• Let your guests know in the invitation that it’s an outdoor reception, so they can dress appropriately.
• Enclose maps in your invitations, so guests can find their way.
• Make sure you have adequate bathroom facilities. If the outdoor reception is at home, you might want to consider renting a portable latrine. Many rental places have wedding models, complete with a flush toilet and sink.
• Make sure the site has access to electricity.
• The general rule of thumb for a sit-down reception is to allow for 15 square feet per guest. Do the math, and make sure your tent is big enough.
• If you are having the outdoor reception at a private residence, find out ahead of time where the tent will be placed. That way when you are doing your spring/summer planting, you can choose flowers in your wedding colours and plant them near the tent.
• Offer parking that is close by – it’s a wedding not a hike.
• Let neighbors know you are having an outdoor reception ahead of time so they won’t be outside with lawnmowers and leafblowers.
• Make sure your wedding site is in an area that won’t get muddy or flood if it rains.
• Have mosquito spray handy. Citronella candles are not enough if mosquitoes decide to crash your party.

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Did you know that one in four couples ties the knot during the winter? Many couples love the romance of the season – and they love the cost savings. Couples can shave big-time bucks off their wedding costs by having a winter wonderland wedding. Venues are generally less expensive and vendors sometimes offer off-season rates.
Here are some great ideas and tips for winter brides:

• If guests are arriving from out of town, have them arrive a couple of days early just in case of inclement weather.

• Consider having a winter wonderland wedding theme, using snowflakes as your motif. Silver and pale blue make a lovely color combination. Use pine boughs and evergreens as decorations. Serve comfort foods such as soups, prime rib and decadent chocolate desserts.

• If you are a winter sports enthusiast, combine your favorite sport with your nuptials. Have a skating party the night before the wedding. Have a destination wedding at a ski chalet. Get married at a cozy lodge and include dog sledding as one of your guest activities the day before the wedding.

• Dress Warm. Winter brides should choose a long sleeved gown, instead of spaghetti straps.

• Serve hot beverages such as cocoa and cider at the reception to keep guests toasty.

• Find a venue that has a fireplace. It will really make things cozy!

• Depart in a horse drawn sleigh. That is, if there is snow for your winter wonderland wedding!

• Snuggle up. It’s not like the two of you will need an excuse to get close after your wedding is over, but a chill in the air might make you hold on just a little tighter!

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For some couples the most romantic place on earth is the beach. Why not get married there?

From the water’s edge in Santori, Greece, to the pristine shores of Tofino on Vancouver Island, beach weddings continue to be a popular alternative to more traditional weddings.

Beach weddings appeal to couples looking to cut costs, but are also popular with couples with extravagant budgets.

Wedding Planner Kathy Piech-Lukas, owner of Your Dream Day, a special events planning company in Cincinnati, Ohio, says she’s seen some fabulous beach weddings since she started her business six years ago.

She says most are a little more on the casual side, with less formal attire.

“Most girls wear sun dresses and guys wear khakis,” she says.

Although some couples choose to have their guests stand during the ceremony, Piech-Luckas says chairs are also a nice touch. However, she cautions against using the ever-popular Chiavari chairs, which will sink into the sand and possibly break.

“Couples should use white Samsonite folding chairs or white wooden chairs for a beach wedding,” she says.

Another helpful tip for beach brides is to make sure a sound system is rented.

“For any outdoor wedding with more than 40 people, you need amplification – especially on the lake,” she says. “Make sure you have a microphone and generators to run the power and make sure musicians who are outdoors have amplification.”

Outdoor garb

Since going shoeless on the beach is the norm, Piech-Lukas says that some brides opt for a “shoe valet” so that guests don’t have to worry about getting sand in their shoes.

“Guests check in their shoes and receive tags to reclaim their shoes after the wedding,” she says, adding that guests also receive a pre-moistened towel to wash their feet before putting their shoes back on.

And what kinds of shoes are the brides putting back on? Sandy Trimmer, manager at Bridal Chateau Inc. in Williamsville, NY, located just outside Buffalo, says flip flops are all the rage for brides having outdoor weddings – whether they are tying the knot on a beach, or in a park.

“They’ve got a wedge heel which is great for outdoor weddings because it’s easier to walk around. You don’t have to worry about your heels getting stuck in the ground,” she says, adding that the bridal flip flops at Bridal Chateau Inc. retail for $29.95 and are as “comfortable as slippers.”

The flip flops come in ivory, satin and white and are dressed up with beads and sequins.

According to Trimmer, some outdoor brides still want all the glamour of an extravagant gown, but most opt for something less formal.

“A lot of girls are looking for something simpler, with less beadwork. They also want something straighter and not as full,” she says, adding that chiffon and silk taffeta are popular fabrics for outdoor weddings because they are lighter than many other fabrics and don’t require as much “babysitting” throughout the day.

Trimmer says half of brides choose not to wear a veil. Those who choose to wear one often go for the short variety – especially for outdoor weddings.

“The forties netting is really popular. It’s very pretty,” she says, adding that the vintage look is also popular for gowns.

Trimmer says that perhaps the biggest trend – not only for beach weddings, but weddings in general, is that the rules for what not to wear are far more relaxed than they used to be.

“It’s pretty much the bride’s choice these days. There aren’t a lot of do’s and don’ts,” she says.

But there’s one rule that beach brides should always follow: Have a back up plan.

Mother Nature is as unpredictable as she is beautiful. And the last thing you want is rain to extinguish your wedding day bliss.

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Wedding experts can be full of advice, but who better to offer advice for brides than brides who have been there? I interviewed more than 100 couples for Intimate Weddings: Planning a Small Wedding that Fits Your Budget and Style. None of them regretted having a small wedding. However, some brides confessed that they would have done a few things differently if they had the chance to do it all over again.
Here’s what these brides had to say about planning their weddings:

1. I would have hired someone like a coordinator for that day to help keep things on schedule. Everything went really well, I just worried too much. I guess I thought it would be simple with a small gathering. I didn’t anticipate all the distractions that you have as a bride. In the end it was hard to stay on top of things. My advice for brides is to hire a wedding coordinator to keep things running smoothly on the day of the wedding.
Linda

2. I would have hired a wedding coordinator. I am not a “planner” by nature so I found the whole process very difficult for me. I didn’t enjoy the planning one bit, which made me very resentful towards my fiancé.
Leila

3. The only thing I would change is that I would have had my then-fiancé help me more with the planning. He has this wacky idea that I was like all those girls who have had their weddings planned forever. It’s really hard to plan something when you don’t care about colors, favors, cake, food, flowers, etc. I might have had a wedding planner if we had more money.
Danielle

4. I would (have planned) it small from the beginning. When we started scouting out reception sites, we found some really one-of-a-kind places that we couldn’t even consider because our numbers were well above what they could accommodate. By the time we really launched into the smaller wedding concept we were under contract with our original reception venue.
Kerry

5. I would have lost more weight before the wedding, and I wouldn’t have stressed out so much. I also would have taken more time off of work before the wedding instead of just the day before. My intimate weddings advice is to take a few days off before the wedding so that you won’t be frazzled trying to put it all together.
Kristen

6. I would have been more careful with the guest list. There were people that didn’t show up and it wasn’t really a surprise. I should have followed my intuition and invited other people that I know would have loved to go. My advice for brides is to invite only the people you really want to invite.
Jennifer

7. I would have printed up a schedule for the day for everyone involved … Just a minor detail, but there was some very small last minute confusion. (A schedule) would have put my mind at ease.
Christine

8. The only thing I would change would be my dress. I had a big ballgown, but felt it was too much for such a small group so I went with a much simpler, understated gown. In the end, the simpler gown made more sense but I still missed the big ballgown. My intimate weddings advice is to choose the dress you really want.
Shannon

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You toss and turn at night. You’ve got your Big Day on the brain. The ‘what if’s’ are making your mind a superhighway of worry. You’ve got wedding panic.

Before you head to the liquor cabinet for a ‘shot and a beer’, take comfort in knowing that you are not alone. There are oodles of brides experiencing Big Day anxiety.  Here are some of their top worries – and some antidotes for wedding panic.

1. We won’t have enough money to have the wedding we really want. Money is one of the top stressors for couples planning a wedding, especially in today’s economy. It’s no wonder. There’s enormous pressure on brides to have the perfect wedding. It’s perpetuated in the mainstream media, and by celebrity culture – not to mention other brides who will stop at nothing to ‘wow’ their guests. The key to dampening those fears is to realize that creativity and resourcefulness can go a long way to helping you create the wedding you want without blowing your budget. There are a slew of DIY wedding ideas out there that can save you a bundle. Being resourceful can also mean getting friends and family involved in the process, which creates a more meaningful experience. And of course, cutting your guest list to only those who are close to you will make a significant difference in your wedding costs. You just might find that by having fewer guests, you can still splurge on the things that really matter to you.

2. Our guests won’t show up. You’ve sent out 75 invitations, but so far only 40 have responded that they will be there. You feel insulted, not to mention peeved. Why aren’t more invitees making the effort to be there? Don’t take it personally. With so many people facing job losses and instability, dropping hundreds of dollars for travel and wedding gifts just isn’t feasible for everyone. Take the glass half full approach, and realize that the wedding guests who do show up are the ones that are supposed to be there.

3. We’ll have bad weather on our Big Day. Mother Nature. She’s glorious and she’s cruel. She’s beautiful and she’s brutal.  She’s also downright unpredictable and a major cause of wedding panic. No matter how hard we pray and invite good karma, there’s no way to guarantee good weather. If you’re a serious weather worry wart, opt for an indoor wedding and don’t have a winter wedding. For entertainment purposes, you can track your wedding day weather at Weather.com. Just don’t bet your wedding on its accuracy.

4.My face will break out just before the wedding. Although you can’t prevent stress-induced acne, there are steps you can take to reduce your chances of breaking out on your Big Day. First, don’t use any products that you don’t normally use. Stick with tried and true cleaners, cleansers, moisturizers and make up.  Pamper your skin before the wedding (try a clay mask if you’ve used one before), and always wash your face before bed. If you do find yourself breaking out just before your wedding day, you might want to consult with a cosmetician to find out the best method of covering up your break out. Also, talk with your photographer. Chances are she’ll assure you that she’s using blemish control software (a.k.a Adobe Photoshop) on your wedding photos.

5. I’ll trip on my way to the altar. Considering that shyness affects half of the population and that 13 percent of the population has an extreme form of social anxiety called social phobia,  it’s safe to say that there are many brides (and grooms) who agonize over the fact that they have to be the centre of attention for their wedding day. For many of these brides, the thought of walking down the aisle is the number one source of their wedding panic. “What if I trip? What if I make a fool out of myself?” If you’ve got aisle anxiety, take a deep breath and read Shy Brides: Tips for Easing Wedding Panic for some great tips on how to combat anxiety.

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