Guest List Issues

So you’re planning a wedding — how exciting! But, as the initial buzz starts to calm, you might be wondering what to do next. One of the first decisions an engaged couple must make is the length of their engagement. While short and long engagements each have their pros and cons, it’s a choice that will influence your wedding date, planning timeline, and vendor availability. 

Like other couples in the midst of wedding planning right now, you’re likely running to the altar after a long year (or more!) of waiting. The downside is that many of the long-awaited trends for 2020 never quite had their time to shine, and some of the tried-and-true traditions that were in the works are now on the way out. 

The wedding industry is chockfull of trends and fads. Just take a scroll through Pinterest and you’ll see all manners of color palettes, floral arrangements, décor elements, and other design themes that are oh-so-lovely, but not quite so timeless. 

You said yes — congrats! Now that you’re rocking that sparkly stunner on your finger, you might be wondering: what next? Planning a wedding is a multifaceted process that takes time and energy to pull off. Don’t worry, though! You’ll be backed up by a team full of professionals ready to turn your dreams into a reality. 

I will never forget the day—it must have been about 8 months into our marriage—that my husband thought he lost his wedding band. We ran around in a panic for hours until we found it… under the bath mat. It’s such a terrible sinking feeling to believe that you have lost something so dear to your heart. His ring was just a simple gold band, it would have cost nothing to replace, but what if it had been my ring? And what if it was truly lost? Accidents do happen, and that’s where Perfect Circle® Jewelry Insurance comes in.

While visiting this year’s Indie Wed event, I was lucky enough to get to meet Carolyn, the genius behind uber-chic Ultrapom. Haven’t heard of Ultrapom yet? Allow me to introduce you to your wedding’s best friend. Ultrapom is a fabulous wedding and event decor service, offering not only traditional items such as flatware and lanterns, but also the latest in trends (yes, they have the coveted sequin tablecloths, as well as a shippable birch chuppah!). Their collection is lovingly curated and much of their inventory is sourced from thrift stores, which is not only eco-friendly but also helps to make your rentals more affordable. Best of all? There’s no minimum rental amount, so feel free to grab that one glittery tablecloth or the milk glass cake stand you’ve had your eye on for your big day!

Oh my loveliness!  If your heart beats faster thinking about a magical wedding day across the pond (hands raised!), we have the perfect match for you!  Wish Wonder Dream now offers wedding planning services in the stunning city of London and the surrounding English Countryside, making it possible to bring your classic English country affair or fairytale castle soiree to life.  Britain offers picturesque and historic options for travel-loving couples, and Wish Wonder Dream makes the logistics of planning a wedding abroad as simple and enjoyable as possible!

You might remember us raving last March about Appy Couple, a seriously-does-it-all product that lets you publish your own beautiful wedding app and corresponding website. Well, we’re still crazy about it, and we’re thrilled to announce that Appy Couple is now available to everyone — no invitation code needed! In addition to letting you create a super-pretty app and website, Appy Couple also lets you manage your RSVPs, sends coordinated emails to your guests, gives access to your registries, lets guests learn about each other ahead of time and share photos! Yes, there is also a point-and-shoot camera function in the app for guests to capture your big day. Yes, all these photos get saved to the same place in the app. Yes, you will obsess over how easy and organized everything is! (We are!)

Star in your own celebrity-style wedding paid for by Brides! We are so excited to announce the Brides Live Wedding, where one lucky couple will win a dream wedding at the gorgeous oceanfront St. Regis Monarch Beach Resort! The first event of its kind, this luxury wedding will be orchestrated by the Brides Facebook fans! In addition to voting for the winning couple from all of the deserving entries (including yours, we hope!), each week, fans will log onto Facebook to watch as new wedding details are announced and vote on their favorite flowers, cake designs, wedding dresses, registry picks and more! And when the big day finally arrives, it will be streamed live on Facebook!

Meet Sarah and Charles. Sarah is adventurous, full of energy and loves a great cup of coffee. Charles, her husband-to-be, is laid back, outdoorsy and a hardcore football fan. Together they are crazy in love and planning a super-fun wedding that includes tributes to both of their personalities. Together they are also planning for an action-packed honeymoon, total kitchen renovation and future date nights using their wedding registry. That’s right, their wedding registry. And it’s all thanks to an amazing vendor we are excited to introduce you to today: Wedding Republic!

As a recent newlywed, it wasn’t long ago that I was searching high and low for the perfect wedding ties. I am admittedly obsessed with color and was on a mission to ensure that all of our wedding elements tied perfectly into our palette. Finding the ideal tie was a true scavenger hunt, only without the map and clues.

It happens to the best of us. You’re busy tasting cakes, shopping for venues, matching linens and checking RSVPs, when you glance at your calendar and realize just how rapidly your wedding day is approaching. Your to-do list seems to be a mile long and seating arrangement configurations are starting to take over your already overloaded brain. We totally understand; preparing for your “I do’s” takes a lot of orchestration! To help you reduce the inevitable stress that comes with wedding planning, we’ve enlisted the help of one of our fabulous Vendor Guide members, Chicago wedding planner Beth Bernstein, owner of SQN Events.

We are so excited to share with you what’s sure to be every bride’s go-to resource for finding the perfect wedding dress! Little Dress Book allows brides to search for bridal salons based on price range, style and location and then book an appointment online. While searching for her own wedding dress, creator Mee-Jung Jang couldn’t believe there wasn’t an easier way to coordinate bridal salon appointments for brides on the go, so she took matters into her own hands by making this handy website. Gone are the days of calling and emailing salons to find the right dress style and a time slot that fits with your schedule. Little Dress Book does it all for you, like your own free wedding planner. Can we get an amen?!

Appy Couple has come a long way since we first introduced you to their awesome app in March!  Take your wedding mobile with their uber-cool app for iPhone and Android, a free coordinating wedding website, and emails to announce your app.

Every now and then I’ll see something and say “WHY wasn’t this available when I got married?” and then most likely huff/stomp my foot/pout or a combination of all of them. This fabulous new service is exactly one of those things, so brides listen up and make sure you check this out! Appy Couple is a brand new service that lets you create your own private mobile wedding app to share with guests.

This afternoon we have a little shout out for one of the EAD sponsors, Wedding.com.  In addition to finding yourself immersed in loads of wedding inspiration from all of the fabulous blogs you are reading, we’re sure that you’re also knee-deep in the logistics of your wedding, searching for the perfect vendors for your big day.  Wedding.com was created by Brett Reynolds, a former wedding videographer, who after planning his own wedding, started brainstorming for an easier way for vendors and couples to connect. That is when the idea for Wedding.com was born.

Life these days is busy, busy, busy right?  Especially when you are in the throes of planning a wedding!  So wouldn’t you love a tool that makes things just a bit easier?  Enter Wedding.com.  Wedding.com is a site focused on making the wedding planning process enjoyable and easy by connecting couples with local photographers, florists, videographers, venues and more. You can detail exactly the services you want and vendors can view your profile to see if their services are a match for you!

With all of the expenses involved in planning a wedding, I’m loving the incentives offered by Macy’s Registry Star Rewards Program! When you register with Macy’s, you can earn 5% on eligible gifts purchased from your registry, helping you earn rewards dollars to spend at Macy’s to snatch up all your favorite goodies from your registry that don’t get purchased before the big day. As an added bonus you can stock up on pretty dresses for your shower and bachelorette party or score the perfect pair of shoes to go with your wedding dress and earn 10% when you use your Macy’s card!

Are you a newly engaged bride or a bride who is in the middle of planning and needs inspiration and education to plan your unique and special event? If so, Studio Wed, along with a host of fabulous vendors have announced the first “Signature Event” of the year, The Wedding Experience!

One special thing we are doing to honor our families at our wedding is having family wedding pictures displayed at cocktail hour. I have been collecting as many generations of pictures as possible from both sides of the families. We are fortunate enough to have all four pictures of my great-grandparents and we even know the dates of their weddings! Below are three generations of my family’s weddings. It is amazing to see how the photography, fashion and styles have changed over the years. All images are from my personal collection.