posted by on May 4
Find out what it means to be Maid of Honour to your friend or family member. Be prepared to fufill your duties and love every minute even more with our handy guide.
Traditionally, the bride and the maid of honor wore a similar apparel. As believed, this was done simply to not let the evil spirits know who the real bride was, as they would want to harm her. The bride’s chosen friend would dress up exactly in the same manner as the bride and take the bride safely to where the wedding was to be held. Today, if you look at at the dresses of the bride and the maid of honor, they aren’t as similar anymore. Both should have a look of their own and not copies of each other. They should still be similar and the bridesmaid’s dress should have a coordinating color of the bridal theme.
Their Duties
A Maid of Honour is expected to be the right hand woman of the Bride. It requires being permanently available in the build up to the wedding and on the big day; it’s a real “access all areas” role. We have listed some duties below but this is not a complete list and a Maid of Honour may be expected to do more or less.
- Go wedding dress and bridesmaid dress shopping
- Organise bridesmaids for shopping and fittings.
- Help address invitations.
- Help wrap and tag guest favours
- Host a bridal shower if the mother of the bride isn’t
- Address and send shower invitations.
- Take RSVP’s for shower.
- Attend rehearsal and rehearsal dinner.
- Help decorate ceremony and reception locations if necessary.
- Help the bride get dressed on the wedding day.
- It’s your duty to make sure the bride’s veil and train looks nice before and during the ceremony. The photographer can’t stop taking pictures during this time and he/she can’t go up on the altar to straighten out the bride…only you can. Guests will expect you to do this.
- Holds the Bride’s bouquet during the ceremony.
- Keep the Groom’s wedding ring until the ring exchange, unless the Best Man or Ring Bearer are holding them.
- Will sit to the Bride’s right at the reception.
- Sign the marriage certificate as a witness.
- Bustles the Bride’s train before the reception begins.
- Dance with the Best Man.
- Help the Best Man bring the gifts to the bride and groom’s home
- Help with clean up after reception.
What they wear
After the bride and groom all eyes will be on the Maid of Honour, so it is important that you have a suitable outfit. It is important to blend with the theme of the wedding. Talk to the bride about what she has in mind for you.
Expectations
If you’ve been chosen as your friends Maid of Honour, you can feel very proud. To be a Maid of Honour means that your friend thinks very highly of you and trusts you with a lot of responsibilities. If you are feeling the pressure, just try to take the whole wedding in your stride. It is important to clarify with the bride what exactly she is expecting from you to avoid misunderstandings and later on disappointments.
posted by on Apr 2
When all you want to do is give your good friend a great send off then you need to get creative. Think about what her interests are. Does she like pampering herself or is she more at home being outdoors?
Activity Filled Fun
If your bachelorette loves being active why not book a surf weekend in Cornwall. You can all get lessons and then when you’ve had enough of the surf you can hit the local pubs for a real pint and a girly giggle. Other fun outdoor activities include zorbing, bungee, go carting, paint balling. Depending where you live you could go wakeboarding or even charter a boat and enjoy a night or two out on the open waves.
Spa Treats
All girls love to be pampered. Why not book a weekend at a health spa for a weekend of top to toe indulgence and detoxing; perfect before the big day. Alternatively, book a seaweed wrap and break the rules with champagne back in your room. If you can’t stand a whole weekend, you could book something a little less intense. Maybe getting a facial, having your nails done or getting a fantastically relaxing massage before your night of partying is the perfect activity for the perfect bachelorette party?
Night on the Town
The obvious way to send off a bachelorette is to have a night of partying. Start with dinner at an upmarket restaurant. If you have a large party you may need to confirm that they accept bachelorette parties. It helps to pay a deposit and if you’re good at bargaining, agree on a minimum spend on drinks with the first cocktail thrown in for free. Get you and your girls VIP entrance to the hottest clubs and bars in town. Be sure to arrange transport to and from your night to make it extra special.
Travel
If travelling is the bride to be most favourite thing, why not going to Vegas for a week of fun? The city has it all, clubs, bars, fantastic hotels, gambling galore, and probably more than a few famous faces to mingle with. Just hire a limousine complete with champagne and drive off down The Strip. If Europe is more your style, stay closer to home and take a weekend break to anyone of the fantastic cities enjoy the hot chocolate and red wine of Barcelona, the fashion of Paris or the fantastic bars, clubs and shopping of London.
posted by on Oct 17
A Bachelorette Party, or Hen Party as it is known, is a fun thing to organize and usually the responsibility of the Maid of Honour. Unlike a regular party, this night has to be memorable for your close friend, the bride to be, and should give her a really unforgettable send off into married life.
Date & Numbers
The are only a few things you need to discuss with the bachelorette: Number one is when is the most convenient time to throw the party. You could send out an email to all on the guest list to ask if there are any dates that they can’t make. Number two of the important decisions to make is the number invites. How many people does the bachelorette want to invite? Consider whether it will be just close friends and family or more inclusive. Sometimes it is possible to have two separate events to accommodate two different moods. Older members of the party may prefer a more relaxing pampering session while later in the evening party animals can hit the bars and clubs until the early hours.
What Suits You Best?
Choose activities and fun things that suit the bride. Not only will this make it seem more personal and special, you will also find that you all get a lot more out of it. There’s so many options available, from weekend travel breaks and golfing sessions to go-carting, cooking classes, and yoga retreats. If the bride to be wants to be part of the party organization, let her, but try to keep the fun secret for yourself, so that she is really surprised on the day.
Budget
You may want to ask those attending the Hen Party what they would be prepared to spend. Obviously, not everyone’s budget will be the same and you can’t please everyone but you may find that the group is similar in what they are prepared to spend. Work out the overall cost per head and collect all payment before you go out.
