A New Way to Use Old Snapshots – Weddings
A New Way to Use Old Snapshots
LeAnn R. Ralph
If youre like me, you have hundreds of photographs sitting in envelopes. Pictures from birthday parties, weddings, family gatherings, anniversaries, the Fourth of July, Thanksgiving and Christmas. You have already put the best snapshots into albums and these are leftovers. You dont want to throw them away, but you also dont know what to do with them.
Instead of letting your snapshots take up space and contribute to the clutter in your home, use them to make collages at a cost of less than $10 each that you can give as Christmas gifts to family and friends. Heres how:
Assess your collection of pictures. Do you have several dozen of your spouse or significant other Your parents Your children Grandparents A friend A beloved pet Decide which person would like to receive these pictures and divide them into groups accordingly.
Buy a picture frame with glass either 5x7 or 8x10 for each collage you are going to make. Department stores sometimes have sales on picture frames, and you can often purchase a suitable frame for $5 or less.
Cut a sheet of paper use cardstock, 24# paper or light cardboard to match the size of the opening on the picture frame.
Cut out the background of the pictures, leaving just the people or pets. Cut out enough pictures to cover the sheet of paper.
Arrange the cut-out pictures on the paper. Mix and match and experiment. Try placing the pictures at different angles.
After you have an idea of how you would like to arrange the pictures, glue them to the paper. Check the label to make sure that you can use the glue with photographs. Cover the entire sheet of paper with pictures.
When the glue is dry, insert the paper into the frame.
Collages are not only a good way to use your old snapshots, but the recipients also will cherish them for years to come as a special and thoughtful gift.
© 2003 LeAnn R. Ralph
About The Author
LeAnn R. Ralph is a freelance writer in Wisconsin, is the editor of the Wisconsin Regional Writer the quarterly publication of the Wisconsin Regional Writers Assoc. and is the author of the book: Christmas In Dairyland True Stories From a Wisconsin Farm August 2003; trade paperback http://ruralroute2.com
bigpines@ruralroute2.com
Marking Togetherness: Beyond the Unity Candle – Weddings
Marking Togetherness: Beyond the Unity Candle
Blake Kritzberg
By now, surely everyones familiar with the unity candle, but did you know there are other unification ceremonies to choose from when planning your wedding
Although the unity candle seems to have been with us forever, in reality its only about ten years old. During those years, more "two-become-one" motifs have arrived to round out the theme.
Unification ceremonies are not only a symbol of togetherness, theyre also flexible elements of a wedding. These ceremonies can be "opened up" to include important family members, such as the bridal couples parents. Children from previous marriages can play a part, as can the entire congregation in a smaller wedding. Candle and rose ceremonies are common choices for adapting in this way.
Unification ceremonies can also be "stacked." Its not unusual to find a wedding that includes a hand and water ceremony, for example, or a wine and rose ceremony. Some couples play music during these ceremonies and others dont.
The timing of unification ceremonies varies by wedding, but they most often take place directly before or after the exchange of vows. These ceremonies may be especially important in non-religious weddings, which may end too quickly otherwise!
Lets look at some alternatives to the Unity Candle ceremony:
* Rose Ceremony
The rose ceremony is a flexible, informal ceremony especially suited to an interfaith or non-religious wedding, not to mention a garden wedding! In the rose ceremony, bride and groom exchange a single rose as their first married gift to each other. They are asked to recall this symbol of their love during the more trying seasons of marriage.
* Hand Ceremony
In the hand ceremony, the bride takes the grooms hands in hers, palms up. The officiant invites her to view his hands as a gift, and says: "These are the hands that will work along side yours, as together you build your future, as together you laugh and cry, and together you share your innermost secrets and dreams."
The groom then takes the brides hands, palm side up. The officiant says, "They are the hands that will passionately love you and cherish you through the years, for a lifetime of happiness, as she promises her love and commitment to you all the days of her life."
* Knot Ceremony
In the knot ceremony, the mothers of the bridal couple are given a cord, which the officiant later asks them to give to the bridal couple. The couple ties a lovers knot, which they may save to look back on later.
* Sand, Water and Wine Ceremonies
These are all mixing ceremonies suited to a Unitarian or interfaith wedding. The sand ceremony is said to arise from Apache customs, and is popular in beach weddings. In each case, the bride and groom pour sand or liquid from two separate vials into one. In the wine ceremony, they drink the mixed wine.
A nice touch is to have the bride pour white wine while the groom pours red. You can then serve ros
Net Savvy Indian Brides and Grooms – Weddings
Net Savvy Indian Brides and Grooms
Roopa Nair
India is a diverse, multi-cultural country with people of various religions, communities and sects living together in harmony and peace. Each community has its own set of religious rituals, traditions and multitudes of customs inherited from ancestors. Arranged marriage is one such common custom handed down over generations. Arranged marriage has played an important role in Indian marriages. This concept is even today accepted by millions of Indians in India and abroad. Marriages, initiated by elders, were arranged with the help of an aunt or the priest. Over a period of time this has slowly transitioned from the marriage brokers to the newspapers and now onto the Internet.
Internet has revolutionized the way people communicate. Today, there are several matrimonial sites some aimed to a particular community/religion and some to the general public. These sites literally make the world seem a smaller place. The concept of online matrimonial has become increasingly popular because it gives people up-front, at the click of a mouse, access to thousands of eligible singles, which neither newspapers nor marriage bureaus can ever offer. It has tremendously expanded the reach of every marriageable individual by exposing him/her to the millions of eligible Indians who visit these sites. Increasingly, many individuals and families spend their valuable time online searching for the perfect partner for themselves or their loved ones. It is interesting to see that these sites are visited by conservative parents, relatives; who believe in the sanctity of arranged marriages and also by those for whom falling in love is the way to go.
There are many wedding and wedding related sites on the net like http://www.BridesandGroomsIndia.com, http://www.WeddingSutra.com, http://www.MyAstroHelpline.com, etc. which understand the focus of the new age matrimonial net surfers and offer them several attractive services. These kind of sites have made it possible to find a partner, match the horoscopes, book a marriage hall and then do all the wedding shopping online. Many Indians are hooked on to this concept as it is safe, saves a lot of time and presents a wider choice in every aspect.
It is interesting to see how the Indian marriage scene has changed over the years. Though Indians have become tech savvy and jumped on the Internet bandwagon to find the Mr./Mrs. Right, but still the Indian customs, the traditions, the core values remain the same.
About The Author
Roopa Nair is an Indian freelance writer and a computer professional.