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If you are donning a traditional white or ivory wedding dress, the rehearsal dinner is the perfect opportunity to add a splash of color to your wedding wardrobe. With summer right around the corner, it's also the perfect time of year to shop for your rehearsal dinner dress -- the hottest season of the year tends to produce the hottest summer dresses.

Choose a funky patterned shift dress or a brightly colored classic cut. Pick a flowered pattern dress or pastel-hued wrap.

You'll wow every guest at your wedding with your gorgeous and made-for-you gown, but you can evoke even more jaw-dropping looks from any of these dresses (and the ones in the gallery) for your rehearsal dinner.

Feel beautiful at every wedding event -- you deserve to!

Your bridal shower or rehearsal dinner will be the crème de la crème when you give it a French twist with these party ideas. First, set the scene with French style invitations. Depending on your budget, there are many different decorating schemes to choose from. For more formal parties, you can have the wait staff dress in blue and white striped shirts and berets for a fun extra touch. Second, create more ambiance with French inspired activities. For larger parties, you can hire a caricature artist and juggler to entertain guests in the style of a French boardwalk. Smaller get-togethers can be enhanced with fun movies set in France, such as French Kiss or, for a bit more "ooh la la," something like Femme Fatale. For bridal showers, have someone come give the gals French manicures (technically, they're not really French, but who doesn't love a manicure?). A French-inspired menu offers a variety of choices. Go formal with wine and cheese, fondue, truffles and tarts or keep it casual with croissants and berries and Eiffel Tower cookies.

One of the things we loved about getting married was that new feeling of "home." We loved having friends over for dinner and throwing parties -- for some reason, doing these things as husband and wife felt so different and fun.

If you have a friend getting married who enjoys entertaining, there are a gazillion gifts you can give her that will be both fun and useful, but it would be hard to beat a fabulous apron by Haute Hostess Aprons. They're a little pricey, running around $100 (but many are on sale for half that!), but they're really an outfit all on their own. Forget covering up an amazing ensemble -- this is an amazing ensemble!

Check out the gallery and see which one is your favorite! Or, perhaps more importantly, which one would be your friend's favorite.

This "Springtime in Paris" kit is a quick and easy way to create a Parisian ambiance to your gathering. We tend to think these items would work best for a shower, but if you think you could make it work for your reception, go for it!

The entire kit contains a 3D Eiffel Tower, a pair of boulevard lamp posts, two topiary trees, four boulevard wall sections, a 2D Paris skyline and a 4' x 50' roll of cobblestone flat paper. If you're not confident of your creative abilities and have lots of money to invest, the kit is a good way to go. If, however, you think you can manage to create your own roll-out cobblestone path and Paris skyline, maybe you can afford a few more lamp posts or trees!

Even if you don't use the kit at all, there's plenty of inspiration for elements that will create the mood you're after!

When you're aiming for green entertaining, re-usable items are best. Sometimes, though, you may decide that it's just not feasible. If you're looking for a less wasteful alternative to standard plastic disposable plates, cups and cutlery, you might consider Preserve.

This company makes bright and informal tableware from 100% recycled plastic. It's sturdy enough that it can be reused dozens of times, and, when it's finally served its final meal, it can be recycled. You probably wouldn't use anything this informal for any but the most casual of weddings, but it could easily be used for a shower.

Recycled, recycle-able plastic tableware. It's not a perfect solution, but it's not the worst, either. A decent compromise for moments of need!

via: Epicurious

We often have the idea that going green is more expensive than doing it the old way. It sure seems so, with organic foods tending to cost noticeably more than non-organic, and with the whole range of new "green" items on the market. Want to go green? Buy, buy, buy!

Going green, however, does not mean buying a heap of new stuff with "green" or "eco" in the label. If you think about that for a second, it's pretty clear that "buying stuff" and "going green" are mostly opposites. Going green doesn't require trips to the store and a huge outlay of money: it requires creativity.

You've weighed the pros and cons of getting married at home or away and away won. So, it's now time to decide where exactly to go? Some couples who opt for a destination wedding have a specific location in mind when they begin planning but others only know they want a sandy beach or somewhere near a lake or a picturesque mountain scene. How do you decide the exact place then?

Here are a few things to consider:

• What time of year do you want to get married? Are you set on a holiday wedding? Or, perhaps, springtime nuptials? Do you want to get married outside or do you envision a church setting? These are all questions to ask yourself right before you spend a nice afternoon with Google to make sure the location in your head is compatible with the other criteria you've laid out for your wedding day.
• What's the weather like? If you're planning a destination wedding, it's likely the setting is just as important as any other detail. Meaning, if you want a Mexican beach wedding, the weather will be crucial to a happy day. If you want an Irish celebration you'll want to avoid getting married in April -- an unpredictable time of year there. Weather.com is a fantastic resource for all brides-to-be and the site offers regular e-mail updates for the location of your choice.
• How easy will your wedding be to plan? The Internet has made planning a destination wedding much easier these days, but you still want to be sure the place you have chosen has a variety of things you will need for a destination wedding: local and professional vendors, accommodations (hotels, lodges, etc), a nearby airport. You not only want your wedding planning to be as stress-free as possible but you want your guests to enjoy their time there with few headaches.

Before you can dive into the joy of planning your dream wedding away from home, you want to pick the perfect spot. Is it a ranch in Santa Fe or a hilltop in British Columbia? Regardless, you want it to be right for you and your needs. Think it through before you dish out deposits, and you're sure to have a magical (and picture-perfect!) wedding day.

Planning an outdoor wedding? If you're having it in the afternoon, you won't get to use all the pretty lighting options that are available to evening events -- but you can take advantage of the sun and the breeze to add some bright charm to your day. These wind chime suncatchers are copper finished, chime gently in the air.

They come with butterflies or dragonflies, for that natural touch to an outdoor wedding. Or, if circumstances cause you to move your outdoor celebration inside (the famous "Plan B" for outdoor events!) these will bring an outdoor feel with you. Packaged separately, and costing about $20 each, they're even a reasonable alternate to centerpieces for a stand-up reception.

If you're getting married in Miami, why not take advantage of the glamorous Art Deco pools that are the signature elements of many of the best hotels in town? Throw a swanky pre-wedding cocktail party for out-of-town guests - it's an easy way to ease your guests into the sexy Miami vibe.

Imagine the pool glittering under the starts, the warm evening breezes twinged with saltwater, the not-too-distant sound of the ocean in the background as guests mingle and drink stiff drinks. (Think 1930s elegance - mojitos and martinis - and FORGET anything that requires a blender.)

We did this for our wedding, and it was so gorgeous and elegant I almost fainted with happiness. I recommend it!

If you're tying the knot in the Dallas/Fort Worth area, you'll need a special place to host friends and family for your rehearsal dinner. Try Truluck's -- with three D/FW locations -- for a fancy seafood or steak dinner the night before your big day.

Truluck's -- named "Best Dallas Restaurant" by D Magazine -- offers a variety of options for your private party: from a smaller room to the entire restaurant. Truluck's also customizes a menu for your special night, with a few different dinner options (varying in prices, too) with your choice of appetizers, soups and salads, entrees, sides and, most important, desserts.

Some of the most raved-about dishes include Alaskan crab legs, prime New York strip, sesame tuna or the hot-and-crunchy trout. And, for dessert, have a bite of or two of the famous carrot cake or chocolate malt cake.

To relax and enjoy all of your loved ones who are in town for your beautiful wedding, choose Truluck's for your rehearsal dinner.

Here's a way to personalize a kitchen-theme shower: Tuck a blank recipe card into each invitation, asking that the guests write down a favored recipe to add to the bride's repertoire. Cards should have a spot for the guest to write down their name -- "From the kitchen of ____" -- so the bride knows whose recipe each is. (For the frugal party-thrower, here are some printable recipe cards.)

The cards can be stored in a file box, pasted into a scrapbook, or slid into plastic sleeves and tucked into a three-ring binder, and of course each of these could be specially decorated. What a nice way to start a friend's kitchen, with a book full of tried-and-true recipes, in the handwriting of the people who love her best.

Gifts to accompany the cards can be related to the recipe: If it's a recipe for cookies, a cookie sheet; if it's your favorite chowder, a soup pot or an apron. You can be a little creative, of course. That recipe for mocha brownies could be accompanied by a stylish new coffee press, or maybe with chocolate brown towels and oven mitts -- assuming that fits in with the color scheme for her kitchen!

Not a garden party, but a garden shower. The first is tea and sandwiches in a gorgeous garden -- the second gives the bride and groom the tools to create their own gorgeous garden. It would be fun to have the shower outdoors, but if that's not feasible, you can maintain the garden feel indoors.

Give out colorful seed packages as favors. The guests can bring whatever they like: hand tools, larger tools, bulbs and seeds, gardening gloves, decorative flagstones, even garden furniture, a bird bath or sundial! If you just can't decide, there's the versatile gift certificate for a garden center. Have all the gifts put into a shiny new wheelbarrow, and roll them in to the blossoming bride!

To put a new spin on the typical rehearsal dinner and to show your out of town guests 360 degrees of your wedding city, book your rehearsal dinner at a rotating restaurant. Along with great food, you'll get instant entertainment for the children in your wedding party (and you have to admit, we adults think it's fun, too). And, there's just something romantic about them. La Ronde was the first revolving restaurant built in 1961 at the top of an office building in Hawaii. If you're interested in the engineering behind the design, read this, and for a nostalgic look at the history of these marvels, click here.

You can still find this dining revolution in many cities throughout the world. See if there's one in the city where you're getting married -- it makes an elegant setting for your rehearsal dinner or after-party brunch. One caution: find a stationary landmark near your table so you can find your way back after that inevitable visit to the ladies' room.

Are you looking for something fabulous and funky to do on your hen night without getting totally trashed? Of course you are. Drunken parties are so 'last-year', anyway. An emerging trend (for grooms too) is to keep it stylish and chic and to try out a new activity, or learn a fun skill, perhaps.

We've experienced the pole dancing trend and maybe it's time to move on to something altogether more sophisticated. Burlesque strip tease. It's glamorous, it's erotic and it's fun. Why not learn to shake your booty a la Dita Von Teese and Princess of Pop, Kylie Minogue, at a burlesque striptease class. It's 1930's glamour and the erotic art of seduction all rolled into one appealing package.

A good school will also give you the option of learning classic striptease or modern striptease and will chat to you beforehand so that they can tailor make the class to suit your needs. You'll be given tips on clothing, moves and music and will walk away with a ready-made dance routine that will probably have your man's eyes popping out on stalks!

There's something wonderfully relaxing and romantic about an evening garden party and if you're getting married in summer then why not have a few pre-wedding celebrations outside.

A few tables, either scattered around a pretty garden, or set out on a terrace, provides a great atmosphere for guests to unwind and have fun. You could help create a fairytale ambiance with the strategic use of lights and lanterns and these cheerful weaver's nest tea light holders are just the thing!

Available from Fairwind Online, a Fair Trade company, they cost £10 and come in aqua, fuschia, olive and tangerine.

If that isn't quite the look you're after, there are a few other striking lanterns and candles in various designs, from simple to more sophisticated.