Try the unlit tiki torches along the entrance path

The best way to decorate the entrance path or even mark the path for the bride in a beach wedding is to have unlit tiki torches on either side and these will form kind of a path.

As far as the decorations are concerned make sure that you use the organza or the white chiffon for adding some style. On the top of the tiki torches where the actual flame should have you can use some nice floral arrangements or even fill the cavity with the petals.

For a daytime wedding this will work and the bamboo tiki torches will be great decorations.

For the wedding reception at night on a beach or otherwise the tiki torches will work wonderfully and you can create a good Hawaiian luau wedding touch to any wedding.

Tiki Centerpieces

Tabletop bamboo tiki torch centerpieces are the most in vogue and easily they are the big money savers and they only cost about $5 on an average. You can easily procure them on eBay or Amazon and get it shipped to the venue of your choice. They also go with the bamboo wedding arches on the beach wedding.

Decorations of the Tiki Torch

Get a big tiki torch made up of metal like copper or brass and then make sure that use all the tropical greens and the nice limes that are available on the island especially in Hawaii style and decorate that torch. Usually you can have the green leaves runner along with artificial fruits in many florists and crafts shop.

A copper tiki torch without decoration along with the nice flower petals all around it also looks good.

Flowers like calla lilies and plumerias can be used to decorate the upper part of the torch from outside generally and this way you can also easily hide the patterned reed holding the wick and use the ferns runner on the stem or the shaft of the torch.

Colors – Use burnt orange, red and the yellow colors for the decorations.

Tiki torch where to keep it.

As I suggested earlier you can keep it on the path to the wedding venue as a set of five on each side.

Lot of people light the torch when it comes to the wedding vows and they are a good backdrop. You can only use one as a backdrop which will in the center of the tow individuals when you see it from the other end or you can put one on each side of the couple.

Tip: Always use the bamboo tiki torches as the stainless steel tiki torches or the copper tiki torches will not have that required elegance. The metal tiki torches are good for the outdoor décor of the home but not for weddings.

The other challenge with gas based tiki torches is that you will have to hide the gas tanks if at all you are using them instead of the canisters.

If you are doing a tiki themed wedding or you are a tiki aficionado then make sure that you everything which is tiki including the tiki torch wedding centerpieces, tiki mugs as favors, tiki stools to sit on and tiki wedding cake topper on the wedding cake. You can have the small tiki hut shaped glass boxes as the weeding favors.

To complete the tiki theme use the tiki bar signs for the directions for the guests.

For pure experience of the tiki weddings the best way is to go to Oahu in Hawaii or the Kauai or Kailua or the most famous for tiki called the Waikiki.

Additional tip ; If you are getting married in Hawaii , make sure that you have the luau or the wedding feast.

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That is not all when there you will again have to do a lot of stuff which will end you finally getting your marriage registered.

The basic requirements that are there are

Original Birth certificate – to show the proof of age and you should be minimum 18 years of age to marry.

In case you are a US citizen then you will need the permission from the Santo Domingo based American Consulate.

Passport

The Dominican Republic requirements state that they should be able to see that your status is single. That will mean that either you are divorced, widowed or never married. To get this they will need a single status certificate in Spanish and it should be duly notarized by the Dominican Republic Consulate.

If previously married then the copy of the Divorce Act or the Death certificate.

Also there is a minimum 10 month waiting period for the women to get married after the divorce.

The Judge who officiates at the marriage charges about $100.

Two witnesses – these are a must and if you cannot have these two witnesses then you will need to tell the hotel or the resort folks for that as they can help arrange the witnesses.

Tip: If you are running short of time and have no time for planning a destination wedding or if you are not that enthusiastic about having to do all the planning yourself then your best bet to get a wedding package whereby the hotel or the resort will do everything for you apart from the fact that you will have engage them a few days in advance and also you will need to send them the documents.

Generally they will need all paperwork about 10- 15 days in advance.

The Marriage certificate will take about two to three days after the marriage to be ready. The marriage is definitely legal and can be used anywhere in the world.

Note: There is no blood test needed to get married in the Dominican Republic.

Also you can choose to have a religious or a civil marriage ceremony. Also for more general tips for a beach wedding read here.

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Here are my few tips for the beach wedding dresses and I hope these will help you get that perfect look which is ideal for a beach wedding

1. 1. Beach wedding dresses for Bride

The style for the beach wedding dresses is always casual. But wait before you start thinking casual means just a normal track pant and a nice Tee then that is not the the type of casual I am talking. This is casual in the sense that much more casual than the dress that you would normally wear if you wedding was in a church.

The style has to have a few things which define the atmosphere at the beach wedding and the definition is

It has to be cool

It has to be breezy

It has to look romantic

It has to look less formal or “informal” yet stylish and sensual as opposed to downright sexy.

Types of dresses that you could wear



Photo by Hare Guizer

A long gown preferably strapless or the spaghetti straps . Try for a good designer like the Badgley Mischka or Dessy. Get it short or tea lenght for showing your legs and in the beach wedding it is normal.

A halter neck will also do

The color white preferably.

The cloth can be chiffon, georgette, organza or linen.

The Beach Wedding Accessories

Necklace Go for a simple pearl necklace with a small diamond or a stone pendant

Footwear As far as footwear is concerned no heels but just flip flops or casual sandals.

Hairstyle A simple pinup with flowing hair is the best. It signifies informal and definitely gels well with the casual beach wedding dresses.Add flowers on the pinup.

Important : The time of the day you are getting wedded at the beach as well as the season will influence the dress. If you are getting married near the sunset time and it gets chilly in the weather you are getting married then make sure to get a dress which is covered or get a special shawl style cover up which can hold you through the entire wedding.

This is strictly not a wedding reception decoration ideas post but I wanted to mention this as everything goes with the wedding style even the wedding dresses.

2.   Beach Wedding Dresses for Groom

The style should be the same for the groom as well as the bride a classy casual with the a shirt which is line or silk or the classy and trendy cotton.

The most common things to care of

Suit should not be wear even if the wedding is in a beach resort hotel and not on the sand itself. If you have to wear a suit then wear the cotton or line suit.

The color of the shirt can be beach pastel or white or light cream

If it is Hawaii then go for the Aloha shirts with floral prints. There are other options like the Mexican shirts called Guayabera shirts. These look very cool and classy with short sleeves.

The Beach Wedding Accessories

Footwear Go for the simple loafers or sandals and no dress shoes even with the suits it is preferable to wear the loafers than the dress shoes.

3.   Beach Wedding Dresses for Bridesmaid

The bridesmaid dresses have to be also cool and casual and no formals. The color for the bridesmaid can be a challenge so best are the rust color or light peach or the white with ivory tinge.

The bridesmaid can wear the gloves as accessories but usually should be avoided if it is not a sunset variety. Make sure that the bridesmaid dresses are a bit different than the brides. With beach wedding that can be tough but achievable.

If the wedding is inside in a beach resort hotel then make sure then definitely the bridesmaid can wear the gloves.

Also light jewelry is acceptable like small silver wrist bands as well as light sliver anklets. These will in fact give an added touch to the bridesmaid overall get up.Some antique collecting jewelry will also do if you are wearing something vintage. You can find cheap wedding dresses available all over the internet online.

Important Tip – Make sure that you carry the moisturizer as well as other lotions because of the sun and the air it can become quite dry. Extra care should be taken if there is wind blowing as that would mean special care for the hair.

Have a wonderful wedding

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Destination weddings – An Introduction

More and more couples are planning to move outwards when it comes to their wedding. The most common way to do that is that you think of any outdoor location and get married there.

That outdoors does not have to your own backyard and it can be a different city or a different country for example India or Mexico. If you are selecting a particular city or a place then definitely it is known as the destination wedding.

Destination weddings are not easy to plan as invariably you have not been to the place and also you do not know what kind of arrangements will be needed for having a wedding in a new city or a country. It is here the wedding planners enter the picture. Believe me they are worth the money :- )

Are Really Beach Weddings For You?

Once you have decided that you need to have a destination wedding then the next big thing to be decided is what kind of destination are you interested in.

The most favored one are the Las Vegas wedding which are always in vogue nowadays. Next are the absolute outdoors in the sand and those are the beach weddings.

Do not just say OK to a beach wedding but think hard as a couple would you be able to able first of all afford a beach wedding and also if you are Ok with sand and water and air to be blowing when are exchanging your vows. The whole thing can be totally out of sorts for you if you are not prepared for it.

Beach Weddings

Photogragh by justjennifer

You may love the idea of a beach wedding but when it comes to reality things may be really different. So think and say yes to a beach wedding. There are other outdoor weddings also available like the wedding on a mountaineous area like the wedding in a European destination. A good example of that is Switzerland. I will come to those destinations in my next few posts but I will stick to everything you need to know about beach weddings. That way you will be able to decide whether you need the beach wedding destination or not.

Step By Step Planning For a Beach Wedding

In this post of mine I am going to detail each and everything including the questions you need to ask yourself regarding the beach wedding. Beach weddings can be arranged for a small group of people or for a large group of people the only difference being the set up of the decoration as well as the cost

Finalize a Beach wedding destination

This is the most important or rather the basis of a successful beach wedding. You need to pick a destination which is affordable or rather based on your cost. You need to make sure that you know the number of guests that will be arriving for the beach wedding ceremony as well as for the beach wedding reception.

If you have large number of guests coming for the beach wedding then a private resort or a beach side hotel with a nice lake or private beach will be perfect.

Get views from people and also look for weather

Whenever you are getting to finalize a destination then make sure that you have actually talked to a few wedding planners and also your friends or acquaintances that have been to a beach wedding. They can tell what beach was better or what they know about a particular location.

Also make sure that you check the weather forecast as that may strike out a few beaches out of your shortlisted candidates.

The beach destination also will be based on the fact that majority of guests are coming form which place. It may so happen that all your guests stay near a particular beach area or town whereas you are the only one who will be coming from far or vice versa.

The most common beach wedding destinations within the country are

The most favored destination is Florida beach weddings and some of the locations for in Florida are

Miami

Ft.Lauderdale

Tampa Bay

Key West

Port Canaveral

Hawaii beach wedding destinations

The favored destinations are

Oahu

Maui beach

Kauai

The list of most common beach wedding destinations outside the country is

Caribbean beach weddings

St. Thomas

Tortola

Grand Caymans

Other islands are Cancun

Puerto Rican Islands

Dominican Republic

Bahamas

US Virgin Islands

Finalize the Wedding planner

Once you have swooped down on a particular location then you need to do things according to a particular plan so that all things come together on the given wedding day.

You can get all arrangements done on your own and or take the help of a wedding planner in the beach town where you have decided to hold the wedding reception.

The wedding planner will help you get all the necessary permits as well as the necessary arrangements done. These wedding planners usually have all the required contacts with local vendors for flower arrangements and decorations as well for wedding arches etc and many more items which you cannot even fathom.

Use a Checklist

There are so many small things that you are likely to forget in the stress of planning a beach wedding that you will definitely need to make sure that that each and every item of note should be on your spreadsheet with a date attached to it as well as the name of the person responsible for it. Make sure that you have that person’s contact number on it.

That way you can easily manage using the fact sheet as well as you will be able to plan based on timeline.

Finalize the beach wedding ceremony Décor

Once you have finalized the destination as well engaged a wedding planner then the next step is to finalize the kind of wedding decoration that you want for the beach wedding.

There is huge number of things that you along with your wedding planner will need to think for the decorations.

Beach Arch Wedding Decorations

Photogragh by andreap83

Select a Theme

If you really need to decorate a wedding ceremony properly then make sure that you have theme selected as that will help you easily select the wedding decoration pieces and mind you there are varied decoration that you need to take care of which I will be explaining one by one in the next few articles.

A few examples of themes can be the balloon theme or the sea shells theme or the only glass theme or the sand theme.

The theme can also be based on your personality and can be a bold theme representing a multiple of colors and yes if you really want a out of sorts theme then you can choose a native theme based on the beach town where you are having the wedding.

For example in Florida you may have different theme than you would have in the Caribbean Islands. You can have a music filled theme for a Caribbean island wedding or even a bamboo theme wedding.

The positive side of these weddings is that you have a goal and decoration idea in mind for everything ranging from the centerpieces to the arches and even the tables.

The negative side that is that you may have to put in a little more effort and planning for the wedding decoration. Hey but what the heck it is your wedding so why not have the best!!!

Finalize the beach wedding Reception Decoration

The wedding reception ceremony is equally important and that means again as I explained earlier selecting a theme for the reception.

You can have the same décor as the wedding ceremony or you can change the wedding reception decoration.

In terms of saving the cost it is a good idea to have the same décor as the ceremony and only the items will change but not the basic underlying theme.

In this blog of mine I will keep giving out various wedding reception decoration ideas from time to time.

Beach wedding Dresses

The most important part of the wedding is the dress and if you are getting married on a beach then you need to have dress that matches the theme of the wedding.

The wedding dress fitting and finalization takes a lot of time and if it is the marriage season then you need make sure that you book the wedding dress designer well in advance.

Get all the dates for the trial fittings as well as the final delivery well in advance.

The same goes for the bridesmaid gown and dresses as well the tuxedo or dress for the groom. Usually the dress for the groom takes less of time as well as fitting trials than the bride and hence this advance booking.

Beach wedding Invitations and Save the Date

It is very important that you give the information about the venue well in advance to the guests. You can send the save the date cards to them and follow that with a good invitation. Needless to say it will have to have the theme of the wedding as the basic idea.

The guests can make their arrangements for arriving at the venue whether by air or by road. Also you will know based on the invitations accepted that how many guests are likely to arrive.

That number will help you making stay arrangements for the guests as well as you can them plan the venue decorations and make food and drink arrangements accordingly.

Have a back up plan ready

As you are having your wedding outdoors that means that you are the mercy of Mother Nature.  As I suggested in #2 that you definitely need to check the weather before finalizing the destination but things can go wrong easily.

For example the wind can blow so strong that it becomes impossible to have the wedding outside or it suddenly starts raining.

There can be some other unfortunate things that can happen which will prevent you from having the wedding outside and that will mean that you need to have a back up plan ready for the unfortunate eventuality.

Make sure that you have covered portion of nearby resort already booked for such type of circumstance or best even get a venue which has resort or a beach hotel attached alongside so that the arrangements can be shifted inside at the last minute. Most resort hotels which cater to weddings will have alternate arrangements and backups ready.

Wedding day arrangements

On the actual wedding day itself you cannot run around looking for minute details so here are some tips for that day. Remember wedding day for you is to enjoy and absorb the essence of the occasion

Delegate

Start delegating the work well before in advance to family members so that they can take care of everything well in advance.

Arrive In Advance at the destination.

It is always better to arrive in advance at the wedding destination. You can come a day or two early along with your family members so that you can do a final checkup of all the facilities.

Also call up the various vendors as well as the wedding planner to make sure that they know of the date and are working according to the directions given.

Final Checklist walkthrough

I know it will look like pure project management but yes you need to go through the checklist that you prepared initially night before the wedding day and make sure that you have not missed out on anything.

            Congratulations on your wedding day!!!

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