Wedding Planning For Dummies, Second Edition [Paperback]

Marcy Blum (Author), Laura F. Kaiser (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 29, 2004

Congratulations, you’re planning a wedding! Besides obtaining a fancy tuxedo and a stunning gown, organizing a wedding ceremony takes creativity, planning, diplomacy, and nerve. The whole ordeal can seem overwhelming at first, but with a little guidance, you’ll pull off a wedding people will remember for ages.

Wedding Planning For Dummies, 2^nd Edition demystifies and simplifies all the details that go into the Big Day, providing inspiration and innovative ideas to personalize your wedding celebration and, of course, make it fun for everyone—especially you! This one-stop guide is all you need to:

• Design a comprehensive schedule for a snag-free wedding day
• Keep track of expenses with a wedding budget
• Negotiate contracts and surf online for deals
• Get those pesky financial technicalities out of the way
• Plan a weekend wedding, a themed wedding, and other celebrations
• Select a suitable wedding party
• Plan for various customs and rites
• Get the decorative effect you want
• Throw a great reception with music, food, drink, and cake!
• Handle gifts, registries, rings, photos, and the honeymoon

Packed with tips for saving money and common kitsch you should avoid, this is the ultimate guide to satisfying everyone on the Big Day. You’ll discover the confidence you need to make the wedding of your dreams come true with Wedding Planning For Dummies, 2^nd Edition!

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

It's hard to imagine any wedding detail that could have escaped inclusion in the pages of Weddings for Dummies. How to build a chuppah, how to anchor a comb in the bride's hair, who dances with whom and when--everything you ever wanted to know about getting hitched is right here. Fortunately, Marcy Blum and Laura Fisher Kaiser aren't afraid to give an opinion or two (there's a list of "Ten Tacky Temptations We Beg You to Resist"), but most of the information is entirely nonjudgmental. It's best to have a much-married older sister plan your wedding, but if you have to do it yourself, this is the perfect book to tell you how. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From the Back Cover

Features helpful planning forms and checklists

Plan your dream wedding on a budget

Stressed about wedding planning? Relax! This friendly guide gives you all the help you need to plan and enjoy a memorable, hassle-free ceremony and reception. You get tips on everything from setting the date and selecting the invitations to keeping track of gifts, guests, and thank you notes. Your Big Day will be special, unique, and fun!

Discover How To:

• Get the most for your money
• Personalize your celebration
• Handle tricky family dynamics
• Hire caterers, florists, and photographers
• Plan the perfect honeymoon

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 408 pages
• Publisher: Wiley; 2 edition (October 29, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0764556851
• ISBN-13: 978-0764556852
• Product Dimensions: 7.4 x 0.9 x 9.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (67 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #46,239 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #44 in Books > Crafts, Hobbies & Home > Weddings > Planning

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

53 of 53 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Not a princess or an older bride, January 6, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Weddings for Dummies (Paperback)

I had four months to plan a wedding for 200 guests (my fiance insisted that we do it soon because he didn't want me to wait until next summer to do it), so I had four months to stress instead of twelve. My fiance also would not give me any direction ("If I were to plan it, I would let an Elvis impersonator marry us in Vegas"), and I was working full-time as well. I read those Budget Brides books, but who has time to scavenger hunt for the cheapest dress? I needed some basic help...and fast.

I found Weddings For Dummies *extremely* helpful because I didn't know where to start. This book told me when to contact the photographer, videographer, and reception place, and it gave me tips on questions to ask. The book was an easy--and fun--read. The pictures were gorgeous; I loved what they did with the flowers. After my wedding, I gave this book to a friend who was getting married in the Carribean; she even forwarded it on to another friend!

87 of 94 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Weddings for "Rich" Dummies, April 5, 2004

By 

Emily Curcuru - See all my reviews

This review is from: Weddings for Dummies (Paperback)

As far as wedding planning goes, this book is a decent compilation of customs and how-tos for a "typical", $20,000+ American wedding. The writing style can be extremely pretentious and perhaps offensive to brides with small budgets or who wish to have a truly unique ceremony. Buy a few bridal magazines and you'll get most of the information contained herein, and a lot less preaching on the MUST-DOs of nouveau riche etiquette. It doesn't contain much information on cultural weddings, ideas for very individualistic weddings. High brow brides will find it lacking in top rung etiquette and budget brides will likely give up after the first few chapters. There are much better resources out there - www.weddingchannel.com for starters.

23 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Definitely helping to ease this bride's stress, September 7, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Weddings for Dummies (Paperback)

As a magazine editor who covers the gift book trade, I see all forms of wedding guides. I found this one to be the most helpful, however, because not only does it cover every conceivable detail a bride must consider in planning her big day, the information is nicely organized into different chapters (cake, flowers, caterer, dress, etc.) for easy referencing. Even better, within each chapter, paragraph-length tidbits are marked with icons symbolizing messages such as "Caution!" or "Plan Ahead!", definitely an aid to those dealing with short attention spans or high levels of stress.