A Clean Start

Such is the nature of real life that, in the week before the wedding, when according to everything I have read other brides are getting stressed about things they haven’t yet managed to do and jaunting off on expensive beauty treatments to make themselves thinner, prettier or smoother, I have plenty of time, and am using it to cover my hands in chemicals – no, not in labs this time: I’ve been cleaning the house. So has the Fiance, but he was working since 5am this morning, and as a consequence I have done a bit more of it than he has.

I’ve also done the garden – cut the grass, put down weedkiller and repotted all the little fruit trees my mum brought us. The cat watched unoimpressedly as I polished and shined everything within site: the fridge, the oven, all the tiles on the back wall… even her chat flap. Which, by the way, was filthy. I discovered cat prints as far apart as on top of the freezer and on top of the scanner in the living room. She was definitely a guilty party.

And apparently it isn’t just my OCD at fault here: one thing I have heard about, is lots of women cleaning before their wedding days or going on holiday. Why? Is this some kind of female cleaning gene?

Historically, in this country, when a woman married she would immediately move to her husband’s house. This is why lots of couples try to have the night before the wedding apart – because traditionally for the bride it would be her last night under her parents’ roof, and for that reason very special and emotive. Her new husband would carry her across the threshold – and probably straight up to her new bedroom. Whether he had lived with parents or alone before, someone else would have done the cleaning (maybe his mother or a housekeeper): the new house would be cleaned thoroughly and made as fresh and inviting as possible for the new bride to comne home to.

And it seems as if women still seek this, even if they, like me, are already well established living with their partner. That ‘coming home to a clean house’ feeling is mimetic of new beginnings, fresh starts, and the exciting potential of the future – whereas a dirty house is hangover from the past.

And not just this: cleaning can be cathartic too: my mum used to dust skirting boards as a displacement activity when she had an essay to do. Cleaning, like grooming, is a simple, time-consuming physical activity, a form of preparation, readying oneself for the time when your hair and nails are pefect and your house is shining and new. We don’t just clean the house for guests: we clean four ourselves and our own cleanliness of mind.

And because, in this respect, I am a real girl, here are some pictures of my pretty clean kitchen.

Just be grateful I haven’t gone round photographing the entire house!

The Wedding Affair

“The Wedding Affair” keeps popping up on facebook, and I have to say I’m not entirely sure what it is.

But it has pretty pictures.

Their description says,

Designer Wedding Fairs in the most exceptional, historical and beautiful venues in Yorkshire. Specialising in creating beautiful weddings that fuse style, individuality and fun www.theweddingaffair.co.uk

And one of my friends has liked them, so I assume they’re alright.

This isn’t an advertisement for them, but I want to share some of the pictures I found on their site, as they are quite inspirational, and feel that it is proper to link you to their source and explain how I came about them. I also think their name is pretty cool.

I’m not especially into pictures of brides or venues, but these ones caught my eye as stunners:

It’s not the dress or the bridal-ness, but the girl herself who catches my eye. The picture is deep. It’s not unhappy, but it’s not celebratory. It’s patient. It’s a picture about waiting. I love that.

More in my line of things, there is also THIS picture:

Which I love because it’s a car kind of like ours, and it makes me think about photos with the car, and climbing on the car for photos (I’ve seen a few brides doing this and it’s awesome – and I love climbing!). Maybe I will have to be good and do something more like “leaning”, but it won’t be the shoes or the dress which stop me (another plus on the non-white bridal gown).

And… pretty suits!

I also think this is hilarious. It’s like she has a big white disc stuck in the back of her head.

My final “oooh look” image is this one:

I thought it might be inspirational for decor – not just for brides and grooms, but also for those running wedding events. If I saw a stall like this, I would definitely want to go over and talk. The diffrences in heights, the non-pink colour scheme with the bizarre Cath Kidson touch is intriguing. They also seem to have so MUCH. And mirrors, frames, lamps and candles are very popular wedding decor, so the whole effect is very much “We do what you want” rather than “You want what we do”. It’s attractive. And I still want ideas for something tall on my ceremony table.

On the other hand, the picture is a bit grey and naff. I’m quite aware that semi greyed out photos are really popular at the moment, especially for outdoors American weddings, and I hate it. I think it looks like you’re trying to make your photographs worn out and crappy looking. Like your photographer couldn’t handle the lighting conditions.

Worse, I find myself squinting at photos like this (again from the Wedding Affair):

It reminds me of deep fog, or the evening, during that grey period between day and dusk, when everything starts to lose it’s colour and become difficult to see, but there is still light. I feel I am being forced not to see, something is concealed, that there is orange dust everywhere and I need to wash. I wish people would stop proudly posting these kinds of images as a new trend in photography. I don’t want to squint at my wedding photographs!

And here’s another photo I didn’t like. I just found the skin colour contrast… disturbing.

Bad Advice

Early in the wedding planning business I joined a wedding forum because I was directed there by a friend and wanted some impartial advice on wedding-related things I didn’t understand, like why most women spend £1k on a dress, get married in a church despite being atheist or pay somebody to do their make up for them. And general stuff like how a wedding “normally” went.

However, as I’ve explored a bit more, I’ve discovered that there is an awful lot of totally crap advice out there on websites. They are usually generic wedding websites, written by people who have a very narrow perspective and have failed to take into account the wider audience who might come across their ramblings. Reading these sites tends to make you feel like you forgot some wedding must-have, you’re not doing things the “right” way and need to change to be more “normal” or that you/your situation have/s been excluded.

Of course, there are some great tips out there you would not have thought of without being prompted. I would especially like to draw your attention to groompower.com, where the Fiance picked up the wonderful tip not to get overambitious polishing his shoes, to avoid a bride with black stains all over the bottom of her nice white dress.

But how can you tell the good advice from the bad?

Well, half of it is just common sense. I suppose in my case it helps that I only started browsing randomly after having talked to lots of lovely ladies. It also helps that I am stubborn and opinionated and that we’re doing a lot of things differently and don’t feel the need to follow the (baa) flock. But even if you’ve started from the same point I have, you can easily end up having a little wobble because something you’ve read on a random website has given you doubts. You might not even go there on purpose. You might get linked there on a forum, by a supplier or through a seemingly innocent link embedded in a blog post.

So here are some Hot Tips for recognising Bad Advice.

1. It’s usually very brief

The bad advisor cannot be bothered to go into details, do further research or question to what extent their advice is limited by their own experience. They probably don’t really know what they’re talking about and thus there isn’t much of it. If they’re trying to sell a product, it’s best not to mention alternatives if possible.

2. It’s linked to Branding

If the site is flaunting one supplier or another, it’s biased. So, okay, we all know this, but sometimes the site doesn’t just big itself up – it hides alternatives. There’s nothing wrong with looking through these sites for lists of products, but be cautious as you do it.

Make up sites are particularly bad at this, telling you that you have to wear one thing or another, telling you what the bridal look is or harrassing you with package deals for your big day. If they don’t offer an product they also won’t mention key things like the fact that it’s worth looking for as much waterproof make up as possible – especilaly for your eyes. They won’t tell you that you can try samples for free or have free make up lessons on Boots/Debenhams/John Lewis stalls and that these things might be really useful in case their products disagree with your skin or something. Good advice will tell you to try before you buy, warn you that everything is not sunshine and glass slippers, and encourage you to shop around.

In other words, it doesn’t sell, it advises. And if instead you go to see a make up vendor in person, they’ll probably give you real advice too.

3. “Signal” word like “you must” and “never”

Why? Is it the done thing? Would it be an awful faux pas if you did? Would your family throw down their champagne flutes and perform a mass exit in protest? I suspect not.

Whatever happens, it’s your day. Yes, you need to take the feelings of your guests into account, of course you do, but only you know your guests. It’s easy to follow decades of tradition rather than actually decide what is suitable, but you should still do this, because the traditional way might not be suitable either.

Don’t let any website give you orders. An order on a site is an invitation to click the big red cross in the corner. So if you see a command on an advice page (e.g. “Don’t let any website give you orders.”) really sit down and question it – it may be a strongly-voiced opinion, or casual use of language… or you may well be best moving on from there.

Good advice will give you some hints and tips, suggest alternatives and then invite you to decide what is appropriate given your own set of circumstances.

4. It invites you to be selfish

Wedding related media is particularly guilty of this because it is Your Day and thus only what You Want matters. So if you want to eat raw meat and give out condoms as favours, do it! Who cares how many people beg you not to. …Erm? Even wedding forums can get pretty bad – though it does depend upon the forum and its feel and attitudes.

I was recently reminded of this by a thread on a facebook group I frequent. The poster asked:

How much do you agree that weddings are JUST about the bride and groom?.. I personally think that as soon as you invite guests, you are a host, and should consider your guests.

I ask because over on the UKBride forum there’s a thread about menu choices, and everyone apart from me has said something along the lines of picking what the couples wants, and not considering the guests. This seems silly to me as a) presumably, people do actually LIKE the people they are inviting and want them to have a good time, and not go hungry and b) surely if you’re spending x amount on a meal, you don’t want 75% of the guests not to eat it?

There was a whole stream of choices, especially from lots of women desperate to drool over their menu choices once again, but one in particular caught my attention and is relevant to this post:

Please don’t get me wrong, but UKB seems to have a culture that isn’t necessarily conducive to planning an enjoyable wedding. Your guests ARE important as is making them feel comfortable.

5. Key information is missi

This is only particularly noticeable to those who are going for something different to what is mentioned, but even if your choices are covered by the advice, noticing that others aren’t should be a big clue to treat the rest of the content with a pinch of salt. Why? Because advice should help people make choices, not force them to feel outcast if they don’t do it your way.

The main example I have found is something on the lines of a discussion on the beautiful church wedding vs the cheap quick registry wedding. Erm, well, not all church/registry weddings are like that, plus what about other religions, or the large number of registered buildings for civil ceremonies which are out there? There are even plenty of places for fussy buggers like the Fiance and I who ruled out hotels into the bargain. Just have a look yourself.

6. It’s American

Sadly true that whilst lots of American customs are applicable to UK couples, not all of them are, and you might come across several of the other bad advice signals which arise accidentally simply because things are different over there. It’s a great fallacy to assume that because we have a shared language we also have a shared culture.

I’m talking about lots of things which American culture assumes. Like having a rehearsal dinner (what???) or a receiving line. Like asking you “What are you doing for your favours?” (or “favors”, which I can’t help but pronounce in an Italian accent as “fah-vorrs”!) instead of “Are you doing favours?” Because Americans brought favours back in to popularity, and now many UK brides are starting forum threads like

Favours?? Can i be arsed? Do you have to do favours? Will people think less of me if i dont?

7. It makes very odd assumptions

They key example I have of this is an article I rambled across about how to meet your future in-laws for the first time… which makes the very odd assumption that after getting engaged, one of the first things you’ll need to do now is meet your other half’s parents. Which is okay, right, except that I’m sure most people will have met them before now. Won’t they???

Articles like this worry me. They encourage people to avoid meeting their partner’s family until absolutely necessary, and then, when they meet them to follow dodgy advice, like doing research on them to endear yourself to them (erm, stalkerish at all?), which seems inherently dishonest. Be nice and all that, but don’t fix a false smile, compliment their hideous dress and tell them you are a massive golf fan too.

I’ve just had a furious google around to relocate the article, and found several similar – but longer (see item1)!

These longer articles largely repeat the obvious stuff, but also mention that you should BE YOURSELF. Advice strangely at odds with the false compliments suggestions. Some articles even tell you not to make assumptions based on the first meeting. Crikey. Is that actually… GOOD advice?

So where can you go for good advice?

Forums are usually pretty good, although as we’ve discussed it does depend upon the forum, the mood, the attitudes, the general flavour in the air. Specialist websites are also good, of the non-branded variety, which will also hopefully take you outside the fluffy world of weddings, where everything is a must-have at 150% ££s. Personal experiences are a favourite of mine, because if you explore enough of them you get a better idea about the range that’s out there than if you start with a magazine’s site or something that pre-selects the writers who fit their “look”. Read one and you’re not much better off, but read several and you’ll acquire a much more representative slice.

Here’s something you may not want to hear – then again, I’ve got it from my experience. When it comes to weddings, advice from men and advice for men tends to be saner, more sensible, and to the point.

Of course this is not always true, but in general men are much less carried away by the sentiments, the prettinesses and the dream-quality of a wedding. To them it’s much more about you the couple, and a nice party afterwards. And so accordingly their advice tends to be much more earthed and snap you back to reality.

However, I did read this really awful report on how to choose the ring and stage your proposal from a bloke who treated the whole thing like a business arrangement and the ring choice as a dealbreaker, using phrases like “[y]ou will markedly improve your chances of success if” and basically encourages every would-be-fiance to become a diamond expert. He also flags up the necessity of asking for permission. THIS IS AN EXTREMELY PERSONAL THING AND YOU SHOULD DEFINITELY ASCERTAIN THE PERSONAL SITUATION WITH RESPECT TO PERMISSION AND NOT TAKE THE ADVICE OF SOME RANDOM GUY ON THE WEB. Some girls absolutely love the romance of having their father asked for permission, and some fathers feel that they have the right to this request. Some couldn’t care less. Others, like me, would probably have turned down their bloke had he asked their father (or other key family member) for permission and decided that the relationship needed further work for a bit. Nobody has the right to decide my future for me. I am my partner’s equal, and I want my partner to be a man who respects my rights to choose over following a tradition hungover from when women were property. Luckily, he is. Asking for a blessing post engagement is totally different.

Good advice would out these issues and tell you to investigate the right way in your partner’s family. Bad advice cheers you on to follow the traditional “romantic” route, because that looks pretty down on paper. Well, screen.

Tips can also be picked up on completely non-wedding-topic related sites, and these tips are often more honest because they are not invested in the business. These are the kinds of things you will come across when you are not looking for wedding related advice, but browsing harmlessly, which I hope you are still doing, as it will probably help you avoid the post-wedding blues, which seem to be quite common, especially amongst those who give up the rest of their life whilst planning your big day.

We recently came across a really awesome tip for shaving smoothly from, peculiarly, Neil Gaiman, which was this. If you were looking for advice on a clean, smooth shave for your wedding day, I severely doubt your first port of call would be a fantasy writer’s blog. So it just shows.