The Low-down, Dirty Truth About Being a Maid Honor

Drawing by: The Jewel Store

For only a select few of you, you will be asked a pretty honorable question in your lifetime: "Will you be my Maid of Honor?" So here is the low-down dirty truth about it: The title and attention at the front of the altar are about the only glamorous things about it. Sorry to burst your bubble, but if you are going to accept the title of Maid of Honor here are some more truths you should consider:

1. You're responsible for planning everything...EVERYTHING. Oh, you thought "so and so planned that"? Nope, you're wrong. When it comes to the bachelorette party, wedding shower/bridal shower, and the list goes on, it is your responsibility to coordinate everything. While getting help from other bridesmaids is a route you can take, overall you are the event coordinator.
2. You shouldn't expect to be paid back...for ANYTHING. During many parts of the wedding journey you're likely to have to dish out a little bit more money than the other bridesmaids to help make the bride-to-be's last fling memorable. Plan to set some money aside to account for the little things that need to be taken care of like tips, extra bachelorette party trinkets, taxis, first aid kits {haha} you name it! Keeping tabs isn't necessary because at the end of the day, the favor will be (or has been) returned.
3. You're not the one getting married. As much as you may despise the wedding colors, hate that the Bride isn't having open bar, or whatever other wedding detail you're not a fan of, you must remember that it's not you getting married. Therefore, keep those types of opinions to yourself (or your future wedding planner)!
4. You're the spokesperson. Are you good at public speaking? Well, brush up on your leadership and speaking skills because you will be the spokesperson for everything. You will be helping the wedding planner, you will be rounding up the brides, and you will lose your voice. 
5. Expect to bear the brunt of a lot of emotion. Stock up on some tissue and expect to be used as a punching bag every once in a while, because if your friend is like many brides, some water works and heavy emotions will be occurring throughout the wedding journey. Don't worry, she DOES still want to get married.

How To Plan a Tea Party

This past weekend I had the pleasure of helping to plan a fabulous Bachelorette Party. Each day we had a set itinerary filled with lots of fun and one of my favorite days to plan was the last activity: The Afternoon Tea Party. Traditionally, Afternoon Tea is a moment in the late afternoon, usually around 3PM/4PM where you indulge in tea, sandwiches, scones and cake. This British tradition is often replicated for many classy events such as wedding showers or baby showers so we didn't hold back in mimicking such a fun, upscale event as our last hurrah!

Decorations

To set the scene right, I brought a nice, clean, white linen to cover the table. This white linen paired well with the high back chairs and stoney table. I then adorned the center with classic flower centerpieces. You can get fun flower pots and vases from Michaels or random stores like ROSS or TJ Maxx. The green centerpieces were from Cost Plus World Market, another favorite for just about anything decorative! All of the flowers were faux flowers and still gave an elegant touch to the table though I encourage you to buy real ones. Flowers that are white, pink, and peach in color are just perfect.

Food

Tea sandwiches are the main course when it comes to Afternoon Tea, but I didn't bother slaving away making them, though it wouldn't be too hard to whip up in the kitchen with its simple ingredients. I opted for catering through QFC (a Kroger Family store). Just about any caterer knows how to make tea sandwiches. I would recommend to get them in assorted meat flavors. I am a huge fan of accompanying anything salty with something sweet, so having scones, mini cakes, and fruit as options during the Afternoon Tea is a plus.

Fun Fact: Rather than having cakes, I opted to provide Wedding Cake chocolate mints! They were so yummy and were a sweet treat to have concluding the Afternoon Tea!

Tableware

Bring out that China! Beautiful China is the best type of tableware to have during Afternoon Tea. Serving the tea in a tea pot with tea cups is a must. Don't worry about being matchy matchy with the silverware; having different tableware looks makes the table look that much more fancier!

Oh and one more thing: pinkies up when sipping your tea!