Lucky you! You’ve been officially entrusted with the important title of maid of honor. As a maid of honor, you’ll be primarily in charge of the bachelorette party and expected to lead the rest of the bridesmaids by planning the wedding and making sure it goes off smoothly.
Sound like a lot of pressure? Don’t stress, it’s really not as scary as it might seem. It can even be a lot of fun – even with the often heavy responsibility associated with being maid of honor. Therefore, it’s important first to understand what the bride expects from you to properly take on obvious duties that will have a greater impact on the ceremony and ultimately, a lasting, positive experience of the event for the couple for years to come.
What is a maid of honor? In a basic sense, a maid of honor has the senior responsibility of supporting the bride before, during, and after the wedding. Typically, a bride appoints a sister, best friend, or female relative to be the maid of honor.
Here are 7 maid of honor duties that make a difference:
1. Assist the Bride in Picking the Perfect Dress
Weddings have changed over the years and have become all about the chief bride making a fashion statement rather than having her parents take over the day. If you ever watch wedding shows, you’ll agree that the shopping entourage can be harsh and stressful. Find out her taste, respect her budget, be honest and kind, and ask questions instead of making comments.
Aside from picking dresses for the chief bride and bridesmaids, the maid of honor will also ensure that their dresses and accessories come in good time. The maid of honor should also ensure that the jewelry selection for the day fits with the overall wedding motifs and theme.
2. Prepare a Speech for the Big Event
Typically, a maid of honor and her male counterpart, the best man, will have a slot to deliver a heartwarming message to the newlywed. Since you’ll be planning a big event, you have to prepare a big speech to set the right mood. Although public speaking can be daunting, this is an opportunity to make it treasurable for the bride. Write down key points to help you stay on topic and make it simple and genuine.
3. Be the Key Point of Contact
As a key point of contact, you need to be well informed about the big event to provide answers to questions from the bride’s friends, guests, or relatives. Help the bride forget her numerous to-do lists and help her stay calm and not to get swept away by the entire process.
4. Track Wedding Gifts
On the big day, it’s obvious the bride will have tons of things on her mind. She might not remember who sent what gift, let alone the kind of thank you notes to write. Keep a list of the gifts received during the bridal shower and after the wedding and indicate against the gifts, the person who sent them.
5. Bridal Shower Planning
A bridal shower brings together the bride’s lady friends to shower the bride with gifts in anticipation of the new life. Be responsible for organizing the event, sending out bridal shower invitations with photos, bookings, reservations, coordinating the party, and keeping track of gifts. Planning a bridal shower is a massive task. It’s okay if you feel overwhelmed with the amount of work, so it’s important to delegate some duties to your fellow bridesmaids.
6. Be a Marriage License Witness
Modern weddings require the maid of honor and the best man to be the witnesses in the union. The newlyweds and the officiant sign the marriage license right after the ceremony, followed by the witnesses.
7. Lead and Coordinate an Army of Bridesmaids
A maid of honor is the bridesmaid’s go-to person. Apart from the chief bride, bridesmaids need you too. Take control of helping them plan their hair appointments and ensure that everyone has proper shoes, nail polish color, dress, etc. Surely, the bride will be grateful to know that someone will be managing all these small details.
Can a Maid of Honor be a Man?
Yes, a man can play the role of a maid of honor in cases where the bride has no female friends that she believes can take up the role. The man should be a person the bride trusts to exclusively be by her side before, during, and after the ceremony. However, having a man as the maid of honor may alter the traditional gender-based events such as the bridal shower or bachelorette party.
