Rule Three: Dress for the Occassion.
This should be a no-brainer. It's just that I have seen two ends of the spectrum. On one end, we have a bride who thinks that the fashionable parade of bridesmaids and the obsessively "vintage" decor are mutually exclusive--- her maids will daunt uninspired strapless A-lines with a color-coordinated sash... and assume that her job is done an all is cohesive. On the other extreme, the maids can come off a little costume-like with period pieces. If you are looking for a Jackie or Audrey or Grace affair... then dress the gals accordingly with pieces that are inspired by the same things you are.... Pieces that feel as though they belong at the event that you are creating. Style the bridal party as though they are an extension of your wedding decor... use them to your advantage. THEY can be that amazing accent piece that you are needing... they're the most under-used accessory in event design (in my humble opinion)
Teri Jon does such a lovely job of this. I LOVE her line. Couldn't you see yourself wearing this? Couldn't you see it on the cover of Vogue? Couldn't you just imagine some lovely dame from yesteryear sporting this? And can't you just see the generations to come drooling over these pieces? That- is-timelessness... the ability to endure the changes in fashion, trends, and ideas...
One of the easiest ways to fall into this catagory is by bad venue choice. If you want a lavishly grand event, then opt for a lavishly grand environment. Go for Architecturely Interesting Spaces. In truth, your money is better spent in finding a space that sets the tone rather than trying to make another space into your ideal setting. Dressing up a banquet hall in hundreds of flowers doesn't make it have a "garden feel".... slapping a few palms into a museum doesn't make it tropical.... embrace the space you are in and make sure that every decision you make is indicative of the overall vision you have.
Find beautiful spaces that will not need so much to enhance them. Rather than look at their price tag and think - Oh no, but what about everything else? - Think... well in reality there won't be as much "something else's" because I won't need to bring in all the other "stuff"... A gorgeous space will be gorgeous for decades to come- it is my firm belief that some of these "platinum, over the top affairs" will seem a little dated in the coming years. 
Your space needs to make you feel something... and that something should be the same feeling that you are trying to acheive with the overall design. (This is the ceremony site of my upcomming nuptuals.... we chose the oak for so many reasons- this massive tree makes you feel as though you are in the prescence of something so much greater than you- something that has sustained so much and something that you want to understand. We are going for a warm, approachable, but still very moving event. I think that this tree hits all of our marks.)
