Wedding Television Extravaganza

I remember when the only show on TV about weddings was TLC's A Wedding Story and your occasional "Worst Wedding Moments" special. It seems like suddenly there is a wealth of wedding shows out there, from your Whose Wedding is it Anyway "dramatic, but generally, feel good" show to your Bridezillas "scratch their eyes out, yell at the top of their lungs, overly dramatic" show.

As I was creating my list of links for wedding shows, I was really surprised at how long the list got and how fast it happened (and I'm sure that I don't have everything out there). There is a great range of show topics as well, from planning and behind the scenes type shows to specifics like wedding cakes and dresses. There is something for everyone. Even network television is in on the craze with shows like Rules of Engagement and Worst Week (yes, even though the title sounds like the total opposite of wedding, this is a show about a wedding). Today, I even got notification from my cable provider that there was a new channel added, Wedding Central, a network devoted entirely to shows and movies about weddings, dating and relationships. It is a sister station to the popular We Network, which features many wedding shows. You can read more about it here and look for the channel in your local areas.

These wedding shows can be a great way for a bride-to-be (and groom-to-be, yes some men get all caught up in them too) to get some ideas, help you to make decisions on what to include in your wedding and learn a little about the behind the scenes aspects of wedding planning before you get your feet wet in planning your wedding. I admit that I watch quite a few of these shows and have been both inspired and frustrated by what I see. I started my career in reality TV (and got out before it took over every network), so I understand that you have to watch them knowing that they are edited for maximum drama. I steer clear of the shows with the sole purpose of making everyone look bad and tend to watch the ones that try to bring out the best things about weddings. Though many of them have their overly-dramatic moments, they are a wealth of information on style, trends, new ideas, etc..., but also a great research tool for what it takes to plan a wedding. It is also a way for you not so typical brides to see what trend is being overdone and maybe update the idea by putting a new and creative spin on on it to make it your own.