Guests Gone Bad

For any special event, it is wise to be on your best behavior and don your finest attire for the occasion. Depending on the occasion, you must follow the proper protocol to be on the good graces of the bride and groom and other important figures and if you want to continue to be invited to other functions they will host.

During the ceremony, cell phones or any electronics need to be on vibrate, silent or completely shut off. Unless that call is an emergency, do not answer it and leave the ceremony site if you need to talk on your cell phone.


Way to draw attention to yourself. Not only will you be getting the evil eye from the other guests, but the officiant and bridal party too. Worse, they will hear your not so private conversation.


Some couples choose not to include children on the guest list for various reasons: budget, capacity restrictions or because of the behavior. If the bride and groom wish to include children on the guest list, there are a few things parents must follow with small children and . During the ceremony, instruct the child to keep quiet and sit still. That can be a hard feat for children, but one way to keep them busy, quiet and happy is to bring coloring books or a pad of paper for them to doodle on . As for potty breaks, instruct the child to whisper to you when they need to go, so there are no loud interruptions during the ceremony. It's okay to let your child play at the reception, but keep a watchful eye so they won't cause trouble.


It's bad enough to hear a cellphone go off, but it's worse with children. Even a fellow parent would give the death glare if another parent can't keep little precious quiet.


Babies are a different story, but proper etiquette still must be followed. If the baby starts to cry, quietly excuse yourself from the ceremony and go to another room to soothe the baby.

Nothing is more piercing to the ears than a loud baby.

Having a drink or two is okay, provided that you are on your best behavior and not causing a scene. Some can tolerate alcohol more than others, but the bad behavior that comes with it is the intolerable part for anyone with an inebriated guest.

The hangover won't be the only thing she'll be regretting in the morning.

Lewd or crude remarks, verbal or physical fights, harassment, or loose inhibitions like blurting out that the groom once slept with some strippers while you're drunk are bound to haunt you. That haunting may result in you being snubbed from future events or ruining whatever relationship you have with your fellow guests and/or the bride and groom.


Moral of the story: Tactfulness get you anywhere.

Deck The Halls

What sets off an event more than anything is the decor, regardless of the theme, formality or color scheme. Simplicity and elegance is key in wedding decor and there are several ways to cut costs for ceremony and reception decorations. One way is to make the centerpieces yourself or buy ribbon kits for the aisle or wedding arch at craft stores. Depending on your venue for the reception and/or catering, your vendor may offer services to help with some of the decorations, like the centerpieces or renting out table linens,tents and/or chair covers. Silk flowers can look great (provided they are of good quality and arranged nicely) while dramatically slashing costs and great for those who have allergies. Another alternative is balloon bouquets for the table centerpieces. Now, I will emphasize my credo that less is more with decor and style.

Every bride wants to have that fairy tale wedding like Cinderella. It could be a cute and romantic motif, but as long as it doesn't go from a wedding to a little girl's party.




The cake was supposed to be the focal point of the table, but the enormous balloon carriage ran that over.


The old wedding tradition is to have something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue, which can be a number of things.


Apparently we've hit a new low in using something old and something borrowed.


Topiaries can be great center pieces for most themes and color schemes whether fresh flowers are used or not. I will advise again for the artistically inept not to attempt making their own decorations.


We are experiencing a northern exposure of the foam ball sparsely decorated with pumpkin candy corn.


I love dolls and what girl doesn't. I will admit that even the artistically adept are inclined to making a few decorating blunders as well.


This is best suited for your grandmas bathroom dolls...particularly the toilet paper roll cover dolls.


Moral of the Story: High quality and low quantity are the keys to a beautifully decorated wedding ceremony and reception.

Not So Nice Day For A White Wedding...

I've been engaged for over a year and have been doing as much research as possible to plan and have a memorable wedding. The one day that I and every other woman has dreamed of since childhood and the one day I look forward to telling my children and grandchildren about years down the road and reminiscing about with my future husband. We all know that on a day like a wedding, we all must carry ourselves with dignity and a sense of propriety, no matter if you're merely a guest, a member of the bridal party or a staff member like the DJ or one of the servers for the reception.I unfortunately found these "gems" that were the complete opposite of dignity, propriety and possibly pride. Don't get me wrong, I'm not the traditional old-school type, but I still believe that some decorum should be followed on such a momentous occasion like this.



That should've been saved for the wedding night. If that woman in black is the mother of the bride, I don't blame her for trying to hide her face. I would be embarrassed to walk down the aisle in that. Might as well go to the wedding naked.


I'm a bit on the Rubenesque side and I have nothing against big girls, but good Lord! I can see one of her "girls" is making an escape and I'm seeing more rolls than the Pillsbury doughboy!


I'm not sure who designed this number, but this is another no-no. Good for a white party at South Beach or for amateur's night at club Cheetah, but not for a wedding.


I'll admit, the veil looks nice along with the train and shoes. The dress and gloves are a different story. It's cool and all to be creative and incorporate something you're passionate about, but to use that on the wedding gown is just plain tacky.

Moral of the Story: Choose your wedding attire wisely,because hindsight is 20/20. You may think it looks cute now, but when you look back at the pictures later you'll say "Ugh, what was I thinking?!!".