Gay Weddings

Here’s one area where etiquette advice abounds: Whether it’s protocol for the royal wedding or the rules for seating divorced parents at the reception, information on wedding etiquette is plentiful. But what if the happy grooms are paying for their own gay wedding and have to have their ceremony in another state, since their own doesn’t allow same-sex marriage? How does that invitation get worded? Where does the child from a previous heterosexual marriage go in the seating chart? Can two grooms register for gifts? What are the proper roles for the mothers and brothers of the brides? No, you won’t find a lot of information to help you with those kinds of questions in the existing manners books. And in fact, many of the so-called rules for same-sex commitment ceremonies and weddings have yet to be settled, so you’ll often find yourself in uncharted waters. This section, Gay Weddings, has plenty of advice for planning, attending, and enjoying one of today’s most joyous events: the tying of the same-sex knot.