What is this thing called Love?

 Love overcomes all things...

Love: all consuming, deceptive, exciting, wonderful, and the delicious symptoms of the inability to eat or sleep, racing heart, nausea, lightheaded feelings, contentedness with the world at large (when you are with that special someone), and maybe a tingling all over-- these are some of the many ways in which to define "love".

Falling in love by first sight is pretty rare - yet the fun is the falling. Each and every day we play the game of cat and mouse all in the search of "true love." I think we all know by now that true love is a lot harder to catch than we ever imagined. A famous poet once said, "True love is like ghosts, which everybody talks about and few have seen."

The thought of two people coming together and having the ability to overcome all obstacles, no matter what the circumstance and to honor, protect, accept, and rise above anything life brings your way is truly the all American dream.

The race of our inner being towards another is something we simply can not deny! And the thought of being able to stare into an others eyes and for a moment, or an hour, or even a lifetime, nothing else in the world matters, is truly divine.

Franklin Jones said" "Love doesn't make the world go round, Love is what makes the ride worthwhile."

Whether or not you have just found your true love, or have discovered that your love for another was unconditional and true by overcoming extreme obstacles, we wish you the greatest of love and happiness for the remaining days of your life.

Sincerely
First Class Weddings

Cake Cutting 411

Cake Cutting Traditions

Enough is enough! How many more wedding traditions can we shove down your throat? Alright, so the possibilities are endless. So here's one more for you to "swallow." The traditional cutting of the wedding cake, like many traditions, has been around for centuries. Long, long...long ago, it was thought that eating the crumbs off the floor that fell from the bride and grooms mouth would promote fertility for whoever ate them. Yuck-e! Thank goodness that tradition is no more!

What has survived is the opportunity to do one of your first activities together as husband and wife (much like your first dance). And believe it or not, there is a right and wrong way to do this. So pull out your notebook, grab a pen and start taking some notes, guys and girls. Here are some suggestions to keep you from making some typical cake cutting mistakes!

1. Champagne popping and toasts take place before the cake cutting. This includes the traditional crossing of the arms toast for the bride and groom.
2. Let the groom take the lead and be in charge of the cake knife. With the knife in the grooms hand and the brides hand placed on top of his, make your first cut into the cake simultaneously.
3. Cut a small piece of cake and then use the cake server (triangle looking knife) to transfer the piece onto a small cake plate where you can then cut that piece into two.
4. Let the groom feed the bride first (you can do this with a fork or with your fingers). This way if there are any shenanigans on the groom's part, the bride will have the perfect opportunity for bridal revenge.
5. Afterwards you can choose to cut and serve the cake to your guests to eat with their champagne or have it taken away and served for dessert at your reception. Either way, enjoy!

Contributing writer: Sarah Makua

The Best Time to Marry

Determining when to marry is one of the first decisions a couple must make!

Have you ever considered the fact that there may be a greater power that is ultimately leading you towards selecting a particular month in which to get married? Believe it or not, history has always played a factor in determining your wedding date. From January to December here are the historical significance of the months...

January
Ancient Greeks dedicated this month to fertility

February
The month of love! Anything with anybody goes!

March
The month of Lent. Need we say anymore?

April
The month of spring with reproduction of the natural earth that bursts with new life and rich harvest

May
A two way street, in every fashion, tradition speaks of feasting on the virgins or to erotic rivalry...and then some

June
Summer Solstice! A natural choice for starting a life together as a couple

July and August
These are Popular months to marry! However, history states that these months were avoided due to interruption in the farm and harvest cycles of the earth.

September
This month historically shines "luck and good health"

October
A month of sexual fulfillment!

November
This month is astrological in nature, yet yields "home and hearth"

December
The most popular wedding days in history is December 31st and January 1st, in honor of "ringing out the old, and ringing in the new".

Whatever yo decide remember that these days couples are making history by changing the past so go with your heart and the universe will support your decision at all levels. The rest is just....history!

Become a follower and receive tweets on our upcoming article called "the best day of the week to get married", a must read article for brides and grooms to be.

Flowers of Love

 The meaning of flowers

For centuries flowers have been messengers of love and have taken on their own special meaning. Here are a few of our favorites.

Red Rose

Deep and passionate love

White Rose

Purity and Silence

Peony

The Power to keep a Secret

Orchids

Ecstasy

Sweet Pea

Lasting Pleasure

Gerbera

Purity

Jasmine 

Good Luck

Heliotrope 

Devotion

Hollyhock

Fertility

Tulip

To Declare your Love

Bridal Beauty Tricks

BRIDAL BEAUTY

       Shape your brows.

A well-groomed brow can take years off your look. You just got to find a reputable salon in your area to help you obtain a nice clean shape that you can maintain. The cost runs $10 - $15. 

Aim for a flawless complexion:

Healthy looking skin starts with an awesome cleanser, toner and magic potion. Not all products work on everyone so we recommend that you ask your mom what works best for her. After all, this is where your DNA came from so doesn’t it make sense to ask your mom? One trick we use on sudden blemishes is to hold an ice cube directly onto the breakout for a few minutes. This will reduce the swelling and minimize the pore, which will allow you to effectively use make-up to cover it. 

Protect your face:

Protecting your face with an awesome sunscreen is the key to an even skin tone. Try these two awesome products. Shiseido Ultimate Sun Block Lotion, it’s water resistant and has a SPF 50 or Total Block Clear with a SPF 65. Both offer full sun protection and don’t leave your face feeling greasy. 

Target your foundation color:

It is important that you find a foundation color that matches your neck. Staying on the yellow side of the spectrum will make you look younger. Try Bare Minerals line for a more natural look and apply over Estee Lauder maximum cover foundation to successfully hide any imperfections. 

Create brighter eyes:

Have you ever heard of using white eyeliner? How about a light shadow on the inner corners of your eyes? Both of these works! The trick is finding the perfect placement and color of shadow to pull it off. FCW recommends that you visit your favorite department store and schedule a free makeover at one of the counters. You can test out any new products and experiment with methods of applications to help determine what works best for you. And, it’s fun! 

Take care of those lips:

Finally, don’t forget about your lips! Any naturally tinted lip balm with sunscreen is a must carry item. If you want to avoid chapped lips, try using Super Lysine Plus lip balm with 24 SPF on a daily basis.

Bedazzle your Bouquet

 kimfisherdesigns.com

Believe it or not every future bride thinks about wedding flowers way before they even have a boyfriend. Then, when the time comes to actually be a bride it's very likely that their bouquet flowers or design will take the most amount of time to decide. These days, modern brides are looking for trendy new bouquet styles that would make everyone go goo-goo over the artistic creation of flowers that they're are holding. So if you're a trendy bride that wants to hold a custom bouquet that truly represents your personality and style, you might want to think about adding a few of these embellishments.

• Feathers
• Hand Made Paper Flowers
• Wired Jewels
• Hat Pins
• Wired Shells
• Candy
• Swarovski
• Antique Jewelry

Music for the DJ

Drawing a blank on selecting your DJ's music? Daily Candy Weddings just released it's top picks for getting everybody on the dance floor at your wedding reception. Of course, FCW also added a few of it's own classics. Check out this Hit List and listen to it (free of charge) by going to www.grooveshark.com!

Groovy Music

“Ready to Start,” Arcade Fire
(That’s “Ready to Start the Party” to you.)

“I Feel It All,” Feist
(Feeling mighty fine.)

“A-Punk,” Vampire Weekend
(Aren’t they all?)

“Tighten Up,” The Black Keys
(And get down.)

“Say Aha,” Santigold
(Less talk, more dance.)

“Je Veux Te Voir,” Yelle
(It’s French for “good music.”)

“Deadbeat Summer,” Neon Indian
(Children of the ’80s gotta love synth pop.)

“Whirring,” The Joy Formidable
(It’s going by so fast; take a second to dance.)

“Drunk Girls,” LCD Soundsystem
(Never tardy to the party.)

“Electric Feel,” Mgmt
(Better than the electric slide.)

“Creator,” Santigold
(No, that’s not M.I.A.)

"Love Shack," B-52's
(Yes, that's a classic)

"Around the World," Daf Punk
(Get your groove on)

How to Create a Wedding Day Timeline

 Perfect Timing!

Over the years FCW has found that the best and most accurate way to create an event timeline is to start from the end of your event and work your way backwards. FCW started perfecting this process nearly two decades ago and it seriously works. We hope that you find this trick-of-the-trade just as helpful.

Here is an example of a simple wedding day itinerary:

• 10:00pm - Music Ends and Guests Depart
• 9:45pm - Bride & Groom's Staged Departure
• 9:30pm - Last Call
• 8:30-9:45pm - Dancing
• 8:15-8:30pm - Cake Cutting
• 8:00-8:15pm - Toasts
• 7:30-8:30pm - Dinner
• 7:20 - 7:30pm - Bride & Grooms Entrance into Dinner
• 7:15pm - Guests are Seated for Dinner
• 6:15 - 7:15pm - Bride & Groom's Photo Shoot
• 6:15 - 7:15pm - Cocktail Hour
• 5:45 - 6:15pm - Congratulations & Group Photos
• 5:30pm - Ceremony Begins

10 Tips for a stress free wedding day

1. Remember that you can't please everybody - Be gentle to yourselves and remember the most important reason why you are getting married. Nothing else matters.

2. Include your partner as much as you can - From selecting your invitations, choosing a special song for your first dance, tasting cakes, planning your honeymoon or doing gift registry, it is important to do as much as you can together.

3. Decide if you want (and can afford) to hire a wedding planner - This is a very important first step. 

4. Allow as much time as you can to plan your wedding - Making a guest list, Interviewing vendors/planners, allowing extra time to select and print your invitations/thank you's etc., shopping for the perfect wedding attire, writing special vows, practicing a first dance etc., all of this and more will be easy if you're not in a rush.

5. Try and bring both families together - In a way, it's their special day to. Try and give them special attention so they feel the love that you share together.

6. Select a color theme - Choosing two or three colors and sticking to them will set the tone and help you coordinate your flowers, linens, chairs, ribbons, favors, menu cards and all sorts of items.

7. Do your research - Find out things like, what flowers are readily available within your color scheme and how formal of an event you both want makes things so much easier.

8. Write everything down and keep an organized binder - this will help you to effectively communicate your wedding wishes and help you keep track of all the details to your special day.

9. Arrange for a rehearsal if you have more than two attendants on each side - this will make things go a lot more smoothly on your wedding day.

10: Don't let any unexpected problems ruin your day.