They say music can convey emotions we struggle to voice ourselves. If this is the case, your choice of song on your wedding day is crucial.
At some point in the evening, you’ll probably want to have a special slow dance with your new spouse. Hold them close and sway away to one of these romantic songs.
Bring the island vibe to your accessories with a tropical-inspired bridal bouquet. This theme exudes laid-back vibes, perfect for the chilled bride.
If you’re having a destination wedding, including flowers endemic to that region is a super sweet idea. If you’re not but just love the look, flowers like Birds of Paradise, Phalaenopsis Orchids, and Pin Cushion Proteas are popular choices. Opt for doses of colour to liven the lookup and stay on-trend.
Of course, you can’t forget to add in some leaves of greenery. Fleshy, large leaves like the Monstera, the Banana leaf and the Fiddleleaf are great additions.
It’s all fun and games until your hair starts paying for it. To help whip summer-stressed hair back into a healthier shape and prevent any further damage from occurring, we need to take a more gentle approach. Here’s how:
Recovery mode
One of the first, most effective treatments to repair sun-damaged hair, is with a hot oil treatment. And better yet, you can do it at home without spending a cent. Mix half a cup of olive oil with two vitamin E capsules and heat up in the microwave for no more than 10 seconds. Then, work the mixture through from the ends upward and leave for about an hour, then shampoo and condition as normal. However, if the damage is particularly bad, it might be time to schedule a trim to get rid of dead ends, prevent split ends from progressing, and stimulate new, healthy growth.
Repair damage
While a long dip on a hot day is total bliss, your hair won’t agree. Chlorinated water in swimming pools exposes your hair to harmful chemicals, sea water contributes to dryness, along with the sun being a constant, too. After a swim, always rinse hair thoroughly to keep damage to a minimum, then follow up with a replenishing hair routine. The Wella Fusion range offers exactly that – a hair recovery range that instantly helps to repair damaged hair and make it more resilient. Not only does it remove impurities, it also penetrates the hair follicle to leave it smoother and more elastic. Did we mention it’s suitable for colour-treated hair, too? Check.
Avoid overwashing and, with that, stripping precious oils from your hair by choosing your products carefully. We know that amped up heat means extra sweat, sunscreen and product build-up, which inevitably feeds the need for extra shampoos on top of your normal routine. When hair is already in a compromised state, focus on putting back, rather than stripping away. Opt for light moisture mists with UV and pollution filters, deep treatment masks once a week combined with lighter conditioners for in-between, and shampoos specifically for your hair type to avoid weighing your locks down or having to wash too often. Oh, and a hat too, for good measure!
Rethink styling
With extra humidity in the air, it’s pointless to try and boost volume or force hair into a perfect style if it’s just going to fall flat anyway. Instead, embrace your natural texture and work with that instead. Reach for a curl cream if you want to tone down frizz on naturally curly hair, a salt spray to add effortless texture to straighter styles, or a finishing oil to boost shine and add extra moisture. This will also avoid unnecessary heat and styling damage, preventing further wear and tear.
Your first dance as a married couple is a special moment, and you need to the perfect soundtrack. Music is highly personal, and the songs that are chosen to play at a wedding often speak to the unique couple.
There is a large amount of popular music that is gender-specific. For a couple not into pronouns, this may not be the right fit. Luckily, there are also just as many gender-neutral songs about love that will sum up your relationship.
The world breathed a collective sigh of relief when the clock struck midnight on New Year’s Eve and brought 2020 to an end. As the old year ends a new one begins, bringing with it new trends to try.
Pantone released its highly anticipated annual Pantone color of the year, coming out with not one but two shades that will dominate trends in 2021.
The two shades picked are PANTONE 17-5104 Ultimate Gray + PANTONE 13-0647 Illuminating, meant to convey a message of strength and hopefulness that is both enduring and uplifting, perfect for wedding season.
“PANTONE 17-5104 Ultimate Gray + PANTONE 13-0647 Illuminating, two independent colors that highlight how different elements come together to support one another, best express the mood for Pantone Color of the Year 2021,” the website explains.
“Practical and rock solid but at the same time warming and optimistic, the union of PANTONE 17-5104 Ultimate Gray + PANTONE 13-0647 Illuminating is one of strength and positivity. It is a story of color that encapsulates deeper feelings of thoughtfulness with the promise of something sunny and friendly.
“A message of happiness supported by fortitude, the combination of PANTONE 17-5104 Ultimate Gray + PANTONE 13-0647 Illuminating is aspirational and gives us hope. We need to feel that everything is going to get brighter – this is essential to the human spirit.
“As people look for ways to fortify themselves with energy, clarity, and hope to overcome the continuing uncertainty, spirited and emboldening shades satisfy our quest for vitality. PANTONE 13-0647 Illuminating is a bright and cheerful yellow sparkling with vivacity, a warming yellow shade imbued with solar power. PANTONE 17-5104 Ultimate Gray is emblematic of solid and dependable elements which are everlasting and provide a firm foundation.
“The colors of pebbles on the beach and natural elements whose weathered appearance highlights an ability to stand the test of time, Ultimate Gray quietly assures, encouraging feelings of composure, steadiness and resilience.”
While unusual shades at first glance, this yellow and grey pairing has such a sweet message that will be especially meaningful in 2021.
Yellow bridesmaid dresses, and sunny decor can be calmed down with modern grey touches. They work especially well with outdoor summer and spring weddings.
On your wedding day, it’s important to feel comfortable and stay true to yourself. Many brides may opt to up the sexy factor but if that does not feel authentic to you, don’t worry about it.
Dressing modestly does not have to be boring. You can still make a stylish statement while covering your cleavage, legs and arms if that is what makes you feel most comfortable. The important aspect then comes in the design of your wedding dress.
Lace, embellishments and beadwork do wonders for bringing life to an otherwise simple silhouette. If you’re not one for sparkle, opt for a more modern cut like a cape that will still cover your arms while giving you a fashionable edge at the same time. A super-long train and subtle corset detailing are also subtle ways to add a unique touch to your look.
Here are some stunning brides who rocked modest bridal fashion on their big day:
We live in a culture that values “experiences”. These are often promoted in the media, and by those selling them, as vital to enhancing our well-being.
We all know big life events like marriage, parenthood, job loss and the death of loved one can affect our well-being. But by how much and for how long?
We set out to measure the effect of major life events – 18 in total – on well-being. To do so we used a sample of about 14,000 Australian adults tracked over 16 years. Some of our results were expected. Others were surprising.
Overall, our results show good events like marriage improved some aspects of well-being, but bad events like health shocks had larger negative effects. For good and bad events, changes in well-being were temporary, usually disappearing by 3-4 years.
Here are some of our most interesting findings.
Happiness versus life satisfaction
Our study distinguished two different aspects of well-being: “happiness” and “life satisfaction”. Researchers often treat these as the same thing, but they are different.
Happiness is the positive aspect of our emotions. People’s self-reported happiness tends to be fairly stable in adulthood. It follows what psychologists call “set point theory” – people have a “normal” level of happiness to which they usually return over the long run.
Life satisfaction is driven more by one’s sense of accomplishment in life. A person can be satisfied, for example, because they have a good job and healthy family but still be unhappy.
Life events often affect happiness and life satisfaction in the same direction: things that make you happier tend to also improve your life satisfaction. But not always, and the size of the effects frequently differ.
In the case of having a child, the contrast is stark. Right after the birth, parents are more satisfied but less happy, possibly reflecting the demands of caring for a newborn (eg. sleep deprivation).
Changes are temporary
After almost all events (both good and bad), well-being tends to return to a personal set point. This process is known as the hedonic treadmill – as people adapt to their new circumstances, well-being returns to baseline. This has been found in other studies as well.
The good news is that even after very bad events, most people seem to eventually return to their set-point well-being level. Even after an extremely bad event such as the death of a spouse, people’s well-being generally recovers in two to three years. This doesn’t mean they don’t carry pain from the experience, but it does mean they can feel happy again.
Bad events affect us more
The detrimental effects of bad events on well-being outweigh the positive effect of good events. Negative effects also last longer. This is partly because most people are happy and satisfied in general, so there is more “room” to feel worse than better. In fact, we can’t confidently say there is any positive cumulative effect of good events on happiness at all. However, marriage, retirement, childbirth and financial gains all temporarily improve overall life satisfaction.
Our finding that “losses” hurt more than “gains” mirrors decades of behavioural economics research showing people are generally “loss averse” – going to more effort to avoid losses than to chase gains.
The bad events that have the largest total effects are death of a spouse or child, financial loss, injury, illness and separation.
Small, fleeting effects
Starting a new job, getting promoted, being fired and moving house are events that people often fixate on as either stressful or to be celebrated. But, on average, these don’t seem to affect well-being that much. Their effects are comparatively very small and generally fleeting.
This could be because of differences in the nature of these events for different people, or that they frequently occur. For example, being fired can be devastating. But for someone close to retirement who receives a large redundancy payment and moves to the coast, it might be a positive experience.
An important caveat to our study is that it reflects the average experiences of people. There are likely to be some people who experience long-lasting improvements in well-being after good events. There will also be people who experience sustained decreased well-being after bad events. In future work we hope to identify these different people and isolate the characteristics that predict what responses to different events will look like.
The things that matter
Our results caution against chasing happiness through positive experiences alone. The impact, if any, seems small and fleeting, as the hedonic treadmill drags us back to our own well-being set point.
Instead, we might do better by focusing on the things that protect us against feeling devastated by bad events. The most important factors are strong relationships, good health and managing exposure to financial losses.
In 2020 we might also take consolation from the fact that, although it will take time, our well-being can recover from even the worst circumstances.
Your wedding decor can make or break your overall theme. However, you don’t need to go bankrupt to make a statement.
There are so many household items that just need some dressing up, and they will look spectacular on your wedding table. Think bottles, mirrors and candles. They key is to add variety with different heights and shapes.
Spraypaint your items to match your colour scheme, and add fairy lights for a romantic touch. The possibilities are endless.
When it comes to planning your big day, you want your closest people by your side to get your through. Things will get crazy, overwhelming and exhausting which is where your A-team step in.
But how do you know who to ask? Who should be your maid of honour and should you even have one? There will most likely be many outside voices telling you what to do, feelings of moral obligation or pressure from your partner around who to include in your bridal party. Take a breath, we’re here to help.
If you have no idea who to ask, consider the following guidelines.
You have the right to choose
It’s your wedding. Not your mother’s, mother-in-law’s or sister’s wedding. You should be comfortable with the people around you, trust them and be able to rely on them. Choose people you know well, have a close relationship with and that you know carry your happiness at heart.
Your maid/man of honour needs certain qualities
Some traditions dictate that a bride should ask her closest female family member to be the maid of honour, while others firmly believe that it should be your longest-standing friend. While your man/maid of honour might tick both those boxes, the most important thing is that he or she must be your closest friend. They may be a sister, cousin or school friend, but they may also be a recently met colleague, sports mate or even an older person who is a role model and mentor in your life.
That being said, they will need to handle some arrangements, do a lot of planning and be hands-on during the process. As such, they would need to be at least a semi-organised person, live close enough to see you regularly and know you well enough to avoid planning things you would not enjoy.
Your bridal party don’t need to be best friends with each other
The maid of honour and bridesmaids are a group of people who all love you, but they don’t need to love each other. Yes, you want them to have a good time and getting along will be a bonus, but the main thing is that you have the people there that you want. If they really care about you, they will put any potential differences aside and work together as a team to make your dream come true.
You are allowed to exclude people
This part sounds harsh, but it might be necessary. As with guests, you can’t always have everybody there. Sometimes practicalities just won’t allow it and other times it could be that people expect things of you that are unfair. If it so happens that you and your partner’s sister just don’t see eye to eye, for example, you shouldn’t have to feel pressured to include her in the bridal party. It would probably be a relief to them as much as it is to you, if you don’t ask them.
Remember this is your big day and your happiness counts most.
Traditionally, a woman’s father walks her down the aisle. This is an old tradition which stems from the days of arranged marriage but today can be a bonding moment between father and daughter. However, not everyone has a father they can walk down with.
If you’re someone whose father has passed away or you have a strained or uncomfortable relationship with your father, here are a few ways to ask that special person to make their way down the aisle with you.
Personalised Card
This is the best choice as it gives you the space to write out exactly how you feel and express to the person how much they mean to you. It is also simple and easy to do, so you don’t have to splash out on anything too expensive.
Tie in a box
This works if the person you’re asking is a man but this doesn’t have to be the case. Whoever you’re asking, you could surprise them with a little gift they could wear on the day as a gesture of their role in your wedding. A tie is great for a man as it could match your decor ideas but think of something that’s special to your relationship with that person.
Flower arrangement
Not to make flowers gendered but it is likely this would be for a woman you pick to join you down the aisle. Although, if there is a man in your life who you know likes flowers then this works too. Most flower companies can deliver your bouquet with a note. This makes it a great option if you’re asking someone who lives far away.
A one-on-one chat
This is actually the simplest option. You can express everything with no limitations and it’s a great way to have some alone time with this person, who must fill a significant role in your life. Take them out for lunch or an activity you both enjoy and bring up the idea with them while you’re at it.
How to tell your father it’s not him
This is a very tricky situation. If your father is still alive but you would rather he didn’t walk you down the aisle, this is a conversation you will need to have. This is because the expectation is set as a result of tradition.
While there is no perfect way to let him down, if you have to go through the motion try to make it as unantagonistic as possible. Do it in a space he will feel safe, like his home, so he doesn’t become embarrassed and lash out. Clearly structure what you’re going to say so you don’t end up becoming emotionally overwhelmed and ultimately go into the experience understanding he may be hurt and there is nothing you can do about that and it is something he will have to deal with.
