When you think of February, you think Valentine’s Day. So it’s no surprise that February is National Weddings Month. More couples get engaged this month than any other and while it’s not a popular month for actual weddings, it is the month when all the planning starts.
Some fun facts:
- Average engagement lasts 16 months.
- Average engagement ring costs $4,411.
- Average age of couple – Bride, 27 Groom, 29
- Most popular months to marry are (in order) June, August, September, October, May.
- Average number of guests at a wedding – 175.
- Average cost of wedding – $26,000.
If you’re planning a wedding – (or are hoping to get engaged this month!) – the Cheshire Library has a wonderful section of books to help you plan.
A sampling:
Stylish Weddings: 50 simple ideas to make from top designers
Style me pretty wedding: inspiration & ideas for an unforgettable celebration
Do it for less! Weddings: how to create your dream wedding without breaking the bank
The Knot guide to destination weddings
The Knot complete guide to weddings in the real world
The Knot book of wedding flowers
Handcrafted weddings: over 100 projects & ideas for personalizing your wedding
Simple Stunning Wedding Flowers
The Best Wedding Reception Ever!
For additional books, click here.
And if you just want to snuggle on the couch with your favorite beverage and just read about weddings, here are a few fiction titles for you to enjoy.
Four Weddings and a Fireman – Jennifer Bernard – Firefighter Derek “Vader” Brown is determined to get to the bottom of Cherie Harper’s ambivalence toward him, while Cherie fights to keep a nightmare from the past from interfering with her passion for Derek.
Beautiful Day – Elin Hilderbrand – Gathering on Nantucket for a wedding planned to the letter by the bride’s late mother, the Carmichaels and the Grahams hide their scandal-ridden, crumbling lives from the blissfully unaware happy couple.
The Christmas Wedding – James Patterson – Relates the story of Gaby Summerhill, a widow planning a holiday wedding to a groom whose identity remains a surprise to her four children.
Vision in White – Nora Roberts – Wedding photographer Mackensie “Mac” Elliot falls into the arms of safe, stable English teacher Carter Maguire as relief from the onslaught of bridezillas, but soon begins to wonder if what began as a casual fling could blossom into her own happy ending.
A Wedding in December – Anita Shreve – Gathering to attend a wedding in the Berkshire Mountains of Massachusetts, seven former classmates find the reunion marked by the death of a spouse, a traumatic past event, a shocking secret, and health issues.
A Common Life: the wedding story – Jan Karon – The creator of the Mitford stories goes back through time to relate the wedding of Father Tim Kavanagh to Cynthia Coppersmith.
Late for the Wedding – Amanda Quick – Regency sleuths Lavinia Lake and Tobias March stumble into the middle of a deadly mystery as they become caught up in the search for a killer who targets wealthy older men on the brink of marrying beautiful, much younger women.
The Wedding Quilt – Jennifer Chiaverini – Meditating on the weddings she has attended in Elm Creek Manor throughout the years on the morning of her daughter’s wedding day, Sarah McClure evaluates the symbolic features on a wedding quilt designed to display the signatures of beloved guests.
Or how about enjoying a wedding movie? Check out these titles:
My Big Fat Greek Wedding – A young Greek-American woman, changes her life for the better and falls in love with a non-Greek man; now that she has found happiness, she must learn to come terms with her heritage while attempting to get her family to accept her new love.
Rachel Getting Married – A young woman who has been in and out of rehab for years returns home for her sister’s wedding.
Made of Honor – Tom and Hannah have been best friends since college, but when Hannah returns from a trip engaged to another man, Tom realizes he is in love with her and will do everything he can to win her heart.
The Hangover – Doug and his groomsmen head to Vegas for his bachelor party, but when they wake up the next morning with the worst hangovers they have ever had, they realize Doug is missing and no one can recall the events of the past twelve hours.
The Wedding Planner – When a wedding planner falls in love with one of her biggest clients, she must decide whether to plan his wedding, or steal his heart.
Rumor Has It – Upon returning home for her sister’s wedding, Sarah Huttinger discovers that her family may have been the inspiration for the novel behind the classic movie “The Graduate”.
Monsoon Wedding – Love, lust and hope envelop an upper middle-class Indian family and their world-wide guests as they celebrate for four days the arranged marriage of their daughter to an East Indian man from Texas.
The Wedding Date – Unable to deal with having been dumped by the best man at her sister’s future wedding, a young woman hires an escort to act as her boyfriend at the event.
About Schmidt – Warren Schmidt copes with the boredom of retirement, the devastating loss of his wife, and his daughter’s new fiancee.
Happy planning! Happy reading! Happy watching!
The Cheshire Library Blog 