Norfolk

Guests

The role of the guest is to help give the bride and groom a fantastic day to remember!

If bringing a wedding present on the day, guests should give them to the best man on arrival at the wedding reception. Traditionally at the reception, guests should thank the bride and groom and their parents for inviting them.

Groom's Parents

In the past, the groom’s parents have had little to do with the planning of the wedding but as today’s nuptials are more frequently financed by both families they must be more involved in the preparations.

It is a good idea to invite both sets of parents to get together, firstly to discuss budgets and who will pay for what, and secondly to talk decide what planning responsibilities the groom’s family can take to assist the bride’s family and avoid duplication of tasks.

The Grooms family traditionally pay for:

The rings The groom and best man’s suit The church or register office and marriage licence fees Flowers for the wedding venue and reception Bouquets and buttonholes for the wedding party Transport to church for the groom and best man Going away car for bride and groom Bridesmaid's and best man's gifts First night hotel and honeymoon

 Attendants

 

Bridesmaids will walk behind the bride, her father and the chief bridesmaid as they go down the aisle.

Flower girls normally walk ahead of the bridal party carrying posies of flowers sometimes dropping petals at the bride’s feet.

Pageboys can carry the rings on a cushion to the best man or can hold a long train for the bride.

Chief Bridesmaid

The chief bridesmaid should be on hand to help the bride every step of the way during the planning and during the wedding day. Not only will she have practical duties to attend to but she should also provide support and a shoulder to cry on during what is invariably a stressful time.

Along with organising the hen night, the chief bridesmaid generally accompanies the bride and the bride’s mother to choose the wedding dress and offer an honest but constructive opinion. She will help choose her own dress along with those for any other bridesmaids and attendants.

On the day of the wedding, the chief bridesmaid normally goes with the bride to any hair and make-up appointments and helps her dress. She should also ensure that the bridal cars are going to arrive on time and that the bride is all ready for the honeymoon.

On arrival at the wedding venue, she will attend to the bride by arranging her dress, veil and train and ensuring that other bridesmaids and attendants know what they are doing.

Once the ceremony begins, the chief bridesmaid will ensure the safe keeping of the bride’s bouquet and then accompany the best man down the aisle once the ceremony is complete.

 Bride's Parents 

 

It is the role of the mother to support and help her daughter through the chaotic and exciting stages of planning her wedding. It can be a difficult working arrangement as a mother can often have dreamed of the wedding she would like for her daughter and may be disappointed if her dream doesn’t match that of the bride-to-be.

To avoid conflict, it is best to give mother specific tasks which will keep her involved but allows you to still plan the wedding your way. For example, once the venue, caterers, photographers etc have been chosen, it can be her responsibility to confirm all bookings and be a point of contact.

The father of the bride’s true role comes into play on the day of the wedding when he accompanies her to the venue and walks her down the aisle to her future husband. He, along with the mother of the bride, is the host of the wedding reception and his will be the first speech made after the meal. But on the run up to the wedding he can also be delegated tasks to help both the bride and her mother.

The brides family traditionally pay for:

The bride's dress and going away outfit Announcements in the local paper Bridesmaid’s dresses and accessories Wedding stationery Flowers in the wedding venue and reception venue Transport for the bridal party to and from the ceremony and to the reception The reception venue Reception entertainment Reception food and drinks (normally Champagne or Bucks Fizz) Photography and videography Wedding cake Wedding favours for guests

 Ushers

 

The groom normally chooses the ushers and they can belong to either parties family or be friends. The groom also chooses the style of clothing for the ushers.

The usher’s will show people to their seats and distribute orders of service and hymn books. They should work with the best man to ensure that everyone has transport between venues and knows directions.

The groom normally chooses the ushers and they can belong to either parties family or be friends. The groom also chooses the style of clothing for the ushers.

The usher’s will show people to their seats and distribute orders of service and hymn books. They should work with the best man to ensure that everyone has transport between venues and knows directions.

Bride and Groom

Although a wedding day is possibly the biggest day in a woman’s life, it is also the biggest day for her husband-to-be and these days the responsibilities of planning the perfect wedding falls to both people.

Although the bride will probably take responsibility for co-ordinating and organising the finer details of the wedding, the groom should be jointly responsible for the overall style of wedding. As a couple they will together choose their wedding date, the ceremony venue, be it a church or civil affair, the guest list and the reception venue as well as the photographer, videographer, and caterers.

Individually, the bride has the responsibility of bringing all her and her groom's plans together for the wedding day while the groom has his own list of things to do:

Choose the best man and ushers Organise wedding day transport Buy the rings Book the honeymoon Choose outfits for himself, the best man and ushers Book the first night hotel Help choose gifts for the best man, ushers and bridesmaids Work out his speech for the reception Ensure all bills are settled on the day

 Best Man

 

The best man has a variety of important duties prior to the wedding day. He has the ominous task of arranging the groom's stag night; ensure that a lot of fun is had but that the groom gets home safely and intact!

On the day of the wedding he will accompany the groom to the venue, be in charge of the rings, ensure that the ushers complete their tasks, look after the wedding presents, give his speech toasting the bridesmaids and the happy couple and ensure that the couple’s luggage and wedding car are ready for their departure.

Once the day is over, he must return his and the groom's hired clothes.