Like many aspects of wedding planning, there were once
rather rigid guidelines that ruled the how and the who of
weddings. Some experts used a formula
that said there should be a bridesmaid and usher for every 45-50 guests. Fortunately, that has long been abandoned.
Bridesmaid numbers depend on who is close to the bride and
who she wants to stand up for her. Likewise
the groom is freer to select who and how many of his friends to include. But when selecting attendants, remember an
important guideline - how many can you afford to have? Every attendant is entitled to bring a guest
so realize that every one you have means two for the reception per plate
charge.
Once you've decided on a number, the bride and the groom
should prepare a priority list of attendants.
You'll need to consider each other's families in creating
the selection list. A bride may wish to
include the top tier of her sorority sisters leaving no room for the groom's
sisters or the groom may wish to have a group of fraternity brothers plus his
own brothers. Once a number of
attendants is agreed upon, something has to give.
What happens if the bride has eight friends she can't live
without in her wedding party, but the groom - an only child has only 4 close
buds? If your budget can handle the
expense, there are always ways to handle an unbalanced wedding party. For the processional, one groomsman can
escort two bridesmaids - one on each arm.
Or if symmetry is important, forget about male/female and just go by the
numbers. You have 12 attendants total
and there will be 6 on each side of the bride and groom - 2 guys and 4 girls on
each side. This works especially well in
wedding photos. The result is balanced
with color and diversity on each side of the bridal couple.
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