10 Tips For a Father of the Bride Speech

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The Father of the Bride speech is often one of the most emotional of all wedding speeches, and as it is usually the opening speech, it can be a difficult speech to master. This speech needs to evoke a snapshot of your daughters life, pay tribute to her new husband and his family,while engaging and keeping those listening entertained. This may sound a tall order because as first speaker you should ideally be giving a short speech (3-5 minutes), but with the help of the following Father of the Bride speech tips your speech will savored by all in attendance particularly the Bride and Groom along with their respective family members.

10. Welcome everybody to the celebration, express your delight at seeing old friends along with your pride and joy for the newlyweds.

9. Provide a special welcome for the Groom's family particularly his father and mother.

8. Describe your daughter as a child, mention some quirky traits that she may have had growing-up.

7. Tell a funny story from your daughter's childhood that ends with a loving tribute.

6. Mention how you and your wife watched her blossom into the beautiful young woman she is today.

5. Make reference to your daughters qualities and attributes.

4. Talk about your first impressions of the Groom.

3. Describe how happy your daughter has been since she met the Groom.

2. Thank your wife/partner and describe what a wonderful mother she has been to the Bride.

1. Offer a heart-warming Toast to the happy couple.

The Father of the Bride speech should make you proud on this proudest of days so stand tall, be confident and give a speech that will live with you forever.

Click here for inspiring, memorable Father of the Bride speeches that will be enjoyed by all and have your daughter beaming with pride.

This article was written by Dave Duncan director of Speech Success, for inspiring, proud father of the bride speeches visit; http://www.speechsuccess.com/father-of-the-bride-speeches.html

Bridal Shower Invitations - Let's Shower the Bride With Love

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The bridal shower is a time of fun, fellowship, and friends forever. In a bridal shower, the bride's closest friends and allies assemble together at the bride's house for a party to celebrate the bride. The friends, relatives, and colleagues 'shower' the bride with gifts. Originally, bridal showers were intended to replace the gifts lost through a dowry that didn't go through because the father of the bride didn't approve of the marriage. Because of this, bridal showers are a recent phenomenon. They're endemic to America and Canada especially so you'll be sure to find the best bridal shower invitations from Internet vendors in one of those two countries.

Bridal shower invitations are fun to send out because you're 100% certain that you will receive some great gifts in return from all your friends. Friends are likely to bring gifts that will help you establish your new home. In the past, bridal showers were also intended to establish the woman's role as homemaker and traditional housewife. This has gradually been replaced with a pure gift-giving session; sometimes, the husband is even involved in this celebration that was originally reserved just for females.

Usually, the maid of honor plans the bridal shower and sends out the invitation so she should keep some basic tenets in mind. First, the bride-to-be is a princess for a day. Second, send out invitations 2 weeks ahead of time to give everyone time to prepare. Third, don't invite guests to the shower if they're not invited to the wedding, for obvious reasons. Fourth, plan to have the shower in the afternoon. Fifth, use board games and other games to help the guests get to know each other. Sixth, don't pressure the guests into giving expensive gifts if they can't afford them. Cheap gifts can be just as good and functional. Include a list of inexpensive items on the registry for cash-strapped bridal shower guests. Seventh, choose a few good movies that all the girls will love to watch. These are especially fun at the end of the night after a few bottles of wine or champagne.

The bridal shower invitations shouldn't be too fancy or else the guests will think they have to dress up and bring expensive gifts and such. Make sure that the invitations are fun, yet classy. Don't use overpriced cards because it will send the wrong impression right off the bat. Make the bride's bridal shower a time of shared memories and future hopes. Don't let anything blur that beautiful dream.

Jeff Fain is an author for Dependable Printing. Please visit Dependable Printing for a great selection of wedding invitations, wedding anniversary invitations, bridal shower invitations, party invitations, and much more.

Choosing a Mother of the Bride Dress For 2009

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This year turning Mom into the Mother of the Bride comes with one important prerequisite. Talk to the bride. She'll appreciate you listening to her input for years to come. Don't be afraid of this exercise - there are plenty of color and style options to accommodate not only your look but her preferences as well this year. You might even be pleasantly surprised with what you discover and relieved to have a place to start. But don't start shopping yet. Next consider the key attributes of color, length, style and body, which when combined successfully will ensure you and your dress are a spectacular hit on the bride's big day.

Color

The two aspects of color that you want to reconcile are simply 1) the color theme of the wedding and 2) the colors that looks good on you. En vogue dress colors especially for Mother of the Brides this year (and especially for outdoor weddings) include "apricot, peach, lemon and golden olive hues" reports Hanna of Here Comes the Guide. If the wedding is taking place later in the year, get more vivid with amethyst, mahogany, or rose. If none of these colors will do, then take your queue from the bride, who may elect to step into 2009's trend for lots of bold, saturated colors like green, lavender or blue, but especially blue, with all of its brilliant peacock splendor including deep violet blue, clear bright blue, green blue, cobalt blue, turquoise, and palace blue. If the bride's theme is blue, but blue doesn't work on you, trying choosing from among the many delightful accent colors you will see in a wedding regardless of its color theme, like champagne, cream, bone, taupe, tan, silver, shimmering light gold, or beige

Selecting colors around a wedding's theme is only the first step. Ask also what colors look good on you. If you are unsure, it's best to keep two or three neutral colors in mind while you decide what looks best against your natural coloring. As you shop, hold clothing items of differing colors up to your face and judge for yourself. You can even go so far as to invest in a professional style guide, like the ones available at istylista. When you look back on wedding photos years from now, you will not regret the investment!

In all cases, stay away from white, ivory, and black. And interestingly, even though blue is "in" this year, one of its shades definitely is not - navy. Don't be caught wearing it! Just remember to pick a color that coordinates well with the wedding theme or its bridal attendants - you don't have to match exactly! - and one which looks great on you at the same time.

Length

The Mother of the Bride's dress length should be similar to the bridesmaids' dresses, within Mom's comfort zone. Tea length (a gown hemmed to end at the shin) becomes an acceptable compromise when bridesmaids' dresses measure LA knee length or shorter.

Style

Continuing the trend from last year, stores are stocking Mother of the Bride dresses in youthful styles. No more stodgy lines and drab tones. This is Mom's year for satisfying a little chicly red carpet fantasy of her own! Take your queue from designing leaders like Karen Miller, Scala, Ursula and Cachet. Also look to bride styles for inspiration, who will be more angelic this year in soft fabrics like chiffons and drapings. But don't go overboard. You'll be safe in simple, graceful lines with little frill and appropriate accessories which compliment, rather than compete with, the bride's wedding dress. A perennial favorite for Mom, especially petite moms, is the two piece skirt suit. These separates are popular because each piece can be ordered in different sizes for a more tailored fit.

Your Body

Be comfortable in your own skin, and in your dress. This means understanding your body shape, your natural colors, owning your age, and putting a dash of your personality into your ensemble. iStylista has an excellent blog article on this topic which you don't want to miss.

The author is F Kapri of Venus Shoe, a unique online store specializing in sexy and exotic designer shoes and boots, and Fifi's Lingerie [http://www.fifislingerie.com], a sexy leather lingerie store for sexy men and women.

Choosing Bridesmaids Gifts to Customize

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It is a dream of every girl to wear that beautiful wedding gown while walking down the aisle, wear that very special ring, and see that tall wedding cake. It is normal to plan a wedding carefully, who doesn't? It is one of the most treasured moments of anyone's life, that's why each wedding is chosen for a reason. Choosing who to play as bridesmaids is also another major decision that every bride should make. Usually, bridesmaids are the closest friends of the bride, or they could be family members. The role of those ladies is pivotal, and so to show appreciation for their help and presence, it has been a tradition to offer gifts for them.

Perhaps the most favorite bridesmaids gifts nowadays are those that are made customized with bridesmaids' name or initials. Here is a few ideas to mention:

Engraved Bridesmaids Bracelets

Swarovski crystals are gaining popularity nowadays when it comes to bridesmaids gifts. A bride can choose Swarovski crystal charm bracelets for her bridesmaids as thank you gifts and as keepsake of her wedding. The charm on each bracelet can be engraved with a name or initials of each maid. Also, there are various colors of crystals to choose from, so basically she can create charm bracelets according to the favorite color of the bridesmaids, or choose colors that complement their dresses. Each customized charm bracelet can be packaged in a small beautiful gift box, monogrammed satin, or drawstring bag.

Engraved Jewelry Boxes

Another wonderful keepsake to offer is an engraved jewelry box that sure to delight the bridesmaids. Jewelry boxes come in various options to choose from. There are boxes are made of wood and silver-plated, while other are made of crystal and glass. Great choices of jewelry boxes may have a number of compartments to store pieces in. To customize the boxes, the bride may opt to have the bridesmaids' names or initials be engraved on the gift items. The bridesmaids can safely keep the jewelry they wore during the wedding day in these wonderful customized jewelry boxes that the bride has given them.

Engraved Picture Frames

Pictures can tell a story that more than words can say. The bride may consider engraved picture frames as bridesmaids gifts for her attendants. Those frames are available in almost all kinds of sizes, colors, and shapers. Also, they can be made of wood, silver-plated, crystal, or glass. To customize picture frames, they can be engraved with a name, initials or even a personal message or quote. Finally, it won't look complete without a photo of the bridesmaids. Beforehand, the bride must collect photographs of the bridesmaids to put in the frames. They could be solo photos of each bridesmaid or a group picture.

Customized bridesmaids gifts are widely available online. There are plenty of online stores these days that offer various choices of gifts for attendants that can be customized, from bridesmaids gifts to gifts for flower girl and gifts for maid of honor.

Janet is an author for a variety of lifestyle issues and topics including weddings. If you're looking for personalized tote bags, visit the website Americanbridal.com and browse their extensive collection. Find jewelry gifts to make it extra special!