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Today’s Weddings

Advice

Practical guides to the parts of a wedding nobody explains: the wedding party, the music, the food, the film and the ring.

These guides began as Today’s Weddings articles in the site’s first two decades and were rewritten in 2026 for the way weddings are planned now. The essays and travel dispatches that had dated have been retired; where a newer guide covers the same ground, the old address now leads to it.

Bridesmaid, Groomsman and Wedding Party Duties

The EditorsWhat the maid of honor, best man, bridesmaids, groomsmen, ushers and children in the wedding party actually do, from the engagement to the last dance, and what the couple owes them in return.

Do I Really Need a Wedding Video? A Guide to Wedding Videography

The EditorsPhotographs show how the day looked. Film keeps how it sounded: the vows, the toasts, a grandparent’s laugh. Styles, deliverables, drones, audio and contracts, and how to decide whether it’s worth it.

Finding the Dress: A Fitting-Room Guide

The EditorsWhen to start, whom to bring, what to try, and how to know — a practical guide to the most anticipated appointment of the engagement.

How to Buy a Diamond Engagement Ring: The 4Cs and Beyond

The EditorsCut, color, clarity and carat still decide what a diamond looks like. What has changed is everything around them: lab-grown stones, new grading reports and better questions about where a diamond comes from.

How to Choose a Wedding Caterer: Questions to Ask

The EditorsFood and drink are usually the largest line in a wedding budget. How to compare caterers, what to taste, what to ask, how to read the contract and where the honest savings are.

How to Hire a Wedding DJ: What to Ask Before You Book

The EditorsA good DJ reads the room, runs the timeline and says your names correctly. How to find one, the questions worth asking, what belongs in the contract, and when a band makes more sense.

Rehearsal Dinner Etiquette: Who Hosts, Who’s Invited

The EditorsThe night before the wedding belongs to the people closest to it. Who hosts and pays, whom to invite, how the toasts work, and when a welcome party makes more sense.

Something Old, Something New: The Traditions, Explained

The EditorsThe rhyme, the veil, the bouquet, the ring finger and the cake — where the best-known wedding customs came from, and what they were meant to do.

The Day-After Shoot

The EditorsSometimes called “trash the dress” — though it needn’t trash anything. Why couples book a second session in their wedding clothes, and how to plan one.

Unity Ceremonies: Candle, Sand, Handfasting and More

The EditorsTwo candles lighting a third, two jars of sand poured into one, a cord tied around joined hands. How each unity ritual works, what it needs and where it fits in the ceremony.

Wedding Ring Inscriptions

The EditorsWords for the inside of the band — sentimental, spiritual, in other languages or quietly irreverent — and what to know before you send the rings to the engraver.