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Thursday 30 June 2011

Questions for Your Makeup Artist

Essential Ideas

Choosing your makeup artist is difficult! You’ve spent your life doing your own makeup, or even not wearing any makeup at all, having someone different do your makeup for you is a big step.

Wedding fayres are good places to find your makeup artist and hair stylist. They will have their portfolios for you to look through.

And when you speak to them, here are some essential questions:

  1. Do you have a portfolio of pictures I can see of weddings you’ve done before?
    It is crucial to see previous work, that way you can judge if the artist’s style matches your style.
  2. What sort of experience do you have?
    An experienced artist will have a variety of ideas for you and your bridal party, however a less experienced artist will be cheaper!
  3. Do you do a trial before the big day?
    A trial will allow the artist to be more familiar with your skin type. If you have very pale skin, dry skin, very dark skin or oily skin, the makeup artist will be able to adjust their style to suit your colouring and skin type.
  4. Do you use waterproof mascara, and if not, could you!
    It is going to be an emotional day, you will want to know that your makeup won’t run regardless of how emotional you feel.
  5. How will my bridal makeup differ from my normal make up?
    This will really depend on your preference, however if your makeup artist has their own ideas it’s important that you know their style will fit your image.
  6. How will you prime my face before you do my makeup?
    With guests and professionals snapping pictures of you all day, you will want to make sure your makeup lasts the distance! A good primer will ensure that your makeup lasts the whole day.
  7. What should I do to carry my natural look through the day?
    Top tips from a professional will ensure that your look is flawless for the entire day, although my makeup isn’t really something I want to think about on my wedding day, which is why I wanted a professional.
  8. Do you apply fake eye lashes?
    I’m not a huge fan of fake eye lashes, however they do add a bit of pow to your wedding look. Having them applied professionally by your makeup artist will ensure that they last the day.

I Just Saw My Dress!

It was in an Advert!

I was casually flicking through one of the supplements that comes with Brides magazine and I saw my wedding dress!

One of the bridal shops, The Bridal Boutique by Dream Capture in Blackpool, used the photo as advertising for their bridal shop!

I don’t know why this is exciting but it’s not every day you flick through a magazine and see your wedding dress! And as I can’t tell h2b, or anyone else, I thought I’d tell you.

Eeeek! It’s exciting!!

Wednesday 29 June 2011

I Don’t Like My Bridesmaid Dress

Solutions?

I’ve been inspired to blog again by a google search titled, ‘I don’t like my bridesmaid dress.’

Being asked to be a bridesmaid makes me go a little giddy. I love weddings anyway, but to be chosen to feature in my friend’s most important day is a fantastic privileged and honour!

However, what if the dress is hideous?

Hopefully, you and your friend have a similar taste in clothes, that’s why you’re friends, but what if you’re asked to be bridesmaid by a cousin or sister?

You all make the appointment to go to the dress shop. Maybe you meet in town and walk in together, looking forward to trying on your new dresses. And you’re faced with this pink monstrosity?

Unfortunately, and I hate to say this, you’re going to have to put up with it. There is no polite or sensitive way to say to a bride, who has searched and searched for the perfect bridesmaid dresses, that the dress is hideous and you don’t want to wear it.

You could hint that you’re not sure the dress suits you, but unfortunately, that’s as far as you can go.

As a bride who has hunted far and wide for bridesmaid dresses, it is difficult to find a dress that fits in with your theme and your taste, and one that you think will suit all your bridesmaids. While I hope that none of my bridesmaids think the dresses I’ve narrowed it down to are hideous, I don’t think I’d respond well if they told me they hated the dress!

So my advice, and you won’t like it, is to put up with the hideous dress. It’s just for one day and you can always have a laugh about it later.

Fun Weddings

Fun Ways to Make Your Wedding More Fun!

Every bride and groom want their guests to enjoy themselves at their wedding!

Here are some quick tips on how to make your wedding more fun!DSCF9981

  1. Take the lead!
    Your guests won’t know a lot of the people at your wedding. If you show your guests that you’re having fun, they’ll be more likely to relax, join in and have fun with you!
  2. Photo Fun!
    Talk to your photographer about taking some fun photos. Jump photos are very popular, with everyone in the photos leaping into the air. Or you could hire a fun photo booth as suggested on my blog post.
  3. Interaction Plan
    Sweet stations or buffets are a good way to get guests talking. Also, mixing up the tables will encourage guests to speak to people they don’t know. Also, Talking Tables have a lot of cute ideas to encourage chattering guests.
  4. Some Surprises!
    Having a brief running order, and knowing what is coming next is important for a smoothly running wedding. DSC06366However, the odd surprise such as throwing your bouquet or a funky wedding dance.
  5. Something old
    Following some of the old traditions such as throwing the bouquet, or the garter, or wedding speeches can often be one of the most fun elements of a wedding.

Tuesday 28 June 2011

Wedding Photos

Have the Perfect Pictures

A friend of mine just got married at my wedding venue and she looked completely amazing in all the wedding photos. She had a spectacular dress and her hair and makeup were perfect, it all gave me a glimpse of what my far off distant wedding (287 days to go) will be like!

It also got me thinking about wedding photos.

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There are a number of things to think about when planning your wedding pictures: what shots you want, how you want to pose, who you want in the photos, what story you want your wedding to tell. Even the order the photographs appear in the wedding album is something you need to decide!

wedding photos 1

Wedding photos should tell the story of the day: the venues, the events, the fine details and the people involved.

Establishing Shot

Every album needs what the pros call the ‘Establishing Shot.’ Be it a stunning church, a stain glass window, your spectacular venue or your wedding dress, an establishing shot shows the mood and atmosphere of the album.

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You will always remember where you got married, but an establishing shot will mean that your venue is immortalised in your wedding album.

The Details

In the rush of the day, you may miss some of the littleIMG_7364 details in your wedding.

The favours, the diamantes, the interesting little details that can go so easily missed.

You’ve spent hours sticking flowers and ribbon on place settings, glued your fingers together making your seating plan, these details in place you may want to see.

That shot of your wedding rings (showing off your fantastic nails), your new husband’s boutonniere, these are things you will want to remember.

Getting Ready

With the excitement building up, everyone very busy, sometimes the ‘getting read shots’ are some of the most animated.

getting ready

For your getting ready shots, if you’re getting ready at home, make sure your rooms are tidy! Nothing ruins a romantic getting ready shot than background clutter!

Also, many women don’t like photos taken before they’ve donned their makeup so make sure that you avoid too many of those and focus on getting dressed shots.

I Believe There May Be Men at This Wedding?

Remember to devote some time to photographing the men in your wedding. This is something I will need to remember. It’s easy enough to focus on the girls getting ready, but remember your h2b will be nervous too! Lets capture that!

IMG_8958

Also, it’s good insight into what’s happening while you’re busy getting ready. Your groom will be greeting people at the church or the reception venue, you’ll be able to catch a glimpse of him looking nervous!

The Family

A shot with your new in-laws and with your family is a wedding album essential!

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Your family have been such a huge part of your life, photos of you with your family will be treasured forever. Your family will also love having photos of you all dressed up!

More on wedding photos coming soon!

Wednesday 22 June 2011

Stop Looking!

An End to Wedding Fayres

My wedding dress is all paid for, except for any adjustments it may need, and as I got it in a sale, the money is non refundable…

… So why do I keep looking?!

image
picture from www.wedding-points.co.uk

I was flicking through Wedding Ideas magazine yesterday, and I thought, ‘Oooh, that’s a nice dress.’ No! No!! No!!! I think the dress I’ve paid for is absolutely gorgeous and I do completely love it and feel really special and smiley when I wear it, but I was still looking.

And last month, mother and I went to a wedding fayre at my wedding venue.


picture from vickysphotoblog.co.uk

When we first started the planning process we would spend hours at wedding fayres, talking to the vendors, learning about weddings and the industry. I asked questions about dry cleaning suits and delivery of cakes, photo albums and menu choices.

Last time we were at a wedding fayre we spent longer driving there and back than we did at the venue!

It’s time to stop looking!

With so many weddings things planned and paid for, it is definitely time to stop looking and concentrate on what we’ve already arranged!


picture from www.work-for-mums.com

My advice for organised brides out there is: don’t look once you’ve booked!

Band or DJ?

Your Musical Choice

Every bride and groom want their wedding to be memorable. Be it a romantic wedding abroad, a small intimate wedding with close friends or a wild party with everyone you know, all brides and grooms want their wedding to stick in the memories of those they love.

One of the ways to do this is to have an amazing evening reception.


Picture from weddingphotos-video.co.uk

Guests often say it’s the good music that sets the atmosphere for a fantastic evening reception. But should you get a band or a DJ?

Have a Band

Bands add a fantastic atmosphere to any venue. The hum of the instruments, the amps and the crowd all add to a fantastic atmosphere.

Bands often play your favourite songs but with the band’s own unique twist. Guests will have fun singing along with the band!

Look at the cost, is a band cheaper than a DJ?

A band might have a set song list that they’ve rehearsed which would mean your 60 yr old Aunty Winnie can’t request an obscure Chris Rea song (nightmare!). You will only have the songs that you want.


picture from The Wedding Singer © Juno Pix

Don’t Have a Band

The songs they play won’t be exactly the songs you like, they will have the unique twist the band adds to it. That might not be to your taste.

Bands are often more expensive than a DJ. Not always, but the bands I looked into when booking entertainment for my wedding were a bit more expensive.

Bands don’t always bring with them the flashy lasers and mood lighting that a DJ might provide.


picture from wedding-blog.wedalert.com

Get a DJ

You will be able to have the exact songs that you like. Want On the Floor by JLo? They’ll have it! You can supply your DJ with a list of songs, guests can write in to request songs.

You can provide a DJ with a list of songs so that all the songs you and your guests want to listen to will be available, and only those songs.

DJ’s often provide all the lighting and entertainment for the evening reception and they’ll set it all up by themselves.

Venues often have a recommended DJ. Working with someone who is familiar with the venue is always helpful.


picture from seattleweddingzone.com

Don’t Have a DJ

DJ’s aren’t going to provide the same atmosphere as a band. Nothing compares to live music, even if the DJ is really good.

My Choice:

I am very excited to be having a wedding DJ!

Not only will he play loads of fantastic music, chosen by h2b, but he also provides all the amazing lighting to add atmosphere and mood to the reception party.

He has a plasma TV screen to show photos from during the day (which my friend had at her wedding in Hong Kong and I thought it was a fantastic idea for showing evening guests what happened during the day!) and he also takes photos during the reception, if you choose.

Why I Chose a DJ

I’m not really a band person, and neither is h2b. H2b loves the hip-idy hop music which doesn’t really sound right from an indy band.

However, my cousin had a band at his wedding and it was fantastic!

My pros and cons for each may sound very negative, but if you choose a DJ or a band, either will add your personality to the wedding. If you’re a bit of a rock chick, a band will perfectly reflect your fantastic personality. If you’re a bit of a cheesey bopper, a DJ will play all your favourite dance hits!


picture from photo3.co.uk

If you’re toying between a band or a DJ, I hope this post has helped! I think it’s best to book what feels right. Your guests will have a fantastic time what ever you choose because they’ll be celebrating with you!

Tuesday 21 June 2011

Who Needs to Kiss the Bride?

Technology in Weddings

I found this hilarious picture retweeted on Twitter by tweetmywedding. I found it very fitting for this day and age.

photo

As a Facebook addict myself, I was thinking of updating my Facebook status and changing my name on Facebook and Twitter in the car on the way to the venue! Maybe posting a blog post about how it all went. Of course, I might be busy, swept up by the moment, but then again, my internet addiction may win out! 

I have read a number of tweets, not from brides or grooms but from guests, that detail weddings and wedding rehearsals. Congratulations to brides and grooms the second they sign the register, photos posted live to Facebook and Twitter, even videos of the vows streamed live.

Technology is entering into weddings more and more. The technology involved in the Royal wedding transported images of the happy couple around the world. Fans were tweeting all through the wedding, Facebook statuses were being updated, millions of blogs followed the wedding. The video of the Royal wedding was streamed live through the internet.

Couples in America and Japan are being married by robots!

Technophile couples are arranging for a robot minister to say their vows and over see signing of the register.

While this doesn’t appeal to all brides and grooms, it does add a very unique and space age touch to your special day.

A lot of couples are opting for live streaming of their wedding to the internet!

If your elderly grandma can’t travel, or your pregnant best friend lives abroad but still wants to be involved, live streaming does involve more people in your special day. Personally, I have a lot of family abroad and this sounds like a viable option, but does it take a little of the sparkle out of your day?

 

I think an important question is, does technology add to or detract from the sparkle of your wedding day?

Obviously, the photographs are one of the biggest parts of the day. You might choose to have a videographer to capture all the best moments. However, would you like your guests to be tweeting through your ceremony? When will you update your facebook status, if at all?

My chief bridesmaid has put her foot down and forbidden me to carry my iPhone on my wedding day, which solves that problem! I can see her point. It is important to be in the moment and focus on your day. I’ve been told it zooms by so fast.

Whatever you decide for your wedding, I hope you have the most amazing day!

Saturday 18 June 2011

Stories of My Absence

Apologies

I want to apologise to my regular visitors about the lack of posts recently. While weddings are my hobby, I do also have a day job and that has been sapping all my time and energy this week and consequently I haven’t had time to blog.

I will, however, update you on recent events:

Bridesmaid Dresses

We have a date to try on the bridesmaid dresses. I may only be taking 3/5 of the bridesmaids to this measuring session, however I do think it’s a positive step forward.

Menu Choices

The menu has been confirmed and we will be designing and making the menus to go in the invitations at some point this week.

While I am mega busy (I think people are following the cliché, if you want something doing, give it to someone who’s already busy!) I find doing wedding things really relaxing so I try to concentrate on that.

Right! Best get back to work. Check out the blog tomorrow for more posts!

Sunday 12 June 2011

Bijou Weddings

Making it More Affordable

When I was checking my traffic sources on my blog stats, I found that someone had Googled which was the cheapest day of the week to get married, and which was the cheapest time of the year.

Never fear! The answers are here!

Cheapest Time of Year

Peak season in the wedding industry is from April to October. Therefore, the cheaper times of the year to get married are November to March, with the exception of Christmas as Christmas Eve can be more expensive than a Saturday in June!

Take into consideration all the other costs that will also be cheaper between Nov to March, such as flowers (as long as you only choose flowers that are in season), invitations, venue, caterer, cars and wedding dress. You’ll have more chance of getting discounts off your purchases as suppliers will want to encourage your business.

Cheapest Day of the Week

As long as these days aren’t a bank/national/religious holiday, the cheapest days of the week to get married are Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.

Saturdays are the most expensive, followed by any Sundays preceding a bank/national/religious holiday. Fridays aren’t as expensive as Saturdays (unless they’re a bank/national/religious holiday).

Hope that helps!

300 Days to Go!

300 Days to Go!

So exciting!!!

I think it’s just because it’s a large round number. It is still a rather large number, however. I was thinking about what we’d be doing at 200 days to go and 100 days to go. More about that later!

This week has been a fairly productive week.

We have ordered and received pretty, sparkly decoration for the tables and some fun Chinese fortunes.

I have also, with h2b’s help, finalised the menu choices for the wedding breakfast! I wanted to get them done a little bit earlier so that I could pop them in the invitations, so that will be going on our website!

And we’ve started to plan our Chinese wedding in Hong Kong. We are still discussing the best date for a wedding in Hong Kong, but hopefully we’ll get that sorted soon.

Yay!

Thursday 9 June 2011

Wedding Favours

More Things in the Post

I opened the door (after walking an hour home from work – got to lose weight!!) and found another of the packets I ordered!

IMG_4424

Fortunes! I found them on Amazon.co.uk, and absolutely fell for them. I’d have preferred them in silver, but they were only available in gold.

The Chinese word on the front means ‘fortune’ and the proverbs inside are different in each card. I thought it might make a nice talking point on the tables. The guests might compare fortunes to see which one they’ve got.

Ideally, they would get guests talking to people they wouldn’t otherwise know. I was thinking of putting them into the favour bags, and along side the favour boxes (because they won’t fit in the boxes) for each guest. And as you can only open the fortunes once, we won’t be able to pick and choose the fortunes, it’ll be completely fate as to which fortune you’ll receive.

It’ll be interesting to read the fortune h2b and I get on our wedding day!

Wednesday 8 June 2011

Time is Flying By

9 Months, 29 Days
or
304 Days to Go!

Everyone told me that the time would fly by! Well, it hasn’t! photo (2)

The Wedding has been so far away for so long that it’s strange to think it’s under a year now.

A lot is happening in the next few months: Already, one of my friends had his new baby, another friend will have her first baby. We’ve got the hen do and the stag do, lots of friend’s birthdays, some of them 30th’s.

But still, it’s under a year away! So many things are going to happen, the invitations need to be delivered and then posted out, everyone needs to be measured for a variety of clothes, table plans need to be made, the favours and the table decorations need to be sorted and organised. We’re going to have a meeting with the photographer and the florist, it’s all just so exciting!

Yaaaaaay!!

Tuesday 7 June 2011

Exciting Things in the Post!

All That Glitters..

Exciting things have arrived in the post!

I got a bit bored on Sunday and decided to buy some things for the wedding I’d decided I was going to buy anyway. sparkle1

I was a little disappointed that there weren’t as many diamantes as I thought there would be. When the packet says 2600 diamantes, I pictured a rather large bag!

However, when I poured them out to take this bag and saw them sparkling in the torch light (giving away sparkle 2my photography secrets), they actually take up quite a bit of space.

Also, mixing them together with the purple diamantes (they are purple, despite the picture looking blue) will the tables out a bit. I was thinking of including some normal confetti, hearts or something, like my brother had on the tables at his wedding. Or is that too much? Decisions! sparkle3

Also, these silver shimmer place cards arrived!

The silver shimmer is very subtle and no one will notice, but I think they look fantastic! I was thinking of putting a diamante flower (from Hobby Craft) in the corner, just to link all the sparkles together.

There are is one more item arriving in the post,, these are going in the wedding favour box ready for when we need them in a few months!

Sunday 5 June 2011

Wedding Shopping Fun

Exercising the Credit Card

The problem with planning your wedding two and a half years before the actual wedding date means lots and lots of gathering ideas and saving money, and not so much buying things.

But I have been buying some of the things on my Amazon wish list using the money we’ve saved up for just that purpose!

wedding sparkle

The first items I got were a bit of wedding sparkle, some diamanté's for the tables. I got them in clear and purple, as the wedding colours are in purple, and I think they will look fantastic shimmering in the candle light in the evening.

I shopped on Amazon.co.uk, and they were £4.99 for 2600 crystals, I’m hoping that’s a big bag. They come in different sizes. The purple crystals were only £1.38 for 2600 crystals. Bargain!

I also got some favours for my guests, Chinese fortune favours. We wanted to bring an element of Chinese culture into our wedding. wedding fortunes

Each of the fortunes have a different fortune on them, almost personalised for each guest. Each packet has 20 fortunes in it and they came to £4.45. It’s just something nice to put with the favours for our guests to take home.

I also got 100 place cards. That is 10 short of the number we need however I didn’t want to get an extra 50 just because I was 10 short. I’m thinking I’ll have to go to Hobby Craft or somewhere similar (Staples?) and get an extra 10. They’re only plain white place cards so I was thinking of decorating them with a diamanté stars or something similar to make them look a bit more interesting.

Yay!

I like getting things ordered. I should soon get some interesting packets in the post!

Yay!

Friday 3 June 2011

Bridesmaid Dresses

I Have Found The One!

I just hope my bridesmaids like it as much as I do! the dress 1

This dress is an Alfred Angelo. I was thinking of choosing 7016 but when the lady in the shop showed us this one (despite it being a touch more expensive) I just fell in love with it!

I hope my bridesmaids do too!

The sample dress is in blue but I’ll be going with it in purple. Each dress company has their own idea of purple, so check with a swatch that the dress 2your purple is the right one.

I love this little detail of diamantes and flowers. I think it adds something special to the dress, plus there is a lot of sparkle on my dress so it almost matches.

The dress is very soft and flowing, and gives the impression of floating, somewhat.

This dress also has a junior version so that my little niece who is going to be a bridesmaid will be able to have a matching dress.

The only thing is, I want my bridesmaids tothe dress 3 feel comfortable in what they’re wearing, so if the consensus is that they don’t like this dress, the hunt will continue.

I tried to choose the dress as something I’d like to wear if I get to be a bridesmaid again.

I do like this fantastic blue colour but I think I’ll stick with the colours of the wedding.

Any opinions welcome!

Thursday 2 June 2011

English Wedding

Be Silly-Excited!

I’m glad someone agrees with me! I’m just posting a link to a blog post I really liked!

English Wedding – Cherish the Moment

Wedding Website

I Have Finally Finished!

I’ve finally finished my wedding website!

project wedding

I finally decided to go with Project Wedding.com. I don’t like the design as much as I like the ones on Wedding Path.co.uk but I wanted a site that was easy to update and navigate, and that’s what I got with Project Wedding.com.

One of the main things I liked about Project Wedding.com was the map page.

project wedding map

A lot of people have been asking me about places to stay, where the venue is, where the church is and this website will help me to show my guests exactly where everything is.

You can add anything into this map, hotels, venues, places to visit. That’s a really good feature on a wedding website.

When editing the site, it’s done live, so that you are editing into the template.

project wedding editing

For example, you could add photos, HTML, links, edit the text and paste from Word. It’s really straight forward. Pictures can be inserted directly from your computer, which is a lot easier. I’ve inserted pictures of the venue and the church so that guests will know what to look out for.

project wedding information

I like that there’s a transportation section so that guests know what’s going on and how to get around your area.

I’ve included an itinerary on my site, by adding a custom page. The custom pages are fully customisable and will allow you to add any information and even a picture!

project wedding itinerary

It’s fully customisable. It seems you can add as many pages as you need. There doesn’t appear to be a pay function of the website so it will be free for as long as you need it!

I’m quite pleased with the website and a friend was already looking on it for information so hopefully it will do it’s job in giving information to our guests!

Photographer of the Year!

Our Photographer is Shortlisted!

Our photographer, Clive Blair, has just been shortlisted for West Midlands Your Magazine, Photographer of the Year!

And much does he deserve it!

On English Wedding, they were saying that talking to your photographer should give you that excited shiver that you used to get when you were seven. I had that when we were talking to Clive.

I could almost see our wedding in his amazing wedding photos. I think that after the wedding has finished, everyone’s gone home, you’ve come back from your honeymoon, what’s left from the wedding (other than a happy marriage) are the photos. Beautiful photos are so important to me. That’s why we had to choose the best photographer.

And now he’s being short listed for photographer of the year!

I just think that’s amazing for Clive! I’m really pleased for him! Yay!

(And I voted!)

Wednesday 1 June 2011

Wedding Website

Wedding Path.co.uk

I have decided against Wedding Path.co.uk. I have been trying to enter my data onto the website so that I can include the website on the invitations but I’m struggling to add data onto the site.

wedding path

I’m a website person, this is what I studied at university and I can usually fidget websites to make them do what I want. However, I’m trying to enter data into this site and it’s not letting me.

wedding path party copy

I don’t want to add an image of the best man onto this page, but it won’t let me turn the page to look at the bridesmaid without a picture on the bridesmaid page.

It’s a bit frustrating, I don’t have time to keep fidgeting with the website to make it the way I want to.

I’m going to try Project Wedding.com.

Excited!

Super Excited!

I was thinking about all the reasons I’m looking forward to our wedding.happy20and20excited

The main thing I’m looking forward to marrying my fantastic h2b, taking his name and becoming his wife! I’m excited to start a new life with him and hopefully, fingers crossed, start a family.

The next thing I’m looking forward to is the wedding, a big party with all my friends and family. I get to wear a pretty dress, everyone will be dressed up in their posh clothes, we’re going to a nice venue and get to have loads of photos taken!

And then, the honeymoon! We’re going to an amazing place and we’re going as husband and wife!

Weddings might be expensive, stressfl and difficult to organise, but they mean so much!