Big frocks

I'm not a fan of big weddings. I've heard of too many in Scotland that cost gazillions but ended in divorce a year or so later. I always wonder what people do with the dress, the photo album and the bottom layer of the wedding cake once the marriage has gone off the boil. I hate the big frocks, the bridesmaids dressed up like a dish o fish in a dress they'll never wear again and the wee kids (sometimes offspring of the bride and groom) paraded as part of the event. There's the cars, the flowers, the favours, the photos. I can hear the ka-ching of the cash register when I look at the photos.

I was annoyed but not surprised to hear of a friend's sister who went to a posh hotel after her daughter's wedding to pay for the event and was asked if she wanted coffee, and then found the cost of her coffee was included in the final bill. That's business for ya.

Two family friends in Chile have got married recently and posted lovely photos on Facebook. They do things differently in Chile. The wedding and the wedding dinner were held outside in a nice venue. No big frocks. Brides and bridesmaids looked lovely but were dressed like normal people. No elaborate flowers. No cars. Photos were taken by the guests. It all looks pretty relaxed, as if people were enjoying themselves. These are not poor people: the bridegroom is a pilot in the Chilean airforce and the bride is a dentist. I'll bet the scran at the dinner was excellent and there was plenty of wine - chosen by the bride's dad - to go with it.

French weddings are still like this, as are some weddings in the Hebrides of Scotland. If you come from a small town or a village, you get married in the local church and hire the hall for afterwards. All the locals turn out for the arrival of the bride and groom at the church. After the wedding ceremony, the entire congregation walks from the church to the hall. In France, the bride and groom and witnesses go to the town hall for the registration of the wedding. Local people - usually women - do the catering. The bride's relatives do the flowers. A local band provides the music.

I think this is the way to do it. But whatever you decide to do, have a great time at the wedding!