The Wedding Doc

Literary Readings Make Weddings Special

There are so many options available today to help make weddings special that the happy couple planning their marriage ceremony may have to make some difficult choices as far as just what features to include. One semi-traditional aspect of the wedding ceremony that can help lend a spark of romance to the event is the literary wedding reading. Recitation of romantic poetry, heartfelt prose, or Shakespearean verse during the wedding ceremony can add a refined touch to an already beautiful occasion.

Selections of wedding readings can run the gamut of available literature; from writings as old as Biblical passages to the more modern works of authors and poets like Amy Tan and Maya Angelou. Any piece that relates a theme of love, devotion, or commitment can be appropriate as a wedding reading. The choice, really, is up to the couple as far as what they’d like to have as a wedding reading. Following are some traditional, modern, and more unusual wedding readings.

Love Poems/Prose

Poetry and prose about love and devotion make for wonderful wedding readings and it is selections from this category that you will hear most often. Favorites here include Shakespearean sonnets, the famous How Do I Love Thee by Elizabeth Barrett Browning, and selections from The Prophet by Kahil Gibran, but can, again, include virtually anything that the couple would like to include. Thoughtful, insightful, and moving passages are the key to having your wedding reading stand out in the minds of your guests.

Inspirational Readings

A favorite of religious wedding services, inspirational wedding readings are also quite common. The Bible is a fantastic source for these types of readings and certain passages have become standard fare in many church wedding services. Most familiar here is the instantly recognized “Love is patient and kind…” reading from I Corinthians and the “husbands love your wives” passage from the fifth chapter of Ephesians. Inspirational poetry can be used here as well as quotations from inspirational speakers. Anything that is spiritually uplifting and appropriate for the occasion will work here.

Out of the Ordinary Wedding Readings

Some wedding readings can be very creative, while others are just plain odd. I attended a wedding between two aspiring actors. Both the bride and the groom as well as several members of the wedding party were active in community theater. They used their wedding ceremony as an opportunity to perform for their guests and actually acted out the famous balcony scene from Romeo and Juliet, complete with Elizabethan costumes. Another wedding experience featured the bride and groom reciting the lyrics to Meat Loaf’s Paradise by the Dashboard Light which, while certainly an inappropriate selection for most weddings, seemed to fit their personalities and got quite a laugh from the guests. Clearly readings like this are not going to work for every wedding, but the examples do serve to show that the choices in wedding reading selection are really unlimited. The choice of whether to include a wedding reading in your ceremony, as well as what material to use, lies entirely with you.

Wedding Guide E-Book
A wedding planning checklist and organizer!
A wedding planning checklist and organizer

Popularity: 62% [?]

Share This

The Las Vegas Wedding

Officially, Las Vegas calls itself “The Entertainment Capital of the World,” and, while there is no end to the entertainment offered up in sin city, a more fitting designation is Vegas’ secondary title “The Wedding Capital of the World.” Las Vegas weddings have become the stuff that legends, sitcom jokes, and tabloid pages are made of over the years, and Vegas lives up to the legend with over 100,000 couples tying the proverbial knot for better or for worse in the Nevada neon every year.

The reason for Las Vegas’ reputation as the hot spot for quickie marriages is twofold. First of all, the requirements for obtaining a marriage license in Clark County are very lax, with no blood test or waiting period required. Essentially anyone who is able to show up with the $55.00 license fee and a willing potential spouse is just a step away from a Las Vegas wedding that can be as lovely or as corny as the couple desires. Often times the corny factor increases in direct relation to the amount of alcohol the participants have consumed. It is surely the more intoxicated of couples that opt to be married by an Elvis impersonator. Secondly, the list of celebrities who have taken at least one plunge into the matrimonial pool in Vegas is rather lengthy. In addition to the recent Brittney Spears debacle, droves of famous folk have chosen Vegas as the place to get hitched, whether it was planned well in advance or the end result of a bit too much fun at the Tropicana.

Noteworthy celebrities to tie the knot in Vegas over the years have included Kirk Douglas, Fernando Lamas, Rita Hayworth, Jane Fonda, Michael Jordan, Jon Bon Jovi, and, of course, the King himself, among others. Some of these marriages went the way of Brittney’s, ending after a short or somewhat longer time; others lasted ’til death did them part or are still going strong. Long-term Vegas marriages include those of Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward, Betty White and Alan Ludden, and Steve Lawrence and Eydie Gorme, proving that a Las Vegas wedding can indeed result in a marriage that lasts.

The tradition of the Las Vegas wedding is not merely the product of folks acting insanely while under the influence of alcohol and the Vegas party atmosphere, however. Many couples choose Vegas as the perfect destination for a marriage and honeymoon rolled into one big event. For the couple considering making it legal in Las Vegas there exist several web sites that can help you locate everything you need for a wedding, including the chapel, a minister or other official to perform the ceremony, florists, bakers, photographers, musicians and DJ’s, videographers, literally everything that would be needed to make your Las Vegas wedding as much like a “real” wedding as you want it to be. And, if you still want to get hitched to Trixie, the cocktail waitress after winning big at the Luxor at three in the morning, that option is always available.

Wedding Speeches & Wedding Toasts
Pre-written wedding speeches & toasts for the best man, maid of honor and father of the bride. HIGH CONVERSION. 50% payout.
hop.clickbank.net/?malkeenan/adzfree

Popularity: 20% [?]

Share This

The Wedding Bouquet

When we think of weddings there are a few images that come automatically to our minds. We may think of churches decorated with beautiful flowers or of groomsmen looking somehow uncomfortable and debonair at the same time in their rented tuxedos. We may think of bridesmaids adorned in dresses that they would never be caught dead in elsewhere or of adorable small children acting as ring bearers and flower girls, thrilled to be the focus of attention for those few moments that they spend walking down the aisle. One image that invariably comes to mind is that of the bride in her white dress and veil carrying a beautiful bouquet of flowers. For some reason, when we think of a wedding, we always think of the wedding bouquet.

The wedding bouquet is a tradition that goes back almost as far as weddings themselves. While it’s obvious that the flowers are a symbol of fertility, the origins of the wedding bouquet and the tradition of throwing the bouquet (thus passing on that fertility) to another available young lady are less clear. Suffice to say that the wedding bouquet is now a time-honored tradition that is observed in most weddings today.

Once just a simple and small collection of flowers, the wedding bouquet has evolved over time to the point where literally hundreds of dollars are now spent on beautifully designed and arranged ornate wedding bouquets. Most modern brides, in fact, will often have two bouquets. One elaborate wedding bouquet is designed to be carried down the aisle during the ceremony and used in photographs while the other is typically smaller and designed to be thrown into the throng of the bride’s available girlfriends who will then proceed to scramble and claw at one another in an attempt to be the lucky girl who “catches” the bouquet and thus becomes the next woman destined to be married.

Modern florists take great pride in the wedding bouquets they design and offer. Rarely is the simple group of daises seen at today’s weddings. Instead, wedding bouquets now consist of a variety of floral designs, including combinations of calla lilies, roses, and sweet pea or traditional white lilies and roses. Even sunflowers have made their way into modern wedding bouquet arrangements.

The advent of the Internet has broadened the spectrum of available options in many industries, and flowers are no exception. The fact that floral arrangements can be designed and ordered online has spurred great competition among florists, causing each to try and outdo the others by offering greater and greater diversity in all of their arrangements, including wedding bouquets. Ultimately this trend is very good for the bride-to-be because it allows for an incredible array of options when it comes time to choose all of the flowers for a wedding, including the all important wedding bouquet. With florists offering so many designs in wedding bouquets and so many florists as close as the living room PC, any prospective bride is sure to find the perfect wedding bouquet to complete her appearance on her Special Day.

Wedding Cake Gallery From CakeChannel
Pictures of Wedding Cakes: More than 600 beautiful and unique wedding cake pictures!
hop.clickbank.net/?malkeenan/nesika1

Popularity: 19% [?]

Share This

The Good Times Are Guaranteed by the Wedding Singer

There are three things that all wedding receptions must include to turn out as memorable and successful events. The three “G’s” of good food, good times, and good entertainment will make your wedding reception into an event enjoyed by all who attend. Generally taking care of the first and third of these concepts will guarantee the second. Good food is generally attained by hiring a competent caterer and not serving okra. Good entertainment brings with it a number of options and, unfortunately, none are ever ensured to be as good as they purport. One entertainment option for wedding receptions is the wedding singer. For far less than you’d pay a band and a bit more than you can expect to pay a DJ, you can get an entertainer that is a master of ceremonies, singer, and comedian all rolled into one.

Popularized by Adam Sandler’s 1998 film The Wedding Singer, the person fulfilling this role at your reception will entertain you and your guests from start to finish. The wedding singer keeps the “show” aspect of the reception rolling along smoothly by providing music for dancing, and introducing various aspects of the reception such as the throwing of the bouquet/garter, and the unwrapping of wedding gifts. A good wedding singer will be the life of the party, keeping everyone in a good mood and having a good time by filling the lulls with witty comments and by singing his heart out. Some wedding singers will also have the guests sing, making parts of the reception a kind of karaoke party. Everyone loves karaoke. Even those who claim to despise it actually have a tiny Mel Torme, David Lee Roth, or Richard Cheese deep inside them just aching to get out. The wedding singer will bring this out in people.

Finding a wedding singer to hire for your reception is often as easy as looking through the telephone directory or searching the Internet. You’ll find that there are all types of wedding singers available to perform at your reception. Wedding singers will generally have a variety of musical styles to offer in their repertoire. Some offer general services which include a number of popular songs that they can perform at your wedding. Others are more specialized and offer “tribute” performances to famous singers like Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Tony Bennett or even the likes of Barry Manilow or Burt Bacarach. Most will be more than happy to discuss your musical tastes with you and gear their performances accordingly. Whatever musical style suits your particular tastes, you’re sure to be able to locate a wedding singer willing to perform it for you.

Wedding singers can do it all for you and the good ones can make for a truly entertaining experience. When you’re planning the entertainment for your wedding reception, consider hiring a wedding singer to help make sure your event fulfils the requirement of the three “G’s” and is a memorable occasion for you and your guests.

Wedding Ceremonies, Readings
Wedding Ceremony Book, examples of, Wedding Readings, Vows and Ring Vows.
hop.clickbank.net/?malkeenan/weddings

Popularity: 16% [?]

Share This

Two Classic Pieces of Wedding Music: The Wedding March & The Bridal Chorus

Almost everyone is familiar with The Wedding March, and The Bridal Chorus, two pieces of music that have become associated with weddings the world over. These two musical selections were written by different composers and are from different operas but have become so interchangeable that many people confuse them. The Wedding March was written for a ballet based on Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream by Felix Mendelssohn in about 1826 and The Bridal Chorus from Richard Wagner’s opera Lohengrin, written in approximately 1850.

In wedding ceremonies all around the world, The Bridal Chorus is traditionally played as the bride enters the chapel/church/synagogue, the opening chords of the piece serving as an alert for the guests to stand and turn to see the bride walk down the aisle in all her radiant beauty. Mendelssohn’s Wedding March is most often used as the recessional at the end of the wedding ceremony.

As traditional as these pieces are, many musicians that play at weddings despise having to play them. The reasoning is one of repetitiveness. Hear any piece of music as many times as wedding musicians hear The Wedding March and The Bridal Chorus and you’ll probably be screaming for relief.

It’s interesting that these pieces of music became associated with weddings at all. Certainly both the Wagner opera and the Shakespeare play deal with the concepts of love and marriage, but in a rather twisted and bizarre way. Lohengrin features the wedding of Lohengrin and Elsa, but it is a marriage arranged as a threat (Elsa must agree to marry the knight Lohengrin if she wants him to save her life) and under a condition that may be the Arts’ first reference to a prenuptial agreement. Elsa is forced to promise that she will not ask her husband’s name or where he came from. Elsa, of course, breaks the deal and winds up dead. Quite a happy ending, eh? From this we get The Bridal Chorus. .

A Midsummer Night’s Dream may be worse on some levels. It does feature two marriages that wind up happy, but also has the Amazon queen Hippolyta caged like an animal and dragged to the palace of Theseus, and the fairy queen Titania being drugged and thereby tricked into loving Bottom. If The Bridal Chorus comes from the opera with the first artistic allusion to the prenup, then The Wedding March comes from the ballet with the first artistic allusion to date rape.

The music, however, transcends the sources and most people that hear The Wedding March and The Bridal Chorus today associate the tunes with weddings in general, many having no idea where the selections came from or the stories behind them. It’s interesting, however, to know the stories behind the music and the next time you hear either selection you can smile knowingly to yourself.

The Wedding Handbook
The Wedding Ceremony and Reception Handbook.
hop.clickbank.net/?malkeenan/kylemcpeck

Popularity: 7% [?]

Share This

Celtic Wedding Rings

A fairly new trend in wedding ring design has risen in popularity over the past few years and it’s based on something that is anything but new. Celtic wedding rings, wedding bands and engagement rings that are designed featuring classic Celtic knot work are adorning more and more matrimonial fingers than ever before, perhaps since the days of the Celts themselves. At one time these rings could only be special ordered from specific companies and were very costly. Today, however, with the rise in popularity of ancient Celtic design, many jewelers are carrying Celtic wedding rings and jewelry of all kinds on a regular basis.

The best and most beautiful Celtic wedding rings still come from companies that design the jewelry and do all the work themselves. Special intricate designs can be custom ordered and there are companies that will work your initials into a unique Celtic design for your wedding band… Purchasing your wedding rings from one of these companies can result in your having a true one of a kind ring that is completely unique to you. If you love the Celtic look but want to spend a bit less, however, you can simply go to your closest jeweler and find a Celtic wedding ring that suits your tastes. The method you use is entirely up to you.

Celtic wedding rings take their laced designs from the patterns of the ancient Celts, European peoples in the areas of England and Ireland in the last few hundred years B.C. At one time the Celtic civilization stretched across most of Europe, but it is from Ireland that most of the Celtic traditions and designs have been gleaned. Celtic wedding rings incorporate the most recognizable of Celtic designs, the interwoven lacework of basic shapes, entwined and overlapping in a distinct pattern.

Celtic jewelry, including Celtic wedding rings, first gained popularity with followers of neo-pagan religions like Wicca, but are now worn by people of many faiths who simply like the look of the designs. Influences of Celtic design can be seen in many cultures, traditions, and religions of today, most notably in Roman Catholicism which has long since adopted the image of the Celtic Cross as one of their own. It seems only natural that the intricate, ornate, and beautiful designs of the Celts would once again find their way into popular culture. Celtic jewelry began appearing in mainstream America again about ten years ago, although it has been around in one form or another for ages before that.

Celtic wedding rings and other Celtic jewelry make a statement about the person who wears them to the rest of the world. Wearing it says that this is a unique and different person with their own style and a different perspective. Having a Celtic wedding ring on your finger will let you hear some things as well. Most common is the comment, “Oh my gosh, what a gorgeous ring! Where did you get that?”

Matrimonial, Marriage, Wedding - International Mat
Classified listing of matrimonial profiles submitted from all over the world.
Classified listing of matrimonial profiles

Popularity: 22% [?]

Share This

Planning For Your Second Wedding

You are planning your second wedding and are not sure about etiquette and what is or is not acceptable, right? The truth is that the second time around can be just as memorable and special as the first. Here are some different tips to help you make your second wedding a day to remember.

When planning for your second wedding use heartfelt, common sense before announcing your new engagement. Some couples who have previously been married may have children and previous family members who need to be informed personally of your new future. Inform them first before announcing it in a newspaper.

Also think before registering for gifts at department stores. When registering for your second wedding, think about the things you need, as a couple. You may already have items that would commonly be bought for first time marriages, such as towels and dishes. Instead think about registering for those things that will help you bring your new home together, such as new curtains, bedding or items you can use to remodel the home that you’re moving into.

Many years ago, attire for a previously married bride meant absolutely no white. That is not the case anymore. When planning your second wedding, if you decide you want to wear a flowing white gown, it’s considered perfectly acceptable. One thing to avoid is a veil, which represents virginity. Instead of a veil, think about adorning your head with a crown or tiara or a beautiful new hairstyle. Whichever you choose, keep in mind that although it is a second marriage, you can feel and look just as beautiful as you did the first time.

When choosing a destination for your second wedding, some couples choose to make it different from the first by having a small ceremony with a huge reception, inviting friends and family on a trip with marriage in mind or having a surprise wedding, by sending invitations out for a birthday party or holiday event and instead being prepared to get married. You can also just go with a traditional church wedding. Whichever you choose, make the decision together. After all, you are committing yourselves to each other and both of you should be happy with the decision.

If children are involved from previous marriages, let them know that they also are an important part of your second wedding. Rather than the ceremony joining a man and woman together, you will be joining families. Why not include the children in the ceremony? Let your son walk you down the aisle to give you away, have your daughter be an honorary attendant or let the younger children be a miniature bride and groom. The important thing is to make the children feel welcome in this new union, letting them feel that it is not just a marriage of man and wife, but of the family as a whole.

Although second weddings can be done the same as a first time wedding, let this be your opportunity to make it different while keeping it sacred. Make it known to everyone that this is the man you have chosen to spend the rest of your life with and your two families are now to be joined as one.

The Master Wedding Planning Guide
Earn Over $14 (75% per sale selling The Master Wedding Planner.
hop.clickbank.net/?malkeenan/libroswed

Popularity: 9% [?]

Share This

The History of the Wedding Ring

The use of the wedding ring as a symbol of the bond between husband and wife is familiar to us as the concept of marriage itself, but from where did this interesting tradition emerge? The history of wedding rings as they are known today is actually unclear. In an article dating from the July 1869 issue of Appleton’s Journal of popular Literature, Science, and Art, Edward J. Wood hypothesizes that the modern (modern as of 1869) use of wedding rings stems from the practices of ancient Hebrews. It was customary for the family of a prospective groom to give gifts to the potential bride and her family. The general assumption is that it is from this tradition that the use of wedding rings as we know them seems to have evolved.

Wedding rings are not specifically mentioned in the Bible, but references do exist that suggest the aforementioned Hebrew practices. Genesis 24:53 in the King James Version reads, “And the servant brought forth jewels of silver, and jewels of gold, and raiment, and gave them to Rebekah: he gave also to her brother and to her mother precious things,” speaking of the servant of Abraham, the father of Isaac, who was to wed Rebekah. The wedding ring first came into use in Christian wedding ceremonies around 870 A.D.

The tradition of wearing a wedding ring on the fourth finger of the left hand also comes from the ancients. In ancient Greece it was believed that an artery from that particular finger led directly to the heart. While we now know this is pure mythology, it does serve as a rather romantic explanation for the tradition.

Although the concept of the wedding ring is obviously very old, the ring was almost always worn by the bride. Double-ring wedding ceremonies are rather new. Wedding rings for men were almost unheard of before 1940 and increased in use about the time of the Second World War. According to an October 1953 story in Hobbies, only about 15% of wedding ceremonies included a ring for the groom. After the start of World War II, the percentage jumped to 60%, and then to 70% after the start of the Korean war. Today it is more common than not for grooms and brides alike to wear a wedding ring.

So, why a wedding ring, as opposed to, say, a wedding bracelet or necklace? Religious ceremonies usually include a mention by the officiating clergyman of the ring’s unending circle being representative of both God’s perfect love for humanity and the marrying couple’s undivided devotion to one another.

While the precise origin of the wedding ring is unclear and lost to history, today we recognize the wedding ring as a symbol of the unity of marriage. The couples of today also generally choose their wedding rings together, thus adding to the personal symbolism that the jewelry carries for them. Additionally, the wedding ring serves as a social symbol in today’s world, signifying to others that this man or woman is “spoken for.”

Wedding Guide E-Book
A wedding planning checklist and organizer!
hop.clickbank.net/?malkeenan/ewedding

Popularity: 6% [?]

Share This

Marriage in the Virgin Islands: St. Thomas Weddings

To say that St. Thomas in the US Virgin Islands is a beautiful place is akin to saying that Cindy Margolis is a beautiful woman. You get an idea of what the person making the statement is trying to convey, but the term “beautiful” doesn’t quite do the subject justice. St. Thomas transcends beauty and supercedes even our best definitions of the very concept. St. Thomas is home to sparkling waters, breathtaking tropical landscapes, and wonderful weather year-round. Can you think of a better place to get married? A St. Thomas wedding is an experience that will leave you reeling in romance for years to come and give you beautiful memories for the rest of your life.

As with any destination wedding, the key to your perfect St. Thomas wedding is in finding the best experience at the best price. Dealing with a travel agent to put together a package for hotel and travel arrangements is always the best and least expensive way to go. The agent can find deals that simply are not available to the general public, getting you to the islands for much less than you would have thought possible. Be sure to try and arrange for one of the impressive air or sea tours of the islands while you’re at it, the US Virgin Islands possess a beauty that simply has to be experienced.

For your St. Thomas wedding ceremony there are a number of options available, but a package deal will again get you the best prices on everything you need for a memorable wedding experience. Wedding planning companies on St. Thomas offer packages that include everything from photography and flowers to private ceremonies on a secluded beach and bottles of Dom Perignon. Pricing for the wedding packages varies based upon what the package includes and range from about five hundred dollars to several thousand dollars. The most extravagant packages will cost you the most money, of course. Even a package worth over seven thousand dollars is less expensive than what many people pay for traditional weddings at home however, and the amenities make it well worth the cost. You don’t have to be Donald Trump to enjoy your St. Thomas wedding; however, even the least costly wedding packages make for a romantic wedding that is unlike any wedding experience you could get in your own hometown.

If you’re planning to enjoy a fabulous destination wedding, St. Thomas in the US Virgin Islands is well worth a look. The island offers everything that a couple could possibly desire in an exotic and romantic wedding destination while still being a part of the United States of America. For a fraction of what you might pay for a wedding here at home you can live and be treated like a celebrity for a few days surrounding the most special and romantic day of your entire life and return home with stories to tell of your incredible wedding adventure and memories that will stay with you forever.

Wedding On A Budget
Our ebook helps you to plan a budget wedding without it looking and feeling cheap.
Wedding On A Budget

Popularity: 5% [?]

Share This

Wedding Favors for Today’s Couples

When you’re planning your wedding, one of the decisions you’ll need to make is in the selection of wedding favors for your guests. These small gifts are a wonderful way to show your guests that you appreciate them coming to celebrate your special day and to say a small, personal “thank you” in advance for their attendance, their friendship, and their wedding gifts to you.

Wedding favors have come a long way from the days of your parents’ or grandparents’ weddings. No longer just a staple of weddings for the wealthy or well-to-do, wedding favors can now be ordered from a number of sources, including online companies, for a fraction of what they once cost. Even a modest or small wedding can be made that much more special by providing quaint and thoughtful wedding favors for the guests.

Wedding favors are typically small but thoughtful items that are meant to serve as a memento of your beautiful day. Traditional items include things like ornate bottle-stoppers, cake servers, and serving spoons. Such items are intended to be a keepsake for the wedding guests rather than something they will actually use in everyday life. Some couples, however, will choose favors that serve double duty as a reminder of the event as well as a useful item. Small picture frames, decorated place card holders, lovely candy dishes, pen and pencil sets, and other such favors fall into this category. Edible wedding favors such as mints or candies in an attractive tin are also available. The choices are truly limited only by your imagination.

Typical wedding favors come with traditional wedding theme designs including bells, doves, hearts, flowers, and flowing ribbons, but can also include more modern motifs like dolphins. With the more costly but far more personalized option of custom ordering, virtually anything is possible.

The most important consideration is selecting wedding favors is to remember that these are items meant simply to say “thank you.” You’re not going to find the perfect item that will please each and every guest at your wedding, but a little thoughtfulness will result in favors that will at least let your guests know that you’re thinking of them. The guests at your wedding are primarily your family and your friends; all of them will appreciate a small souvenir of the event.

Wedding favors should not be confused with the traditional gifts provided by the bride and groom to members of their wedding party. It is proper to provide the bridesmaids and groomsmen with a more personal and separate gift. Anything that says you appreciate their friendship and participation in your special day is appropriate for these close friends or family members.

Your wedding is undoubtedly one of the most important days in your life and all of the planning that goes into this momentous event reflects that importance, helping to make your special day a beautiful experience for all involved. Selecting the perfect wedding favors can help make that dream of beauty and perfection into a reality.

Wedding Ceremonies, Readings
Wedding Ceremony Book, examples of, Wedding Readings, Vows and Ring Vows.
hop.clickbank.net/?malkeenan/weddings

Popularity: 6% [?]

Share This