Do your homework early on and you’ll be much better prepared to help your daughter in here wedding preparation. Track down the caterers, bridal shops, photographers, etcetera in your area and start asking for prices and if they have the date open.  If your area has an outlet mall in the area check to see if they have a bridal outlet.  Fortunately for me, the Mother of the Bride dress that my wife ordered no longer came in the color she wanted, so on a trip through North Carolina we stopped at the Carolina Bridal World (http://www.carolinabridalworld.com), which has dresses as low as $99, which happened to be the one my wife snagged.  So, we went from the official Mother of the Bride dress starting at $1,000, to a custom order of $400, to an off the rack discontinued version for $99.  Also, one of the benefits of this type of store is that you can walk right in the down and get help.  Most bridal shops want to only work on the appointment system, which is part of their mysticism that allows them to charge higher prices.  

Filene’s Basement (http://www.filenesbasement.com/) has annual bridal gown sales, often referred to as the ‘Running of the Brides.’  Gowns up to $9,000 end up going for $700 and less.  However, this is not an event for the faint of heart or men.  Your daughter should go with a team to help find dresses and pass them to her for trying on.  Knives have been pulled at this event and I suggest you go on a business trip to Chicago on the day of the sale.  There are tips on the website on how to have a successful bridal gown shopping effort.  They also have this sale on different days for different locations.  You may want to send your daughter’s team to a tune-up fight in a different city before the main event.