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Taking your wedding day from fantasy to reality
REVIEWS BY SARAH E. WHITE Normal weddings usually aren't featured in wedding books. Most people aren't getting married in Italy, flying to Morocco with their wedding planners to pick out ottomans for their receptions or having their day planned by a top-tier designer. That doesn't mean people on a budget can't pick up a trick or two from the fanciest weddings around, or at least have fun imagining what their day could be like if money were no object. Fantasy Island
Still, the book and the weddings are beautiful and offer some advice for celebrations that don't involve a DJ flown in from Paris. Cowie reminds readers that weddings aren't about impressing guests, they are intended to bring a new family together in love. That's true whether you're inviting five guests or 500.
By Colin Cowie Clarkson Potter, $75 252 pages ISBN 9781400048724
Going your own way
The cornerstone of Rago's planning process is brainstorming, which leads her to the colors and "elements" (design features) of a particular wedding. However, the description of her design process is lengthy and follows a few too many sidetracks. Most people will not be interested in the author's favorite movies, for example. She also has a faith in inspiration that people who don't consider themselves creative might find a little over the top. Whether you agree with her philosophy or not, the book is a solid starting point for those who don't know how to plan a wedding that isn't cookie-cutter. It allows readers to see the inspiration behind the final design and how it was carried out, which can be incredibly useful in planning an event from scratch.
By Michelle Rago Gotham, $50 240 pages ISBN 9781592402540
Southern charm
Tara Guérard, owner of Soirée, Inc. in Charleston, South Carolina, knows all about planning chic weddings with Southern charm. Her Southern Weddings: New Looks from the Old South details 12 weddings created by Soirée. Highlights of the décor of each wedding are discussed, as well as signature elements that made each wedding unique. The "Soirée Secrets" section offers tips brides can adapt to their own weddings. Sometimes it's hard to see what makes these weddings especially Southern other than their location, but that is part of the point. It certainly is no longer possible (if it were ever possible) to peg a wedding's style by region. The best part for many brides will be the step-by-step instructions for recreating some of the ideas used in the featured weddings. From centerpieces to floral monograms to table designs, there are many great ideas for brides of all budgets in this book.
By Tara Guérard Wyrick, $29.95 176 pages ISBN 9780941711937
Destination delights
Brief features on real-life destination weddings help couples see how it all comes together, and the advice on how to pack will be absolutely invaluable to harried brides (rule number one: carry your wedding dress with you).
By Carley Roney Crown, $19.95 304 pages ISBN 9780307341921
Keep it Simple
These quick-reading books provide tons of tips on their respective subjects. Simple Stunning Wedding Showers offers 20 themes for wedding showers, from the classic tea party or 24-hour shower to more modern themes like a bubbly brunch and a night-at-the-movies-inspired bash to outfit the entertainment room. The book includes recipes for food and drinks and ideas for party games. The recipes, and even some of the themes, would be great for other parties, making this book more versatile than it seems on the surface. In Simple Stunning Wedding Flowers, Bussen covers the basics of floral design, from ceremony décor to bouquets and boutonnieres, centerpieces to escort card tables. Her guidance will help those who don't know a geranium from a gerbera daisy decide what kind of flowers they want and find a florist who can help them realize their dream without blowing their budget. Little advice is offered to women who might want to try to design their own floral arrangements, but for brides who only need to know enough about flowers to communicate their desires to a florist, this book is a good guide and a great value.
By Karen Bussen Stewart, Tabori, & Chang 112 pages, $22.50 ISBN 9781584795407
By Karen Bussen Stewart, Tabori, & Chang 112 pages, $22.50 ISBN 9781584795391
Always a bridesmaid: playing second fiddle
Siri Agrell, author of Bad Bridesmaid: Bachelorette Brawls and Taffeta Tantrums—Tales from the Front Lines, wants everyone to know about the tribulations that go with being a bridesmaid. This columnist for Canada's National Post has seen the dark side of weddings firsthand. Kicked out of a wedding for writing a column about being a bridesmaid and the requirement for almost cult-like devotion to the bride, Agrell heard from readers about their own frighteningly bad bridesmaid experiences. "It became clear to me that bridesmaids had become collateral damage in the female quest for the perfect wedding," she writes. Two bridesmaids were thrown out of a wedding the day of the ceremony for refusing to get their makeup done a fourth time when the bride asked. One bridesmaid was forced to wear a used dress that reeked the whole day. Even without these issues, many bridesmaids spend thousands of dollars on ugly dresses, parties and presents in preparation for the wedding day. Ultimately, this hilarious and disturbing book is a reminder to both brides and bridesmaids that a little civility and human kindness is necessary on both sides if friendships are to continue after the ceremony.
By Siri Agrell Holt, $15 192 pages ISBN 9780805082692
Sarah E. White is a freelance writer in Arkansas who planned her own wedding.
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For a wedding book that is all fantasy and little reality for most brides, there's Colin Cowie's Extraordinary Weddings: From a Glimmer of an Idea to a Legendary Event. This lavish book highlights 14 weddings planned and executed by the superstar wedding planner. These are certainly not your typical ceremonies. Highlights are destination weddings in Italy and the Bahamas and the only private party ever given on the stage of the Metropolitan Opera House in New York City.
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If you're trying to plan a unique event without the help of an in-person wedding planner, Signature Weddings: Creating a Day Uniquely Your Own by event planner Michelle Rago can help. The book takes readers through her design process and provides 10 examples of how her plans came together. The same process can be adapted by brides on a budget to come up with the signature elements of their own wedding design.
The stereotypical Southern wedding is extremely traditional, but Southern brides create celebrations every bit as modern and sophisticated as those held anywhere else in the world.
As society becomes more mobile and friends and family members are scattered all over the country, more couples are planning destination weddings to give them more time with friends and to make their wedding more like a vacation for their guests. The Knot Guide to Destination Weddings by Carley Roney is the perfect nuts-and-bolts guide to planning a destination wedding, from picking the locale and choosing destination-friendly wedding wear to working with local vendors. The destination wedding directory highlights some of the most popular wedding destinations, while timelines and checklists will help keep the details organized.
The Simple Stunning series of wedding books from Stewart, Tabori, & Chang focuses on simplifying the wedding planning process without taking the beauty out of a bride's big day. Simple Stunning Wedding Showers: Festive Ideas and Inspiration for Perfect Pre-Wedding Parties and Simple Stunning Wedding Flowers: Practical Ideas and Inspiration for Your Bouquet, Ceremony, and Centerpieces, both by party planner Karen Bussen, offer practical advice in a concise form.
Sure, the wedding day is all about the bride, but what about those unsung heroes of the modern bridal party: the bridesmaids?