Wedding Etiquette (the Bridal Party)

 

The wedding party is made up of several different groups. The bride and groom, their parents, their families, and the bridesmaids and groomsman. Each group has different roles that they play in preparation for and during the wedding. In this post we are going to focus on the bridesmaids and groomsmen. Not every couple and every wedding is going to be the same, some of this list may be different for you and the circumstances surrounding your wedding.

 

The best man/maid(matron) of honor:

The Maid or Matron of honor roll can be filled by anyone and is a role that is typically filled by a female that is close with the bride, a friend, her mother, or her sister. The maid of honor is a single woman, and the Matron of honor is a married woman. Here is a list of a few things that the Maid or Matron of Honor is responsible for.

• -        Assist the bride with tasks needed to plan the wedding whenever possible.
• -        Arrange a date for all the bridesmaids to have their dresses fitted.
• -        Pays for her entire outfit (unless the bride chooses to help her pay for it as a gift).
• -        Arranges the bride’s train and veil and holds the bouquet during the ceremony.
• -        May sign the marriage certificate if witnesses are required.

The role of best man is usually filled by the groom’s most trusted friend or family member, his brother, father, friend, or cousin. As the Best man, he has a lot of duties that vary from organizing the Bachelor party to being the toast master and “chief of staff” at the wedding. Here is a list of a few things that the best man oversees.

• -        Checks on accommodation for out-of-town ushers
• -        Pays the Officiant for the groom with a sealed envelope
• -        May stand in the receiving line with the groom, or will circulate through guests
• -        Oversee the ushers; making sure everyone is properly dressed and briefed.
• -        Introducing guests
• -        Make sure all the men’s rentals clothes are returned.

 

The Bridesmaids and ushers(groomsmen):

The bridesmaids and Ushers are chosen by the bride and groom from among their closest friends and family, and it is recommended but not required to have at least one of the groom’s sisters as a bridesmaid and vice versa. The number of bridesmaids and groomsmen you have will depend on the size of the wedding, it’s recommended to have 1 bridesmaid or usher to every 50 guests and it’s not necessary to have and even number of bridesmaids to groomsman (Asking someone last minute to be a bridesmaid or an usher just to balance things out could be seen as rude or impolite) Here is a list of tasks the bridesmaids and ushers are responsible for.

Bridesmaids

• -        Help the bride in any way they can; run errands, address invitations, or scout for dresses, hotels.
• -        May co-host a bridesmaid’s lunch or bachelorette party.
• -        Pay for their own wedding outfit, unless the bride offers to pay as a gift.
• -        May greet guests in the receiving line.

Groomsman/ushers

• -        Attend all pre wedding parties the groom attends.
• -        Provide their own wedding clothes (unless the groom offers to pay as a gift).
• -        Steps forward and offer their right arm to each woman as they arrive, make quiet conversation while steering guests to their seats.
• -        Escort quests to and from their cars before and after the Ceremony.
• -        Are alert to any potential problems and handle each problem appropriately.

 

I like to think that the maid of honor and the best man are the bride and groom’s right hands, and the bridesmaid and groomsman are the right hand of the maid of honor and best man. They all work as a team to make the wedding as stress free as possible for the bride and groom. Each task may change depending on how big or little the wedding is or if you are planning something less traditional. But the goal is still the same; make sure the bride and groom have a good time with their guests.