Archive for the ‘Groomsmen’ Category

Is the Best Man Required to Pay for the Champagne?

Tuesday, November 23rd, 2010

A reader who wished to remain anonymous – but is nonetheless gorgeous – wrote to ask:

My friend is best man in a wedding and the groom informed him that it’s “tradition” for the best man to pay for the champagne for the wedding reception toasts. I have never heard of this, but apparently it’s the second wedding he’s been best man in, and the second time he’s been told this. Have you heard of this, or are they just trying to offload wedding costs onto the wedding party?

That is truly the oddest “wedding tradition” I have ever heard of!

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For Guys Who Want More Than Roses

Friday, October 22nd, 2010

A rose on the groom’s lapel? *Yawn* No, for real, if roses float your boat, then awesome. But if your groom and the groomsmen are bummed that there aren’t that many ways to express oneself in a suit or tux, you should definitely check out the fun and original boutonnieres at Fritts Rosenow Bespoke Boutonnieres.

These are just some ideas to get your mind racing – and who knew that boutonnieres could be so creative? Fritts Rosenow Bespoke Boutonnieres will create a set of custom boutonnieres based on just about anything… gambling, Star Wars, boating, you name it!

LOVE/HATE: The ‘Badassery’ Edition

Thursday, September 23rd, 2010

We all like to poke a bit of fun here at the bridal models who glare into the camera, sniff their pits, contort themselves into positions you need a chiro to get out of, and wait around hotel lobbies. But what about the real couples and attendants who do similarly strange things in actual wedding photos? I thought it would be fun in upcoming editions of LOVE/HATE to take a look at some popular poses struck and facial expressions adopted by bridesmaids, groomsmen, bridesmen, groomsmaids, brides, and grooms.

The inspiration for this little series was the hugely popular badassery snapshot where everyone looks angrily into the camera with expressions that say “Why the #$%@ are you taking my picture?” and “You want a piece of me? Do ya?”

Or even “You’ve trapped me in this dungeon and I am very angry at you.”

So what you think of all the camera glaring, angry mug making, PO’ed looking brides, grooms, and attendants appearing in wedding albums these days? I kind of hate it, but I’m also one of those folks who has a big grin in my passport photo and on my license. I like a big goofy grin more than I do a pout. How about you?

(Images via: ? and Ed Pingol)

Groomsmen: Fit to Be Tied

Tuesday, September 21st, 2010

Since Bridesmaids’ Week has come and gone, I thought it might be nice to throw all the groomsmen a bone, since if we don’t talk about bridesmaids nearly enough, we hardly talk about their male counterparts at all! Now the groom can dress his groomsmen (or the bride can dress her bridesmen) in anything he pleases, but the fact is that groomsmen in the wild are often seen sporting neck ties.

Plain black or some other coordinating color will always be a popular choice, but I thought I’d gently suggest that grooms and brides consider ties with patterns for the men of the wedding party. Why? First, because we spend so much time obsessing over the bridesmaids’ dresses and usually don’t give nearly as much thought to the attire worn by the dudes. Second, because there aren’t a lot of ways for grooms and groomsmen to have fun with fashion while staying in formal suite territory. And third, because there are some truly awesome ties for groomsmen out there! Check it:

The Pi tie is from Wild Ties while all the rest are from Cyberoptix Tie Lab, maker of fine ties featuring bombs, exhaust systems, engines, and other awesome patterns. For real, you can have a lot of fun with groomsmen’s ties.

And shoes, for that matter! I’m loving this shot from A Bryan Photo of groomsmen wearing sneakers that were painted by the groom.

What are your groomsmen wearing? Anything out of the ordinary?

Phase 1: Collect Underpants Phase 2: ? Phase 3: Profit!

Friday, September 17th, 2010

We may have just found out what Phase 2 ought to be!

In the spirit of yesterday’s post about the games people play at wedding receptions, here’s a snapshot from a Chinese wedding that placed eighth in the 2009 BRIDES Magazine and WPJA (Wedding Photojournalism Association) Photo Contest in the customs/culture category. It apparently captures the heretofore unknown custom of having the groom and groomsmen don ladies underthings before the wedding ceremony.

Kidding! The manties in this pic are actually part of the tradition wherein the Chinese groom and his groomsmen will do embarrassing or silly things (like sing and dance in frilly underpants) before the bride’s attendants will release her to them. But still, groomsmen donning panties. I kind of wish The Beard, his bestie, and my brother had done something similar before my wedding!

You Can Dance If You Want To (But You Shouldn’t Have To)

Friday, September 10th, 2010

On this, the final day of bridesmaids week – hey, it was a five-day business week – I wanted to address a tradition that I know for a fact makes at least some people a little uncomfortable. I know this because I am one of those people. Specifically, I am talking about the tradition of having all of the wedding attendants, bridesmaids and groomsmen, bridesmen and groomsmaids, dance with one another at some point during the whole first dance, father-daughter dance, mother-son dance string of scheduled formal dancing. It’s actually considered a tad passé to ask the attendants to have a go on the dance floor, but you still see it occasionally at some wedding receptions.

Since this tradition seems to be dying out anyway, there’s really no need for me to put it down, I suppose. But just in case there are any otherwise happy bridesmaids out there reading this who are dreading the thought of slow dancing with some friend of the groom they have never seen or sniffed, I thought I’d share my three reasons for not particularly liking the attendants’ dance. As I see it, this old tradition is…

1. Awkward: While I actually wish that there were more opportunities for social dancing that included switching partners in a platonic, fun way, I still think that having to cut a rug with someone you may find icky while 75+ people look on is just plain weird. It’s one thing to dance with an unfamiliar partner – one who may never have heard of Arthur Murray or mouthwash – and quite another to do it on demand while a photographer circles the dance floor. And if you’re a young junior bridesmaid, it’s even weirder.

2. Boring: So now the wedding guests have sat through the first dance, the father-daughter dance, and the mother-son dance, and perhaps the bride and groom also invited their grandparents up for a waltz. Even if you edited your chosen songs down, you’re still potentially talking about a good quarter of an hour’s worth of dancing on display that the guests have to sit through while they wait for the refreshments.

3. Ineffective: If the bride or groom’s goal is to get people to shake their booties, there are easier ways to do it, like hiring a good DJ or leading by example and shaking it themselves. Because, really, I think that wedding guests can sense the awkwardness of the attendants’ dance, and I don’t know anyone particularly inspired by embarrassment.

I’d recommend that any bridesmaids like myself who aren’t keen on dancing with a random groomsman and suspect that the bride is considering an attendants’ dance at the reception suggest letting all of the enrelationshipped attendants dance with their SOs and then, halfway through the dance, inviting other couples to join them for a special slow dance. Or better yet, suggest that the marrying couple not force their wedding guests to sit through one more spotlit dance.

Now I have to ask: Bridesmaids and former bridesmaids, have you ever found yourself on the parquet in the arms of someone just awful because you were obliged to participate in an attendants’ dance?

(Image via BeDazzled Photography)

LOVE/HATE: The ‘Mustachioed Mamas’ Edition

Thursday, September 9th, 2010

Two years ago, Offbeat Bride declared that mustaches were hot. That may have been, but the fervor either hasn’t cooled or the trend has come around again or mustaches are just now making their way into the mainstream. Because you know what? I am seeing more and more mustache wedding gear, from the recently posted mustache wedding stationery set to wedding pictures that feature everyone from the bride and groom right on down the line wearing fake ‘staches.

Being that it’s bridesmaids week here at Manolo for the Brides, I had to, of course, find a snap of bridesmaids sporting the mustache look. (And now, of course, I can’t find the photo source so if anyone happens to know, speak up.) I personally am pretty cool when it comes to being silly – act my shoe size? No prob! – and I love the idea of asking people to participate in zany reception activities. But I know plenty of people out there endeavor to be way more dignified in their daily lives than yours truly. So I want to hear from bridesmaids: Should brides and grooms take those folks into account when they ask their attendants to play dress up in the wedding pics? Or since bridesmaids and groomsmen technically have the right to say nay, is it okay to require that props be used in the photos?