The Contemporary Indian Bride is in a rich red dress with henna and bindi detail while the traditional groom is dressed in his sherwani. Use as a set, or co-ordinate with our Contemporary Indian Bride and Groom or any of our other Mix and Match cake toppers.

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It’s a game! No, it’s a keepsake! It’s somethingtotally new! Gamesakes are occasion-oriented board games that family and friends create. Once created, the Gamesake becomes a keepsake game to be played by the creators or a special honoree. Wedding Gamesake is a unique substitute to the dated guest book. Its a game that friends and family create during the wedding festivities for the bride and groom to play on their honeymoon or 50th anniversary. Once completed, the couple has the story of their lives!

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Each year, millions of couples wed, and millions of relationships – involving brides, grooms, families, and friends-are undermined by power struggles, fights, and stress before the large event arrives. Often overrun by others’ demands, couples may be too exhausted to experience the outpouring of love meant for them. Now savvy brides and grooms can turn to The Smart Couple’s Guide to the Wedding of Your Dreams for a new and personally empowering perspective. Written specifically for the couple, this book encourages and supports both the bride and groom in exploring their deepest dreams for what they want throughout their entire wedding journey–from engagement through the honeymoon. Illustrated by almost 150 real-life wedding stories contributed by brides, grooms, and couples–some that took place in small backyards, some on mountain tops; one at $600, another at more than a million–each chapter walks you through easy, practical steps that help you mak (more…)

From Booklist

Never have the to-be bride and groom had so many options for personalizing their wedding day–and for saving bucks. Michaels (as in, yes, the stores) to the rescue. Fifty-plus projects, ranging from decorated cakes to scrapbook pages, will fill the days between the announcement and “I do.” Here, editor Kopp has wisely divided the embellishments into five different decorating styles–glamorous, pink, modern pastels, whimsical, and modern bold. In each section, there is at least one wedding cake, one invitation, one thank-you note (here’s to etiquette, at last!), among other items to fashion. Complete instructions, color photographs, a frequent tip (like craft stores do sell embossed invitation kits . . . duh!), and five galleries of quick-and-easy projects for last-minute needs. Who could resist a polka-dot daisy cake or a pearl-trimmed thank-you note? Generous credit to the seven designers, however, doesn’t mask one issue: fondant icing is difficult for exp (more…)

Amazon.com Review
Both charming and demure, this Forever Yours bride and groom figurine is at home on top of a wedding cake or in a collection of keepsakes on the family mantle. The delicately detailed pair dances together on a cobblestone platform below a pointed lattice arch. The bride wears a full-skirted gown and veil, while the groom wears a dapper tuxedo. Both feature platinum accents on their wedding finery, detailed down to little porcelain rings. Crafted from fine china, the piece comes with a protective, gleaming glaze. An excellent engagement or wedding gift, it measures 4-1/8 by 2-3/4 by 5-1/2 inches. –Emily Bedard

This ivory china keepsake is a beautiful reminder of their wedding day celebration. Here, a bride and groom enjoy their traditional first dance under a pierced archway. The figurine is trimmed with precious platinum accents.

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You know the drill.  The ceremony is exciting and fun and full of joy, some tears and plenty of meaning as the bride and groom kiss and become one family.  Then it’s all over and everybody files out to go to the reception to dance, have cake and celebrate this union.  But wait, the whole proceeding has to grind To a haltwhile the photographer stages the wedding party for as long as an hour or more to “recreate” the ceremony and make those perfect wedding photos.  Meanwhile the reception may be getting underway and many of the guests that the bride or the groom or others in the family want to hug and share the joy with may have to go because they just can’t wait out a fussy photographer.

Somehow this complete disruption to the day has become accepted as just part of what the wedding day is all about.  And the worst part about it is that the photographs, while nice and well staged, look like a bunch of mannequins being arranged for a store window.  The joy and fun of the ceremony is over.  For decades to come everybody will say they are beautiful and meaningful but if you look closely the wedding party looks nervous, uncomfortable, bored and like they wish they were somewhere else.

Well maybe its time to throw that tradition out and put some creativity into how the wedding pics and the wedding photographer works in your wedding.  By finding a photographer who will put together some wedding pictures that have some style, some creativity and some sense of inventiveness, you’ll have that wedding album that really is full of memories worth remembering.

To get that kind of photographer, you’re going to have tobegin early.  You have to find that maverick photographer that “gets it” that the wedding is about the people, not the gowns and the hall and that his photographs must shout out “this was a wonderful day and we celebrated this union.”

You may have to look outside of the conventional “wedding photographers” listing in the phone book.  An artistic photographer may be more appropriate.  But be patient and find one that is just as professional as any photographer in that yellow pages but can bring some creativity and investment of getting to know this wedding celebration to the job of taking your important wedding pictures.

That wedding photographer should become as much a part of the wedding celebration as the groomsmen.  After all, if he’s going to capture the personality of this couple, he will have to get to know you.  Spend some informal time with him and share those fun memories of when you met, those special times while you dated and certainly thoseone-of-a-kind places where important moments in your relationship took place.

Armed with that kind of creative individual in charge of your wedding photographs, you’ll look forward with great anticipation to what he comes up with.  Many of the ideal shots will be created before the wedding, at some of those special places and he can Photoshop them to blend them with wedding day moments.

Above all that wedding photographer will comprehend that he is there to serve this wedding and capture those special moments as they occur.  Sure, you may “pose” for a picture from time to time but this whole business of bringing the wedding day to a grinding halt to take stilted photos of bored wedding celebration members will go out with the trash.  The outcome will be wedding photos with style, with life and a lot of love in them to reflect the love that was exchanged in those vows and the love of family and friends as they enjoyed this magical day with you.

Coasters are one idea for wedding favors which can be romantic or suit the theme of your wedding but can also be very practical. You can purchase coasters in a variety of shapes including hearts to provide for your guests as wedding favors. Heart shaped coasters will be ideal because they’re romantic and convey the sentiment of love but they’re also something your guests can really use. Another option for using coasters as wedding favors is to give out coasters which match the theme of the wedding. For example you can purchase coasters with pictures of sand or the beach to go with a beach themed wedding. You can also give out coasters with room for the guest to insert a picture. You can include a picture of the bride and the groom in one of the coasters and leave the rest of the coasters in the set blank so your guests can use their own photos if they wish.

Key chains are another example of wedding favors which can be both romantic and practical. Hearth shaped key chains or key chains in the shape of wedding bells or other items related to love or wedding are a good idea for favors. You canchoose an elegant key chain which is sturdy so your guests will want to use but that is also very romantic and will remind your guests of your wedding for years to come.

Another very practical wedding favor idea is a gift of candles. Whether you chooseto give tea light candles, taper candles or candles of another style it is very likely that your guests will be able to use these favors. Most people already have at least a few candles in their house but they can always use a few more. Candles are very versatile. They can be used to set a romantic mood but can also serve other purposes as well. For example in the event of power outages, candles can be used to provide lighting. With so many uses for candles it is no surprise that if you give your wedding guests candles as a favor, they’re likely to use the candles in the future as opposed to setting them aside and forgetting about them which might happen with other less practical favors.

Wine charms in a shape such as hearts or another romantic theme are also very practical favor ideas for a wedding. Wine charms by themselves are somewhat romantic but when they are designed in shapes such as hearts, wedding bells or other romantic shapes they are very appropriate for a wedding. They are also a very practical favor idea because many people won’t have this type of item but can really use a set of wine charms. Wine charms are simply small charms which can be placed on the wine glass to distinguish one glass from another. This is useful in a party situation where guests may be mingling and may set there glass down for a minute or two while chatting and then become confused about which glass is theirs. Charms which distinguish the glasses help to eliminate this problem.

During there ceremony there are all kinds of possibilities. Certainly you can go traditional and have a flower for both theMom of the bride and Motherof the groom. The moms, in particular, love this activity and guests usually appreciate it as well. But what if you turned that traditional gesture on its head and supplied flowers for both the moms and the fathers?

If the bride supplies flowers to both the men and women, there are a couple of ways to do this. What if father’s flower was enclosed in a verse that he will then get up and read at the ceremony? What if it was a flower to recognize the members of the family who have passed, and it gives dad an opportunity torecognize those family members?

If the bride chooses not to have a unity candle, but wants some gesture like it, she can have her bridal bouquet designed by having several small bouquets put together. At an appropriate time during the ceremony, the bridal bouquet is “broken up” and various people might receive a share, such as the mothers andDads of the bride and groom.

Now, if the bride wants to hang onto her bridal bouquet during the wedding ceremony, but is willing to have some fun with it at the reception, there are a few options there as well. How about a dance involving the bridal bouquet? This is silly, but fun. The bridal bouquet is on display somewhere near the dance floor and guests must guess a flower that’s in the bouquet before they can enter the dance floor. The first few guests might not have a problem as some flowers are obvious, like roses and tulips, but others might give people pause. Of course, this won’t work if the bridal bouquet is all roses or some other single and obvious flower but for a traditionalblended bouquet, it can work well.

For a naughty touch, the bride can hide her garter in the bridal bouquet and actually put it on her leg before the groom takes it off. Or she can have a couple of breakaway bouquets that are wrapped in garter belts, so hers doesn’t get thrown, but instead the little bouquets with garter belts attached are thrown.

When it comes time for the bride to throw her bouquet,there are lots ofoptions. Some bridesselect not to keep their bouquet and simply pluck one flower out of it before chucking the whole thing during the bridal bouquet toss. This is an alternative to having a special bouquet set aside for throwing, and there are others as well.

Are there a lot of unmarried ladies coming to the wedding? Perhaps one tossed bouquet |isn’t enough. Many brides these days are looking for something a little more fun. There are a few options. One general alternative is to have the florist makea number of small bouquets and then package them to appear like one bouquet. They are tied gently with a band. When it comes time for the bouquet toss, the bride unties the band, and throws the “bouquet” which is in fact several Littlebouquets. A number of ladies will capture the bouquets, rather than just one.

As you go about planning activities for the wedding, keep in mind other factors too. Will there children be attending and will the kids be participating in the activities? If you’ve older guests, perhaps activities can be adapted so that they can also participate.

Some of the most popular activities include pre-wedding outings for the girls, including a group manicure or pedicure. This is great fun for ladies who are close to the bride (and certainly this could include men if they like manicures and want to go with the ladies) head and a nail salon and nails. This can beresting for many women and provide a welcome respite from the hustle and bustle of the wedding weekend. Men canselect to play golf or a game of tennis while this happens.

Many brides and grooms canselect to provide structured activities the night before the wedding. If the wedding is on a Saturday evening, for example, they may chooseto provide a Friday activity. Although traditionally, wedding activities center around bachelor and Bachelorette parties, a group stag party or as it is affectionately referred to as a Stag & Doe can be great fun and a terrific way to include all members of brides and grooms families for a less formal pre-wedding get together. You can go to a restaurant for an evening of fun and games, but make sure to limit the drinking and carousing as this might not sit well with some family members.

A fun activity that can be done immediately before marriage is to have someonebegin a gift basket. This can include a themed gift basket that is meant as an “advice for young people” and could be initiated by the godfather or godmother or Bridesmaid and Best Man. The way it works is that a Largegift basket is started by having it dropped off at your guest’s homes, each person must put something in the basket from things they have in their home. Once full, someone can be responsible for arranging the items in the basket together, wrapping everything to make it beautiful and bring it to the bride and groom.

Whatever activity you choose, be sure to take into account]the needs of your guests and special needs they may have. You will find that pre-wedding activities can be one of the best and most fun day of your wedding.