By So you’re getting married? Congratulations!
Your big day is only an arms length away and there are hundreds of things that you need to do - and you won’t be able to do it all alone - you’ll need a maid of honour to come along for the ride with you. Being a maid of honour is always an honour, but it’s not a duty to be taken lightly. It’s basically like having all the same duties as the bride, plus more, without actually having the benefit of getting married...
- (but seeing your best friend get married is just as exciting, of course!) -
But what exactly does the maid of honour need to do?
1) Help with Pre-wedding tasks
It is a maid of honour’s job to help the bride out in any way that she can, both before, during, and after the wedding. Basically, she’ll be your servant until the wedding is over. Shopping for wedding dresses, picking out jewelry, choosing cake flavours, scouting locations, packing for the honeymoon, stuffing invitations - these are all things that you can ask your maid of honour to help you do. Of course, you’ll want to do some of this stuff with your main squeeze as well, but when your partner isn’t available, it’s your maid of honour’s job to help out.
2) Attend all Pre-wedding Events
The bachelorette party, the bridal shower, the rehearsal dinner, the wedding rehearsal - these are all things that a maid of honour needs to attend. Period.
3) Hosting
Speaking of pre-wedding events, it’s not just the job of the maid of honour to attend the events, but it’s also her job to host some of them. The bachelorette party and the bridal shower both fall on the shoulders of the maid of honour, so make sure you choose someone who can rock a party!
4) Buy her own dress - and don’t complain
Yes, it’s one of the worst parts of being a maid of honour, but all bridesmaids are expected to buy their own dresses. Of course, there is the odd bride that will pay for their bridesmaids wedding dresses, but the expectation generally falls on the bridesmaids themselves. And not only is it their job to buy their own dress, but it’s also their job to never complain about it. With that being said, be reasonable. You know your besties financial situation, so don’t ask her to buy out of her range.
5) Be the Bride’s Rock
Wedding planning is an extremely emotional time, and as a bride, you’re going to need support. It’s your maid of honours duty to be your rock (though she’s probably doing that job already!). No matter how stressful a matter becomes, you need to be able to turn to your maid of honour, and she needs to be ready to pop a bottle of wine and have her shoulder ready.
Choosing a maid of honour is not a duty to be taken lightly. Sometimes it’s not just about who your best friend is, but it’s about who can be there to support you and help you every step of the way. If your bestie is too busy, it may be time to have a little heart to heart and explain to her that you love her, but she may be better suited as a bridesmaid than the actual maid of honour. Choose someone who you love, who you love spending time with, and who you know will be there to help and support you until your journey to forever begins.