Some mothers want their hands in everything, and others don’t want to intrude – but to make things easy for your mother to know the right level of involvement when planning a wedding, we’ve compiled a list of the traditional duties of the mother of the bride. Top wedding experts were consulted in a recent survey, and asked two things – what is customarily expected, and what are some additional ways that Mom can leave a special imprint on the day?
As a part of Mom’s traditional roles, dress shopping with their daughter tops the list. If your mom lives far away, text photos for feedback, or even use social media to video chat during the shopping trips. If finances allow it, however, nothing beats flying Mom in for the weekend for a shopping excursion. Mom also traditionally is in charge of researching any important family customs – religious or cultural – that you may wish to include in the day. “Something old” and “something borrowed” are two items that Mom would be great at identifying! Mom should also coordinate both with the bride and the groom’s mother to make sure that the dresses of both mothers are complementary to the brides décor, and to each other.
Give mom’s name to the caterer, florist, wedding planner, entertainment and venue contacts to be the first line of defense and field any questions. She may be able to answer some inquiries, and others she can consolidate to ask you several questions at one time, rather than you being constantly interrupted. If Mom loves organizing, this could be an extra special treat for her. Meet with mom once a week to level-set and gauge where you are at in the planning. On the day of the wedding, Mom has two very important things to do. Helping her daughter dress, placing the veil on her head and speaking a blessing or good wishes over her daughter is a special tradition. And once at the ceremony, Mom should have the second dance, just after the bride and groom.
Flowers are an important part of your wedding day as well – from bridal bouquets to centerpieces, from altar flowers to venue décor. Al’s Florist of Hollywood can help with all those wedding flower decisions – stop in today with your mother, and let’s all get started!