Monday, June 27, 2011

Shopping for a Simple Wedding

Shopping for a Simple Wedding

As an officiant I am always impressed at the ingenious ways people find to create their special wedding on a budget. There are so many ways to save money and still have a wedding to be remembered.
If you use a computer a lot then you probably already know how much you can save when you shop online. You can also find a much larger selection of just about everything.

While wandering online just recently I found www.become.com and I really like their layout and selections.Become.com puts many sites in one place so you don't need to remember so many websites.

Many people are still uncomfortable giving out credit card numbers and of course we should be very careful when using them. Some suggestions I have about shopping online with a credit card would be:

Use a card with a limited dollar amount, not tied to a band account.
Never use a debit card which could access your total bank balance and empty it.
Consider PayPal which I feel offers a little more protection.

I shop online quite a bit and so far I have always been happy with my purchases and I have had no problems with the use of my credit card.

So when you start planning your wedding just Google whatever products and services you need and then get comfortable there on the couch and search to your heart's content. Sure beats running all over town especially this time of year where the temp is so high.

Remember when you visit www.become.com and other sites which you like be sure to bookmark them so you can find them next time.

I also set up a file in my email section to save all my confirmation and shipping info after I have shopped.

Happy shopping and remember if you are getting married in south Florida and need someone to perform your ceremony, either in English or Spanish (or both) take a look at mywebsite TheSimpleWedding.com.

Oh yes, tbecome.com has a nice looking 3 carat diamond ring and 4 carat diamond ring. Check them out

Thanks for reading my blog...Donna

Wednesday, June 22, 2011

Afghan brides need up to ten dresses for wedding

Wedding Officiants at TheSimpleWedding.com
Good morning to all my blog readers. That's really funny because I'm not sure if anyone is reading this. Where are all the comments?
Are you planning a wedding in the near future? Perhaps you are thinking about renewing your vows for your anniversary. I would be honored to provide your ceremony for either of those events.
I am very fortunate in living in an area which is very popular for wedding and renewals. Our beaches are so very nice and we are blessed with miles of them here in Broward county. I provide wedding ceremonies for many couples who come here from other states because they will be going on a cruise and leaving from Port Everglades. The price to be married on-board is quite expensive so I am a less expensive but very nice alternative.
If you are like so many people in today's world and you find yourself needing to be a little more frugal with your wedding plans take a look at my website TheSimpleWedding for some good ideas. In the section of articles you will also find some interesting facts about weddings.
I invite your comments on weddings or on my writing.
If you are like me you picture Afganistan as a place of poverty, mud houses and a shortage of everything. Well think again. Read the following article from Stars and Stripes...

Costly Afghan weddings under government scrutiny
BY JON GAMBRELL
Associated Press



AP Photo/Gemunu Amarasinghe
WORLD VIDEO


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KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) -- Some brides in Afghanistan change their outfits up to 10 times. Throw in the six-hour trips to the beauty parlors and the meals for 1,000 guests - and one wedding alone could bankrupt many Afghans.

Now the Justice Ministry is proposing limits on the lavish events to cut down on the pressure poor Afghans face to match the elite's elaborate weddings. The government is specifically targeting party halls - and threatening to fine owners who flout the austerity rules.

"It is breaking the back of the groom and of the family," Justice Minister Habibullah Ghaleb said of the lavish nuptials. "It creates an immoral corruption."

Under the proposed wedding law, which still needs to be passed by parliament, locations would be barred from allowing more than 300 attendees for an engagement party and more than 500 people at a wedding, Ghaleb said.

Those halls caught breaking the law would be subject to serious fines or other possible penalties. However, it remains unclear what enforcement powers authorities would have to go after the wedding halls, especially in a country where bribery remains common.

Other rules are aimed at protecting grooms' families from spending too much money on gifts for brides and their relatives. Brides would get only two dresses - one for an engagement party and one for the wedding. The law would restrict other gifts too, Ghaleb said without elaborating.

"We don't want to put pressure on the people," the minister said. "We want to put pressure on the wedding halls."

Afghan weddings traditionally took place in the home, with families and friends attending several events marking the groom and bride's union. Under Taliban rule, lavish ceremonies were forbidden.

But over the last decade, rich Afghans have begun renting out the country's top halls and hotels to host thousands of people for weddings and engagement parties, complete with gifts and tables heaped with food.

The frosted-glass wedding halls in Kabul appear like a neon dream of what Afghanistan could be amid the ruined roads and bullet-marred apartment buildings. And some believe the weddings that cost of tens of thousands of dollars hint at the graft strangling government and private life in Afghanistan.

"It is happiness for them, but for others, it is just fire," Ghaleb said.

Families around the world take out loans and run up credit card debt to throw lavish wedding celebrations for their children. But in Afghanistan, the average government employee earns just $50 to $100 a month, according to a recent U.S. Senate committee report.

But even a modest government paycheck won't even secure a deposit on a $1,500 wedding dress in Kabul or expensive gold jewelry.

The financial pressure multiplies across large families, as Afghan women on average have at least six children. Most borrow money from family members and friends to hold their weddings, as formal loans remain difficult to obtain.

Afghan families mostly shrug and accept the cost as a sign of tradition mashing into a country where ATMs now spit out U.S. dollars.

Hamid Walizada, 31, an interpreter for the U.S. military, said it took his family 10 months to put the money together for his wedding from friends and others. Others travel abroad to earn money, while some elope at the risk of arrest.

"Everything is expensive here," Walizada said outside of one dress shop. "Everybody is trying to find money and get married."

Wedding hall operators - not surprisingly - disagree with the proposed rules. However, they point to the Quran as guidance for large celebrations.

"We are following the history of our Prophet Muhammad," said Moula M. Paiman, president of the City Star Hall. "When he got married, thousands upon thousands attended the wedding. We are following that."

On a recent summer night, Paiman juggled three mobile phones and a walkie-talkie, trying organize the crowds and 300 employees at his wedding hall, ablaze with lights like a Las Vegas casino with the traffic to match.

He declined to say how many people could be seated inside, but the crowds suggested thousands. Most hall operators charge at least $10 a person.

Yet he took the time to smile with pride when asked about the two, towering crescent moons leading into the hall, luminescent against the flashing neon.

"See, on the way you came, it was a dark desert," he said. "Here it is beautiful."

---

Associated Press writer Amir Shah contributed to this report.

Tuesday, June 21, 2011

Summer Weddings in Florida

Summer might have been slow in arriving this year but it is here in full force in south Florida.
Thank goodness for the really tough couples who can and will stand the heat in order to get married here in our beautiful area.
I performed a Hawaiian wedding in Fort Lauderdale a couple of week ago. It was such fun. The couple had ordered their leis from "the big island" and they were fresh and beautiful. Mine was made from yellow plumeria and so very fragrant.
They were staying at the Bahia Mar on the beach but chose to have their wedding in the little park like area right on the Intracoastal. Nice
If you are planning a Florida wedding give me a call and let me provide a beautiful wedding ceremony which you will long remember.
Please visit my website for lots of good wedding info.