Divorce and the Stock Market

The most recent statistics show that about 50% of all marriages end in divorce. It is not very encouraging to enter into any kind of relationship knowing that it only has a 50/50 chance of being successful. Failure at anything is never pleasant, but there is one good thing about divorce. You are now free to try again and hopefully this time you will not make the same mistake.

Now I want you to think about divorce and the stock market. Do you own any stock or mutual funds that are selling for less than you paid for them? If you have owned any equities during this past three years I will be willing to bet you have some losers in your portfolio. Don’t you think it is time to think about a divorce, a divorce from a losing situation?

Suppose you sold everything today and put it all in a money market account paying 1%? I know what you think about 1%. Suppose you had dumped those losers 2 years ago and been in cash all this time? Would you be money ahead at 1%? I’ll bet you would.

You may be saying you don’t know whether this is a good time to sell or buy more. Here in one way to make that decision. Analyze the stock or fund you have. If you would not buy more of it now then the smart thing to do would be to sell. And don’t fall for the big Wall Street lie about dollar cost averaging.

Here is another way to determine how and when to sell – let the market tell you. You can place a stop-loss order with your broker for any amount you wish. Say your stock is selling for $20/share. I like to limit my loss to about 10% so I have my broker enter an order to sell me out if the stock drops to $18. If it keeps advancing I raise the stop loss order every week so that it is trailing along behind about 10%. When it advances to $30 my stop would then be at $27. This way I don’t have to guess about where to get out. Brokers don’t like to do this because they have to watch your account, but don’t let him talk you out of it. You don’t want to lose everything like you might in a divorce. Limit the damage. If you own mutual funds you will have to watch these yourself as you cannot place a stop-loss order; you have to call the broker to tell him to sell.

When you are in a bad marriage things just seem to get worse and worse. You could lose everything. When you are in a long-term bear market as we are now it is the same. Your financial assets become less and less. At least in the stock market you can limit your losses. Don’t call a lawyer, call the broker and get out.

Al Thomas’ book, “If It Doesn’t Go Up, Don’t Buy It!”
has helped thousands of people make money
and keep their profits with his simple 2-step method.
Read the first chapter at http://www.mutualfundmagic.com
and discover why he’s the man that Wall Street does
not want you to know.

December 31st, 2009

Is a Destination Wedding Right for You?

What exactly does ‘destination wedding’ mean? Well, this is the term used for a wedding which takes place in a desired location which is away from the bride and grooms’ home town. The wedding ceremony and reception is held in a location where everyone (including all guests) has to travel to get to the wedding.

Choosing a destination for your wedding is probably the most important wedding planning decision you will have to make. After all, the location of your wedding will dictate many factors of your wedding, including the cost. For example, many people are now opting for a more tropical and exotic location to get married, and if you have to travel to the other side of the world to get to your dream wedding destination, then that can be pretty expensive.

Destination weddings are certainly growing in popularity. While there are still many couples who go down the traditional route of getting married in a church followed by a reception in a banquet hall, there is no doubt that a destination wedding is a new and upcoming trend with couples wanting to tie the knot.

Why are destination weddings so popular?

Well, one good reason is that they mean a vacation for everyone involved in the wedding and not just a honeymoon for the bride and groom. Some people keep it small and quiet with just immediate family and friends, while other couples have a huge wedding party traveling with them – it all depends on what you want. A destination wedding is also popular with people getting married for the second or even third time. They don’t want all the fuss and formality of a traditional marriage, they simply want to ‘get away’ and get married.

Things to consider when planning a destination wedding:

• If wanting a tropical wedding, remember that it will be very hot and you and your partner could feel very uncomfortable in your wedding attire
• Do you want only close family/friends to come with you, or a larger wedding party?
• Can all of your guests afford the travelling expenses?
• Can you afford to pay for your guests to travel?
• Do you want to hold a second reception back home for friends and family that couldn’t travel with you?
• Is privacy important to you? You will be surrounded by your guests for the whole duration of your wedding / honeymoon.

Remember that you will be inviting the guests to travel with you. Most likely, the guests will be paying their own way and are essentially planning their entire vacation around your wedding. Therefore, you will have to give considerable thought in what both you and your guests want to do before and after the wedding.

In summary, destination weddings are becoming very popular and because of this there are many travel agents who now specialize in these types of weddings. Make a decision on how large you want your traveling party to be and if your guests can afford it. Make sure to have some kind of understanding with your guests if you want a few days of privacy.

Claire Bullerwell is the owner of Destination Weddings, where you can further information on all aspects of wedding planning.

May 21st, 2009

Tips On Choosing Your Wedding Reception Music

Because there is such musical variety available to brides and grooms, selecting your reception music might be difficult.

Before you do anything, you should answer the following questions:

What kind of music do you enjoy the most when you celebrate?

What kind of music would your guest enjoy the most? If there is a conflict between what the bride and groom and their wedding reception guests enjoy, a compromise might be necessary.

Do you prefer live music, or a DJ? Can you afford a live band?

You should book your wedding band or DJ about the same time you reserve your wedding reception venue. Why? Because your reception music will greatly depend on your wedding reception venue. If you want to have live music for your wedding, you need to make sure it is allowed by the reception venue. You need to make sure you understand the venue’s rules about music before you select your wedding reception venue.

If you elect to go with a wedding band, be sure to book early. Popular bands are often booked more than one year in advance. Saturdays during the busiest wedding months are especially busy for wedding bands, so you might need to book even more than one year in advance.

Before you book your wedding music provider, you should ask the following questions:

How long have they been in the wedding business? You should go with an experienced band or DJ. Experience will usually yield a better quality performance.

Do they have any references? (You should always check references.) If the band is unable to provide references, you should walk.

Do they play live, continuous music for the entire event?

Can they play the songs you want to hear? The more songs they can play the better. Bands usually have song lists of all the songs they can play.

Do they have a demo CD, so you can sample their music? Is it possible for you to see one of their performances? There is no substitute for seeing a band in action.

Can you communicate with the band, and do you feel comfortable interacting with them? Are they listening to you; are they enthusiastic? Remember, the band is there to make your party fun, not the other way around. You hire them to play the music you like not the music they like.

How many band members do you get and how many are singers?

How long do they normally play, and how often do they break and for how long?

Are they insured? You should demand at least liability insurance from the wedding band or DJ.

Put everything important you agree on in writing. The answers to the above questions should all be part of the written contract, which is an absolute must. You should also include the exact time the band starts and ends playing.

If you have to work with a smaller budget, you might want to book a DJ instead of a wedding band since they are less expensive than wedding bands. An experienced DJ can create a great atmosphere for your wedding reception; so don’t be disappointed if you can’t afford a wedding band.

Remember to have fun; after all you are planning the most important and joyous day of your life!

George Meszaros www.sweet-reflections.com

May 21st, 2009

Wedding Favors-A Gift for the Guests

Wedding favors are a great way to thank your guests and add a little extra charm to your wedding reception. Wedding favors are available in a variety of styles and price ranges. Depending of the theme of the wedding there are numerous wedding favors available to perfectly suit the bride and groom and the wedding itself.

For a formal wedding reception there are favors that coordinate with formality. Choose favors that come in little tuxedo and wedding gown boxes. Wedding favors do not have to be extravagant. Just a little box filled with candy or mints are a perfect parting gift for guests for the way home. Small metallic picture frames are also a great, inexpensive favor that guests can use to remember the celebration.

For less formal weddings, there are many types of favors available. For outdoor weddings, there are personalized seed packets available. Simply choose a flower and a special phrase to commemorate the wedding day. Seeds are a wonderful, sentimental way to give guests a reminder of the wedding day. Another great idea is little baskets filled with candy and a little saying. Little wedding bands can be tied on a ribbon and attached to any favor as a great accent.

Some important things to remember about wedding favors are first, to keep it simple. There should be a favor for everyone on the guest list, so don’t get bogged down with too many small details. The favors should include something with the date of the wedding and the names of the bride and groom. This way guests will remember the event and the origin of the favor. This is also a great time to put in a little thank you to the guests for attending the event and being part of such a special time.

Weddings favors will be a lasting memento of a day when two people enter into the beginning of a new life together. They are a great way to thank guests for being there at the wedding, and also add a great touch of class to the wedding décor. Favors reflect the wedding as well as the couple, and are a wedding element that should not be overlooked.

Angela Oliver is an author for Dependable Printing, a full service provider of wedding invitations, discount wedding invitations, thank you notes, and wedding accessories. Please visit dependable Printing for a great selection of wedding favors and discount wedding favors.

March 4th, 2009

Wedding Decoration Ideas

A beautiful idea can make a world of difference to a wedding. An idea has the ability to add a dream-like quality to a wedding if required, it adds style to a wedding and makes it look different.

A wedding is a couple’s big day so every effort should be made to make it the most memorable time of their lives. There can be an idea for each aspect of the wedding starting from the theme to what the bride or groom want to wear or how they want the feel of their wedding to be.

Once the theme of a wedding is decided, everything can be color coordinated with the theme. Necklaces, glow lights, and bracelets can be used to decorate the centerpieces. There are many other ways to decorate the centerpieces. Centerpieces can be made of anything, though bowls of flowers and floating candles are very popular right now. Floating fruit candles would give the whole atmosphere a feeling of spring. Butterfly shaped floating candles can be made to swim in water and the sheer beauty of the sight can be enjoyed. Floating candlesticks can be used to give the look of a precious goblet of light.

Apart from the centerpiece ideas, some unique ideas can be used to change the mood of the wedding. Some popular ideas for weddings include: asking the guests to share a story or a moment about the couple which would either make people laugh or brush away tears, or, to create a true fairy tale effect, real butterflies or doves can be released once the couple steps outside the wedding venue. A piece of history or an age-old tradition can be incorporated in the wedding bouquet. For example, orange blossoms, which are the most traditional flowers, can be included in the bridal bouquet.

It is true that a beautiful idea can change lives and a wedding is probably one of the biggest occasions in anybody’s life. Thinking of the right ideas can certainly make the wedding truly memorable.

February 12th, 2009

Wedding Budget Challenge

As you plan your wedding, the most important task you have is to set your wedding budget. Weddings are expensive events. The average cost of a wedding in the America is more than $20,000. The honeymoon is not calculated in the cost. Although $20,000 sounds like a lot of money for a one-day event, keep in mind that it is an average and a many weddings cost significantly more.

No wedding budget is ever too big. It is your budget not your imagination that sets the limits of what you can or can’t do on your wedding day. Formal weddings in hotel ballrooms or other trendy wedding reception venues will require a much bigger budget than a reception held at your parents house. Normally, formal weddings are more expensive because everything about them is expensive such as the food, music, etc.

The summer months are the most popular and most expensive months of the year to get married. Due to the high demand during the busy wedding season, hotels and other wedding reception venues can ask higher than usual prices. If you must have a summer wedding, expect to pay a premium.

The more guest you invite to the wedding, the more money you’ll spend. You have to calculate your food budget based on a per-head cost for food and liquor. The type of meal you serve your guest is limited by your budget. For instance, seated dinners are more expensive than a buffet style dinners.

Some locations are more expensive than others. Certain cities such as New York and Los Angeles can be expensive, but far away places can be just as pricey due to high travel costs and the lack of competition.

Don’t worry if your wedding budget doesn’t cover everything you can dream of. It may require compromises, scheduling changes, or simply begging for more money, but even with a small budget you can plan a beautiful wedding.

Developing the wedding budget is challenging, and the bride and groom should work on it together. If your parents are footing part of the expenses, you have to involve them in the process too. Traditionally, the bride’s family covers most of the expenses. Today, such tradition is not necessarily relevant. The bride and groom normally pay for most of the weddings.

January 26th, 2009

How to Look Good in Wedding Photographs

The dress was beautiful, you got through the ceremony and reception without a hitch, but just when you thought your wedding was perfect, your pictures come back and you look awful. What can you do to make sure that your photos are as beautiful as the memories you have?

Here are some of the things you should consider:

- Never scrimp on your photographer. Nobody’s going to remember if your bouquets had daisies or rare, exotic orchids. But years from now, your great grand children will be looking at your wedding album. They’re not just souvenirs, they’re heirlooms. Spend on them.

- Avoid complicated hairstyles and veils. You’ll be walking around, too busy talking to guests to check the mirror. You don’t want your veil hanging to the side, or your bangs plastered to your face. Keep it simple and elegant. If you want a dramatic veil for your walk down the aisle, look for a style that allows you to detach part of it, leaving you with something less cumbersome at the reception.

- Buy or make a small clutch bag or pouch that matches your gown. It should carry blotting paper, pressed powder, lipstick and blush. Ask your maid of honor to keep it handy for you.

- Wear waterproof mascara. You will cry a lot. It’s guaranteed. Black mascara will run and leave unflattering raccoon eyes.

- Don’t wear heavy powder eyeshadow. Again, you will cry. You will also sweat from walking around in heavy makeup, a thick gown, and hundreds of guests milling around you. Powder smears and cakes, and ends up under your eyes.

- Don’t wear sheer lipstick. You’ll eat it off. Or if you do, wear a matte or semi-matte base and apply the sheer lipstick as a top coat. Be sure to blot well, or it’ll end up around your mouth or on your teeth.

- Don’t wear heavy shimmery makeup, unless it’s applied by a professional makeup artist. It doesn’t photograph well under less than perfect lighting conditions. If you do, apply only on the eyes.

- Bridal makeup should be soft and romantic, not harsh. Natural pinks are most flattering, and really make you look like a “blushing bride”. Avoid hard-edged contouring and dramatic browns, unless blended well and kept close to the eyeline. Even lipsticks should stick to the pinks and brownish pinks. Bright reds look too harsh worn against a white dress.

- You’ll need good foundation that lasts long but doesn’t cake. The trick is to apply moisturizer first and let it “set”. This will prime your skin. Apply a matte or cream foundation, then concealer. Dust powder foundation with a brush.

- Take good photographs right after the ceremony, when everyone’s make up is still intact. You should have solo shots, couple shots, and group photos with your entourage, friends, family members.

- Ask for a few black and white photographs. They always have a soft, romantic feel.

- If you’ll be having outdoor photographs, light is most flattering in the morning and at dusk. Avoid any outdoor shots from 11am to 2pm; everyone will just be squinting.

Lesley-Ann Graham runs WeddingTrix.com – a valuable wedding planning resource with articles, tips and advice to help you plan your perfect wedding. The Bride, Groom, Best Man, Bridesmaids and Groomsmen can find it all at http://www.WeddingTrix.com

January 19th, 2009

Wedding Lingerie – Right Beneath Your Dress In Importance

Your wedding day is one you won’t forget. Similarly, you want your wedding night to be equally memorable. Wedding lingerie can go a long way toward making both of these things happen. It is just as important to your wedding as your dress, your makeup, or the flowers. Your wedding lingerie marks the beginning of your intimate life with your husband. It is also the foundation for your dress and your overall look.

More now than ever, wedding dresses are designed to be sensual and revealing, albeit in a classy manner that reflects the mood of the day. Wedding lingerie should be selected as a reflection of this look. If your dress fits tight to your body, the proper wedding lingerie can prevent the showing of lines and creases.

A white thong, for instance is an item that is sexy, comfortable, and can hide from your guests so that your dress wears as it was designed. Your bra is another important part of wedding lingerie. You want supportive a supportive bra under your dress, and you don’t want it to show over the top or out the sides of your dress. Strapless bras, again, are a form of wedding lingerie that can be sexy for the night, but reflect your dress in a perfect line during the ceremony and reception. The important thing is balance. Find wedding lingerie that will be functional for the wedding, comfortable for the reception, and still translate into a sexy mood in the honeymoon suite with your new groom. Some brides find that the best wedding lingerie to hit on all three characteristics is the one piece body shaper or corset. It certainly assures no panty lines, is flattering for the torso, comfortable (if fit properly), and most men find them sexy.

In terms of practicality, another very important piece of wedding lingerie is your slip. What style of slip will be needed is dependent on your dress, so obviously you will need to choose that first. When selecting any wedding lingerie be sure to have pictures of your dress with you for reference. For instance, a very full skirt, bouffant style, will need extra lift to keep the weight of the dress form pulling down on the fabrics. In this case, the proper wedding lingerie in terms of the slip is a crinoline slip with many layers. For an A-line type wedding dress, crinoline with only one or two layers is your best bet. No matter what, you need to select your slip based on practicality. This is wedding lingerie that will set the foundation for your wedding dress and your look.

Traditionally, the most important piece of wedding lingerie will be your garter. Since it will be given away, it is the one piece you won’t likely want to spend too much to get. Find a fun novelty store that carries lingerie to get your garter without spending too much on it. Since everyone at the reception will see it, cut loose. That is a time to use your wedding lingerie for fun outside the bedroom. Find a fun color, a silly style, or something to moderately embarrass your groom in front of the family.

Wedding lingerie is as important as a wedding dress. It is the foundation for your dress and will help it look its best. It is also the foundation for your first night as a married woman. Your wedding lingerie should be silent and hidden during the ceremony, but be able to speak loudly to your new groom on you wedding night.

Kelly Reyes enjoys writing about the latest fashion trends, lingerie, and romance. She is an author and the editor of the lingerie blog at http://www.AmplePleasure.com

Ample Pleasure Lingerie carries a variety of wedding lingerie for beautiful, curvaceous brides and is committed to providing a secure, luxurious shopping experience.

January 2nd, 2009

Wedding Ideas for Brides: 5 Ways To Capture Your Wedding Memories Forever

As far back as a girl can remember, she dreams of her wedding day. She imagines – to every last detail – things like: what type of wedding dress she will wear, what color the bridesmaids’ dresses will be and even more importantly, who that perfect man will be who becomes her husband. When that day finally arrives, it is the most important day of the bride’s life – a day she wants to look back on with fond memories for years to come. For more and more brides, one of the most perfect ways to capture their wedding is to create an Instant Photo Guest Book similar to the one created by Adesso Albums. Having such a keepsake, scrapbook or photo album to open up and share with your spouse, family and friends is the best way to capture the wedding day’s memory forever.

Instant Photo Guest Books are a unique “marriage” of a photo album and a guest book. To create a photo guest book at a wedding, simply take Polaroid pictures, slip them into your guest book and have the guests write their personalized messages to you the bride and your groom on the guest book pages. This will capture your wedding event instantly in pictures and wordsand you won’t even have to wait weeks to get your photographs returned from your wedding photographer. You’ll be able to enjoy it as soon as it’s over. However, the beauty of these keepsake albums is that it can be used for all parts of your wedding event: engagement party, bridal shower, bachelorette party, rehearsal dinner, wedding, reception and even the honeymoon.

Here are 5 other great ideas to capture your wedding moments:

1. Wish Bowl

Here’s an idea, that won’t even cost you a dime. The purpose of a wedding Wish Bowl is to provide an opportunity for guests to wish good fortunes to follow the Bride and Groom wherever they go. The idea is to have your guests write their wishes for love and life on little slips of paper and place them into a crystal or decorative glass bowl or vase. You don’t even have to buy one if you have a nice vase or bowl at home already. For a more formal presentation, the slips of paper can be placed into little matching wedding stationary envelopes. The stationary paper and envelopes should match the Bride’s color theme and/or wedding stationary. After the wedding events are over, the notes can be read and placed into a wedding album or scrapbook while the bowl or vase can be used for the home or decoration.

2. Wish Tree

The Wish Tree theme, similar to the Wish Bowl, is for guests at the wedding to write down their wishes for love and life to the Bride and Groom – except instead of the bowl, a tree is used to collect the wishes. There are many types of Wish Trees – your can purchase metal ones, or fashion your own using blooming branches from a garden or florist, or even use a live potted plant such as a fichus tree. Gift boxes can be hung from the tree of your choice and your guests can take a box off the tree in exchange for their wishes. After the wedding events are over, the wishes can be taken off the tree and placed in a keepsake box, scrapbook or album.

3. Signature Platter

Wedding Signature Platters or plates make a unique alternative to traditional wedding guest books. The platter can be plain, decorative or even custom designed and ordered online or from a wedding stationary store. Guests simply sign the platter during the wedding event with a special ceramic marker and after the wedding events are over, the platter is fired in your home oven. The special signature platter can be used for serving favorite dishes at future dinner parties as husband and wife or just as a decorative memento of the special gathering.

4. Framed Signature Mat

Similar to the Signature Platter, the Signature Mat is another alternative to the traditional wedding guest book. A photo of the Bride and Groom – often a “before” wedding photo (like an engagement photo) – is placed in an acid free matte and mounted either on an easel or table in the entry area of the wedding reception. Guests sign their name and well wishes to the Bride and Groom on the mat surrounding the picture. The Signature Mat is then framed for the newlywed’s new home. The “before wedding” photo can be replaced with a wedding photo of the couple before framing.

5. Typewriter Guest Book

The Typewriter Guest Book is Martha Stewart’s latest discovery for a guest book alternative. Look for an old-fashioned, inexpensive typewriter either online, from a flea market or thrift shop – but make SURE it works – and set it out on a table in the entry area of the wedding reception. Load the typewriter with long sheets of paper for guests to type in good wishes to the Bride and Groom along with their name and any sentiment that comes to mind. After the wedding, the page can be tied into a scroll with ribbon or framed along with pictures taken at the wedding.

The above 5 unique ways to capture your wedding moments will help you and your loved ones relive your wedding memories over and over again.

Lesley Mattos, Founder of Adesso Albums has been happily pursuing her dream of helping people all over the world capture the Now in life’s most important moments. Of all the ways to capture your wedding memories, the Adesso Album is the only guess book alternative that provides an instant memory of your wedding event in both pictures and words. If you need the Polaroid gear, you can purchase it along with the guest books as part of a kit at http://www.adessoalbums.com/begin-polaroids-p-30.html.

December 7th, 2008

When Gifts Simply Won’t Do

It would be true to say that these days more than 50% of all couples who eventually marry, are already living together. In that state of marriage without licence they may go ahead and buy a house together, set up the house with all those bits and pieces that transform a house into a home, and might even acquire a child or two.

Then comes the decision to make the union a legal one, and the planning of the wedding day itself.

Since a wedding is usually synonymous with gifts, the couple find themselves in that unpalatable situation of how to tell the guests that yes, they would love a gift, but none of those run of the mill things that guests inevitably bring.

Of course there is the Bridal Registry which most gusts have now learned to accept as part of the process. After all, knowing the couple’s preferences does save them running around the shops trying to choose something both useful and decorative and that the couple actually needs.

But unfortunately, this particular couple have gone way past the Registry stage. They have everything that money can buy, and what they’d really now like is the money itself. Perhaps it’s the mortgage payments that is the problem, or it could be that the roof has lost a shingle or two. But, in any case, wedding gifts just won’t do.

Enter the Wishing Well and the Treasure Chest.

After much pondering and soul-searching, the couple decide to take their friends into the confidence and ask for money in the most sensitive way possible.

At the reception itself, in a very central position, they place a wishing well, or a treasure chest which can be either made, rented or bought. Guests are invited to toss their cheques, or money order, or just plain old cash, into either the Wishing Well or the Treasure Chest and make a wish for themselves, instead of the couple. It’s a fair swap. The couple get what they want, and the guests get their wish. Well, that’s the plan, anyway.

Now how do you convey this innovative idea to your guests? Included with your wedding invitation will be a card – explaining the whole process. The card is made interesting by being worded with a lilting rhyme and rhythm as to why the couple would prefer the dollar to the tea towel. To give it visual aspect the card is decorated with a picture of the wishing well or the treasure chest to give the couple an idea of what to expect on the wedding day. It’s hoped that the light-hearted ditty on the card, and the novelty of the whole idea, will not only result with the right gift, but also retain the friendship of the giver.

Vlady Peters is an Australian Civil Marriage Celebrant authorised to perform marriages in Australia. She also perform general ceremonies such as Baby Naming, Renewal of Vows and Commitment Ceremonies. To learn more about her as a celebrant and an author visit vlady at http://www.weddings-celebrant.com

November 22nd, 2008