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We've spoken with Jay's Bridal and Special Occasions about wedding gowns, and now we're moving on to our third part on tuxedos. Jay's is a one-stop bridal salon located in Gainesville, Florida and their tuxedo department is online at jaysformalwear.com. Throughout the series, we'll discuss everything wedding, ranging from bridal gowns to music to tuxedos. In this installment, Kristen Seymour will chat with the owner of Jay's, Paul Rhodenizer.

Men's fashion doesn't experience the same type of change as women's fashion -- it's much more gradual. Still, there are a few trends that are highly popular now, although just as with bridesmaids' dresses, not all styles are suitable for all body types.

When helping a couple select a tuxedo style for a wedding party, Paul tries to get a feel for the body types involved. "The groom might be tall and thin, and would look great in a three-button jacket, but if his best man is 5'8" and 300 pounds, that style isn't going to work on him." The multiple buttons on a jacket for a guy with a big belly is like a large busted woman wearing a button-up blouse -- there's going to be unflattering gapping.

Continue reading Tuxedo styles and trends: Interview with Jay's Formalwear, Part Three

We've spoken with Jay's Bridal and Special Occasions about wedding gowns, and now we're moving on to our second part on tuxedos. Jay's is a one-stop bridal salon located in Gainesville, Florida and their tuxedo department is online at jaysformalwear.com. Throughout the series, we'll discuss everything wedding, ranging from bridal gowns to music to tuxedos. In this installment, Kristen Seymour will chat with the owner of Jay's, Paul Rhodenizer.

Compared to shopping for a bridal gown, shopping for the guys' tuxedos might seem like a piece of cake. However, while there aren't quite as many options regarding formalwear for the men, it's not all black and white. In fact, sometimes it's chocolate, khaki, or ivory, and then there are the accessories ... it's enough to get confusing, if you let it.

Before helping brides and grooms choose the tuxedos for the wedding, Paul spends a bit of time listening. "First, I try to find out a little about the formality of the wedding, but just as important is how the bride feels about things like color coordination. To some brides, having the groomsmen's vests match the color of the bridesmaids' dresses is really important, while other brides find it tacky."




Continue reading Choosing your tuxedo accessories and saving money: Interview with Jays Formalwear, Part Two

We've spoken with Jay's Bridal and Special Occasions about wedding gowns, and now we're moving on to tuxedos. Jay's is a one-stop bridal salon located in Gainesville, Florida and their tuxedo department is online at jaysformalwear.com. Throughout the series, we'll discuss everything wedding, ranging from bridal gowns to music to tuxedos. In this installment, Kristen Seymour will chat with the owner of Jay's, Paul Rhodenizer.

While not every wedding is formal enough to require tuxedos, a majority of brides and grooms opt to dress their wedding party in them. But who all needs one, and what are the rules for matching?

Of course, the groom needs a tux, and one thing he should consider is the color of his bride's gown. "A majority of our dress sales are now in a shade of ivory," said Paul, "so we encourage the groom and his groomsmen to wear ivory shirts to go with that."

Continue reading Who needs to rent a tux? Interview with Jay's Formalwear, Part One

bride and father, dancing

Fathers of the bride are often given no more than a passing sentence in the etiquette books, and it's an expensive one: "Traditionally, the wedding and reception are paid for by the bride's family." As bridal couples are more and more likey to have been living independently (and, most of the time, together) for some while before the wedding, they are also more and more likely to be paying for their own wedding. An increasing percentage of brides escort their own selves down the aisle.

Which leaves dad doing ... what, exactly? Some dads don't want anything more. Some are perfectly content to wear what they're told, show up when and where they're told, and otherwise stay out of the limelight.

If you'd like more input than that on this most important day, there are a few things you can be doing that your daughter will truly appreciate. Experienced FOTB Ken York has a few pointers for you. The first one starts with not your daughter, but her mother. Give her something (Ken suggests jewelery), and with the gift say something sweet and thoughtful about all her hard work in raising this lovely young woman. If that doesn't make you Man of the Year (or at least the Hour) in her heart, we don't know what will.

Other tips?

Continue reading Father of the bride - four tips for the wedding day

Your eyes keep shifting between your budget spreadsheet and your potential guest list. You love your friends and family -- all 250 of them -- but at 35 bucks a head for dinner, you can't afford to invite them all. You could save thousands of dollars by cutting your guest list in half, but how do you decide who makes and who misses the cut? This part of wedding planning is no fun.

So here's an idea: instead of an expensive, fancy feast that blows your whole wedding budget, ask your guests to bring a dish to share instead of a gift. Provide guests who travel or guests who simply don't cook with a list of pre-made items that can be bought at your local grocery store, and appoint someone to field all the phone calls about what to bring. Sure there will be some repeats, but with several dozen guests, you'll surely get a nice variety for your buffet.

Make sure your invitations are clear about this. "In lieu of gifts, the bride and groom request that you bring your favorite dish to serve at our reception buffet. Call Mandy, the Maid of Honor, at 555-5555 with questions." Then you can take the money you saved on food and buy your own wedding gifts, so you get exactly what you need and want. Encourage guests to include the recipe with the dish they bring, so that you can create a wedding cookbook. You can even post the recipes online to share with all the guests.
One of the perks of tying the knot -- other than all eyes focused adoringly on you and the free reign of the cake table -- is the ability to register for things you need (or just really want) and then having them magically appear on your doorstep or on your gift table at no charge to you. But if you aren't careful and you don't put a little thought into what you're asking for, you may get a coffee pot when you don't drink coffee or three full sets of red wine glasses because they were all too pretty to pass up (I may have some personal experience with that last one).

Here are a few tips to consider when you set out to put together the perfect wedding registry:

Continue reading Wedding wise: Five registry tips to keep in mind

This is Part Four of our series of interviews with Jay's Bridal and Special Occasion, a one-stop bridal salon located in Gainesville, Florida and online at jaysbridal.net. Throughout the series, we'll discuss everything wedding, ranging from bridal gowns to music to tuxedos. In this installment, we'll chat with Jay's associates Erica Lyn and Joann.

Jay's Bridal and Special Occasion might be small in terms of staff and size, but they have a vast selection. They carry a wide range of designers, like Alfred Angelo, Mori Lee, Maggie Sottero, Mon Cheri, Justin Alexander, and their favorite new designer, Sophia Tolli.

"Sophia Tolli was a designer for Maggie Sottero, and she's come out with her new line and we just love it," gushed Joann. "Her designs look a little European, with some really classic, beautiful styles, but some of her dresses have a bit of a funky, edgy appeal, too."




Continue reading Hot trends and new designers: Interview with Jay's Bridal and Special Occasion

This is Part Two of our series of interviews with Jay's Bridal and Special Occasion, a one-stop bridal salon located in Gainesville, Florida and online at jaysbridal.net. Throughout the series, we'll discuss everything wedding, ranging from bridal gowns to music to tuxedos.

Shopping for wedding gowns online is becoming more and more popular, but in many cases, it's a truly frightening thing to undertake. How can you feel confident that you're ordering the right dress, and the right size? What if you want the assistance you'd receive in a store without having to travel? That click of the button just feels so final.

One of the unique things Jay's offers is its online store. It began in 2005, and since then, Jay's has sold dresses to brides as far away as Australia, Ireland, and China. And what's so great about their online shop is that customers can still get the personal relationship and experience that they would get if they walked into the brick and mortar store.




Continue reading Buying your wedding dress online: Interview with Jay's Bridal and Special Occasion


Just two days before his 33rd birthday, Black Eyed Peas band member Taboo married his girlfriend, Jaymie Dizon, at St. Andrews Catholic Church in Pasadena, California. And, you know how you have to decide which of your work friends are invited to your wedding? Taboo had to make those kinds of choices regarding his co-workers -- his Black Eyed Peas bandmates.

Fortunately, the group is really tight, and apl.de.ap and will.i.am both served as groomsmen for Taboo. The only remaining Pea, Fergie, was there as a guest, accompanied by her fiance, Josh Duhamel.

Now that members of the group are all pursuing solo projects, we wondered whether they were still as close as they were a couple of years ago, but this seems to show that there's no doubt. Here's wishing Taboo and Mrs. Taboo much happiness and many years of fabulous costume changes. Though the rapper does tend to go with some funky, different looks on stage -- see the gallery -- he looked absolutely dapper for the nuptials. Still, we'd LOVE to see what went down on the dance floor at the reception!

We recently attended and helped out at a wedding that started pretty much on time (unusual, we know), but, as the bride and her father were heading down the aisle, five more guests walked up to the church door. Fortunately, we were able to keep them from opening the door until the wedding was underway, but it made us think about how important it is for guests to be punctual.

Obviously it's hugely important that, as a wedding guest, you don't arrive late, or you risk disrupting the nuptials. But, being too early is a problem, too -- pictures are often taken in the ceremony location up until 30 minutes or so before the wedding, so if you're earlier than that, you could interrupt the photographer (or the florist, or the minister, etc.).

If the invitation says 5:00 p.m., aim to arrive around 4:45 -- 10 to 15 minutes early is safe and sure to be appreciated by the bride and groom.
While a wedding can be an expression of your personality and style, it can also do exactly the opposite -- what if your style runs more toward black nail polish and dog collars, but you still want a more traditional wedding, with the white dress and innocent looking make-up and everything? Do you have to give up your style altogether?

Not at all! There are lots of ways to subtly incorporate your badass punk style without going with a black dress and hot pink hair (although, if that's your style and it's what you want, more power to you).

Perhaps you've always dreamed of a romantic, white wedding, or maybe your family is footing the bill with the stipulation that you tone down your punk princess look for the day -- either way, we've got some fierce jewelry that will still allow you to show your personality, but in a more private way.

Shortly after taking out a marriage license with his very pregnant fiancee, Ethan Hawke has, once again, gone off the market. His rep has confirmed that the actor married Ryan Shawhughes in a private ceremony last month.

The wedding took place in New York, and was very intimate, but no other details have been given out. A source close to the couple has said, however, that they're likely to have a larger celebration, including all their friends and family, after the baby is born (Ryan is due with the couple's first child, a daughter, later this summer).

The wedding news comes not long after the announcement that Ethan's ex-wife and mother of his two children, Uma Thurman, is engaged to Swiss financier Arpad Busson (and sporting a rock that's too big to "fit through the sleeve of her coat").
We would be nothing but disappointed if Cher found herself some boring old businessman to settle down with and marry. Fortunately, we don't have to worry -- the 62 year old is reportedly set to marry Tim Medvetz, a motorcycle customizer more than 20 years her junior.

Her rep recently denied that the diva had already married in a quickie Vegas ceremony, saying, "She isn't even in Vegas at the moment. Cher promised me if she ever got married again, I could be the flower girl." She also denied that Cher had made her groom sign a $600 million pre-nup.

Some speculate that the marriage will take place later this year, when Cher returns to Vegas to resume headlining her show, which alternates with Bette Midler's Vegas spectacular. All we can say is that we hope, hope, HOPE that Bob Mackie designs the wedding gown!
Olivia Newton-John, best known for her starring role in Grease, has found the one that she wants -- she married her boyfriend, John Easterling, in a small wedding at her Malibu, California home.

Guests were invited to a Fourth of July barbecue at Olivia's home, and were surprised when the couple let them know that it was actually their wedding day. The nuptials nearly had to be postponed when a brushfire broke out nearby, but Olivia wasn't about to let anything interfere with her plans.

This is the second marriage for Olivia, who divorced her first husband in the mid 1990s after he had an affair, and three years ago she was devastated when her boyfriend of nine years went missing on a fishing trip off the California coast. We can't blame her for not wanting to wait for happiness!
wedding couple and officiantIf you're getting married in your home church by your pastor, the decision of who will preside over the ceremony is a no-brainer. If you're not part of a faith community, nor even your parents, you have an extra decision to make -- but you also have more choices.

A good place to search (outside the yellow pages in your city, and city hall), is the Internet. There are all manner of organizations out there. You just have to find the one that suits you best. Just because you're not getting married in a church doesn't mean your beliefs are out of the picture. Often, officiants with no church affiliation can provide a "spiritual" version of the ceremony, if that is your choice. Or you can go completely secular and make no reference to anything other than the two of you and your love.

Start with recommendations from family and friends, then the Yellow Pages and the Internet. The officiant you want is out there somewhere: You just have to find her/him!

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