A Dry Wedding?

This is a topic that has had me somewhat frustrated. MW and I are Muslim ( I converted two years ago) and he feels that it would be inappropriate to serve alcohol at our wedding, with all of our Muslim relatives in attendance. Initially, I was upset and unwilling to agree. I had always imagined having a champagne toast at my wedding. After all, what is champagne for if not New Years and weddings?! But then I realized that this wedding is a beginning of a marriage, not just a party, so I took a look on the bright side.


There are some pros to not serving alcohol...
1. No one will end up like this on your special day.
2. There will be more money for a different aspect of the wedding
3. It's an excuse to have an after-party with just the bridesmaids and groomsmen
4. No sloppy speeches to ruin the evening
5. Those who don't drink will not feel left out

Just because you're not serving alcohol doesn't mean you should serve only water and soda. If you're considering a dry wedding for personal, religious, or financial reasons, then here are some tips to make your day just as special.

1. Serve signature drinks just as you would if you had a bartender (minus the liquor). For example, the drink in the photo below could be pink lemonade with gold sugar around the glass.

                                   

2. Give the drinks fun names. I'd call this drink "The Blushing Bride".

3. Serve gourmet coffee, hot chocolate, fresh juices, or even slurpee's to bring something exciting to the event.

I definitely want to have a gourmet coffee stand!

These Jones Sodas are in the colors of my wedding, brown, cream and blush pink. Adding a personalized sticker to the front of the bottle would make them fit in perfectly to the event design.

 MW has given me complete control over every aspect of the wedding, even the location (which means a lot considering I chose a destination that takes 20 hours on a plane to reach), so I can definitely respect his wish not to serve alcohol at our wedding. Even if it's hard to swallow. No pun intended. 

Top 10 Online Wedding Resources

Blogs
1. Oncewed.com
2. Stylemepretty.com
3. Forgetmeknotweddingsblog.com
4. Snippetandink.com
5. 100layercake.com
6. Brendasweddingblog.com
7. Sittinginatree.com


Planning
8. theknot.com
9. Weddingwire.com
10. Projectwedding.com

Wedding Insurance

In light of my last post on wedding mis-haps, today I'd like to talk about wedding insurance. Initially I thought it sounded ridiculous-- but after doing some research I found that it only costs around $600 to insure a $50,000 wedding. And they even cover cancellation due to weather & natural disasters.


For someone who is considering getting married on a cruise during hurricane season in the lightning capital of the world, it sounds kind of appealing.


Here's the link for an insurance company I found. Let's hope that none of us ever need it!

This photo is from a ny times article on an earthquake that struck during a wedding.

Expect the Unexpected

One thing we've all got to remember about weddings is that.. well, $h*t happens! Cakes get knocked over, people are late, it rains, it pours, drinks gets spilled on the bride, the DJ plays the wrong song-- but at the end of the day, if you're married.. that's what it's all about!

Watch this video of "the perfect wedding" to get an idea of what I mean...

As much as I love weddings, I love MW (my fiance) a million trillion times more. So, as long as he's there on wedding day (even if the florist doesn't show up), the day will be perfect. The next day, however, will not be so great for the florist.

Meet BrideByYourSide & Inspiration Board

Introductions are in order. I'm SA, soon to be SW if all goes as planned. I am so excited to be sharing in the planning process with you.


If you're one of those brides who religiously visits oncewed, stylemepretty and 100layercake then we're more alike than you know. 


If you love design, photography, food, music, good parties, and above all your fiance-- then BrideByYourSide will be a great resource and friend in your wedding planning process.


Disclaimer: I am new to the blogging world so please have patience with me! I may not know how to blog, but I do know weddings. I hope to be a fast learner.


One thing I do know is that posts without pictures are no fun. Below is the inspiration board for my wedding. I'm aiming for an Ethereal, Romantic and Intimate vibe. I also have a soft spot for anything that has a rustic or garden feel to it.