Wedding Planning, Part IV

Now that your parents have met the future in-laws, it is time to tell everybody else about your impending nuptials. (Assuming of course, that your parents, your future in-laws, and you survived the meet-the-parents party without embarrassment, anxiety attack, disownment, or other pre-wedding concern...) And like any newly engaged couple, you undoubtedly want your wedding announcement to capture the attention of the public in a memorable and fun way. So today I'll offer you a few creative ways to announce your engagement to the world. Sure these tips might be a little silly, but hey - marriage is too long to not laugh a little...

First, you need a catchy title for your wedding announcement. And though it is traditional to merge your fiance's last name with your own into a simple hyphenated title (e.g. Moore-Bacon), I find that rather boring. So instead of the traditional hyphenated affair, I prefer to write something a bit more attention grabbing. How about a title like... “The End Is Near,” “Game Over,” or my personal favorite – “She Isn't My Cousin!” Put a title like that on your wedding announcement and everyone (including your cousin) will take notice and share in your excitement.

Second, be certain that the wedding announcement includes all of the important information, namely - who, what, when, where, and why. Of course, the who, what, when, and where should be rather obvious. But when it comes to the question of why (let's face it – that's really the question people will want answered), the announcement becomes a bit trickier to write. You could say something like, “We met at a corn shucking competition in Nebraska, and it was love at first shuck...” But who really wants to hear the true story? I think it is much more fun to make something up. So, when addressing the question of - why are we getting hitched – think creatively. A wedding announcement that says something like, “We are getting married because genetic testing has determined that we're perfectly paired to parent the next Lance Armstrong, Colin Powell, or Paris Hilton...” should really grab people's attention.

And lastly, it wouldn't be a wedding announcement without a photo of the happy couple. But to make it a bit more entertaining, why not have a little fun with the photographer? Try swapping clothes with your fiance to see if anyone notices. Or if you don't like that idea, then go online to find a photo of some hot Hollywood couple (e.g. Carrie Underwood and Chace Crawford) and photoshop your faces onto their bodies. Trust me, your wedding announcement will get a lot more attention if your future husband's face is pasted onto Carrie Underwood's body...

So those are my wedding announcement tips. I hope they help. And until next Monday, I wish you good luck with all your wedding planning!