A guide to wedding tips, trends and experiences. Marriage event reviews, Wedding venue reviews and ideas, honeymoon destination tips, photography, wedding decor and much more.

American TV star Kim Kardashian got engaged to Kris Humphries, a basketball player who is currently a member of the NBA\’s New Jersey Nets on the 18^th of May. Kim Kardashian engagement ring has turned many heads and is the talk of the town. Specially designed by Kardashian’s long time friend – jeweler Lorraine Schwartz, the ring is simply stunning. The estimated cost of the 20.5 carat diamond ring is said to be $2 million. Humphries wanted the ring to be big, and so it is!!

The diamond sparkler has a 16.5 carat emerald cut center stone and is bordered by 2 carat trapezoid on either side. Kim’s sister Khloe Kardashian adorns a 12.5-carat radiant-cut ring worth $850,000 gifted to her by her husband Lamar Odom. Kim wanted her ring to be unique and now she has it! The lovely couple is all set now to plan their big day.

According to media reports, Kim wants the wedding to be as unique as the ring. She has already thought of the look she wants, her dream dress, the colour theme and a lot more. In all probability we will see the bride to be in a strapless Vera Wang custom designed wedding gown.

Though the wedding date is not out, with all the wedding planning and preparation, this will surely be a grand affair.

We are looking forward to this wonderful event, and will keep you guys posted on more about this grand wedding & other celebrity wedding news right here!

(Image Credit : www.vibranttable.com/blog)

An inspiration board can be a collection of pictures, quotes, prints etc. that help you feel inspired and focused on your aim; a wedding inspiration board can be just that and also a vision for your big day and a way to remind you of the small and big beautiful things to come. Your wedding inspiration board and what it consists of depends entirely on you and should bring you joy. It is also a great starting point for the wedding planning ahead.

You could use a big photo board or something similar to get started or even do it on your computer like your very own digital photo collage. Many websites have templates and thousands of ready images to choose from as well. You can scan through wedding magazines, websites, blogs, travel websites, clothing stores etc. for beautiful pictures that strike your fancy and make your own collection. The pictures can be anything that’s inspires you toward the vision for your wedding like a beautiful international wedding, a gorgeous bridal outfit, a lovely sunset at the beach or shot of the Eiffel Tower in Paris. You can also tack up things like swatches of fabric, a romantic poem and costume jewellery. Most brides have a romantic idea of what they want their wedding to be and look like and your inspiration board will be a reflection of that. You can arrange things thematically or colour wise and even have a separate inspiration board for the each of your wedding events. Those planning weddings without a inspiration board makes it very difficult to visualize and create unique wedding themes.

Use your board to translate the style, colour and wedding theme ideas from your head onto something concrete. So even if you can’t articulate exactly what you want or have a clear picture of what the décor and design should be, this will help your wedding planner in India or wedding decorator gauge where you are coming from and what your tastes are like. It might even surprise you if you thought you had a fixed idea of what you wanted and are instinctively drawn to something else instead. One of the best things about creating a wedding inspiration board is that it will always make you smile even during all the chaos leading to your wedding day!

(Image Credit : Tanishq)

A traditional Maharashtrian bride is beautifully attired in a green Paithani nine yard saree on the wedding day. The green colour stands for fertility and is considered to be very auspicious for the bride. Paithani sarees are famous hand woven silk sarees from Maharashtra usually embroidered using pure gold threads. Distinctive motifs like peacocks, mangoes, lotus, and coconuts are found embroidered in the sari border and pallu.

Maharashtrian Bridal Jewellry

Maharashtrian bridal jewelry is simple yet elegant. Brides from Maharashtra wear something called as mundavalya – stings of pearls tied horizontally across the forehead in a cascade from the temples down to the shoulders, framing the face. Matching to the saree the bride wears green glass bangles along with gold bangles. The Maharashtrian bride also wears a nath– nose ring studded with pearl and bead and chandrakor (crescent moon) bindi.

Tanmani- is a typical Maharashtrian necklace. It has three or four strings of pearls with a central pendant, or seven or eight strings of pearls attached to a green bead in the centre. Also seven pearl earrings and silver toe rings are a must. Stay tuned for more from Brides of India from Marry Me\’s wedding planning team!

Beyonce Knowles and Jay-Z’s wedding was a small intimate affair with only 40 of their closest friends and relatives. The wedding took place on the 4^th of April, 2008 at Jay-Z’s home. The ceremony was conducted in Jay-Z’s living room under a white tent. The wedding décor was simple yet artistic with a lot of linen and flowers and the colour theme was white.

Beyonce looked stunning in a lovely white gown while Jay-Z wore a black tuxedo. The dress code for the reception was also white. Hence all the guests also turned up in white. According to the media report, there was no maid of honor or best man for the wedding.

The couple danced to Crazy In Love for their first dance as the guests enjoyed the celebrations!! Stay tuned for more celebrity wedding news from Marry Me.

(Image Courtesy : Sean Gallup/Getty Images)

Bollywood’s superstar Aamir Khan tied the knot with long term fiancée Kiran Rao, a film director on 29^th of December, 2005. The wedding was one of Bollywood’s most understated celebrity weddings considering the fact that he is one of the best Indian actors.

The ceremony was simple and conducted at his home in Bombay, where they exchanged rings in the garden. The media was barred from the event to avoid publicity as it was a strictly private affair. Aamir was very particular and restricted the wedding to family and very close friends. It was just a 20-minute legal ceremony followed by a dinner with biryani on the menu! Aamir wore a simple suit while Kiran adorned a purple and red Sabyasachi lehnga-choli.

Post the wedding they planned a small party for a select group of friends from the Bollywood fraternity at a hill resort in Panchgani. Stay tuned for more Bollywood marriage news from Marry Me – Wedding Planners in India.

Konkona Sen, a renowned Bollywood actress known for playing meaningful realistic roles in Indian cinema married Ranvir Shorey a Bollywood actor, on the 3^rd of September, 2010.

It was a closed door wedding at their Versova home with just family and close friends.

Their guest list was concise with only 100 guests. The wedding was a very conventional one and the couple’s outfits were simple. Ranvir dressed like a typical Punjabi groom. He donned a sherwani with a turban and sehra where as Konkona looked fascinating as a Bengali bride. She was embellished with jewels from her grandmother’s trousseau and wore a lovely Bengali bridal saree. Stay tuned for Bollywood celebrity wedding news from Marry Me – Wedding Planners in Mumbai.

Bollywood film maker Anurag Kashyap and actress Kalki Koechlin tied the knot on the 30^th of April, 2011 at Kalki Koechlin’s parent’s home in Ooty, a small town in India. It was a simple South Indian style wedding with only 40 guests. Kalki looked stunningly beautiful in an off white Kanjivaram saree with a red zari border and Anurag wore a white kurta and dhoti. Unlike the common trend of having a “Big Fat Indian Wedding”, this couple opted for a low profile wedding.

The décor was simple yet elegant. The guests and the couple were themselves involved in getting the place decked up. They set up the stage, the décor and all other arrangements. It was a D.I.Y wedding (Do It Yourself) – a fun filled event with everyone lending a helping hand to set up the place. The couple exchanged vows under a century old mango tree and followed all the traditional south Indian rituals.

The ceremony was followed by a traditional vegetarian lunch serving authentic South Indian fare on banana leaves. The food was simply delicious and the highlight of the wedding! Stay tuned for more Indian wedding news from Marry Me.

Celebrity weddings are one of the most celebrated affairs in India and across the world. They are traced down to the minutest detail as they have some of the most trend setting wedding outfits, exquisite hair do’s, elaborate decor and lavish spreads meticulously planned with an eye for detail. Though it has been a trend amongst celebrities to exchange vows amidst all this fanfare we observe that the trend is changing slowly.

They are now opting for smaller intimate weddings and want to be away from the lime light. They prefer special occasions like weddings to be treated as private affairs and want to enjoy these moments with family and close friends. It’s not just this; you would be surprised to know that some brides are not even hiring top end designers or hair stylists. They want to look beautiful, with minimal make up and are opting for simple but elegant outfits.

Some of the low key celebrity weddings in the recent past were:

Bollywood film maker Anurag Kashyap and actress Kalki Koechlin got married on the 30^th of April 2011 at Kalki Koechlin’s parent’s home in Ooty, a small town in India. It was a simple South Indian style wedding with only 40 guests.

To know more about this wedding click here.

Konkona Sen a renowned Bollywood actress married Ranvir Shorey a Bollywood actor who started his career as a VJ on Channel V on the 3^rd of September, 2010 at their Bombay residence. It was a closed-door simple wedding amidst family and friends. Want to know more?

Bollywood’s superstar Aamir Khan tied the knot with long term fiancée Kiran Rao, a film director on 29^th of December, 2005. The wedding was one of Bollywood’s most understated weddings and strictly a private affair. Click here to know more.

Beyonce Knowles and Jay-Z’s wedding was a small intimate affair with only 40 of their closest friends and relatives. The wedding took place on the 4^th of April, 2008 at Jay-Z’s home. Find out more..

Do Follow us on Facebook for the latest celebrity news and other wedding planing tips.

Image Credit : Kirk Chantraine

It’s quite a common Western tradition for the groom, best man, father of the bride, maid of honour etc. to give a short speech during the wedding reception and it’s becoming increasingly popular in Indian weddings too. Family members and even close friends of the bride and groom often give a sweet speech toasting the newlyweds during the wedding reception or Sangeet and cocktail functions but none are more important than the one given by the groom…it is partly your day after all and the spotlight definitely shines brighter on you!

If the thought of putting together and giving a short, poignant and Oscar worthy speech with hundreds of guests and your beaming bride watching you is giving you the nightmares, fret not.. The groom’s speech does not have to be an award worthy long winded affair, what matters is that it is from the heart and genuine and honestly a couple of minutes is more than enough. Here are a few tips to help you get started:

1. Your speech should include a few ‘thank-yous’. Thank your guests for being there with you and your bride on your wedding. Give mention to your family and friends or whoever helped you with the wedding planning. Don’t go rambling on; keep it short, sweet and genuinely appreciative.
2. When preparing your speech think about all the things you love about your bride and your special moments together and note them down. Narrating a cute story about her or how you two met is a great idea and when praising your lovely bride always look at her in the eyes. Make it romantic and loving. Thanking her parents for their amazing daughter is a really sweet touch and will score you big time brownie points!
3. Adding a joke or two or a humorous anecdote to the groom’s speech is a good way of keeping your audience interested and infusing your personality into the speech. But remember to keep the jokes event appropriate. Also if you don’t have that kind of personality, forced witticism or one-liners just for the sake of it, will fall badly flat.
4. End it with saying how happy you are and something that expresses how much you will cherish this day. A nice joke is a good ending too. If there is someone else giving a speech after you, you can give them an intro.

Remember if you prepare something that’s from the heart, even the simplest words have a big impact.