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Don’t fall ill on your wedding day! Tips to stay healthy

allergy-18656_1280The best time to realize the saying “Health is Wealth,” is when you are engaged. Falling ill when your wedding day is just around the corner, can be a damper on all the celebrations. Imagine how terrible it would be to stand at the altar and sniffle (ones that aren’t the happy type!), or how difficult it would be to control sneezing while photos are being clicked.

Unfortunately, illness is something that can strike at any time, unless you are determined to keep it at bay. Here are some tips will help you in this direction. Begin practicing them right away and you can avoid falling ill.

Build up your immunity

One of the best ways to avoid falling ill is to strengthen your immunity. Fortunately, this isn’t too difficult to achieve, and the earlier you begin it the sooner you can achieve it. Eat a well-balanced diet that is rich in fresh fruits and vegetables. Drink plenty of water everyday. Get your stomach ready to attack bugs by building up your reserve of good bacteria through having yogurt with live cultures, regularly. You touch a number of surfaces everyday, so wash your hands often and clean them well. Use warm water and soap, or use a hand sanitizer if it isn’t possible to wash your hands at any time.

Sleep well

Sleep is an instant stress-reliever and having a good sleep-cycle will strengthen your body in several ways. However hectic your schedule may be, stick to a regular sleep routine. This will help you unwind and a stress-free body is better equipped to fight off bugs.

Avoid contact with sick people

This is a no-brainer, yet one that many brides seem to forget. When you come to know someone is sick, restrict or avoid contact with them till they are better. Should you have to care for a person suffering from a contagious condition, make sure that you have minimum contact with them and the things they use. Also wash your hands well, and do not touch surfaces that may be infected. When you use public transportation, or spend time in a public space, wash your hands soon after.

Exercise to push those bugs away

Moderate exercise helps your body create more infection-fighting cells, than usual. So, make it a habit. However, don’t overwork your body. Take it steady and practice regularly. You can also consider yoga or meditation, as these can enhance the body’s capabilities of combating stress.

Get a daily dose of herbal help

A number of herbs have been used since ages to fight infections as well as to improve the immune system. These include elderberry, echinacea, turmeric and astragalus. These herbs boost the natural immunity of the body, without causing any side-effects. Consume them daily and you will obtain the protection you require.

Treat a symptom at the onset

Remember that the clock is ticking, and you cannot afford to have a cold, flu or stomach bug at this time. Don’t dismiss any symptom that appears, and begin attacking it with medication, natural remedies and whatever works, from the moment you suspect you will be ill. For colds and flus, take zinc at the onset. For a stomach bug, load up on fluids and take suitable medication right away. Try to get it under control before it spoils your wedding day.

For more wedding tips and advice, visit Best for Bride.

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A guide to choosing two wedding dresses for the big day

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The wedding dress you choose as a bride, plays a remarkable role in determining whether you look sexy and sophisticated or feminine and elegant. Choosing a different gown may change your look entirely.

It is in fact, not easy to determine a single look that will be perfect for your wedding day. In certain cases, it is better to consider two gowns instead of one. Let us look at few reasons why this is a better option than limiting yourself to just one dress.

Two looks for more impact

Your wedding day is the one occasion when you want all eyes to be on you. While you can amaze everyone with your wedding ensemble when you walk down the aisle, this interest may dwindle by the time of the reception. The best way to recreate this impact is by wearing another stunning dress for the reception and you can be certain that your guests will be amazed once again!

For practical purposes

Let us face it, layers of organza or tulle in a ball gown skirt with an elaborate and flowing train look fantastic at a traditional ceremony, but it may get in the way of dancing comfortably during the reception.

Stunning wedding dresses that look classic and elegant may not be practical for a fun and action-packed reception. A bustled train is still heavy, and can impede your chances to jiggle to the fun tunes at the ceremony. This is why more brides are opting for shorter and lighter dresses for the reception. This allows them to move freely and not feel restricted.

To match the ambiance of the venues

You may like to consider two different wedding dresses to match your appearance to the décor and ambiance of the venues where each function will be taking place. If you are getting married outdoors, on the beach or in a garden and then proceed to an indoor venue for the reception, the ambiance of each venue is entirely different. Hence, the light weight romantic wedding dress for the outdoor venue could give way to a more poufy or fashionable wedding dress for the ball room.

When you decide to go for the two-dress look, an obvious question is when do you change dresses? A good idea is to do so during the cocktail hour, or before you cut the cake. This way, you will have sufficient time to photograph for portraits in your ceremonial dress, and your guests won’t miss you as they mingle and meet each other.

If you are pressed for time or cannot afford two entirely different dresses, you can also consider a convertible gown such as the Mori Lee 5316, which incorporates two looks into a single dress.

via Best for Bride

With the tulle over-skirt, you obtain a classic A-line silhouette for the ceremony, and when you remove the over-skirt you are left with a stylish mermaid gown for the reception.

via Best for Bride

For more wedding tips and ideas, as well as to find the perfect wedding dresses for your big day, visit Best for bride.

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Online Wedding Dress Fraud


When browsing photographs of brides sharing their online wedding dress horror stories, I couldn’t help but repeatedly utter, “Oh, wow.” It seemed as though each bride’s nightmare was worse than the last. In these cases, what the bride saw on the pages of the online bridal shop was a stunning wedding dress at an unbelievably low price. What was delivered to the bride resembled a completely different dress. In some of the worst cases, bride’s received dresses that resembled cheap Halloween costumes with gaudy colors and plastic embellishments.

Several disappointed brides received dresses that were different than what was advertised. In all the cases that I have seen, the online wedding dress store offered wedding dresses that appeared to be high quality, stylish dresses. However, what the women actually received were cheaply made knockoffs of the pictured gown. The websites often offer cheap versions of designers gowns. The actual dresses that are delivered are unusable.

Garish colors are one of the many problems with the gowns. The photograph on the website shows a white dress, but an awful green one is delivered. Another woman ordered a pale dusty pink gown and received a bright bubble gum pink dress. Bright fuchsia has been substituted for peach.

How can brides avoid wedding dress fraud online? News reports of the scams pointed out that most of the companies that are delivering cheaply made dresses while showing gorgeous gowns on their websites are headquartered in China. Some of these websites avoid mentioning their locations, or they post a United States or London phone number.

One way brides can avoid wedding dress scams is to contact the company. If the contact information is missing or misleading, that’s a definite sign that something is wrong. Many of the top, trustworthy online bridal stores also have brick and mortar stores where brides can browse a selection of gowns and get a proper fitting.

If the price is too good to be true, it probably is. This is an old saying that is still relevant today. Quality dresses cost money. If you see a website that is offering gowns at extremely low prices, beware of the possible danger. Many brides order dresses through these bargain wedding dress websites and either don’t receive any dresses or receive a dress that is not what was ordered.

Brides who can’t afford to buy the dress of their dreams may want to consider renting a quality wedding dress. The bride will know that she will have that perfect dress on her wedding day for a fraction of the cost of buying it.

For more ways to make the most of your wedding budget without falling prey to scams, browse the Best for Bride blog. There you’ll find many great tips for planning a wedding on a budget.

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The 5 Do’s of wedding registry

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There are definite advantages of registering for gifts. It allows your guests to buy you something that you value and appreciate and also saves you the trouble of worrying over what to do with all those wedding gifts you didn’t want.

To help you make the most of your wedding registry, here are the top 5 Do’s that will make sure you do not break any etiquette rules, while getting most or all the right things that will be useful to you.

Register at a few select stores only

Rather than registering at all the stores you can think of, stick to a few select ones. Take time to research your options and go with places that allow guests to also purchase online. This will make it convenient for them. When choosing the stores, make sure you check with them about their shipping and delivery options, exchange and return policies and also any discount or offer programs that you can make use of.

Don’t put your registry on your invitation card

Putting registry information on your wedding invite is considered a breach of etiquette. So, refrain from it. If you have a wedding website, put the information there. This will allow guests to locate it easily. Register early, before you send out your invitations, so your registry information is available to your guests when they seek it. Also pass on the information to your family and close circle of friends, so they can share it with those who ask them.

Register for a variety of gifts and with various price ranges

Remember to register for plenty of gifts, so your guests have enough to choose from based on their budget. One way to do this is to register for more gifts than there are guests. While including expensive items on your list, remember that you should provide affordable options too, so your guests do not find it difficult to find a gift. Else, they may end up buying outside the registry, and it may be something that isn’t useful or you would like displaying in your home.

Keep updating your registry

Make sure that you keep track of what is going on with your registry, from the time it is open to your guests. If a gift has been purchased, make sure that you know about it, and take it off the list. If the store doesn’t do this automatically you should continuously review your registry. Also update it with more options, so that the guests who buy late still have enough options.

Think long-term when registering for gifts

Your wedding is the occasion to receive some really valuable gifts, so plan your list sensibly. Rather than going with what you want now, think of how your life will be 5 or 10 years from now, and what gifts will last that long and serve you well. Think of the special occasions or family get-togethers you will host, and what will be useful when you do. Put these items down in your registry.

Once you are blissfully married and have received all your wedding gifts, don’t forget to thank every guest filled your house with the stuff you wanted. Personally written thank you notes will make sure your guests feel appreciated and happy in return.

For more wedding tips and advice, visit us at Best for Bride.