an afternoon in a doughnut shop.

2. Keep guests in the loop. That means having the DJ or emcee explain anything unusual (e.g., that you and Dad are shooting hoops at the reception instead of having a first dance).

3. Be hosts. Greet all of your guests, even if you don't know some, either on a receiving line or by going table-to-table. And don't ask anyone to pay for anything. (No cash bar!)

4. Throw a wedding, not a business conference. Avoid long speeches, longer slideshows, and anything that smacks of sponsorship ("Flowers provided by Pay Back Gardens"). Your guests are there to have fun.

5. Make guests' comfort your priority. Inviting an elderly aunt? Don't make her scale a small alp to get to the ceremony. Tying the knot at a farm? Let guests know they should leave the heels and ties at home. And—duh—make sure there's plenty of food and drink.

—Marina Khidekel, BRIDES magazine