As you meet with vendors, you will quickly realize there's a whole slew of wedding-specific terms you'll need to be familiar with in order to get exactly what you want. It pays to know the vocabulary. Master this list so that you can deal with the pros in their language.
Cake Terms
Photo Credit: Meg Baisden Photography
Buttercream: The most common type of icing. It's soft, creamy and sweet, made of butter, sugar and milk. Your baker can use it to cover the outside of your cake and/or as a filling in between the layers.
Cornelli: A form of piping that creates a three-dimensional pattern of lace and squiggles.
Dragees: Decorative silver-coated balls made of sugar.
Fondant: Icing made of sugar, gelatin, corn syrup and glycerin that has a firm yet tender texture and a smooth, porcelain-like finish. It's more expensive than buttercream because decorating with it is more complicated and labor-intensive.
Ganache: A dark, rich combination of chocolate and cream used as a filling or icing.
Genoise: A French sponge cake that’s drier than American cakes. Typically soaked in a liqueur syrup and layered with fruit fillings or flavored whipped cream.
Marzipan: Hardened almond paste and sugar, this confection is traditionally used to make realistic cake toppings. It can be rolled and used as icing.
Royal Icing: A hard, brittle and not-very-tasty type of icing made of sugar and egg whites. It's used mostly for sculptural decorations, like roses, swirls and dots.
Table Cakes: Can be used as a substitute for floral centerpieces, which can save you money. These individualized cakes can be used as centerpieces throughout the meal.
Catering Basics
Photo Credit: Dominique Bader on Snippet and Ink via Lover.ly
Buffet: A good way to offer several entrees in a free-flowing atmosphere. Not recommended for couples with limited space.
Canapé: Any bite-size appetizer served on a small round of bread, cracker or vegetable (e.g., blinis with crème fraiche and caviar).
Corkage Fee: Many caterers charge a fee per bottle of alcohol just to open it during your reception. The charge applies only if you have provided the alcohol yourselves instead of getting it through your caterer. The price ranges from $5 to $10 per bottle.
Crudités: An appetizer of raw vegetables (like carrots, celery, cucumbers and peppers), sliced up and served with dip.
Ceremony Music
Photo courtesy of Antonia Christianson Events
Prelude: Quiet, gentle "background" music played at the beginning of the ceremony as guests arrive and are seated.
Interlude: A song during the lighting of the unity candle or at another point in the ceremony. It can be instrumental or vocal. "Hymne a l’Amour" by Josh Groban, or the “Wedding Song (There is Love)” by Peter, Paul and Mary are popular choices.
Processional: Stately music played as the bridal party walks down the aisle, with the bride and her escort at the very end (e.g. Pachelbel's famous "Canon in D"). Often the bride's walk is accompanied by a different tune (e.g. Wagner's "Bridal Chorus").
Recessional: Upbeat, triumphant music played at the end of the service as the bride and groom make their way back up the aisle and exit the ceremony. Mendelssohn's "Wedding March," from A Midsummer Night's Dream, is the most popular option.
Postlude: Music that plays until every last guest has exited the ceremony area. It should revert to the background and last around fifteen minutes. “All You Need is Love” by The Beatles is a contemporary surprise to end of the ceremony.
Fashion 101: Silhouettes
A-line: Slim on top, fitted through waist, and softly flares away from body.
Ball gown: Boned bodice, full skirt supported by crinolines, petticoats, etc.
Empire: A high-waisted style that is nipped in just below the bustline. Good for small-busted women or curvy figures.
Trumpet: A fitted gown that flares out at the knee. It is great for brides who want to show off some curves. Similar to the mermaid silhouette.
Mermaid: This shape tightly hugs the torso, then flares out from the knee or just below it. Very similar to the trumpet.
Sheath: A close-to-the-body shape that outlines every curve; very similar to the column but with less structure at times.
Column: Quite similar to sheath; it is a straight-lined skirt with no flare or fullness at the hem.
Registry
Photo Credit: David Lazarus
Open stock: A term that applies to the sale of china and cookware, meaning that guests can purchase components of a set or pattern individually (as opposed to having to buy the entire ensemble at once).
Place setting: Most china patterns are available in a five-piece place setting that includes a dinner plate, a salad/dessert plate, a bread-and-butter plate (some casual patterns may include a soup/cereal bowl instead) and a cup and saucer.
Completer Set: Items that are not included in a basic china place setting but coordinate with the pattern — platters, serving dishes, salt and pepper shakers, and so on.
Return Policy: No matter what, you are going to have things to return. Tape receipts to merchandise as it comes in, check the return policy and return the gifts as soon as possible. Remember: When returning, don't feel pressured to choose another gift on the spot.
Tradition Terminology
Photo Credit: Holli B. Photography
Jack & Jill: A shower for the bride and groom to which both male and female guests are invited. A coed shower can be a cocktail party at a nightclub or restaurant or a more casual picnic or barbecue.
Trousseau: An old-fashioned term for the new linens, lingerie and clothing a bride assembles in honor of her upcoming nuptials.
What to toss: The tossing of rice actually stems from an ancient fertility rite. But as rice can be harmful to birds, many people are opting for the tossing of rose petals, either freeze-dried, real or fabric ones. Another option is to have guest blow bubbles, throw confetti or birdseed.
Flowers
Photo Credit: KT Merry
Architectural Arrangements: A clean, contemporary look that makes use of sculptural flowers. Clear glass vessels naturally complement the style. A single type of flower is typically used in each vessel.
Chuppah: A temporary structure consisting of four poles with a canopy partially covering them. The Chuppah is a central component to the Jewish ceremony, representing the couple’s first home. Chuppah can be covered in fabric or flowers or both.
Corsage: People who have stood by you and the groom get to wear the corsages; your mothers, fathers, grandmothers and grandfathers. These do not have to match the bridal bouquet.
Boutonnières: Those who are apart of the wedding party wear boutonnières. The boutonnière complements the bridal bouquet in flower type or color. Readers and ushers also get to wear boutonnières so that the guest may identify them easily.
Cascade: A bouquet style in which the blossoms are woven into a waterfall effect; when held, it flows down below your waist.
Dome or Nosegay Bouquet: Round, dome-shaped, possibly a trailing ribbon. It can be tightly packed or loose and the stems are hand-tied. Rarely more than three types of flowers.
Filler: Inexpensive flowers and foliage (ivy, baby's breath or ferns, for example) that are often used to fill out bouquets and other floral arrangements.
Freeze-Dried Petals: Petals that retain their color and texture longer than fresh ones. These are great for guest to toss as you leave the reception, or for the flower girl to toss down the aisle.
Pomander: A round "ball" of flowers suspended from a ribbon handle. Use it as a bouquet or have your flower girl carry one, in lieu of a basketful of petals.
English Garden Arrangements: Fluffy and full, but with more color. A traditional look that is less formal than romantic and can look lush in silver containers or charming in a basket.
Romantic Arrangements: Fluffy arrangements in white, blush, cream and perhaps pink. Most often used in traditional, somewhat formal arrangements in silver containers and accented by lots of candles.
Tuscan Arrangements: Warmer and earthy, these rely on sunny shades of yellow and orange and deeper shades of red and often incorporate fruit. These arrangements mix well with natural wood tables, rust-colored or verdigris candelabra, and fat cylinder candles.
Tussy mussy: A cone-shaped, metallic bouquet holder popular during the Victorian era. It's rarely used today, but is perfect for an elegant, "vintage" wedding.
Stationery and Invitation Basics
Photo Credit: Jeremy Harwell on Grey Likes Weddings via Lover.ly
Beveled Edge: A slanted edge, usually used on heavy card stock or inside embossed panels.
Cotton Rag: Rich, creamy paper made from cotton fiber. Used in many top-quality invitations and it will not discolor over time. The softness of the paper lends itself to letterpress printing.
Debossed: Like embossing, except the image is depressed instead of raised.
Deckle Edge: Rough, uneven edges on paper that give it an Old World look. Edges are more often torn or die cut to make them look unfinished.
Die cut: A precision cut mainly used in folder cards to create a “window” to text or images behind the first card. Lasers have made die cuts easier to execute.
Dingbat: A topographical term for a decorative motif used on stationery. A palm tree, pinecone, or eternity symbol can convey something about your theme, location or personality.
Embossed: A raised image created when the paper is squeezed between a die and a counter-die. Typical for monogramming.
Engraving: A traditional, formal printing style, distinguished by slightly "raised" lettering and indentations that can be felt on the back of the invitation. It's a labor-intensive, and therefore an expensive process.
Thermograph: A machine-printing process that uses heated powder to give print a raised look. To the untrained eye, it appears virtually identical to engraved print but costs far less.
Suite: What you would call your entire invitation package.
Vellum: A thin, transparent type of paper that looks somewhat like frosted glass. Your stationer can print text on it directly or use it as a decorative overlay.
Photography
Photo Credit: Sanya Khomenko
Color-processed Color: A technique that produces ultra-saturated colors. An arresting effect for select portrait; particularly striking during an outdoor shot.
Fish-eye lens: Very wide-angle lens that rounds the edges of the frame; not something you want for all of your wedding photos, but it’s good for shooting in tight spaces — the entire width of the church or all the members of your wedding party crammed in the back seat of the limo.
Hand-tinted: Vintage technique in which color is applied by hand to black-and-white photos, with to specific areas or as a wash. Can be achieved digitally.
Sepia: An optional special effect that can give your photos an antique look — it's similar to black and white, only the pigment used is a reddish brown.
Proofs: All the shots your photographer has taken during your wedding (untouched and uncropped). You'll likely review these to decide which photos you want printed in a larger size and at the best possible quality.
Reception
Photo courtesy of Preston Bailey
Dais: A raised platform for the head table.
Escort (or Table) Cards: These direct guests to their designated tables. They're usually placed on a large table near the entrance to the reception room, and guests pick them up as they go into the party.
Place Cards: These can be used at very formal weddings to designate each person's specific seat at a particular table.
Gobos: A lighting technique, a gobo is a die-cut stencil that slides into a projection unit and casts an image onto the wall or ground.
Overlay: An optional decorative cloth that sits on top of the underlay to provide contrast in color or texture. It extends halfway down the sides of the table and is usually sheer and decorated with light beading or embroidery.
Pickups: Table skirt fabric is randomly “picked up” and held in place with flowers, appliqués, or embroidery. It is used to create volume.
Pin spotting: A narrow field of light used to pick out and highlight an item. An effective way to draw attention to beautiful architectural elements.
Swagging: Two tablecloths are layered, and the top one is extremely gathered and draped in soft arcs.
Sweetheart table: A small, romantic, two-person table for the bride and groom.
Underlay: A full cloth that covers the entire table and falls to the floor.
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