不管中国人或是外国人，结婚想必都是人生中最重要、最难忘的事情之一，结婚选日子自然也就成了重中之重。尽管现在在中国很多婚礼习俗都已经有所改进，越来越多的新人选择西式婚礼或者大大简化了婚礼的流程，但是在选日子这件事情上还是颇为看重，并且必定还是会按照中国传统的习俗选择婚礼的良辰吉日。

婚礼应该选择哪些日子?

1、选择润年润月。中国人对结婚日期的挑选非常讲究“润月”、“润年”，即每隔两、三年便会出现一个润年，即该年有两个“立春”，一个“润月”。选择结婚吉日，最好在有润月的年份。

2、嫁娶择日法。婚姻嫁娶的择日原则是，以新娘方的出生日期为主，并参考新郎及其他人的出生日期，中国俗语讲：“子靠出生时，女靠行嫁年”。

1)  女命出嫁年禁忌（请对照最后一行，例如午就是马年）

兔相人忌子年 虎相人忌丑年

牛相人忌寅年 鼠相人忌卯年

猪相人忌辰年 狗相人忌巳年

鸡相人忌午年 猴相人忌未年

羊相人忌申年 马相人忌酉年

蛇相人忌戌年 龙相人忌亥年

起法：从卯上起子，逆数到本年太岁止。遇何属相，即是忌婚年，不宜出阁。

2)  男命禁婚年

男娶婚所忌者，当年太岁前五相是也。即：

蛇相禁子年 马相禁丑年

羊相禁寅年 猴相禁卯年

鸡相禁辰年 狗相禁巳年

猪相禁午年 鼠相禁未年

牛相禁申年 虎相禁酉年

兔相禁戌年 虎相禁亥年

3)  女命出嫁大利月

正七迎鸡兔※ 二八虎合猴

三九蛇共猪 四十龙合狗

牛羊五十一 鼠马六十二

此指属相为鸡和兔相的人，正月七月结婚吉利，其余属相仿此。

相对照：子鼠、丑牛、寅虎、卯兔、辰龙、巳蛇、午马、未羊、申猴、酉鸡、戌犬、亥猪

4)  真正婚嫁日。如果你决定将注册与结婚仪式的日期分开，最好这两天都是择日行事。如果要取舍的话，应该以进行迎亲及摆酒的传统礼仪当日为准，选在吉日举行，因为中国传统始终视这天为真正婚嫁日。

5)  良辰吉日计法。有些人认为还应该有更严格的良辰吉时计算方法，即用新郎、新娘的出生日期时间推算出最吉利的婚嫁时日。不过这种做法相当繁琐，更多人宁愿去看黄历选日子，或听研究周易之人的建议。

6)  12 好日子的定义。不管怎样，对于“好日子”的定义总是各有不同，不管选择什么日子，尽量选择那些大家都满意的日子才是上好之选。

 

婚礼应该避开哪些日子？

1、避开三七九。结婚吉日最好避免在农历的三月、七月和九月，因这三个月份分别适逢“清明”、“盂兰”和 “重公”，均为传统的“鬼节”，不宜办喜事。而在月初圆的“中秋节”月份，即农历八月是最适合办婚礼的月份。

2、避开三娘煞。相传月老不为三娘牵红线，使她不能出嫁。基于报复心理，三娘喜与月老作对，专门破坏新人之喜事，故每月的三娘煞之日，即初三、初七、十三、十八、廿二及廿七，不宜结婚。

3、不选父母生辰。在传统习惯中，父母生辰不应与结婚吉日相同，其实只是指父母生日的正日不宜嫁娶，在该月份内结婚却绝对适宜。

当然选日子的时候还应该考虑很多实际问题，比如亲朋好友时间的配合等等。很多时候，中国人办婚礼会配合法定节假日，有人认为这样比较有纪念意义并且款待亲朋与家中过节合而为一，既省钱又喜庆，但是假期结婚的人通常比较多，好一点的酒店基本都要提前一年预订。

“LET’S GO GREEN FOR OUR WEDDING!!!”

Planning a wedding is a long and hard (and at times a painful) undertaking for both parties involved. Many people spend a great deal of time and effort to plan for the big day, yet they seem to forget other areas of planning that can equally be as painful and hard on our environment.  Have you considered a Green Wedding? would you care to implement aspects to help keep our global environment safe for years to come?

In hopes to decrease the global footprint of fossil fuels such as coal, oil, and gas within the manufacturing and production of new products, going Green has quickly taken the trend in many industries. As such, many individuals have either opted to plan their entire wedding as a “Green Wedding” , or they have implemented aspects to help cut down on production of items that can be reused.

SOME GREEN WEDDING IDEA’S

Wedding Stationary (wedding cards) – What a great way to start the planning process in having a Green Wedding. You can create beautiful cards with 100% recycled paper, or  you can design an email blast or even a website. Using paper that is 100% recycled can be a great way to reuse a product that in normal production, releases about 212 million tons of hazardous substances into the air and water. If you are having your invites created for you, make sure to ask for the products that have been recycled certified. There are also completely tree free papers to help in your green wedding invitation journey (example: Banana,Mango, Bamboo, Sisal, and wild grasses to name a few).

Many individuals have started to utilize the Internet to reach their intended audience.  This has created a great opportunity to increase not only the awareness of Greenhouse Gasses to the general public, but it can help lessen its impact of production with the ease of communication at a click of a button. If you care to use your computer to send out messages to your contacts to keep them abreast to your bridal needs, you will be saving much more then just time and money.  There are a few ways you can do this; first, you can create a simple email message with all the pertinent information your potential guests/audience will need to know.  If you are computer savoy and understand HTML, the next option would be to design an email blast that was set up more like a Wedding Card.  With all the design elements within the html coding, you would send that off embedded or as an attachment in the email.

The last option you can have would be designing or implementing your own website. This could be great as it would not only serve as a point of information to your friends and family. It can also serve as a step by step journey throughout the wedding planning process and the final stages of your big day.  Thus creating a virtual wedding album filled with Bridal Photos, Wedding Videos, information, and so much more.  If you are not technically savoy and do not know where to begin… no worries.  There are companies already out there in the Internet waiting to help you, such as wedding window (or you can find a designer) and have them help you create your perfect site.

You can have this list below created through recycled paper, tree free paper or from the many technical aspects mentioned above.

(engagement announcements, save the date cards, shower invitations, shower thank you notes, wedding invitations, ceremony programs, place cards, menu cards, wedding announcements, thank you notes)

Favors – How many weddings have you been in, gone to, or in fact had where the gifts that were given to guests were plastic, or crystal in nature? How many of those cute little trinkets do you have displayed throughout your home? Not only do those trinkets create huge amounts of pollution while  being manufactured, but those trinkets come from other countries thus creating more use on oil, and gas that has even more potential for disrupting aquatic life. So what alternatives do you have for creating a Green wedding through Wedding Favors? For starters you can search for products that have been made from recycled goods. Another great alternative is to create your gifts by hand using materials that do not hurt our environment. Another great idea is to plant seeds for tree’s and offer those as a symbol of your new union.  As it takes time and patients and love to see your new union blossom so too will it take time, patients and the love to help grow the newly planted seed into a beautiful tree. Once the tree has grown to a great healthy height within your care you can then return it to the earth outside so that it can help sustain our environment.

Centerpieces - In continuing with the theme mentioned above, you can use plants as a centerpiece that can be replanted once the event has ended.  You can also use materials such as Bamboo, and recycled glass that was made into vases or bowls to hold items such as floating candles, colorful rocks, or shells from the local beach.

Wedding Flowers - Making a decision to work with local vendors that have access to local organically grown in season flowers is a big step indeed. But, it helps cut back on, poor working conditions, pesticides and overseas transport.  You can take this a step farther and use different alternatives like, recycled paper.

Engagement Ring / Wedding Rings – This can be fun yet emotional at times. What I say might have you or your mother cringe at the thought of it but here goes….

So, you were handed down a lovely piece of jewelry that is something you would NEVER wear as it looks dated, or there might be missing stones, or the precious metal its self has a flaw or two. You contemplate storing it away for your child, but you decide that the meaning behind this gift was a thought and emotion not so much the actual piece.  With further contemplation you decide it would be best if you had the piece melted and redesigned into a wearable work of art.

ok-ok- so maybe you won’t do that to an heirloom, but if you have items in your personal jewelery box that you no longer wear why not melt those down to recreate a new piece? you can also take the items you currently wear and add to the melting thus saving the environment from a larger scale manufacturing of precious metals.  There are many alternatives to metals such as bamboo, coconuts, and drift wood. You can create your rings from these resources or you can have them handed down to you from generation to generation. You can even spend some time looking for antique rings. With jewelry, the key is not to buy newly mass manufactured items.

In a quick search through google, I found a young man who creates hand made rings and other types of jewelry that are very ECO friendly… This search was done within  minutes and if he is a quick search away for me, I can only imagine what type of great finds awaits you.

Wedding Dress / Bridal Gowns – Picking out the wedding dress of your dreams can be the best, or worst part of the planning process… But have you considered choosing a ECO friendly Wedding Dress? you can start your search for your “Green” Gown by simply looking at the fabrics involved in the construction of it.  Some alternatives are, Raw and Organic silk wedding dresses, Cotton wedding dresses, and Hemp wedding dresses to name a few.

Some brides are also taking moms old gown out of the closet and having it totally redesigned to match their sense of style. If your looking for a great way to be Green, look for gowns already used. This cuts down on production thus having a positive impact on our environment.

-GREEN WEDDING CONCLUSION-

If you are considering to have an ECO freindly wedding, the tips above should help get you on a great path to start your journey in the Green wedding planning adventure.  Remember a great way to have a positive impact is to reuse & re-purpose already existing items or materials. When your Planning your wedding, or once the day is over, come to the website looking to make the greatest difference in the world MyWeddingIsOver.com.

Buying Wedding Gifts

        Weddings are a special occasion, no matter who’s getting married, or where it’s being held. While 99% of the overall decisions and stress fall on the bride and groom, that last 1% can feel like the weight of the world if you’re on the way to the wedding, freshly shaved and dressed, with a 10$ bird statue or tag-sale toaster to give as a wedding gift.

Luckily, this sticky situation can be avoided by following only a few simple rules:

1. If the bride and groom request cash, give em’ cash! This makes it easier on both parties, and any feelings of inadequate gift giving can be settled over drinks at a later date.

2. While “it’s the thought that counts”, the bride and groom expect you to put a little time and effort into choosing their gift. Ask friends and family what they have, need, or want. Check if they posted an online registry of desired wedding gifts, for this makes the shopping experience much simpler and stress-free.

3. If your asking aloud if someone else may buy the same item, find something else. Your choice of a wedding gift shows a lot about you, and giving identical presents as the groom’s mustache ridden aunt Gertrude doesn’t look good for anyone. This is when one can partially substitute in creativeness and unique flavor in lieu of a high price tag.

4. Lastly, keep it simple stupid. Find a wedding gift that you would want yourself. There are some things that you know the bride and groom will never use, nor need. That crazy kitchen contraption you saw at 3am and comes with 2 free add-ons if you call within 20 minutes; ya, not for this occasion.

Before actually going out and buying the gift, you must first consider who you’re buying for, and how much you should spend. Some determinants to take into consideration are:

- Relation to bride/groom

- Level of friendship with bride/groom

- Discretionary income

- How far you traveled to attend the wedding

- The overall cost of the wedding, including showers, engagement parties, etc..

Here are some wedding gift price ranges that could be used as a bare-bone estimate of what to expect. Each of the three price brackets has a corresponding letter, A-C. These match up accordingly with the different gift options throughout the 5 category’s that somewhat describe the groom/bride.

A. Co-worker, Relative, Distant Family Friend – 50-75$

B. Relative, Casual Friend – 75-100$

C. Close Relative, Friend – 100-150$

 

King’s Wedding Gift Suggestions

 

1. Coffee-Enthusiasts

A.)

- Philips Senseo Coffee Maker ($70; senseo.com)
B.)

- Contigo Double Wall Stainless Steel Vacuum Insulated Tumbler ($20)

- Chantal Ring 20-Ounce Mug, 4 Pack ($32)

- Krups Fast Touch Coffee Grinder ($20)

- 1 Pound Dunkin’ Donuts Original Blend ($30)

Total = 102$

C.)

- Keurig B60 Special Edition Gourmet Single-Cup Home-Brewing System ($120)

- Keurig 5060 27-Cup-Capacity K-Cup Spinning Carouse ($20)

- Keurig-K-Cup-Reusable-Coffee-Filter ($14-15)

Total = $155

 

2. Cooking/Food Enthusiasts

A.)

- Patio Beverage Tub – Personalized Galvenized Tub with Stand ($50; gifts.com)

B.)

- George Foreman GRP90WGR Next Grilleration Removable-Plate Grill with 5 Plates ($100)

C.)

- Gourmet Demonstration & Wine Tasting for Two, available in Philadelphia, San Francisco, Washington DC, Los Angeles, New York, Houston, San Diego ($125; excitions.com)

 

3. Bedroom/Bathroom Enthusiasts

A.)

- Pinzon 190 Gram Velvet Flannel Sheet Set ($60)

B.)

- Turkishtowels Bamboo Collection 650 gsm 65% Bamboo 35% Combed Egyptian Cotton 6 Piece Towel Set (2 Bath Towel, 2 Hand Towel,2 Wash Cloth) ($76)

- Chrome Hotel Towel Rack – 2 Towel Size ($20)

Total = $96

C.)

-Bathtub Couple© Personalized Plaque ($22; personalizationmall.com)

-Monogrammed Bathrobe: m161wr Prestige Style Monogram (Qty 2, $46/each; digital-threads.com)

Total = $124

 

4.) Relaxing/Experiential Enthusiasts

A.)

- Water Pillow Mediflow Therapy Pillow (Qty.2, $35)

B.)

- The Ultimate Experience Collection! (Qty.2, $100; giftybox.com)

120+ classes & workshops to choose from, from arts to vocational, from culinary to sports, you choose!

C.)

- Relaxing Spa Packages for Two, SpaFinder Gift Certificate ($200; spafinder.com)

 

5.) Wine/Beer Enthusiasts

A.)

- Libbey 12-Piece Mug Party Set ($22)

- Libbey 12-Piece Wine Party Set ($25)

- Beer Is the Answer…I Don’t Remember the Question: And Over 1,000 Other Bar Jokes, Quotes and Cartoons (Bartender Magazine) by Ray Foley ($11)

Total = $58

B.)

- Oster-4207 Electric Wine Opener ($20)

- Metrokane Wine Pourer with Stopper, Black ($5)

- Winerd Wine Trivia and Blind Tasting Board Game ($23)

- Cork Jester’s Wine Teasers Wine Game (Cards) ($13)

- The Imbible: Drinking Games for Times You’ll Never Remember with Friends You’ll Never Forget by Alex Bash ($12)

Total = $73

C.)

- Romantic Personalized Gifts – Picture Perfect Photo Coaster Set ($25; gifts.com)

- Charming Picnic Basket Gift Set, Eco Wine and Cheese Basket ($70; gifts.com)

- Sophisticated Shot Glasses, Gravity Magnetic Shot Glasses w/ Tray ($25; gifts.com)

Total = $120

While some of the above baskets may go slightly over your desired budget, a good wedding gift will never be forgotten. It may be the difference between being invited to their super bowl party or feeding the dogs when their on vacation.

Buy or sell any aspect of the wedding industry