How to train your new husband

Now that you’ve found the perfect man, you’ll want to keep him that way - if you can. With training treats and lots of praise, you’ll be able to stand him for days and days. The new husband training kit comes with butter toffee candy treats and a reward guide with tips on how you should reward your new husband for good behavior, such as:

• One treat for putting the seat down
• Two treats for giving up most of the closet space
• Three treats for understanding that women are “born to shop”
• Four treats for learning the line “Whatever you say, dear”

Unfortunately, we cannot guarantee that these will work…but you can surely hope!

Learn more about these husband training treats at the Unveiled Wedding Blog.

Wedding Photography Tips

As one of the most important decisions you will make concerning the big day, planning your wedding pictures should be considered with care. We’ve compiled a list of wedding photography tips to get you started towards capturing these priceless memories:

Select Your Photography Style

How do you envision your wedding photographs? Wedding Photographers generally fall into three stylistic categories: traditional, photojournalist, or a combination of both. Traditional photographers are practiced in obtaining great portraits and posed shots. For more candid shots that document the day’s emotions and all the behind-the-scenes action, you may lean towards the photojournalistic style of photography (a hot trend for today’s weddings). For brides who simply cannot decide, seek a wedding photographer who can offer the perfect mix.

Consider the Cost

This really is one area in which you should avoid cutting corners, as your photographs will be one of the few keepsakes you can actually take from your wedding. Expect to allocate at least $1000 to your wedding photography budget (the bottom line in metro areas will be even higher). If budget is a concern, consider ordering the most basic package, but avoid hiring an inexperienced photographer to save money.

Hire your Wedding Photographer

Do your research. Compile a list of potentials and commence the “meet and greet.” When meeting with potential photographers, be sure to review his or her work and remember to consider the importance of personality. Your photographer will capture some of the best shots behind the scenes, so you must feel comfortable in working with this person and inviting them backstage. Trust your instinct: if you find anything disagreeable about working with this person, keep looking. And don’t forget to get everything in writing.

Plan the Wedding Pictures

Well before your wedding day, make sure you have considered the must-have photography shots and their execution. You should discuss these details with your photographer so that he or she will be familiar with the site location, the VIPs of the wedding (attendants, parents etc.), and the best and most un-obtrusive way to get these important shots.

Consider every aspect of your wedding day and how you would like it captured. From the pre-ceremony preparation, to your walk down the aisle, to your “I Dos,” to your first dance and finally to your departure, make sure to discuss the perfect shots for each special moment. Throughout the planning process, be in the lookout out for images that catch your eye, and consider bringing clips to your photographer.

Get even more wedding photography tips at Elegala.com

33 Best R&B Songs for Your Wedding Reception

If you're looking to set a sensuous vibe at your wedding reception, look no further than a playlist full of R&B wedding songs. With smooth base lines and sultry lyrics, R&B songs of love and devotion are perfect for moving, grooving, and romance on the dance floor. But with decades of songs to choose from, the only hard part is narrowing your playlist down. Consider this list of the best R&B wedding songs your starting point

R&B Wedding Songs
These passionate R& B wedding songs have fitting lyrics and sultry melodies that will suit every component of your wedding from walking down the aisle through to the last dance.

• Never - Jaheim


• Forever My Lady - Jodeci


• Sweet Love - Anita Baker


• Caught Up in the Rapture - Anita Baker


• Spend My Life with You - Eric Benet & Tamia


• Nice and Slow - Usher


• You Got It Bad - Usher


• Ribbon in the Sky - Stevie Wonder


• You Mean the World to Me - Toni Braxton


• Always and Forever - Heat Wave


• On Bended Knee - Boyz II Men


• Never Let Go - Faith Evans


• Angel of Mine - Monica


• For You I Will - Monica


• The Sweetest Thing - Lauren Hill


• No Ordinary Love - Sade


• You - Jesse Powell


• The Cool in You - Babyface


• By Your Side - Sade


• I Swear - All-4-One


• Make it Last Forever - Keith Sweat


• Here and Now - Luther Vandross


• Every Beat of My Heart - Brian McKnight


• Back at One - Brian McKnight


• Saved the Best for Last - Vanessa Williams


• Crazy Love - Aaron Neville


• All My Life - K-Ci and Jojo


• Suddenly - Billy Ocean


• No One - Alicia Keys


• Hello - Lionel Richie


• Saving All My Love for You - Whitney Houston


• Everything - Mary J. Blige


• Family Affair - Mary J. Blige

Get even more great R&B wedding songs for your reception and a complete list of popular wedding songs at Elegala.com.

Religious Wedding Readings Samples

If you’re a traditional couple at heart, you’ll want to incorporate some religious texts into your wedding ceremony. This list of religious and biblical wedding readings that have inspired brides and grooms for thousands of years will get you started.

COLOSSIANS 3:12-14

Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassion, kindness, lowliness, meekness, and patience, forbearing one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony.

1 CORINTHIANS 13:4-8a

Love is patient and kind; love is not jealous or boastful; it is not arrogant or rude.
Love does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrong, but rejoices in the right.
Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
Love never ends.

ECCLESIASTES 4:9-12

Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their toil. For if they fall, one will lift up his fellow; but woe to him who is alone when he falls and has not another to lift him up. Again, if two lie together, they are warm; but how can one be warm alone? And though a man might prevail against one who is alone, two will withstand him.

EPHESIANS

Submit yourselves one to another as the fear of God. Wives, show reverence for your own husbands, as unto the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church and He is the savior of the body. Therefore as the church is subject unto Christ, so let the wives be to their own Husbands in everything.
Husbands, love your wife, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave Himself for it; that He might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word; that He might present it to Himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkles or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish. So ought men to love their wives as their own body; He that loves his wife loves himself.

For no man ever yet hateth his own flesh; but nourishes and cherishes it, even as the Lord the church. For we are members of his body, of his flesh, and of his bones. For this cause shall man leave his father and mother, and shall be joined unto his wife, and the two shall become one flesh. This mystery is a profound one and I am saying this as it refers to Christ and the Church; however, let husband love his wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respect her husband.

THE SEVEN BLESSINGS

From “The New Jewish Wedding”
By Anita Diamant

“We acknowledge the Unity of all within the sovereignty of God, expressing our appreciation for this wine, symbol and aid of our rejoicing.
We acknowledge the Unity of all within the sovereignty of God, realizing that each separate moment and every distinct object points to and shares in this oneness.
We acknowledge the Unity of all within the sovereignty of God, recognizing and appreciating the blessing of being human.
We acknowledge the Unity of all within the sovereignty of God, realizing the special gift of awareness that permits us to perceive this unity and the wonder we experience as a man and a woman joined to live together.
May rejoicing resound throughout the world as the homeless are given homes, persecution and oppression cease, and all people learn to live in peace with each other and in harmony with their environment.
From the Divine, source of all energy, we call forth an abundance of love to envelop this couple. May they be for each other lovers and friends, and may their love partake of the same innocence, purity, and sense of discovery that we imagine the first couple to have experienced.
We acknowledge the Unity of all within the sovereignty of God, and we highlight today joy and gladness, bridegroom and bride, delight and cheer, love and harmony, peace and companionship. May we all witness the day when the dominant sounds through the world will be these sounds of happiness, the voices of lovers, the sounds of feasting and singing.
Praised is love; blessed be this marriage. May the bride and bridegroom rejoice together.”

WEDDING PRAYER
By Robert Louis Stevenson

Lord, behold our family here assembled.
We thank you for this place in which we dwell,
for the love that unites us,
for the peace accorded us this day,
for the hope with which we expect the morrow,
for the health, the work, the food,
and the bright skies that make our lives delightful;
for our friends in all parts of the earth.

Amen

Get even more wedding readings for your wedding ceremony at Elegala.com

How to Write Your Wedding Vows - 3 Steps

Looking for ways to personalize your wedding ceremony? Consider incorporating your own carefully chosen words into this momentous occasion, and build the foundation for a life-long relationship. Writing your own vows is definitely an ambitious undertaking. Not only must you determine the perfect words to say, but those words must be rehearsed and recited in front of your closest family and friends on a day that will be one of the most important of your life. Follow these easy steps to pen and recite beautiful vows from the heart.

Step One - Before you put pen to paper, consider these factors:

Get approval -
Talk to your officiant to make sure personal vows are even allowed. Some religions object to non-secular expressions during the wedding ceremony. Even with the go-ahead, submit your personalized vows to your officiant for review before the big day; he or she may have specific objections or even helpful ideas.

Establish an estimated length -
Your audience will find it odd and even comical if one rambles for 5 minutes will the other says 10 words.

Be succinct -
Overly lengthy wedding vows may lose your audience and will only increase the potential for error. Review them in front of someone else. You can rehearse with each other, or if you'd rather keep them a surprise, read your vows to a trusted loved one.

Step Two - Decide What to Say:

Consult your past -
Time for a trip down memory lane. Start jotting down the details of special firsts in your relationship-first meeting, first date, first kiss, first "I love you," etc. What qualities made you fall in love in the first place? Are there special milestones in your relationship that that have helped bring you here today?

Envision the Future -
What challenges and achievements to you foresee in the future, and how do you expect to meet those things together?

Complete Me -
Sure, it's a line from a movie-but there's a reason for its now cliché status. What characteristics does he/she bring out in you? How does he/she make you a better person?

Use the right words -
Compile your notes, memories and reflections, and begin turning words into sentences. Consult your thesaurus for the perfect expressions to reflect your thoughts. Some words to get you started: love, trust, support, strength, encourage, respect, cherish, admire, value, commit, pledge and promise.

This article offers even more advice on what to include in your wedding vows

Step 3 - Say it With Heart:

Have a cheat sheet -
Even if you plan to memorize them, the nerves may kick in when the big moment arrives. To avoid a potentially awkward scene at the wedding ceremony - bring a cheat sheet just in case.

For more advice to help you plan your wedding ceremony visit the complete ceremony guide at Elegala.com - Elegant Galas Made Simple.

9 Honeymoon Travel Tips

Essential travel tips from Jessica Good, owner of Passport Boutique in Boston’s Harvard Square…

Remember this isn’t like another vacation – it’s your honeymoon. You will have the memories (and photos!) from this trip for the rest of your life so you’ll want it to be great.

Organize it
Pack small items like swimwear and lingerie in their own bags. That way you won’t have to search through your luggage to find them when you want them.

Play it safe
Make a copy of all important documents like passports, licenses and itineraries and keep them organized in a document holder. If your real ID is ever lost or stolen it is much easier to recover with a copy.

Give thanks
When you arrive at your destination send something back home to the people who helped you the most at your wedding. Going to Hawaii? Ship your sister a lei as a thank you for being the best maid of honor. As a small gesture send brief but thankful postcards to parents and close friends – they will really appreciate it.

Don’t lose it
Bring a carry-on bag that will hold enough essentials in case your luggage is lost. You don’t want to arrive in Bora Bora and while your bikini arrives in London

Get the rest of Jessica's honeymoon travel tips at Elegala.com!

Wedding Dresses Ideas for Every Season

Take a cue from the seasons with our favorite wedding dresses and attire ideas for spring, summer, fall, and winter...

Summer Wedding Dresses and Attire
Think breezy dresses with airy silhouettes and light fabrics for a summertime affair...

• Lighter fabrics: for the wedding dress – think organdy, linen, chiffon, crepe, georgette or any light-weight silk. Bridesmaids dresses in linen, eyelet, or seersucker will ensure your girls are comfortable. You may want to forego tuxes and dress the guys in traditional cape cod style – khakis, blue sport coats and colorful ties like those from Vineyard Vines, or morning suits for a more formal affair.


• Simple silhouettes: opt for a slip dress or sheath – as opposed to a voluminous ball gown. Keep your veil simple as well – look for airy, not poufy.


• Dare to go barefoot: a casual outdoor setting can be made more so with a barefoot bridal party


• Add color: summer is a time to incorporate some color into your ensemble.

Get more advice on finding summer wedding dresses.

Fall Wedding Dresses and Attire
Embrace fall with rich textures and luxurious accents that complement the season...

• For the bride: 1. off white - cream or off-white wedding gowns accent a richer color palette. 2. lace up - antique or vintage lace adds texture to a rustic setting


• For the ´maids: select jewel tone bridesmaids dresses in rich fabrics such as brocade or velvet


• Stay comfortable: be prepared for chilly or warm temps. Strapless dresses with wraps, capelets or stoles are a safe bet

Winter Wedding Dresses and Attire
Add some sparkle with glamorous gowns that glisten like new fallen snow...

• Rich fabrics: warm up to velvet, satin, brocade, and heavy silk


• Add a layer: if your wedding dress is sleeveless or strapless, add a wrap, shrug or cape in white or in one of your wedding colors


• Winter white: dress the wedding party, flower girl and ring bearer in winter white for a chic, clean look.


• Black tie: formal attire at an elegant winter wedding is always a classic

Spring Wedding Dresses and Attire
Embrace the outdoors with floral elements and touches of color...

• Loosen up: feel free to relax the dress code a bit, especially if the wedding will take place outside


• Lighten up: lighter fabrics like lace or cotton create a perfect springtime look


• Wedding gown: add some color with a sash or detailed embroidery


• Bridesmaids dresses: 1. pastels are a springtime classic. Keep yours fresh by choosing a color and allowing each of your maids to select a different hue. Or go in another direction with a bolder turquoise, fuschia or mango. 2. avoid satin shoes – they don´t hold up well under springtime showers


• The guys: they´ll look seasonably appropriate in tan suits, colored shirts and ties. For a formal evening affair, a basic tux always works.

Get even more wedding dresses style tips and budgeting advice, and browse thousands of designer wedding dresses

Looking for wedding ideas? Borrow them from other brides!

They say that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. We couldn't agree more. Let's face it, original wedding ideas turn only turn into wedding trends after thousands of brides say "I want that," and proceed to copy it into their own weddings. So if you're looking for the next hot wedding idea, look no further than other recently planned real weddings for inspiration. Here you can view wedding pictures and read real stories for tons of wedding ideas you can "borrow" from brides across the country.

Got Cold Feet? How to Cope with Pre-Wedding Jitters

“Cold Feet” – the phrase sure packs a dirty punch when it comes to wedding planning. We’ve all heard the stories; we all know it happens…we just hope we don’t find ourselves as the next glaring “Runaway Bride” headline. So what if the thought of walking down the aisle yields feelings on the chillier side of euphoria? Don’t panic. Most of the time, feelings of fear just signal a case of pre-wedding jitters. But just to be sure – better check your symptoms…

This article on pre-wedding jitters addresses these feelings and offers insight on whether they're merely a case of cold feet - or reasons to call off the wedding.

Tweet the Old Fashioned Way

Turn wedding favors into a thoughtful way to honor friends and loved ones with ceramic Bird Notes. Hand-crafted and painted in Peru by female artisans, the colorful birds are about the size of a grape and come with a small blank scroll rolled inside the belly, upon which you can write a short personal note to each guest. The tiny birds, which can also be purchased unpainted then decorated to match your wedding colors, will make a pretty picture when arranged on a favor table or even tied with ribbon to a tree at an outdoor wedding.

Learn more about these unique wedding favors at the Unveiled Wedding Blog...

Wedding Flowers Ideas for Every Season

Take a cue from the seasons with these inspiring wedding flowers ideas for every season...

Winter Wedding Flowers and Decor

Winter theme weddings can be uber chic and ethereal. Use these ideas to create your wonderland...

• Color palette - new-fallen snow - use whites and creams accented with silver or gold; winter sparkle - ice blue or navy accented with silver; black tie- black is especially suited for a winter wedding when paired with white, silver or gold.


• Go glam - deck your halls with crystal detailing for a sparkling winter effect- adorning linens and chair covers or sprinkled over table tops. The result is deliciously glam and oh so fab.


• Liberal use of candle light - the glow will add warmth and elegance.


• Holiday theme - decorate with potted evergreens, pine branches, wreathes, poinsettias, ornaments, bells, or twinkling white lights.


• Added interest and texture - incorporate holiday greenery or tiny crystals into your arrangements.


• Creative bouquets - instead of flowers, carry tea lights, votive candles or cascading bells.


• Tossing alternative - have your flower girl throw silver glitter or sprinkle fake snow.
  

Winter Flowers In Season

• White stephanotis, poinsettia, holly, amaryllis, camellias, roses. View a complete list of seasonal winter wedding flowers
  

Spring Wedding Flowers and Decor

The tulips are blooming, the temperatures are rising - what a perfect time for a wedding! Get inspired with these ideas for spring flowers...

• Color palette - green and white - an elegant accompaniment to a garden setting; yellow and green -another fresh, natural color pairing; preppy - combine hot pink with green or mango (think polka dots and gingham); chocolate brown - this trendy hue works well for spring - pair with pale blue or pink.


• Go wild with patterns - create a playful effect - think gingham, polka dots, eyelet lace, swiss dots and stripes


• Add some greens - grasses and greenery are a natural for outdoor garden settings. Drape over arbors and incorporate in arrangements


• Creative containers - put your arrangements in simple, homespun containers like wicker baskets, watering cans, teapots, or urns.


• Potted plants - potted arrangements create a natural, organic look. Best of all, you can plant them for a timeless reminder of your wedding
  

Spring Flowers in Season

• Classics include tulips, daffodils, lilies (especially calla lilies and easter lilies), magnolias, gardenias, hydrangeas, gerbera daisies, apple or cherry blossoms. View a complete list of spring wedding flowers
  

Summer Wedding Flowers and Decor

Set the stage for a sunny summer wedding with vibrant colors and inspirations from the great outdoors...

• Color palette - bright and bold - hot pink and deep red or mango and fuschia; nautical - navy and white is a clean summer classic, accent with touches of yellow, red or gold; seaside - combine aqua with beige, peach or white


• Go casual - summer weddings lend themselves to a casual decor scheme - fitting of a backyard barbeque. Think checked table clothes, benches and picnic tables.


• Go natural - incorporate natural decor elements like fruits, vegetables, even insects (like ladybugs or dragonflies, not necessarily roaches!)


• Get lit - light up an outdoor evening reception with lanterns or torches.


• Fruits - fruits like lemons and limes look whimsical and chic when filled in tall clear vases


• For a beach look - incorporate shells, sand, and sea glass in your arrangements
  

Summer Flowers In Season

• Abundant flowers are always in style at a summer wedding. Use bright and cheerful blooms like sunflowers, peonies, hydrangea, mums, daisies, dahlias, zinnias, and roses. Or create a breezy, airy look with white on white - using roses, stephanotis, calla lilies, snowball mums and daisies - and incorporate a touch of blue - like blue hydrangea. View a complete list of summer wedding flowers
  

Fall Wedding Flowers and Decor

Get autumn-spiration with these flowers and decor ideas with a fall twist...

• Color palette - colors of the season - adhere to mother nature's fall color palette: reds, oranges, browns, rusts, and yellows; jewel tones - make a rich, interesting twist to the traditional autumn color scheme; mix with metallics - gold, copper, bronze - for added pizzazz


• Back to nature - use simple decor to subtly enhance the season's natural bounty. Use the autumn harvest for inspiration; think gourds, pumpkins, squash, gold dipped fall leaves, bales of hay, jugs of cider...you get the idea.


• Go fall glam - you're not confined to rustic and casual in the fall. Create a posh autumn ambiance, and drape lush velvet (a traditional fall/winter fabric) in a rich chocolate brown or gold throughout your reception space. Accent the scene with antique broaches, crystal candelabras and stemware.


• Autumn harvest - add pears, apples, cranberries to your arrangements


• Natural texture - incorporate leaves, acorns, sprays of wheat


• Creative containers - hollow out pumpkins or realistic fake ones, or use stained wooden boxes, terra cotta pots, or rustic lanterns


• Tossing alternative - have your flower girl toss leaves or acorns instead of flower petals
  

Fall Flowers in Season

• Popular fall flowers include montbretia, hypericum, mums, sunflowers, roses, and daisies. View a complete list of fall wedding flowers
  

Get even more ideas and advice to help you plan your wedding flowers

Getting Married? Plan for a Healthy Financial Future Now

If every couple devoted as many hours to strengthening their relationship as they do to planning their wedding, U.S. marriage statistics would boast a brighter tale. The high divorce rate proves combining two lives in wedded bliss requires more than a knack for stamping a monogram atop every unembellished surface. So just what is the key to a healthy marriage? A healthy financial portfolio, apparently. Financial woes are one of the main stressors in a marriage and a primary cause of divorce.

It’s easy to see why love and money don’t always mix. Polite society has banished the subject of money, which joins religion and politics in the prohibitive club of taboo discussion topics. Commingling the concept of dirty, cold, hard cash with that of pure, virtuous love is therefore decidedly uncomfortable. Single people grow accustomed to treading the financial landscape alone during the first phase of adult life, and suddenly marriage enters the equation. But rather than addressing the financial impact of “me” becoming “we,” the topic becomes the proverbial pink elephant in the room.

In a perfect world, an honest financial discussion occurs long before the sparkling diamond adorns your left finger. But if you’ve been negligent, and you know who you are, there’s still time to lay your financial cards on the table. A wedding is often the first big ticket item for which a couple plans and saves, and it provides an obvious opportunity to bring this taboo subject into the open.Now’s the time to set a precedent for your financial future. Elegala.com's list of financial planning tips for to-be weddings offers advice on what you need to do now to avoid some of the major roadblocks confronting couples when balancing their mutual checkbook...

Something Blue for the Modern Bride

Gone are the days of the tired blue garter. Temporary tattoos are an interesting alternative to “something blue” for the modern bride. As more and more members of the tattoo generation are tying the knot, a chic, temporary tattoo may just be the perfect wedding day accessory to showcase a trendy personality.

These blue temporary tattoos from I Do Tattoo (TM) come in eight wedding-themed designs ranging from hearts and doves to wedding rings and champagne flutes. Two tattoos of your chosen design (one for practice and one for your wedding day) will arrive in a keepsake blue folio that has also been screen printed with your tattoo in scratch-resistant silver ink, so you’ll always remember what you wore as your “something blue.”

Learn more about temporary tattoos for weddings at the Unveiled Wedding Blog