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Fun Wedding Facts!

Did you know...?

Weddings By The Numbers

• Weddings are a $25.3 billion industry
• For the past 20 years, 2.25 to 2.40 million weddings take place each year in the U.S.
• 30% of brides plan their weddings for 7 to 12 months
• An average of 189 guests attends a wedding
• The average cost of a wedding is $20,000 to $25,000

The Most...

• 85% of weddings are held in a church or synagogue
• More than half of all weddings take place in the afternoon
• Hawaii is the favorite honeymoon destination
• 75% of first-time brides will receive a diamond engagement ring
• A third of men's wedding rings have diamonds

June & August: Wedding Favorites...

• August is the top month for weddings (10.2%) and June is second (9.9%)
• While June traditionally has been regarded as the month for weddings, more weddings have taken place in August in the past decade than in June

Three Styles Reflect Today's Brides...

• "Traditional Princess Bride": a young woman with parents active in the planning and financing of a once-in-a-lifetime, fairy-tale wedding
• "Traditional Independent Bride": financially independent, plans her own wedding, often with the help of the groom; blends tradition with her own style
• "Nontraditional Independent Brides": typically marries later or was married before; plans a small, nontraditional wedding

Today's Bride Is Older and Wiser...

• The average engagement is 16 months (up from 11 months in 1990) and the average ring costs $2,000
• The average first-time bride was 22 in 1980, 25 in 1990, and 25.1 today
• The average age of the first-time groom is 26.8
• Four out of five brides are employed
• Money is the most desired wedding gift

Wedding Traditions Evolving...

• Among all categories, interest is growing in reconnecting to family and in weddings as an opportunity to bring generations together
• Increasingly, bride, groom, and parents share in wedding expenses
• About 15% of weddings include ethnic customs
• Destination weddings (family and friends travelling to exotic locations) tripled between 1997 and 1999, from 3% to 11%

Wedding Trends...

• Wedding ceremonies in unusual venues – museums, zoos, gardens, etc.
• Black-and-white photojournalistic-style pictures
• Wedding consultants to direct the event
• More platinum rings
• Couples showers
• Professionally-produced videos played at receptions
• Focus on guests having fun: novel floral arrangements; more elegant foods, wines, cakes; focus on details: parking, favors, maps, etc.
• Honeymoon registry
• Longer, more elaborate, exotic honeymoons