What is the Maid of Honor's Responsibility in My Wedding?

Many women have been dreaming of their wedding day since they were little girls. A  bride to be may have clear ideas of how she would like every detail of her wedding to be like. While it is important to know exactly what you want, it’s also important to realize that planning a wedding is a major responsibility and that it’s entirely too stressful for the bride to take care of every detail herself. Many brides have a difficult time relinquishing any responsibilities involved with planning her wedding for fear of losing control but it’s really in her best interests to learn to delegate responsibilities.

The maid of honor, parents of the bride, parents of the groom and even the groom are probably all eager and willing to help out with the wedding plans and it is important to let them do so. The key to delegating responsibilities is to entrust others to take control of areas that you may not be especially particular about. For example the favors are a very important part of the wedding and the bride most likely wants to shop for and choose the favors herself.

Hosting the bridal shower and the bachelorette party are two of the main responsibilities of the maid of honor. Since the maid of honor is probably one of the bride's closest friends it stands to reason that the maid of honor is the ideal candidate to host these two gatherings. It is the maid of honor who will know best what type of party the bride is looking forward to, what she will enjoy and what types of gifts are most appropriate for the bride’s taste. The bridal shower and bachelorette party are also typically parts of the wedding preparations that the bride does not have any direct control over but she usually does not stress about these activities because she has faith that her maid of honor will hold her best interests in mind when planning these parties.

The maid of honor also plays a large role in choosing dresses for the wedding. The maid of honor typically chooses her own dress for the wedding from a selection provided by the bride. Once the color and style of the maid of honor’s dress has been established, the maid of honor works closely with the bride to choose a style and color of dress for the bridesmaids that will look good on each of the bridesmaids and also complement the maid of honor’s dress. The maid of honor also plays a role in assisting the brides in choosing her own wedding dress. While there may be many other friends and relatives who shop with the  bride for her dress, it is the opinion of the maid of honor that is generally most valued by the bride.

The wedding day is a very busy day for a maid of honor. Although she has supported the bride throughout the planning process, her most important responsibilities take place on the actual wedding day. Besides simply walking down the aisle and standing on the altar beside her friend the most important roles that the maid of honor plays is to keep the bride calm and to handle and problems that may arise. Very few weddings actually go exactly as planned and it is the maid of honor’s job to make sure that small setbacks do not unnerve the bride. The maid of honor should also have a stash of emergency supplies on hand such as extra stockings, lipstick in the shade the bride is wearing, tissues, safety pins and hair pins. All of these items can come in handy if the bride has any trouble with her attire, hair or makeup. The maid of honor plays the important role of ensuring that the bride is looking her best even after hours of dancing and talking to friends and family members.

Perhaps the most significant role that the maid of honor plays is to be a friend to the bride. The planning and preparations and the actual wedding itself can be very stressful and emotional for the bride The one thing that the bride needs more than anything else at this time is someone to talk to who will understand her concerns and give her practical advice and this is the most important job of the maid of honor.

The maid of honor plays a much more important role than just walking down the aisle before the bride and holding her flowers during the ceremony. Throughout the planning the maid of honor is involved every step of the way from choosing a dress and location to helping to wrap favors and set up for the reception. As the bride's best friend the most important role the maid of honor can play is to be supportive and understanding of the bride.

Cindy Lieber

www.weddingplanneroc.com