A reader e-mailed last week asking me for some advice. She’s an excited second-time bride and wanted a few tips on how to include her children and her fiancé’s in the ceremony (great idea to make everyone in this new extended family feel important) and whether or not she could wear a white or ivory gown (definitely yes, but I told her she can also consider a pretty shade of blue, pink, yellow or peach.) She also wanted to know what the etiquette is on registering for gifts. Well, the etiquette says that second-time brides can register and have bridal showers. Now, considering that it’s 11 years since her first wedding I imagine that she has some new friends, co-workers and certainly relatives of her groom’s family who will happily give gifts. But what about some of those guests who may have attended her first wedding? I’m curious: Do you think it’s OK to expect them to give gifts again at another shower? Have you ever been invited to a bridal shower for a second-time bride and if so, did you resent having to purchase gifts? I’d love to get your feedback because I’m sure there’s a lot of different opinions out there.
That said, I should note that this particular bride was very concerned about not offending anyone and didn’t want to do anything that smacked of looking too greedy. In fact, whenever I read your e-mails (and I do try to answer all of them, honest!) I find that you are the opposite of the stereotypical “bridezilla”. You want everything to run smoothly and hope your family and friends have a blast at your wedding. You don’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings and you try to soothe ruffled feathers. So, here’s to you for your concerns and consideration and efforts to please the masses (although it’s not always possible so don’t fret!)
One last note: today we started our planning meetings for our May/June 2009 issue. Over several weeks, I conduct a marathon of meetings with all of the editors (today Travel Editor, Jenna Mahoney, and Senior Associate Editor, Elena Mauer, presented their story lineups. (I’m so excited about their ideas but don’t want to reveal too much so more on that later.) Anyway, it’s hard to believe that ’08 is barely over and we’re halfway through 2009 in bridal magazine land. But planning these stories and brainstorming on how to give you the most timely and useful and exciting information is what we love to do so do let me know if there are some topics you’d love to read about in Bridal Guide and we’ll get them on the lineup pronto! Until next time… Diane
Posted by Diane at 4:21 p.m.
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