Mother of the bride - Plan the best wedding ever!

Your daughter is engaged, you can’t wait to tell everyone and get down to planning the best wedding ever! But wait! It’s her wedding and, while in the past, the mother of the bride would be in charge of all the details, today, it’s no longer the case. Brides are now the focal point of their wedding planning. Now this doesn’t mean you can’t have a say in some matters; it only means you must change how you communicate with your daughter. So today, we’ve got important tips and guidelines to help you, the mother of the bride, help your daughter plan the best wedding ever!

Ensure that your daughter needs help

Some brides wish to incorporate their own style and personality into their wedding and they tend to take immense pleasure in the process. Still others are completely lost without their mom’s help. So do take a look at your relationship and determine if your daughter needs your help or not.

Set up the budget first

The budget and the guest list are the most important things to decide on first as these will help set the tone for the rest of the planning. She may ask for your help with these things – or she may not. She may also want or need to discuss these matters with her fiancé’s family and of course determine who pays for what. If your daughter and her fiancé are footing the bill, you must pull back a bit where required. You can always give your suggestions and inputs, but try to respect the couple’s wishes as far as possible.

Details details details

Once the budgetary formalities have been discussed, the bride-to-be must divide tasks while also spending a few hours discussing the colours, venues, dress styles, bridesmaids, cake, food, decorations, centerpieces and favours – this is where you can help her. It’s also important to do some research to find the best wedding photographers, caterers, makeup artists, hair stylists and decorators. All this might seem overwhelming but it’s not, provided you go step by step. You could even connect with friends and family to prepare yourself and your daughter for the Big Day. In fact, asking mothers of brides who have recently tied the knot can be a great way of getting ideas for your daughter’s wedding. Pinterest, blogs and websites are other places for fantastic inspiration.

Communicate with the bride

Communication with your daughter is of key importance in the wedding planning: decide how you will go about things – either through phone, email or chat. These days, brides are doing almost all of their wedding planning online and you must too. If you’re not on the Internet much, it’s time to start doing so. Carve out a specific time of the week to chat with your daughter about the wedding. Do avoid getting emotional or talking about upsetting matters or other unrelated things.

Some to do’s for the mother of the bride

Help support your daughter while she shops
Find heirloom pieces (jewellery, dress, something borrowed etc) and research traditions
Become the go-to contact person for all the wedding vendors
Welcome the guests and arrange a dinner party for the groom’s side
Be ready to encourage the bride using statements like: “whatever you want, honey” and “that colour looks gorgeous on you!”

The role of the mother of the bride is a hectic one but it is also highly rewarding. Savour the moments and remember that all the stress of planning will be worth it when you see the beautiful bride walk down the aisle!

Images: DaveandCharlotte | LauraFisherPhotography | PaulDuane |via HuffingtonPost