Wedding season is upon us and until the economy improves, entertaining the bride at home is an option worth serious consideration. While we’d be the last to recommend flinging the rehearsal dinner into your living room, a bridesmaid’s lunch or even a small brunch for out-of-towners during the wedding weekend is perfectly doable.

Here are some tips we hope might help the “entertaining intimidated” (or at least facilitate pondering the possibilities).

For starters, confront your Martha Fear. If you’ve been shell-shocked by photos of the way-too-perfect, pull yourself together and remember Martha has a staff.

That said figure out how to enlist some free help. In the “old days” (i.e. back when we got married), our mothers, grandmothers and aunts got together and everybody cooked something. Or they joined forces with friends and hosted en masse. Smart women!

Keep the menu simple. Let one stunning dish like Hawaiian Chicken Salad in Radicchio Leaves take center stage and resist the temptation to crowd the plate.

As for ambiance: Not even “M” would disagree that simple is elegant -- and simple preserves your sanity. The trick is to concentrate on one or two flourishes like cloth napkins or flowers from the yard arranged in a crystal bowl.

Bask in the glow of the bride: It’s not about you, your house, or ultimately, your menu. Center your perspective on celebrating someone you cherish and everything else will fall into place.