You could win a Burlesque Photo Session

courtesy of Sonia Ryan & Co | Envie Intimates | D&G Photography

These three wedding experts are taking their work to heart by giving away a Burlesque Photo Session. Their goal is to raise money for the Heart & Stroke Foundation. Anyone can win...

Read more

One couple's DIY approach to, and advice for, wedding planning

October 10, 2009 :: Immaculate Conception RCC, Alliston; Hockley Valley Resort & Spa, Orangeville

Photography by Taylor Jackson Photography
Story by Carla @ The Ring

Whether it was fate or just sweet, romantic luck, Alicja and Ryan Kennedy ran into each other in Dominican Republic, even though they lived only five minutes apart in their home town. That meeting changed their lives forever. Four years later, on Christmas Even in 2007, Ryan proposed to Alicja and she said yes.

To choose their wedding date, they used a number of factors. They are both lovers of the outdoors (they spend a lot of time hiking in Waterloo together with their dogs) so the pair thought the colours of Fall would make for fantastic photos and a magical mood. "From the beginning of the planning process we wanted our wedding to be a venue for us to reflect our unique style and personality” explained Alicja. They also wanted to be able to give back to all of the friends and family who have made them the people they are today. "We wouldn’t be the couple we are without their support." So, they decided on Thanksgiving weekend in 2009.

Cultural wedding traditions

This expert tips is from wedding planner, Christine Martin, of Pure Potential Weddings. Pure Potential caters to brides in and around K-W and Guelph. Her experience and samples of work are reviewed and featured in TheWeddingRing.ca.

OUT WITH THE OLD: wedding traditions vs. weddings today

In a time when couples want their weddings to be unique and original, wedding traditions are being replaced for more personalized aspects. But if traditions are falling by the wayside, what are brides and grooms doing to personalize their weddings and modernize some of the outdated traditions?

We turned to brides in The Wedding Ring community to find out what traditions are disappearing and what’s taking their place. Here’s what we found…

The many forms of the bachelorette!

It’s known in parts of Europe and Australia as a ‘hen night’, in the U.S. as a ‘bachelorette party’, and here in Canada as a ‘stagette’; but what’s in a name when the idea of all three is to throw a party to honour the bride-to-be?