Receiving engagement gifts serves as a delightful gesture for most couples. It is an indication of support to their future union as husband and wife. Therefore, choosing the appropriate gift for the couple can be a stressful idea. The type of gift exists in many different variations depending on the kind and level of relationship of the gift giver with the engaged couple. An ideal gift to best suit them should be of equal benefits and for long term use.

These gifts may include:

Home gifts

The fact that the couple will soon be moving in the same house together to start their married life, it is practical to give them present that they can use upon moving in. Stuffs like picture frames, paintings, linens and beddings, cookware and other kitchen items, figurines and different design of center table tops. These gift ideas will best suit the couple.

Romantic Gifts

For the reason that the couple are still savoring the glorious moment of their engagement, it is best to give them something that will heat up the romance between them. They would surely choose to spend time together, giving them a couple's massage gift certificate, concert ticket for two, and dinner ticket for two are some of the perfect romantic engagement gift ideas.

Wedding Planner Books/Guides

While it is a reality that oftentimes, the planning and preparation of every single detail regarding the wedding were handled by the bride, some grooms take their part with the preparation. With this thing, giving them wedding planner books/guides will greatly
assist the couple to start the planning process.

Artworks

An engagement gift does not always require being a wedding related present. Paintings that can be hanged on the wall, sculptures as display and cross stitch products are ideally recommendable to fit the couple.

Photo album

Pictures are the most important engagement gift ideas the couple can possibly have to treasure the memorable events of their engagement party and the wedding. Giving them photo album will help them keep those pictures intact, organized and always prepared whenever the couple wants to reminisce those special moments of their lives.

The best engagement gift ideas are those that allow the couple experience love and romance together while enjoying that special moment of their lives. Although there is no specific rule for gift giving during an engagement party, still, the idea is the best expression of showing support to the couple's future bonding as husband and wife.

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It is possible to have inexpensive and high quality bridal shower invitations. There are several ways that you can buy the most gorgeous invitations for your bridal shower without spedning a lot of money.

To achieve this, you really should know some tricks and you must be prepared to do a little work. However, you will be rewarded with a cheaper high quality, high end product. Isn't that worth a little bit of your time and work?

Option 1: Make your bridal shower invitations

This option for acquiring cheap shower invitations is not for everyone. In actual fact, only people with creative skills that are willing to work can choose this option.

In spite of that, there are lots of software programs that can be cheaply purchased online that can considerably lower the cost of bridal invitations. It is worth remembering that you can also find semi pre-made invitations. That means that you only need to print off the information inside the invitation and you are done. In any way, option 1 does cut the price down.

Option 2: Find your bridal shower invitations

This is much better option. There is no doubt that finding cheap bridal invitations is something you can do. But, to get the quality you want, take into account these things.

To begin with, spend some time in researching them. This is a simple process in which you move from one website to another. This way you will be able to compare features and prices rapidly.

Next, you can buy them in bulk. You can save a lot of money if you will be purchasing the bridal shower invitations and the wedding invitations at the same time. If you know the details of your wedding in advance, this is a fanatic way to get everything together on time.

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1. Use free media and the internet

You can borrow wedding/bridal books and magazines from friends, work colleagues and public libraries. Check for local wedding suppliers on the web, where you will be able to find details on the larger and smaller specialist wedding companies in your local area.

Visit free-to-enter wedding fairs, as the prospective customer why should you be expected to pay an admission fee to view their stands? Ask lots of questions and obtain quotes without making any firm commitments at the time, giving you a chance later to review all of the offerings and make your choices without any sales pressure - you'll be amazed at the price variations for supplying identical services.

Bear in mind that the larger wedding fairs will be charging high fees to the wedding suppliers who attend. This will have two consequences for YOU, firstly, it will exclude many of the smaller, but equally good quality, local wedding suppliers who cannot justify the wedding fair expenditure and secondly, you have to ask who is ultimately paying for these high exhibition fees? YOU ARE!...and then many of these larger wedding fair operators have the cheek to expect you to pay an entry fee as well!

2. Use Online Auctions and e-Bay

Many of the items that you need for your wedding are available on e-Bay at a fraction of the price charged by many wedding vendors. Cake toppers, favors, balloons, new and used-once wedding dresses along with a host of other useful items that can save you a lot of money. Do your shopping well ahead of the wedding date to allow plenty of postal time. Check for the established and trusted sellers by checking the number of items they have sold previously and their feedback rating and you can't go far wrong.

3. Food and Drinks For Your Wedding Reception

Ask your caterer for advice and be honest with them about your wish to save money. Discuss with the caterer the options that are available to you, maybe considering a hot buffet if that is cheaper than a formal seated three course meal. Enquire about providing your own drinks for your guests, or providing your own wine to accompany the meal.

You should carefully consider the bar arrangements as this can have a considerable cost. If you intend to provide a free bar, then ask about restricting this to only wine and beer, which will be cheaper. You may also wish to consider having the (free) bar open for a restricted period of time, an hour for example - or dispense with the free bar completely if you are supplying the wine for the meal and wedding toasts, etc.

4. Reduce The Wedding Guest List

Each name on your guest list is an increase in the cost of your wedding. It's not just the catering cost that will increase, but also the table decoration, favors, rentals you may need and even the size of the room you need to hire. Avoid being lavish with issuing wedding invitations, don't be pressured to invite all of your work colleagues and be selective over who's children you invite - each child will probably cost you just as much as an adult on the wedding day.

Remove anyone from your guest list that you haven't had contact with in the past few years and don't bow to pressure to invite distant relatives. When you invite friends and relatives who are single, resist the temptation to include "and guest" on their invitation, they are attending your wedding, not out on a date paid for by you.

5. Revise The Day and Time

Saturday is the most popular day to hold a wedding, so suppliers and venues are likely to be booked and they have little incentive to reduce their prices. However, if you choose to have your wedding midweek, or on a Sunday, there is less demand for these days. Wedding suppliers will have fewer bookings for these days and will be more inclined to quote you better prices in the hope of additional work. If your wedding is timed for early in the day you may be able to secure a better rate from wedding car suppliers, as their vehicles can be used later for a second wedding or evening transportation jobs.

6. Shop Around For Wedding Cars

The wedding cars are a major part of your wedding day. If you are fortunate enough to know someone who owns a luxury car that you would like to use, you may be able to persuade them to provide it for your wedding as their wedding present to you.

If you are hiring a wedding car, it certainly pays to shop around various suppliers and various vehicle types. Don't assume that all wedding car suppliers have the same rates, they don't - and don't assume that a cheaper quote means an inferior car. Go along and view the wedding cars, ask questions and don't be afraid to negotiate, some companies have lower operating costs than others and some will have fewer bookings for your wedding date than others, so discounts may be available.

There is the possibility that wedding car suppliers will try to get you to hire two cars, for the groom and for the bride. Ask if there is sufficient time for one wedding car to make more than one journey, there generally is as the groom needs to be at the wedding venue much earlier than the bride.

7. Flowers and Floral Arrangements

If you know someone who is trained in flower arranging or has a flair for it, then it may be worth considering asking them to provide your floral arrangements for the wedding. Alternatively, obtain quotes from several local florists and view their previous work before making your final decision.

If you have a church wedding service planned, then bear in mind that you will not be using the church and the wedding reception venue at the same time. You can score an economy by simply asking friends to take the flowers from the church after the service and displaying them at your reception so you get more use from them.

8. The Wedding cake

The age-old tradition of having rich fruit wedding cakes is passing, so you may want to consider having only the top tier of your cake made of rich fruit cake, with the other tiers made from sponge cake. If you do not intend to keep the top tier after the wedding, then you could have the whole cake made in sponge, or dispense with a top tier completely.

Do you know someone who is good at baking cakes or cake decoration? You could ask them to provide your wedding cake as their wedding gift, or maybe purchase plain white iced sponge cakes from a supermarket and have them decorate them for your wedding cake. Rented cake stands are available should you need them.

9. Professional Wedding Planner

It's your wedding, you know what you want, you know your budget, so why would you want to allocate a percentage of your wedding day spend to a wedding planner? Planning and arranging your own wedding is fun and a memorable achievement. Unless you are a big celebrity, professional footballer or huge personality (in which case you probably wouldn't be looking for money saving tips!) then handling all of the planning and bookings for your wedding day is a satisfying and economic task to undertake.

10. Restrict The Number Of Bridesmaids

Most brides dream of a big fairytale wedding, gliding down the aisle in a long flowing wedding dress supported by flower girls, page boys and lots of bridesmaids to meet her Prince Charming. But reality is often different! Before you make a list of all the candidates for your bridal entourage pause a while and consider the cost of doing so.

Each individual bridesmaid will add a cost to your wedding. Each will need a dress, shoes and accompaniments, each will need to be included in rehearsals and rehearsal dinner, hen night, etc. and each, of course, will need to be catered for at your reception. Just a few, maybe two or three, bridesmaids will give you a small intimate group and your special invitation to them will be far more meaningful.

For your wedding day, apply the K.I.S.S rule: Keep It Simple and Stylish. It's YOUR special day, have it YOUR way - and ENJOY IT!

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Have you been hearing this term but haven't had the nerve to ask what it is? Then you'll be glad to know that the groom's cake is our topic today. We definitely want all you engaged couples up to date on the current trends for weddings.

The Groom's cake is actually not a new concept but may be unheard of where you live. It is said to have been created by French bakers in order that the wedding cake, which traditionally was broken over the newly wed couple's head, could stay intact. They used the groom's cake instead. Later, the breaking of the cake evolved into the slicing of the cake. This change resulted in the groom's cake becoming less popular as its purpose faded.

The groom's cake has now enjoyed a resurgence of its popularity. Many brides now wish to acknowledge the uniqueness of their grooms with these cakes. These cakes after all reflect not the bride's taste but that of the groom.

No longer is it necessary to stick to the traditional fruit or chocolate cake. Groom's cakes can be made in the groom's favorite flavor. If his favorite is lemon, that can be arranged.

Even the look of the groom's cake is all his. Some groom's cakes use the basic cake shape and just use a cake topper to reflect the groom's special interest. Other cakes are actually shaped to match the groom's special preferences. There are cakes that are football shaped, shaped like a stadium, shaped like cars, shaped like an ambulance... the list goes on. There are as many choices of cake designs as there are grooms. All you really need is a great imagination and a great baker.

Who chooses the groom's cake? There really isn't any hard and fast rule on this. Some brides are the ones who select this, hoping to show their new husbands how much they know them. The design therefore is kept secret until the big day.

Other couples prefer that the groom make the selection. After all it is his cake. He should have a cake that he loves taste, looks and all.

When do you serve the groom's cake? The groom's cake can be served at his stag party. It can be served at the rehearsal dinner. It can be served at the wedding. It can even be served to the wedding party as they relax now that the wedding reception is completely finished.

You may want to follow the other tradition of the groom's cake. The groom's cake isn't a big cake. Traditionally it is meant to be sliced and placed in boxes, which are then given to all the unmarried ladies attending the wedding. The slice of cake is meant to be placed under their pillow so that they will dream of their groom (whoever it shall be).

Tradition aside, the cake makes for a great alternative dessert to the wedding cake. It can also be a great souvenir of the wedding. So, more cake anyone?

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There are a number of business and recreational reason why you need specialty paper. This type of printable paper may be used for a variety of purposes, including some great crafts. Scrapbooking, doing origami, even creating custom coloring books, all involve the use of specialty paper.

Scrapbooking is a great way to capture and preserve memories, especially since it involves multiple forms of media in combining writing and photographs. There is a vast, eclectic selection of specialty paper for scrapbooking from which to choose. The appropriate paper depends on your personal tastes and its intended purpose.

Using specialty paper for scrapbooking allows you to express a creative outlet and work in different mediums. There are no rules to scrapbooking; a scrapbook simply enables you to preserve a number of mementos. Scrapbooking is a marvelous way to preserve tangible memories such as letters, postcards, ticket stubs, and photographs.

Scrapbooking is a very relaxing pastime and there is a certain beauty to it. Scrapbooks do not need to look like Victorian relics; vibrant colors and bold design patterns are very popular in all aspects of scrapbooking, although, classic designs also remain popular.

When you shop for specialty paper for scrapbooking, you need to look for variety; having multiple paper options will allow you to choose paper that is appropriately festive or demure, depending on the nature of the keepsakes that you are saving. Vibrantly colored pages effectively offset custom stock sheets, such as the type that is used for wedding invitations. Pages with muter tones complement vibrantly colored items, such as playbills.

Origami is the ancient Japanese art of paper folding. It has varying levels of difficulty and requires different skill ranges. Basic origami is simple and straightforward, but advanced origami is complex and detail-oriented. The art of origami is best expressed with origami paper, which is a type of specialty paper. This specialty paper is available in two primary sizes and comes in many colors. To practice origami, you need to begin by making simple designs, such as paper boats, before you eventually progress to more complicated projects, such as paper cranes. Origami encourages dexterity and is a great skill to develop throughout your life.

Coloring is scientifically proven to be a therapeutic act. Coloring books are not just for children; sophisticated stained glass coloring books appeal to adults as well. Stained glass coloring books feature perforated translucent specialty paper that may be easily removed from the binding. When you hang a completed page on a window, sunlight is filtered through the colored portions, which makes it function like an actual stained glass window.

If you are looking for a coloring activity to do with a child, consider making your own coloring book sheets from home photographs. Certain websites enable you to upload photos into programs that strip them of color; you then may print them out on the appropriate printable paper and color within the lines, like you do with an actual coloring book.

Specialty paper is an essential component to many relaxing activities. Although some hobbies may seem childish, these pursuits are suited for accompanying you into and through adulthood.

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Titanium has a lot of good characteristics that make it suitable for jewelry. It is stronger, harder, wears better and wont deform. It is also lighter and its colorful oxide coating is immune to time.

However, like all kinds of jewelry, titanium rings will get surface scratches or scuffs with everyday use. Storing a titanium ring in a big drawer is a bad idea since it may acquire scratches as it rubs against other items. These scratches will be noticeable in a new ring. Oil and dirt can also temporarily dull its color.

To protect your investment, remove your ring during activities that may make it prone to abrasion or hard knocks. In fact, don't wear any kind of ring at the gym, when gardening, playing sports, or at the beach. Small scratches in polished titanium can be removed with a cream metal polish. Use a soft towel to do this and remove polish residue with liquid dish soap.

Since abrasives can gradually wear away the surface coloring, don't use harsh chemicals to clean your ring. Avoid metal polishes or scrubbing soaps since these have abrasives that may scrub away the sub-micron thick color layer. Instead use rubbing alcohol, window cleaner, or non-moisturizing soap and water and a soft cloth to remove dulling dirt and oils.

Anodized products are best cleaned with warm soapy water then dried with a soft tissue. This will restore the rings optical purity and color. Clean a satin finished ring with a fine nylon pad that you can easily get from auto shops or hardware stores to restore the soft brushed finish. Don't rub the pad over anodized color surfaces or you will ruin the color.

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If you plan to secure your wedding entertainment any time soon, finding out that they are covered by your wedding insurance policy is vital. One of the most important vendors for your wedding day is your wedding band, disc jockey, or music providers. Of all of the different parts of your one and only wedding day, it is your MC, DJ, band, etc. that will either make or break the overall success of your reception. Take a minute to contemplate the following: Will your relatives & guests bail out early because the flowers don't go with the rest of the d矇cor? Will your guests get bored because they dislike how your wedding dress fits you? Will your guests start looking at their watches to see if it's too early to leave because of the room's illumination, the cake, the hors d'oeuvres, the linens, the style of bridesmaid dresses, or even the photographer? Of course not! But if the disc jockey is really, really bad or the band is not entertaining, you can bet people will be stepping on it to tell you congrats so they can quit being bored and go.

Having wedding insurance probably won't cover you if your DJ is horrendous, so that is why it's important to book a true professional right up front. What else is very critical is that your wedding DJ or band has wedding liability insurance. This will protect you in case one of their speakers smashes up the place or if the music is so terrible it disintegrates someone's eardrum and they need eardrum surgery. I'm joking here, but it would be a tragedy if someone got hurt due to the entertainment and you got a case brought against you.

One thing you can make sure of is that your wedding insurance policy will cover you if your band or DJ/MC pulls a no-show, wreck their car on the way to the reception, or if an important member flakes. Without your disc jockey, you might be able to use the speakers at the hall to play some nice and quiet background music during dinner. After everyone eats, though, there wouldn't be any dancing or fun so your wedding celebration would simply become a wedding dinner. Everyone would make for the door as soon as the cake was served. Having wedding insurance coverage should allow you to recover not only the money for the disc jockey and/or band, but even more for your guests leaving extremely early!

Another consideration is to have a back up plan for your band or disc jockey. You probably can't afford to have two separate DJ companies on hold for your special day, but knowing where to look in case of an emergency is a good idea. While searching for your entertainment, keep the contact information for all of the companies you contact. If it turns out your number one choice isn't going to work out, you can call your other leads to see if they still have your wedding date uncommitted. You can also check out your local associations, like the ADJA (American Disc Jockey Association) and keep their website within reach. Some carry an emergency phone number just in case a band member runs into issues and can't make it to your reception. No matter what, your wedding insurance should kick in to cover your losses if you have issues with your entertainment.

Again, your entertainment is the only part of your wedding day that will either make your reception incredible or ruin it by being dreadful or even nonexistent. Put the best in place. Obviously, this is the area you DON'T WANT TO skimp on! You can spend $75,000 on all the other aspects of your wedding, but if your DJ or band is less than professional (or just plain bad, for that matter), your people will leave early and all that time and investment will be squandered. You can always be a penny-pincher with your entertainment if you have wedding insurance since you'll be covered anyway, but why put it all on the line?

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From a wedding Photographers point of view one of the most important shots of the day is an excellent confetti shot. And it's easy to achieve this with a little bit of organisation and help from the photographer.

Buy why do we throw confetti at the bride and groom, and where did the custom originate? The word confetti originates from the Italian word for confectionary and it was very likely to consist of sweets and almonds. We use sweets and almonds as wedding favours today, and at Jewish weddings it is common to throw sweets at the bride and groom.

The Assyrians believed that rice, grain and other seeds thrown over the newly married couple would mean that the marriage would be as fruitful as the grain. The Egyptians also believed this and threw rice in the hope that not only would the marriage produce children, but also success in married life. The Hebrews would also throw grain and seeds, and depending on the social status of the couple they would throw more exotic material such as petals if the couple were wealthy or had wealthy parents.

The Italians also believed that 'coriandoli' or coriander seeds would wish the couple well and help produce many children, particularly boys, from the marriage.

Throwing rice was a pagan tradition in many ancient cultures, and today we also throw petals, paper, silver and gold foil, shredded coconut and in some modern cultures folded paper airplanes.

Throwing confetti at weddings is a great way to signify the end of the ceremony and the beginning of the party. Most Registry Offices encourage brides and grooms to have their guests throw confetti outside, and by the end of a busy Saturday the steps are almost ankle deep in rose petals and coloured paper and foil. Some churches are a little more strict on what they have to end up sweeping up after the wedding guests have left, and often make an announcement at the beginning of the ceremony about what is allowed. In my experience dried petals are generally ok.

For the best confetti photographs get your guests to line up either side of you and ask them to throw it up into the air not directly at the bride and groom. Get the throwers to throw several handfuls at 5-10 second intervals but not the whole bag at once!

For more information on Weddings and Wedding photography go to http://www.weddingphotographerslondon.uk.com/

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Planning a wedding might sometimes be tedious to the individuals involved, so more and more couples are actually using wedding party or event coordinators to take the tension of the wedding party planning from off their back. Just about every details which includes wedding invitations is taken care of by these kinds of coordinators to make a couple's wedding day wonderful for each of them.

Generally, wedding invites that are posted out to attendees set the tone as well as the theme for the marriage ceremony. Young couples may choose to incorporate specific tones to the wedding invitations to create a more individual touch or simply create the designs themselves, consulting with the planners to create exclusive and custom-made wedding invitations that get noticed.

The venue of the wedding itself actually has an impact on the overall look and text of the invites, and the engaged couple should also have some input in regards to what they desire. They may wish to incorporate certain key phrases that are important to both, or possibly a distinctive line of poetry or biblical saying. If a marriage ceremony is to take place in less formal surrounds, then the wording of the invitations should also follow along the same line. This is actually giving the attendees a perception of what to anticipate in the proper wedding ceremony, and also provides a clue on just what they ought to be expected to wear.

Considering that marriage ceremonies are extra special occasions, the card stock utilized in wedding stationery must be unique too. Numerous events professionals have partnered with printers to create quality-made paper used specifically for marriage ceremonies and other great occasions. When the phrasing and the paper have been dealt with, wedding invitations will then be printed in advance; occasionally several weeks, prior to the wedding ceremony to permit additional time for posting them out and waiting for invitee response.

For partners who don't have enough money to employ the service of a wedding coordinator to take care of the function and make wedding stationery, there are numerous manufacturers that provide bundle deals for a specific quantity of wedding invitations. Regarding the design, couples might either decide to seek the help of a printer to pick from layouts, or they might search on-line for wedding invitation tips. You can find a lot of information that could be tapped when looking for designs and invite themes. The key to creating an invite is always to keep it neat and stylish irrespective of where the wedding ceremony is to occur.

Since wedding invites are a vital component of planning a marriage ceremony, it should therefore be given the consideration that it requires. Wedding Stationery should be sufficient in quantity to make certain that no visitor is left out of the ceremony, and should, if needed, include a request for the guest to decline or accept the invitation.

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Are you looking for wedding anniversary scrapbooking ideas to help you create a unique gift for a special couple for their anniversary? This article has many simple ideas that you can use to create a wonderful and lasting wedding anniversary gift.

One of the most important wedding anniversary scrapbooking ideas you can use for an anniversary scrapbook is to have the couple's wedding picture on either the first or last page of the scrapbook.

A copy of the wedding invitation makes a really great introduction to the scrapbook. A scrapbook makes a creative anniversary gift for any anniversary year, but it is particularly effective for milestones such as; first anniversary, silver, diamond or golden anniversaries. For the 25th, 50th or 60th wedding anniversaries, you can start the scrapbook with the wedding photo.

Other scrapbooking ideas you can use are:


  • Photos of the couple during each year of their marriage


  • Photos of the couple's family at various stages of growth


  • Photos of memorable occasions, such as weddings of the children


  • Photos of the couple with their grandchildren


  • Photos of trips and vacations


Wedding scrapbooking ideas, for the first year of marriage could include:


  • Photos of the planning done for the wedding


  • Copy of the wedding service


  • Place cards


  • Bridal registry


  • List of gifts received


  • Ribbons to represent colors used in the wedding


  • Wedding favors that was used


  • Notes about planning mishaps


You can also include the following in the Wedding anniversary scrapbook:


  • Pressed flowers


  • Napkins


  • Christmas pictures of the couple together


  • Letters and notes that the couple has written funny scenes from their lives together


  • Invitation to the anniversary party


  • Photos of the party

The colors you choose for embellishing the scrapbook should represent the year of the anniversary. For example, 25th anniversary is silver, 50th is gold and 60th is diamond. The colors used in other wedding anniversary scrapbooking ideas could be the colors the couple chose to have at their wedding or their own favorite colors.

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