Can you imagine what planning your wedding would be like without the Internet?  I was married 5 years ago, and the sites, blogs and tools available today were not even around in 2003.  One of my favorite wedding bloggers Christa Terry (author of Manolo for the Brides) just wrote an amazing wedding planning book filled with all of the Web sites you need to know about while planning your wedding.  iDo: Planning Your Wedding with Nothing But 'Net hits stores this month and is filled with hundreds of tips and wedding-related Web sites that will make planning easier, and even save you some money!

I asked Christa to send me five of her favorite wedding-related Web sites, and here they are:  

When you first get engaged, check out WeddingWire.com

Just getting started? Forget the phone book, put away the pen and paper, and tell your mom to stop pressuring you to hire her coworker's son's girlfriend to do the flowers because you'll be shopping around for florists—and doing just about everything else—from the comfort of your desk chair, thank you very much. Go to Wedding Wire to get the lowdown on local vendors from appreciative, ambivalent, and angry reviews written by former brides instead of relying on tired professional pitches. Then, when you're ready, hit up the site to build a slick custom timeline, fashion the perfect seating chart, and choose the ultimate first dance song.

When you’re shopping for your wedding dress, visit BrideCouture.com

For brides-to-be with champagne dreams and Bud Light budgets, dress shopping can be a mix of exhilaration and heartbreak. Salon shopping can make a gal feel like a princess, until the price tags remind her that's she actually a pauper. There are some great deals out there, particularly if you're willing to travel to a major metropolis, camp out in front of Filenes, and run with the brides, but who has the time? Leave the stampede to the fiancées who don't have better things to do, and buy online. You want to talk about a great deal? How does a size-12 Atelier Aimee gown for $599 sound?

For wedding inspiration, visit the Offbeat Bride Web site

It's so easy to fall into the "I'll send ecru invitations, wear a white gown, and carry red roses" rut when you're planning a wedding because those are the sorts of products the WIC peddles. Inspiration and support are a lot harder to find when you want to wear a smokin' hot purple gown, you and your sweetheart are vegans, and you think carrying flowers is a stupid idea. Brides-to-be who prefer not to run with the pack can check out the "wedding porn" at this primo blog and chill with their own kind on the accompanying forum.   

For creative favors and details, check out Save-On-Crafts.com

Your average nuptial accoutrements are manufactured en masse in Asian factories, which means you can buy the same fifty favors and decorative accents in just about every online wedding shop...only the price points differ. If you want to plan an affair that's anything but average—plus you know for a fact that you're a very patient person—you can't beat DIY, and DIY gets a hell of a lot easier when you have a one-stop source for everything from tulle tying basics to plantable petal cones.

Just for the fun of it, visit EtiquetteHell.com

You pretty much have to embrace your sense of humor if you want to survive the stress of planning a wedding. Besides the fact that you're probably putting the whole shebang together while working, socializing, and getting those fifteen facials every bridal mag recommends, weddings tend to bring out the worst in people. When bridesmaids turn into bitchmaids and dad throws a fit because you want to aisle-walk solo, knowing you can head over to Etiquette Hell and read stories way more horrific than your own makes staying cool that much easier.

You can find Christa's book in bookstores now, or click here to order it online.