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Courtesy of Sandra Harrison
Well, before I get started I want you to understand
that today it is very acceptable for non-traditional
arrangements to be made for handling the payments
related to a wedding. We see lots of brides and grooms
taking financial responsibility on themselves. More
and more often we are now seeing practicality taking
the place of tradition.
Now, having said that - tradition
dictates the following rules of finance:
The BRIDE is responsible for paying
for the groom's wedding ring, her personal lingerie,
gifts for the female attendants, personal stationary,
lodging for her out of town attendants, a bridesmaids
luncheon, and the gift for the groom.
The GROOM is responsible for paying
for the Bride's engagement and wedding rings, the
marriage license and any other legal documents
required by your state. The Bride's bouquet, the
bride's going away corsage, corsages for the mothers
and grandmothers on both sides, all of the
boutonnieres, lodging for his out of town attendants,
the fee for the clergy, the honeymoon and
transportation, gifts for the groom's attendants and
(let's not forget) the gift for the bride!
The
ATTENDANTS are to
pay for their attire including dress, tuxedo, and
accessories, but not flowers.
The BRIDESMAIDS are usually
responsible for giving the bride a shower. Today, a
good idea is to have a couples shower; it's a lot of
fun and the groom gets to be involved
The GROOMSMEN
usually give the groom a party while the USHERS are
responsible for their attire.
The
flower-girls' and ring-bearers' PARENTS are to pay for
this related attire, though today, the parents of the
bride often purchases these items for the little ones.
You will probably need to closely evaluate the
closeness of the families and parents before deciding
on how you want to handle this.
The
groom's PARENTS are responsible for the rehearsal
dinner, their own attire, their travel and hotel
expenses, getting the gifts to the newlyweds new home,
and a gift for the couple.
The
bride's PARENTS are responsible for the majority of
the affairs at hand. They need to handle the cost of
their own attire, all the decorating costs, facility
rental, invitations, wedding photography, the bride's
gown, attire and accessories, musicians, bridesmaids
and flower-girl bouquets, the entire reception,
gratuities, and a wedding gift for the couple.
You may
now be able to see why "TRADITIONALLY" many fathers of
the bride offer to pay for an elopement! |
