You're Engaged... NOW WHAT?!
Written: Dec 13 '01
The Bottom Line
A must-see for any bride-to-be. This one will go in your bookmarks for sure!
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Congratulations! You’ve just gotten engaged.
You’ve told your folks, shown off your sparkly new ring to all your friends, bought a few requisite wedding magazines, and are now trying to sort out exactly what it means to be the bride. After flipping through the glossy pages of the aforementioned magazines, you quickly realize that this whole wedding thing may just be a pretty big project… it could require quite a bit of your time and attention… in fact, it might just start taking over your life!
Quick—will you carry an all-white bouquet or go for a splash of colour? Say traditional vows or write your own? Who will walk you down the aisle? Will you wear a cathedral-length veil or a flyaway? Do you have to invite your second cousin Mildred?? Will your dress be a Vera or a Maggie??? Have you thought about favours?!? Centerpieces?!? Save-the-Date cards?!?! Oh my gosh, your brain is going into bridal overload! You’d better get on the net and find some information immediately, before these questions overtake you! Click that mouse, click-click-click… until- ahhhh, relief…. You’ve arrived at the weddingchannel.com!
An ingenious combination of valuable information and e-commerce, the weddingchannel.com is your best bet on the net for all things wedding-related. When you first arrive at the very well designed site, you are offered a choice: “bride & groom” or “wedding guests.” The former category will lead you to a wealth of wedding-planning resources, whereas the latter allows guests to locate a couple’s gift registry. The weddingchannel.com is affiliated with a number of nation-wide department store chains that are common choices for wedding registries, such as Macy’s, Crate and Barrel, Bloomingdale’s, Williams-Sonoma, and more. The registries set up by brides and grooms at those stores are automatically linked to weddingchannel.com- very convenient, both for registered couples and wedding guests.
For engaged couples, weddingchannel.com offers personalized services found in a section entitled “Your Organizer.” The happy couple can set up their own wedding website, hosted by weddingchannel.com, put together a planning calendar, address book, guest list manager, and of course, set up and manage their gift registry. All of these tools are very useful in keeping on top of things! Weddingchannel.com will even send out an optional newsletter with updates and reminders and advice tailored to the couple’s wedding date. (i.e. “With 154 days until your wedding, you may want to finalize your ceremony music choices!”)
Another extremely helpful part of the site is the plethora of articles on various topics, such as etiquette, flowers, cakes, receptions, invitations, beauty, and more. A busy bride could browse through these fascinating articles for hours, as the webmasters are always adding more! In addition, weddingchannel.com also hosts a large database of wedding dresses with images, designer information, and approximate price ranges. An especially excellent feature of this section of the site is the “Sketchbook Search,” which allows the glowing bride to select what type of neckline, skirt, train, sleeves, she envisions for her dream gown. She makes the appropriate choices in style, and the site comes up with a number of potential gowns based on her specifications. Weddingchannel.com has recently introduced a “My Virtual Model,” which can be customized to resemble the bride, and try on a small selection of wedding gowns and veils Hopefully the amount of 3-D attire for the virtual model will grow in size as this feature of the site becomes more established.
Weddingchannel.com has many amazing informational resources for the bride, but I must admit that my favourite part is undoubtedly the message boards, found in the “Community” category. Hundreds, perhaps even thousands of brides frequent these boards, and as a result, a tightly knit yet very diverse community has sprung up. But as this large group of women shares their thoughts, dreams, and questions about their weddings, a bond is formed. The brides not only trade information and opinions, but the message boards serve as somewhat of an outlet for these enthusiastic women… their fiancé and bridesmaids may have already tired of hearing endless wedding-related banter, but the brides on the weddingchannel.com message boards are always there to share the giddiness of finding the perfect wedding shoes or booking the best string quartet in town. Through such conversations, these women often discover they have more in common than simply their weddings. Childhood stories and pictures are shared, as are the tears over losing a loved one, amusement at the antics of a pet, frustration over a hard day at work, or joyful news of an addition to the family. Thank goodness for the weddingchannel.com message boards. I don’t think I could plan my wedding without them!
Not only is the vast amount of helpful resources on weddingchannel.com is a true godsend for brides, but the site is a business as well. In addition to the registry section, there is a Wedding Shop that carries all sorts of items for the big event, from tiaras to guest favours to cake toppers. I have not personally ordered anything from their shop, so I can't recommend this aspect of the site one way or the other, but I will say that the prices seem reasonable, and due to the fact that the site does such a wonderful job with everything else, I would not hesitate to make a purchase there, should something catch my eye.
Simply put, I would heartily recommend that any newly engaged woman head straight over to weddingchannel.com. The informational articles, personal planning tools, and the message boards cannot be beat. On this site, you’ll learn things about weddings you never thought you would need to know- and you’ll be glad you did!
Recommended:
Yes
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About the Author
Location: Southern California, USA
Reviews written: 13
Trusted by: 12 members
About Me: Obsessed with weddings, travel, shopping, and all things CUTE!
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