The good news is that, yes, it’s acceptable to have two maids of honor. Or, if one of the ladies is married, you can have a maid and a matron of honor.
Does it matter how many bridesmaids I have?
It has become fairly common for either the bride or groom to have two honor attendants. But this decision opens a few logistical cans of worms-and since worms fit very few wedding themes, let’s run through the usual follow-up questions and get the worms back in their cans. The situation you want to avoid is having two maids of honor, plus one lone bridesmaid! The poor bridesmaid looks so “extra.” If you want to have two maids of honor, it would ideal to have either no bridesmaids or at least two bridesmaids.
Must the groom have two best men?
No. The groom doesn’t even have to come up with the same total number of attendants as the bride. It’s not that difficult to arrange “uneven” wedding parties so they look good.
Which maid of honor stands next to me?
The maid of honor next to you should be the one who can be trusted with train-fluffing and veil-straightening duties. The other one holds your bouquet during the ring exchange. The train-fluffer should also have custody of the ring you will give your new husband, as she will have a hand free, while the other maid of honor will be carrying an armload of bouquets.
How do I arrange them in the processional?
There are many ways to handle a processional. Which one you choose will depend on other elements of your ceremony. All of the possible processional arrangements start from two rules:
- The maids of honor are the last adult attendants to enter before the bride.
- The woman who will stand next to you must enter after or to the right of the other maid of honor, so that she can easily reach her place
So here are your options:
- Both maids of honor enter together, escorted by the lone best man between them.
- If the groom has two best men, each maid of honor can be escorted by one. The maid of honor who will stand next to you is escorted by the best man who will stand next to the groom.
- One maid of honor is escorted by the best man, and the other is escorted by a groomsman who doesn’t have a corresponding bridesmaid.
- Both maids of honor enter together without a male escort. The one who will stand next to you will be on the right. The best men wait with the groom at the front.
- The maids of honor enter separately, with the one who will stand next to you coming second. The best men wait with the groom at the front.
How do I arrange them in the recessional?
If there is an even total number of male and female adult attendants, each maid of honor exits with a male escort. The maid of honor who stands nearest you is escorted by the best man if there’s only one best man. If there are more female attendants, both maids of honor are escorted by the best man.
Who plans the shower?
How they divide shower-planning activities is up to them. Of course, showers are optional.
How do I list them in the program?
There are three solutions, all of which are equally correct. If your page is wide enough, you can list both of them on the same line. On a narrow page, list them in the order that they enter. Or, if they enter together, list them alphabetically.