The Duties of the Maid of Honor

Being asked to be the maid of honor or the matron of honor in a wedding is a huge privilege. Usually, this person is a sister or very close friend to the bride. The person chosen is someone that she loves and trusts very much. The role is very special and many responsibilities now lie upon you.

These duties include the following:

Pre Wedding Day Duties:

Dresses: Go with the bride when she goes to pick out her wedding gown. If you don't have a digital camera, I suggest renting one for the weekend. Take pictures of each dress she tries on. Help her review the photos and let her decide which one she likes the best. Help her pick out the bridesmaid dresses as well. Make sure they are ordered early to arrive in time to get them altered.

Locations: Ask the bride if she would like you to help her keep track of the different possibilities and if she'd like help picking the location of the wedding and/or reception hall.

Invitations: Help the bride choose out her wedding invitations. Offer to address them and mail them as well.

Decorations/Favors: Help choose decorations, flowers and favors. Order them, make sure they come in on time, and keep track of them. It is very easy for these things to get misplaced!

Seating Arrangement: Draw up a plan of where the tables and people will be. Keep this with you on the day of the wedding to make sure things run smoothly.

Bridesmaids: Make sure they are informed of things such as dresses, dates, etc.

Bridal Shower and Bachelorette Party: It is your duty to host and plan these two very fun events! Go with the bride to help her register for gifts, something the groom probably isn't going to care about as much. Don't forget to keep track of who gave what gift; keep a small notebook with you to jot this information down.

Rehearsal Dinner: Help out with it and keep things in control.

Wedding Day Duties:

Reception Room: If possible, make sure everything looks the way it's supposed to if you decorated the night before and that the decorations are secure. If you didn't decorate ahead of time, now is the time to do it. You will also be the one responsible to clean it at the end of the night.

Flowers: Pick them up from the florist and distribute.

Dressing: Help the bride get into her dress and assist her with makeup if needed. Make sure her hair looks nice and if you did her hair yourself, fix anything that seems out of place. Be sure to tell her that she's beautiful!

Messenger: Everyone knows that the groom isn't supposed to see his woman in white before the wedding, so relay messages to him or the family if the bride wants to communicate with them. This will also help you be aware of everything that is going on so if something is wrong you can help make them run smoothly again.

Veil and Train: Help the bride with these things to assure that she doesn't fall and looks beautiful. Also, help with "fluffing" the dress if needed.

Bouquet: Make sure you have that free hand when she hands the bouquet to you during the ceremony.

Groom's Ring: This should be in your possession up until it is time to give to the bride.

Witness: You get the honor of signing the marriage license, usually done at the end of the wedding.

Dress: Bustle the bride's dress after photos.

Toast/Speech: Tell a short story from the heart and give out your congratulations to the newlyweds.

Fun: Have fun and do whatever else the bride may ask of you, within reason of course.

During the entire process:

Always be at hand to give moral support. You will be there through the entire planning process, which can be very stressful, especially for the bride. Be sure to have your ear to lend at all times.

You want the wedding to a memory the bride will cherish forever and as a friend, it's your job to do your best to make that happen.