Your best friend just called you and asked you to be the Maid of Honor (MOH) for her wedding. You’re ecstatic and you immediately accept the offer. As you hang up the phone, you brain goes in to overtime: what do I do?!
Here’s a simple list of what your duties are as the first hand lady:
1. Your main focus is to be there for the bride. If she’s crying, make her laugh. If she’s stressed, help her out and ease her mind. Sometimes just sitting there with her during a moment of chaos is enough support. Don’t take this task too lightly: a happy bride makes a happy wedding!
2. Make sure all of the bridesmaids have their dresses, shoes, and accessories. The MOH can help schedule the fittings and have everyone go as a group, or she can make sure everyone is fitted a few weeks before the wedding. Follow up with everyone to see if they have their shoes and jewelry.
3. The MOH should offer to help with the “little things” for the wedding. This can be anything from assembling invitations to picking up the wedding programs from the printer.
4. As the designated MOH, you’re basically the bridesmaid wrangler! Keep everyone working towards the same goal, ie: the wedding. If there are any issues between the girls, you’re the mediator. Keep things light, calm, and fun while being productive.
5. This is usually the fun part for most of the MOH’s: planning the parties! The bride will need a bridal shower and a bachelorette party. Make sure you ask the bride what her ideal bachelorette party would be. She may surprise you and say she wants a soothing day at the spa instead of a wild night on the town. It’s her night – go with what SHE wants. At these events, you need to arrange to keep track of who brings which gift so the bride can write Thank You notes.
6. One of the most important aspects of the wedding ceremony is the exchanging of the rings. What does have to do with you? We’ll tell you. Usually, the Maid of Honor will hold the ring that will go to the groom during the ceremony. Very few people actually put the wedding rings on the Ring Bearer’s pillow because they might fall off or get lost. The pillow is just for show. The best place to put the groom’s ring is on your thumb. Once the officiate asks for it, then you can hand it over. That’s also the point in the ceremony where the bride will hand you her bouquet to hold.
7. If you get the responsibility of bustling the bride’s dress, make sure you go to a few of the fittings with her so the seamstress can explain and demonstrate how it’s done. Some dresses are really simple with a few hooks disguised as sequins or pearls, and others may have a whole ribbon tying system to make the train fall just right. Either way, make sure you pay attention. The dress will need to be bustled right after the bride arrives at the reception, but before the newlyweds are announced. Make sure you keep up with her whereabouts during this time so you can meet her at the door.
These are just a handful of activities that the Maid/Matron of Honor will encounter during the wedding planning process. The main thing is: be supportive and patient! Weddings are supposed to be beautiful and filled with love. We know it doesn’t always happen that way, but just this once, let the bride come first!
Happy Planning!
Southern Event Planners
Memphis, TN Wedding Planners
