Last week, I met with a bride-to-be who is planning her wedding, which is taking place later this year. Along with her notes and pictures of the flowers and bouquets she wanted to discuss, she had a book with her, entitled “Where to Seat Aunt Edna and 500 Other Great Wedding Tips“.

My curiosity always gets the best of me, so I asked her about the book. She said she got it as a gift from a girlfriend when she got engaged, and that it was actually quite a fun and helpful book. She offered to let me read it, if I promised to return it to her.

I read it over the weekend, and really enjoyed it. I returned it to her yesterday (along with a few flowers), and thanked her again.

The book was a quick, easy, and witty read. Here are a couple of the tips that hit home for me:

“I’m happy to share my number one piece of advice on choosing flowers: Do not plan your wedding to be the same weekend as Mother’s Day. Unfortunately, that’s what I did! And I found out that 99 percent of florists don’t even take on weddings that weekend, as it’s their second busiest time of the year (behind Valentine’s Day).”

– K.R., Tampa, Florida; number of wedding guests: 115

“Put some dress guidelines for the wedding in the invitations. You wouldn’t believe how many guests showed up in jeans.”

– J.B., Covington, Kentucky; number of wedding guests: 100

“We provided the florist with glass bowls for our centerpieces. The bowls were extremely affordable and can be bought in bulk. As a result, the florist was able to discount the cost of the arrangements.”

– Patricia Froelich-Klier, Winter Park, Florida.; number of wedding guests: 75

“Don’t sweat the small (or even big) stuff!”

– Tracy Brown-Wright, Gainesville, Florida; number of wedding guests: 100

I felt I could have contributed this last tip myself, because it’s one I probably share with every bride-to-be I consult with.

If you’re newly engaged, or planning a wedding, you’ll get a lot of tips and advice you can use. Some you may already know, but many may be new to you. And you’ll get it straight from those who’ve already made the mistakes and endured some big wedding day disasters, so hopefully, you won’t have to.

There were a few tips and suggestions I thought were “a little out there”, but you would have to judge for yourself. Overall, I think most couples would enjoy this book, and find it useful. I know I did - I bought my own copy.

I picked up it up here ==>>Where to Seat Aunt Edna and 500 Other Great Wedding Tips

If you’ve got any tips, suggestions, or advice you would like to share, feel free to chime in.