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BRIDESMAIDS’ LUNCHEONS, BACHELOR DINNERS, AND WEDDING ANNIVERSARIES
Guests to be Invited—Etiquette and Dress for Bridesmaids’ Luncheons—Etiquette and Dress for Bachelor Dinners—Things to be Done and Things to be Avoided—Wedding Anniversaries—The Right and the Wrong Way to Celebrate Them—Form of Invitation.
“HOW many bridesmaids shall I have at my wedding?” Many a young girl asks herself this question, to which it is not easy to give a categorical answer. We will, however, say to her: choose your attendants for this beautiful day in your life from among those you love and who love you. If you have several sisters and dear friends, the selection may be a little difficult, but doubtless there are some who are nearer to you than others. If you have no sisters, or if they are all married, you perhaps have one or more cousins to represent the family, and you will want to include a sister or other near relative of your fiancé for his sake. Let the number of your bridesmaids be decided by that of the young women you would like to have around you at your wedding, provided always this is not so large as to appear ostentatious. You should also consider the question of expense, since it is now the custom for the bride to make a gift to each of her attendants. If the ceremony takes place at church, her family also pay for the carriages for the bridesmaids. A large church wedding is a very costly affair, and a young girl should be considerate in the demands upon her father’s purse. The expenditure for a wedding should be in proportion to the means of the bride’s family, since etiquette demands that they and not the groom should meet it. If the function is unduly elaborate, unfavorable criticism is almost sure to result.
If you decide to be married at home, you will not have more than one or two bridesmaids; at church, four or six is a good number. More than eight seem ostentatious, unless under exceptional circumstances. You may like in addition to have your sister or dearest friend act as maid of honor. A young married woman sometimes acts as matron of honor; but this is in contravention of the good old custom of surrounding the bride with a group of maidens. Be sure to make your selection, and to ask your friends to officiate as bridesmaids, in good season. It is your privilege to choose the costumes they are to wear. In doing this we hope you will not be carried away by the charms of the fashion-book models, but will bear in mind the complexion and figure of your friends as they actually exist in real life. You will certainly want them to look their best, for your sake as well as their own. The bride is always the great center of attraction, but if she has good taste she will desire to have the wedding cortège form a harmonious whole. For this purpose the costumes of the bridesmaids may be all alike, or there may be a diversity of coloring. The two that walk together should be dressed alike.