The Role of the Maid of Honor

Dear Bride,

I am a secular ceremony officiant and I have noticed during my 7 years of activity that while the bride and groom like to add a touch of originality to their ceremony, they often want to respect certain codes referring to the religious ceremony.

One of them is the entrance accompanied by the traditional wedding procession made up of little girls throwing flowers and groomsmen and bridesmaids. Ah, the bridesmaids , whether there is one or a whole host of them, there are many weddings that I have had the pleasure of celebrating, at the start of which the "Chosen Ones" paraded to announce the opening of the ceremony.

The tradition of bridesmaids dates back to Ancient Rome: It was thought that by surrounding the bride and groom with young people dressed in the same way, evil spirits would not be able to tell the difference and attack the young lovers. Then, it was from the 18th century, particularly in Anglo-Saxon countries, that young girls ready to marry were highlighted as bridesmaids. Even today, it is in the United States and Great Britain that processions have the most bridesmaids. It is not uncommon to choose around ten and just as many groomsmen!

In France, the figures are more reasonable but this trend is experiencing increasing success because it makes the bride's entrance all the more sumptuous.

If their primary role is to announce the arrival of the bride, the role of the bridesmaid is not limited to parading with her bouquet and placing herself quietly near the bride during the ceremony. Very often, with the role of maid of honor, the role of volunteer Wedding Planner often comes into play!

1° Organize the bachelorette party : She is often responsible for organizing the bachelorette party (when it is not an entire weekend abroad!) and must deploy treasures of ingenuity and unparalleled organizational skills so that the bride has the best possible time.

2° Make the decorative items : She is often called upon to decorate the wedding and must agree without complaint to spend all her free time during the 6 months preceding the wedding making invitations, mastering the folding of casseroles, hearts and other paper items, to decorate glass yogurt and jam pots and to participate in a multitude of other creative workshops organized by the bride as if she were working at Cultura!

Photo credit: Ivan Franchet

3° Manage the big day : Before putting on her dress (chosen by the bride) and her shoes (splendid but which will make her suffer martyrdom!) and going to the hair and makeup session, the young lady of honor will have to set up the decoration according to the precise instructions given by the bride, manage the requests of the service providers and all this at the same time in order to avoid any unnecessary stress for the bride.

The maid of honor is often on the front line when the hysterical bride feels the overwhelming need to yell at someone to relieve her stress. When someone has to get down on all fours to readjust the bride's petticoat or crawl like a lizard to retrieve the tiny button that came off the dress and rolled under the wardrobe, it's also about the bridesmaid.

In fact, the maid of honor (And this applies to the best man) has an absolutely essential role: That of the sister, of the friend who has always been there for you, in good times and bad and who above all is there for you on this very important day and who is ready to do anything to make this day the most magical of your existence.

For all these reasons, pamper her, remind her how happy you are that she is here and how grateful you are to her. Make him happy with little touches during this day. Some ideas: A little bathrobe with her name on it, comfortable shoes that she can put on and dance until dawn, a little piece of jewelry, a letter...