Traditionally the bride's parents pay for and organize the wedding as well as providing a dowry. (Dowry- a bribe made to the family of the lucky groom to encourage them to take the girl off their hands!!") Of course this also meant that the parents had the final say on the organization of the wedding and the choices of who to invite or not to invite, as the case may be.
Weddings always have and always will be a huge burden whoever pays for them and young people with their greater social and financial independence have generally taken on the greater part of the burden, thus gaining more say in how the proceedings should be handled. (It's hard to throw your weight around, when someone else has hold of the purse strings).
However, few normal couples can afford to splash out on the wedding they really want, so if the brides parents offer, don't be too proud to accept assistance, but make sure that you insist on making the rules and have them carved in stone.
Traditionally the groom's parents only provide one thing.
The Groom!
Now the parents of grooms often offer to help with the finance,
which of course might make them feel that they can also
have a say in the organization of the wedding.
It is a good idea if many different people are contributing to the wedding purse, to sit down and hammer out some rules of conduct, because not everyone can lead the band.
It is traditionally expected that the bridesmaids pay for her own dress and the hen night. But is becoming more common for the bride or her father to pay for the dresses and accessories. This means that the bride can maintain control of the colour and style of the bridesmaid's attire, though there should be some consultation.
Traditionally the groom foots the bill for his own attire, while the best man pays for his. But it is now quite common for the groom to pay for all of the outfits for his attendants.
__________Madeleine Dietrich_____________