Bride and Groom’s First Dance:

Unchained Melody – The Righteous Brothers

Kiss From A Rose – Seal

From This Moment- Shania Twain

When You Say Nothing At All

Forever- Chris Brown

Can’t Help Falling In Love – Elvis Presley

At Last- Etta James

Linger- The Cranberries

The Best Is Yet To Come- Sinatra

Better Together – Jack Johnson

My Girl – The Temptations

Crazy – KC & Jojo

Just The Way You Are – Bruno Mars

Somewhere Over The Rainbow – Israel Kamakawiwo’ole

I’m Yours – Jason Mraz

Tiny Dancer – Elton John

Indie First Dance

Be My Honeypie – The Weepies

You’re The One That I Want – The Lennings

First Day Of My Life Bright Eyes

This Years Love – David Gray

I Will Follow You Into The Dark – Death Cab For Cutie

Love Love Love – Tristan Prettyman

Heaven – Brett Dennen

Party Music

What Is Love – Haddaway

Hey Ya – Outkast

Cupid Shuffle – Cupid

Electric Slide – Ric Siffle

Cha Cha Slide – Mr. C. The Slide Man

Hello-Martin Solveig

Holidays- Miami Horror

Super Bass- Nikki Minaj

Party Rock Anthem – LMFAO

Yeah – Usher feat. Lil Jon

Marry You – Bruno Mars

Just Dance – Lady Gaga

Cinema – Benni Benassi and Gary Go

Pop Culture – Madeon

Don’t Stop Believin’ – Journey

Shook Me (All Night Long) – ACDC

Wouldn’t It Be Nice – Beach Boys

Come On Eileen – Dexy’s Midnight Runners

The Good Life – Kanye West featuring T-Pain

Baby Got Back – Sir Mixalot

Home – Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeroes

Is This Love – Bob Marley

I Can See Clearly Now – Johnny Nash

I Swear – All-4-One

Billie Jean – Michael Jackson

All Night Long – Lionel Richie

Daylight – Matt & Kim

I’ll Be – Edwin McCain

Push It – Salt N’ Pepa

Good Feeling – Flo Rida

Moves Like Jagger – Maroon 5 featuring Christina Aguilera

Pre/Post Dance Music

Stole My Heart – Little & Ashley

I Sing I Swim – Seabear

Such Great Heights – The Postal Service

Mango Tree – Angus & Julia Stone

Decatur, Or “A Round Of Applause For Your Stepmother” – Sufjan Stevens

Baby Lee – Teenage Fanclub

Amor Fati- Washed Out

Close To Me – The Get Up Kids

Sweet Child O’ Mine – Taken By Trees

Go Do – Jonsi

Generator (1st Floor) – Freelance Whales

The Idea Of Growing Old – The Features

Firecracker – Ryan Adams

Closer To The Sun – Slightly Stoopid

For more song selections and resources, check out the following:

http://djshelpline.com/top-wedding-songs-for-first-dance-and-reception/

http://wedding.theknot.com/wedding-planning/wedding-music-ideas.aspx

http://www.squidoo.com/indie-rock-love-songs

http://www.billboard.com/charts/hot-100#/charts/hot-100?begin=31&order=position

1. Announcements

This may sound vain (and a little cliche) but utilizing your social networking to announce your pending nuptials can be very beneficial! By posting your engagement online, you are not only announcing your love and commitment to one another, you are also making those that you know aware that sometime soon they need to set aside a spot in their calendar! It can also generate a great way to keep your friends and family updated on engagement photos, decisions regarding travel, etc.

2. Trends

Pinterest is a great tool for finding the latest trends in fashion, decor, venues, even party favors! Pinterest was created for people to share their unique ideas with a wide audience, so this type of quandary is exactly what it was made for! Utilizing this for your wedding is easy. Do you spend a lot of time on Facebook? Allot a small portion of that time to checking out Pinterest, and follow the links provided for websites dedicated to great tips that can help you out on your big day! Keep in mind that if you are not a member already, you must be invited. So pick a friend that has one, grab an invite, and “Pin” away!

3. Decision Making

Having trouble making decisions on which colors you want for the bridesmaids dresses, what songs should be played at the reception, or what types of beer to serve? Ask your friends! Post a status asking which they prefer, or ask opinions on certain aspects of the wedding. Based on the comments provided, it can make your decision much easier. This can be used for many different aspects of the wedding planning. However, keep in mind that this is YOUR big day, not your friends, so be careful in the types of questions you ask and the quantity. For instance, polling your friends on a decision that you’ve mostly narrowed down is great, but don’t ask them to make the decisions for you.

4. Money Saving

Remember, exploiting social media is all about flexing your creativity. If you have run into a wall, or find that something specific you want in your wedding will be too expensive or hard to find, reach out and ask if anyone can or knows someone who can help. My brother’s fiance really wants blue mason jars in her wedding, however, finding them has become a daunting task (not to mention they’re pricey). By posting this conundrum to Facebook, it doesn’t guarantee a solution, but it certainly doesn’t hurt your chances! Another money saving tip? Utilize your social media for invites to certain events. Obviously you want to send tangible invites and RSVP’s for the wedding, but using online invites for things like pre-wedding get-togethers or bachelor/bachelorette parties are certainly not out of the question!

Remember folks, though social media is typically used as a time waster, it is an invaluable tool as well. Use it as such, and you’ll find that planning your wedding will not only become more efficient; it will evolve into something fun and unique as well!

-Alex Cobb

Intern At Coordinated Events

The better you manage your time, the less stressed you’ll be when the big day comes. The misnomer here is that all future brides completely control the planning process. In reality, preparing for a wedding takes plenty of teamwork, and lots of buckling down on both ends. This means responsibilities ranging from what food you can both agree to serve, the type of beverages that your friends like, or even which one of your cousins need to stay away from each other in the seating chart. Sit down with your lovely fiance, create a to-do list to gather your bearings, and set goals with dates.  The easier you make life for her, the easier it is for her to reciprocate. Get it done sooner than later, so that you’re not stressed out later!

This is a celebration, not your job!

The idea of a day of flowers, pictures, and a stuffy, sweaty tuxedo is enough to scare any guy. But keep in mind that your wedding day and the time leading up to it is what you make it. I’ve been in 5 weddings in the past year, and let me tell you, the more at ease the groom, the more fun the experience. Be creative! Last month, the night before my best friend’s wedding we went to Walmart at 11pm to purchase a T-Ball set and some balls. We then had a home run derby in the parking lot of the hotel, which happened to be in a remote area of the NC Mountains. The derby not only broke the ice (no pun intended, since it was super cold that night) between the groomsmen that didn’t know each other that well; it also set the tone for one of the most memorable nights of our lives! Creativity is key.

Make yourself heard (respectfully)

Once again, most grooms forget that this is their wedding too. Don’t let things bottle up!  This is not to say that you run the show, guys. Be respectful to your lady.  Show her that you care for her while setting the tone for the rest of your lives together by being open, honest, and fair in the process of planning your nuptials.  If you don’t agree with something, make yourself heard.  At the same time, choose your battles. Create a list of what is important (mental or on paper/computer) and stick to it.  If food is important to you and flowers aren’t, then don’t complain when the roses are “too red”, and not say anything when they serve “Spam Tartar” at the reception.

Bring in help!

Once again, this isn’t work, so it shouldn’t be treated as such! We’ve already established that you shouldn’t put off planning until the last second, but we didn’t say that you shouldn’t be able to ask for help! A good wedding coordinator can take a lot of the stress out of planning your wedding. They sit down with you and your spouse-to-be, create a “wish-list” of how you want your wedding and what that will look like budget-wise. Then they can fill holes for things you might not have thought about (like vendors for food, DJ Equipment, floral arrangements, etc…). The best part? Since they’re wedding liaisons, they typically get in touch with the vendors for you!  This not only takes a lot of stress out of the planning aspect, it also frees you up to be creative and fun in the process of mapping out the wedding.

Finally… Make it memorable.

Remember, this only happens once. Don’t take advantage of that! Of course this is a stressful time, but keep in mind that it’s only as stressful as you make it! Think of this as what it is: A beautiful celebration of two becoming one. In guys’ terms? It’s a huge party for you and your wife! Scared of dancing at the reception, because you might look foolish? Don’t be! I guarantee that your moves are better than mine, but the fun is in not caring and taking in the joy of the festivities.

So remember,

• don’t procrastinate
• create a to-do/wish list
• be creative (not only in planning the wedding, but the events leading up to the big day)
• be honest and make yourself heard with healthy communication and dialogue, while also listening
• event coordinators can be a HUGE help, and can take a lot of stress out of the occasion
• don’t fret, have fun, and remember to embrace the evening. It is YOUR Party!

How are the winners determined?
The WeddingWire Bride’s Choice Awards ™ recognizes the top local wedding professionals from the WeddingWire Network that demonstrate excellence in quality, service, responsiveness and professionalism. Unlike other awards in which winners are selected by the organization, the WeddingWire Bride’s Choice Awards™ are awarded solely based on the reviews from over 1.2 million newlyweds. Awards are determined by a combination of four factors: Overall rating (quality), total number of reviews (quantity), review performance from 2011 (recency), and consistency of reviews from year to year (consistency). This year’s recipients represent the top 5% of WeddingWire’s vendor community, across all service categories and all regions throughout the US and Canada.

We, Coordinated Events, will celebrate our 5th Year Anniversary as a company this year, and we could think of no better way to start this year than with a new site.