Bride Wedding Speech - Why Should I Give One?

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There are several reasons to give a bride wedding speech: To add to the occasion's entertainment, to thank those who helped you make this wonderful day possible, to follow a tradition. Before you even start setting the first words of your wedding speech on paper, stop for a moment and think about your motives for giving a bride wedding speech. Not that you need a certain kind of motivation to write the right speech, but rather, your kind of motivation will flavor the kind of speech you will end up giving.

If entertaining your audience is your main motive, you should go with a funny bride wedding speech. If you are funny and easily pull of jokes, this is a great way to make a lasting impression. Keep the speech short and to the point and lightly move from one funny anecdote to a wedding joke to the next hilarious moment from your past with your brand new husband. Just be careful not to overdo it and not to step on anyone's toes. Funny stops being so if it hurts someone.

You are planning on giving a traditional bride wedding speech. Well, the tradition of the bride speech isn't all that traditional yet. In days gone by the groom would give a speech for the both of them and brides usually wouldn't give any kind of speech at their reception. But that's a thing of the past. Nowadays plenty of brides prepare a speech for their wedding, which most of the time includes thanking everybody who helped make this day possible, and some personal thoughts and anecdotes of your relationship with your new husband.

Your main motivation is to thank everyone involved in your wedding? Then the thankful bride wedding speech would be your way to go. You'll structure your speech around the list of people you'd like to thank. Make sure you include your husband, your parents and in-laws, the wedding party and (if the list doesn't get too long) the people involved in organizing and executing all the details for your wedding. Weave in a funny anecdote or two that might have happened during the preparations, since it's the little mishaps we often remember best about great celebrations and which add the special flavor.

You want to make sure you've got all your bases covered? Then the all-in-one bride wedding speech would be the right way to go. You will mention your husband, how smashing he looks, how much you love him and the special things about your relationship. You will also give thanks where it's due, but keep it on the shorter side here. You will weave in a joke or funny anecdote here or there to keep the whole speech flowing lightly. And most importantly, you'll speak straight from your heart and express how important this day is for you, especially since it's the official starting point for your life-long relationship and happiness with your husband.

So whichever approach you choose, make sure it expresses you as a person and comes from your heart. No elegant and great words can express and show who you are as a few simple and sincere words that let people see who you are and what you think and feel. Keep it simple and fairly short (around 10 minutes should do fine) and enjoy yourself while giving the speech, that way everybody else will enjoy it too.

Felicity Porter's own wedding hasn't been very long ago and she likes to share her own experience with her bride wedding speech and what she's learned in the process about writing wedding speeches with fellow brides to make their stressful preparation times just a little easier. If you'd like some more information on how to get your own bride wedding speech, visit her website.

'Blushing Bride' Hydrangea (PPAF)

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The Next Endless Summer Hydrangea

In 2003, Endless Summer Hydrangea was introduced by Minnesota's Bailey Nurseries and blew the gardening industry away! It blooms on both old and new wood for repeat-blooming color all season long. Since Endless Summer was introduced, three more repeat blooming hydrangeas have been introduced by Zelenka Nurseries - 'Forever & Ever', 'Forever & Ever Double Pink' and 'Forever & Ever Red.' Now, Bailey Nurseries is introducing an Endless Summer derivative - 'Blushing Bride.' This, the fifth of the new repeat blooming hydrangeas, each one distinctly different, was bred from Endless summer by Dr. Michael Dirr, our nation's preeminent woody plant authority. It will have only limited availability this spring.

White Blooms Repeat Throughout the Season

The blooms produced by 'Blushing Bride' are pure white, maturing to a blush pink or blue, depending upon your soil acidity. It has glossy, deep green foliage. 'Blushing Bride' has even faster re-bloom that its parent, Endless Summer. In addition to repeat blooms, 'Blushing Bride' Hydrangea is unusually hardy, at least through Zone 5.

'Blushing Bride' has the incredible repeat blooms that we love. Hydrangeas macrophylla always set their buds reliably in the fall, but these hydrangeas tend to go into the winter with soft and tender tips and that's where the buds are located. Even if the buds survive the late fall frost and winter cold, they start to grow early in the spring and are subject to late spring freezes. As normal Hydrangea macrophyllas do not produce flower buds in the spring and summer, if and when these fall-produced buds die (or are eaten by deer), there will be no bloom that year. On 'Blushing Bride', flower buds are formed not only in the fall, but also in spring and summer. As the 'Blushing Bride' grows, it is continuously forming buds that will flower all season long. Prompt removal of the faded blooms will encourage new growth and even more new blooms.

Planting and Care

'Blushing Bride' Hydrangea will mature at four feet tall by four feet wide, perhaps a little larger. Unlike other Hydrangea macrophyllas which can only be pruned just as the flowers fade, 'Blushing Bride' can be pruned at any time - although late summer is probably still preferable. 'Blushing Bride' prefers moist soil (not wet) in a place with afternoon shade and morning sun. It makes an excellent choice for foundation planting, as a specimen and in shrub or perennial borders.

For best results plant in early spring to late summer.

Plant in well-drained soil. If you desire blooms that age to soft blue, add iron sulphate or garden sulphur; use lime for blooms that age to pink.

Performs best in moist, but not wet, soil. Add Soil Moist if you think the soil is too dry.

Plant so the top of the root ball is a half inch below the surface of the soil.

Prefers an area with morning sun and afternoon shade.

Use a handful of fertilizer at planting and again in early December and early March.

For blooms that will age to blue, use Leaf Gro compost at planting and fertilize with Holly-Tone.

For blooms that will age to pink, use Chesapeake Blue Crab Compost at planting and fertilize with Bulb-Tone.

Hardy in zones 5 to 9.

Click here to view 'Blushing Bride' Hydrangea on the Carroll Gardens website.

What Bridesmaids and Groomsmen Are Suppose to Do at a Ukrainian Wedding?

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If you are going to be a bridesmaid or groomsman at a Ukrainian wedding, I think this story will help you. No one does a rehearsal of a wedding ceremony in the Ukraine, so you had better prepare in advance. Therefore, I want to explain some things about the role of the bridesmaids and groomsmen at a wedding in the Ukraine, especially in Western Ukraine, where I originally come from.

I was a bridesmaid so many times at weddings in the Ukraine that my friends started to joke that I am a professional bridesmaid. Then after a number of prayers "Oh God, send me a husband" I was blessed to have my Big Day and my own bridesmaids.

Usually a Ukrainian bride or groom will ask their closest relatives, such as a sister, brother, cousin, or even a close friend, to be the bridesmaids or groomsmen. The important thing is that the bridesmaids and groomsmen at a wedding in the Ukraine are required to have never been married before. At the time of my wedding, all my relatives were already married but, thank God, I still had two girlfriends who had never married and they agreed to become my bridesmaids.

Speaking about quantity of bridesmaids and groomsmen at a Ukrainian wedding, the most popular number is two of each. In some regions a bride will choose four, six or even eight bridesmaids. At one wedding I was a bridesmaid with four others.

Bridesmaids get a special rank chosen by the Ukrainian bride and groomsmen get a special rank chosen by the groom as well. The ranks are to be first bridesmaid (like a maid of honor) and second bridesmaid; for the groomsmen the ranks are to be first groomsman (like a best man) and second groomsman.

The first bridesmaid and first groomsman perform the most important customs and traditions at a Ukrainian wedding, such as unfolding the ceremonial towel in front of the bride and groom at the church or in a marriage office in the case of a civil marriage. Another custom is the holding of the crowns over the heads of the bride and groom at the church. Most of the traditions at a Ukrainian wedding require the participation of both bridesmaids and groomsmen. They also help the bride and groom with most of the preparations for the wedding. Bridesmaids will purchase corsages for themselves, groomsmen and all the guests but not for the bride and groom. Also the bridesmaids will spend the night with the bride before the wedding. They prepare the bride's wedding attire and then they have a girls' party. The groom and groomsmen have their boys' party too, on the same evening, which is the last bachelors' party for the groom.

Oh, I almost forgot one more important detail about being a Ukrainian bridesmaid or groomsman. What should be worn? Is it required that identical dresses be worn by all the bridesmaids and the same suits worn by the groomsmen? No, they can wear what they wish, preferably a nice gown by the bridesmaid and an elegant suit by the man. If you will be a bridesmaid or groomsman at a traditional Ukrainian wedding, you are expected wear an embroidered shirt which can be purchased at any local market in Ukraine. Also the bridesmaids in Ukraine do not have bouquets as they do in North America or Western Europe, but here a corsage is enough.

Well, now is the Big Day! I have to explain that Ukrainians do not have the tradition of the father giving away the bride, but instead they have many different customs and traditions before the marriage ceremony on the day of the wedding. First of all, the groom along with the groomsmen and the groom's guests, come to the bride's home "to buy the bride" from the bride's guests. This humorous custom takes place near the entrance of the home. When the "purchase" is done, the bride's guests allow to the groom's guests to enter the bride's home.

Next, the bride and bridesmaids bow three times to the groom and groomsmen and the groom and groomsmen perform the same ritual. Then the bride gives a corsage to the groom and the bridesmaids give corsages to the groomsmen. Each groomsman is supposed "to pay" his bridesmaid for the corsage; not in money though, but by some small gift such as a box of chocolates.

After the parents' blessing at the bride's home (another tradition!), the bride and groom are ready to go to the place of the marriage ceremony. If the church is close to the bride's home, the bride and groom and all the guests walk to the place of the ceremony in a procession. The two groomsmen walk with the bride and the two bridesmaids walk with the groom. If the church is too far from the bride's home, the bride and groom will be taken by separate cars as tradition does not allow them to be together on the way to the place of ceremony. The leading car of the wedding procession carries the bride and groomsmen and the second car carries the groom and bridesmaids.

At the entrance to the church, a priest greets the wedding procession and then walks the bride and groom down the aisle. The bridesmaids, groomsmen and all of the guests follow them.

The ceremony now begins. The first bridesmaid and first groomsman will now perform their main rituals. First is the unfolding of an embroidered ceremonial towel onto the floor in front of the bride and groom. The bride and groom then step on the towel. It is a sign, it is said: "Whoever steps on the towel first, will be the boss of the family."

Another very important mission of the first bridesmaid and groomsman is to hold crowns over the heads of the bride and groom. It is a little difficult, because they have to hold the crowns for a long time, for about 20 minutes or so depending on the length of the church service. They can change their hands but must not allow the crowns to fall down! It would mean bad luck for newlyweds.

In some churches, however, the bridesmaid and groomsman do not hold the crowns because the priest puts the crowns directly on the heads of the bride and groom as was done at my own wedding. Then the bride and groom must be very careful not to have their crowns fall off. My husband and I did very well, our crowns stayed on!

When the church ceremony is over, the newlyweds can finally walk together to the reception or they can travel in the same car, if the distance is too far to walk. Now it seems that the job of the bridesmaids and groomsmen is over, but not at a Ukrainian wedding The bridesmaids and groomsmen have to participate in a few more customs at the reception, which is another exciting story.

About the author.

Mariya Klachynska is a freelance journalist. She worked for the local Ukrainian newspapers and online news agencies for many years. Her hobby is matchmaking With help of online dating agency Mariya has found husbands for two her friends-journalists. Mariya is married, she met her husband in Internet too.