Evening Reception Music

The Do Not Play List

Music at an evening reception is very difficult to select. If you’re anything like me, your main priority for the wedding will be that everyone has a fantastic time.

A good way to have a fantastic time is to dance the night away but you’re not going to do that if you don’t like the music.

So, how do you please everyone?

This can be very difficult for a bride and groom who prefer an extreme genre of music. It can be hard to get Auntie Glenda up to dance to heavy metal or RnB music but then it’s your wedding, you should have the music you like.

It’s a toughie.

Not Feeling Inspired?

Where to Find Inspiration!

All brides need a bit of inspiration, even brides like me who have been dreaming about their weddings since they were children need a little help with some ideas.

But where do you turn?

It’s alright advising brides to find inspiration but where do you start?

There are masses of ideas out there for brides who want inspiration. If you want a more unique wedding there are less ideas, but if you’re going for the more traditional white wedding with the flowers and posh dress there are more ideas.

I’ve collected a few to get you started:

Where to Find Inspiration:

Wedding Blogs!

My blog isn’t very good for inspiration because it’s more of an advice blog, however there are some fantastic blogs out there with pictures of other people’s weddings where you can steal some fantastic ideas!

It’s Christmas!

Merry Christmas to All My Blog Readers!

I just wanted to say a very merry Christmas to everyone visiting my blog today!

By the time this blog post appears on my blog, I will have given my family and h2b all their presents, will have opened all my presents and be completely stuffed from Christmas dinner!

I hope everyone visiting this blog is having a very merry Christmas too!

By the time this blog post goes out, my friend Joey will have got married to her long term boyfriend and I’d like to offer her my most sincere congratulations!

I love Christmas and would like to send out some happy Christmas wishes to everyone!

Merry Christmas Everyone!

For the Grooms

Treat Your Bride

This is a blog post for the lads. Ladies, if you’d like to pop off and make a cup of tea, sit your h2b down in front of the computer and we’ll just have a quiet chat.

Has she gone? Right chaps, I know w2b has been a bit crazy recently, she’s been a bit stressed about the wedding. I know you’ve been doing your best to be patient and humour her but I think it’s important we do something nice for her.

Remember, she is working really hard to give you and your family and friends a beautiful wedding so doing something really special to make her smile would be nice.

picture from www.allseasonsweddings.com

Easy Day-to-Day Nice Things

It doesn’t have to be big extravagant gifts to make your bride happy while she’s planning your wedding. You could do very simple nice things for her that don’t cost anything at all!

Wedding Makeup

Some How To Guides

If you’re like me, you will be asking a makeup artist to do your makeup. I’ve posted before about questions for your makeup artist, but what if you want to do your own makeup?

You could pop to a salon in the morning to have your hair done and then return home to apply your own makeup. It would save a few pennies at an expensive time and give a personal touch to your day.

Or maybe you’re a bridesmaid and you would like to help your bride to look her best on your wedding day. I’ve Googled the internet and searched You Tube for the best guides on how to apply wedding make up!

Mood Board

Not Feeling Inspired?

When the buzz of getting engaged starts to wear off and you have to get down to the nitty-gritty, it can seem a little difficult to get your ideas together.

Everything can seem a little overwhelming, suppliers will be making demands from you and you will want everything to match.

Do you go vintage? Do you go modern? What colours go together well? Do you want pastels, vibrant colours, the perfect mix of the two? Which colour goes well with orange? What if you want sunflowers but aren’t too keen on yellow?

The best way to manage your ideas is to make a mood board. This mood board will help your suppliers, will help your groom and… well, everyone involved in your wedding to understand where you are coming from.

You could even be brave and ask h2b contribute to the board!

Being a Bride

The Big Day Approaches

I was chatting to a bride today who was only at the beginning of her planning stages. She was asking me all sorts of questions about shoes, fabrics and colours, not that I’m the expert or anything, but it was really nice to see how another bride was thinking.

Now I’m down to just over 3 months to go, It’s really exciting!

I’m going to try to answer some of the bride’s questions in my blog just in case there are other brides who have the same questions.

Updates!

125 Days to Go!

It’s that time again where I update you as to where I am with everything. Things are actually progressing nicely!

Every bride and groom must make a ‘To Do’ list, if they are traditional or completely unique. It’s essential that you know what needs to be done and it’s quite satisfying ticking it all off!

Picture from Bash Corner.com

It’s even better if you can sit down with your h2b and plan your check list together! My h2b wasn’t entirely sure what we needed for our wedding so I put the check list together but we worked closely on it. As we’re ticking bits off, we’re both feeling quite chuffed about it!

Shropshire Petals

Environmentally Friendly Confetti

A lot of churches and venues recently have began asking brides and grooms not to allow guests to throw confetti. It makes a mess, it’s not very environmentally friendly and it goes everywhere! In wet weather it can even stain your wedding dress!

However, it looks fabulous in wedding photos so what can you do?

When I was at the National Wedding Show in Birmingham I met the fantastic people at Shropshire Petals. Now, this was two and a half years before my wedding so I wasn’t going to order anything just yet, but I did take away a sample of confetti and have had it on my shelf ever since!

They provide confetti made out of delphinium petals. They are bright, colourful and 100% biodegradable! Venues and churches are more likely to let you throw dried petals than confetti and Shropshire Petals are very affordable!

Photo Booth

My Favourite Subject: Our Photo Booth!

I am so excited about our photo booth! I think it’s going to be so much fun for our wedding! I hope that everyone uses it and we get some really fun photos!

To help everyone have fun we have started collecting some fun photo props!

I bought them from Etsy.com, and they arrived in about three weeks. I think they look really good but I was a little bit disappointed that they’re only made from card. I was expecting they would be made from balsa wood although there was nothing on the site to say that they were.

The props do seem quite fragile and I do wonder how they will survive the night!

Looking at Wedding Photos!

Capturing the Emotion

My favourite part of wedding blogs is looking at the photos of other people’s weddings.

I am a huge huge fan of English Wedding.com but my favourite blog posts are those about the real weddings.

The wedding photos look so beautiful, and the people in the photos quite rightly look so happy. I almost feel as if it’s a glimpse into our future, a little peek at our wedding.

Photo from Annemarrie King Photographer

My absolute favourite blog to look at is Clive Blair’s blog, our photographer. His photos are absolutely amazing, and that is purely why we booked him. My favourite is looking on his blog at the weddings he’s photographed recently. It’s as if I’m looking at photos of what our wedding will be like.

I love the angles and the photo compositions. It’s as if they’re not just photos of what happened but they capture the atmosphere and the emotion of the moment.

Bridesmaid Duties

All You Need to Know About Being a Bridesmaid

I have been asked to be a bridesmaid five times and have loved every minute of each one!

The first time, I was 9 years old for my aunt and I remember going for the dress fitting and being excited about the bouquets we were going to have. We had beautiful flower garlands in our hair and lilac bridesmaid dresses.

Could this be where my love of lilac began?

I have had a different coloured dress each time I’ve been a bridesmaid and been completely honoured and touched to have been a bridesmaid!

Don’t Tell the Bride

Could Your H2b Plan Your Wedding?

A friend of mine (my church buddy) put on her Facebook status:

“Just showed [h2b] 5 potential wedding dresses and asked which one he would pick for me. All I'll say is that I'm glad we're not on Don't Tell The Bride!”

Which got me thinking, I wonder if my h2b could plan our wedding?

I would hope that he could! I go on about it enough!

The key point for me would be the dress. Now, my h2b is quite good at knowing what I like. I absolutely love my engagement ring, it’s very different but absolutely gorgeous! He did well there, but could he really choose the most important dress of my life?

Photo Booth

Photos for the Photo Booth

I may have been going on about the photo booth h2b is making, and he’s even written about it himself! #

Well, today, we went out and we bought the photo frames for the booth, they look quite interesting if I do say so myself!

This my favourite frame. We found it on a chance visit to a Evolution, a gifts and ethical trading shop. It was only £3.50 as it’s a very plasticy frame. It doesn’t have a hanger on the back so h2b suggested gluing it to the booth.

Finding The One

Falling in Love

This post is not about meeting your h2b, it is about finding your absolute perfect wedding dress!

That feeling when you put on a dress that makes you feel special, that makes you smile, that you don’t want to take off – ever – is a very special feeling and not one easy to describe.

It’s starts in your chest as a warm fuzzy tingle, and spreads straight up to cause the break out of a huge smile across your face.

That special feeling even inspired the name for Love my Dress.com blog!

I famously went to 7 bridal shops and tried on a total of 28 dresses before finding the perfect one. I went to lots of different bridal shops, some were large chains and others were small family run boutiques.

Wedding Dress Fabrics

Which Fabric is Right for You?

Linking to the blog post I made on wedding dress silhouettes, finding the right silhouette is as important as finding the right fabric. Some girls really suit a light, floaty chiffon while others can carry off a luxurious silk.

Some fabrics are best suited to different wedding styles and different seasons. It wouldn’t make a lot of sense to wear thick velvet to a summer beach wedding, for example.

Satin
6813 by Amelie Bridal	Satin looks luxurious, rich and glossy. It makes an amazing impact and looks best on boned and structured dresses. Satin is made from silk or a silk blend. It’s a bit too hot for a summer wedding but it’s good for formal, simple Spring or Autumn weddings. My Opinion I’m not a fan of satin. On an unstructured dress it can crease around the tummy, even on very slim figure.

Seating Plan

Who Sits Where?

It’s getting to that time where I’m thinking about the seating plan. With 152 days to go, I want to make the seating plan myself. It is one of the few pieces of stationary that I had planned to make myself.

I’ve been trying to think of lots of different ways to present the table plan. I’ve seen lots of my friend’s table plans and had lots of different ideas, but I’m trying to think of something that will be unique to h2b and I.

I had the idea of mounting the table plan in a frame. I liked a silver frame from Wilko’s, which was affordable yet still looked fairly nice.

Wedding Food

The Wedding Breakfast and Buffet

The wedding food depends on the type of wedding you are having. A very informal wedding may only have a finger buffet while a more formal wedding could have silver service, and everything in between!

The type of wedding food you have is entirely up to you and dependent on your budget.

Many venues will offer their own catering, especially if you’re getting married at a hotel. In my experience, I’ve found the hotel food quite affordable, although this is not always the case.

Some venues will not allow you to use outside caterers. Check with your venue before booking.

Our Engagement Story

Just Us

Our engagement story isn’t as romantic as some, but it is very us. In fact, it’s probably perfect.

Every year, on our anniversary, we treat ourselves to a little trip away. On our 6th anniversary, we had a short city break in Nottingham.

Nottingham was h2b’s idea. He was inspired by the Robin Hood theme, and had ideas about going to Sherwood Forest. He booked a city centre hotel, very convenient, but what h2b didn’t realise is that Sherwood Forest is 21 miles outside of Nottingham.

He knew I’d love to be proposed to in the middle of an Autumn forest.

Our Photobooth Project

H2b’s Update!

It seems my w2b has been blogging about this photobooth I’m making. I think I should let you know what’s going on.

We have chosen the frames to hang photos and for guests to put their heads through, they’re leaning up inside the living room ready to appear on the booth.

A Bottle of Pop

I’m Like a Bottle of Fizzy Pop!

I am excited about marrying my h2b. So excited, more excited than I can express! When I think about it my heart starts pounding, my face breaks out into a huge smile and I get a little light headed!

H2b is an amazing, wonderful man! He makes me happier than I have the words to describe! He is so talented, patient, kind, loving; he’s the absolute best! Which is lucky, because I’m marrying him.

I’m so proud of h2b, I love introducing him as my fiancé.

There are so many different elements of the wedding that I’m super excited about.

Being Married to H2b

Obviously, the whole point of this song and dance is to be married to my h2b. I’m excited about being his wife, I’m excited that he’ll be my husband. It’s like a commitment, something to solidify our relationship.

Some people think there’s little point in getting married when you already live together but I think it’s nice. I feel as if it’s more permanent.

UPDATE!

I Just Saw My Bridesmaids’ Dresses!

The bridesmaids dresses are in! I was really worried about the colour but I really like them! They match the colours of all the other items at the wedding, and the wedding flowers too!

Here’s a sneaky peek at three of the dresses. The colour isn’t quite right because of the lighting at the shop, but it’s close enough.

I hope my bridesmaids like them. Lilac isn’t to everyone’s taste, but they did choose the style of dress.

As I said in a previous post, I chose two styles of dresses and gave my bridesmaids the option of choosing two different dresses but the all chose the same, which was fine too.

I really do hope they like them. I’m really pleased with how they turned out. I was really worried they would look almost white but they were very strongly lilac. I just hope they’re not too pale for my bridesmaids.

Anyway, sooooo exciting! I text h2b to tell him I loved the dresses and he said, ‘everything is falling into place’ and it is! Yay!

Toilet Baskets

164 Days to Go!

Our toilet baskets were delivered a few days ago so yesterday, while Dad was over helping with his fantastic handwriting, I decorated the toilet baskets! My little brother helped too!

I’m really pleased with the toilet baskets! I didn’t want anything too expensive because when it comes down to it, I am just leaving them in the toilet!

H2b and I have been discussing what we are going to include in our loo baskets. I think it would be more useful if h2b was in charge of the men’s basket and I take the ladies’ one.

Christmas Wedding

It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year

If I wasn’t having an Easter wedding, I’d have a June wedding, but if I didn’t have a June wedding, I would love a Christmas wedding.

We were looking around venues at Christmas time and they were all decorated ready for a Christmas wedding.

I was so tempted to change our wedding date to Christmas, with all the warm colours and rich decorations, it was difficult not to want a Christmas wedding.

Christmas weddings can be as expensive as peak time weddings however, everyone will already be in a party mood and will be more willing to meet up. Many employers have a longer holiday allowance at this time of year so guests can be more flexible.

Of All the Seasons: Spring

Why Did We Choose Spring?

Our wedding is in five months, two weeks which means that it will be in spring!

There are a few reasons why we chose a Spring wedding.

Cost

My main idea was that a Spring wedding would be cheaper than a summer wedding. I am constrained by school holidays so that a honeymoon wouldn’t be much cheaper than the summer, but the other costs would be marginally cheaper. Flowers, cars and venue are all more expensive during peak times.

Also, depending on when the Easter school holidays fall, a Spring wedding could be off peak. Weddings between October – March (excluding Christmas) are cheaper than weddings from April – September.

No Updates!

It’s All a Bit Slow…

The main benefit to planning my wedding two and a half years before W-Day is that it’s a very relaxed, easy way to plan. I have lots time to change my mind, to find the best suppliers, to look around and book things. I have the piece of mind that everything is ready well in advance.

I can lie back and relax!

The only thing is that it’s not terribly exciting. I can go weeks at a time and not do anything wedding related! With 5 months, 13 days to go I would have thought I’d be doing some more wedding related things but it’s not happening.

More Cake Pops

Make Your Own Cake Pops

Cake pops are becoming the new wedding cakes. With sweet buffets becoming more and more popular with modern brides, cake pops are the perfect accessory.

We were in Hobby Craft the other day and h2b found the cake making section. There were heaps of tools for making your own cake pops! And on the internet, I found not on the high street.com which had a cake pop making kit.

The perfect, homemade touch to any wedding, cake pops are stylish, modern and are in small portions which is perfect for weight conscious guests.

Photo Booth

Do It Yourself!

H2b has decided to have himself a project! He is going to make our photo booth!

We had hoped to borrow my friend’s fantastic photo booth however she has sold it, but I’m not surprised! It was such a fantastic idea! I’m sure we’re not the only ones who wanted it!

I have posted before about what a fantastic idea it was at my friend’s wedding and how much fun we had being a part of it. There’s a video on You Tube that will show you the photo booth in action. Soul Bird Photo did a fantastic job!

175 Days to Go!

A Quick Update

Things are progressing nicely!

I’m still waiting to hear from the florist I liked with a quote for the wedding flowers but other than that, things appear to be sorted!

I’ve been measured for my dress, my bridesmaids have been measured for their dresses. My niece is just about to be measured for her dress.

I’ve sourced a bulk buy of sweets for the wedding favours and have made all the seating cards. I just bought some more ribbon and sequins to make the seating plan, but obviously I can’t start that until all the RSVP’s are in.

Stationary Questions

All You Need to Ask Your Stationer

Choosing your stationer can be very difficult. Every stationer has a different style, look and design ideas.

They also have different price ranges, from your very simple invitation starting at about £2.50, to a more complicated design with lots of inserts at about £12.50, or more!

But what to ask and where to start can often be a mystery. I’ve collected as much research as I can to help you through the minefield that is wedding stationary.

Top Questions:

1. Can I see a sample?
   Samples of work are essential! They will show you how much time and care your stationer will take over your invitations and also what sort of styles they have on offer.
   They will have samples of work at wedding fayres and exhibits, but even so, ask for samples of the invitations in your colours.

Here’s How It’s Going to Go

A Very British Wedding

I’m a British girl, h2b and I are having a very British wedding, with a few hints of Chinese.

Our wedding will have three main elements: the ceremony, the wedding breakfast, the evening reception but there are other elements that guests won’t necessarily see.

What to Wear?

As a Guest or Even as Mother of the Groom!

The bride has an outfit, the bridesmaids are all coordinated. Even the groomsmen have a cravat and suit, but as a wedding guest, how do you know what to wear? Even the mother-of-the-groom can get stuck at times.

The Mother-of-the-Groom

It is traditional that the mother-of-the-bride should buy her outfit first to set the tone of the outfits, however that is somewhat old fashioned and doesn’t make sense for this day and age. It’s best to just be flexible and open minded.

The mother of a British groom will often wear a similar style of outfit to the mother of a British bride.

When choosing an outfit, it is best to find something that is fitted and suits you.

Wedding Fayre Oct 2011

Chillington Hall

H2b and I went to a wedding fayre at Chillington Hall today.

Chillington Hall is a gorgeous venue anyway. The only reason we didn’t book was because we didn’t want a marquee, however now we’ve seen the marquee we were thinking it’s fairly spectacular!

There were all sparkly lights in the ceiling with amazing candle chandeliers hanging down. There’s a balcony terrace type area outside the marquee that just looks amazing.  

H2b and I were really thinking about our wedding choices but I think our wedding will be special because it’s for the two of us!

The Exhibitors

The Flower Shop

We went to the wedding fayre mainly to see the florist that I really liked, The Flower Shop. The flower displays were absolutely amazing, they had every different style from the tall, graceful and striking displays to the gorgeous short vases that I like. They had different styles of bouquet and boutonniere, and even an large urn with a fantastic display at the top.

Invitations!

How to Address Your Invitations:

There are a number of different ways to address your invitations. Some are formal, some are from the bride’s parents and some are from the bride and groom. Below are some examples to help you for invitations:

Formal, the bride’s parents:

Bride, groom and parents:

Casual and fun:

Bride and groom informal:

Wedding and reception at the same venue:

Good luck choosing your wording!

I Am Over the Moon!

We Have Chosen a Florist!

(Again!)

As I said in a previous post, I was let down by a florist we had already chosen.

I suppose the problem wasn’t really a big deal. I’d asked for an updated quote and the florist took almost a year to send it. I felt that meant the florist was somewhat unreliable and I decided to cancel.

However! We have now found a florist who seems fairly fantastic! And as a bonus, she had two really friendly Boarder Collie’s who were absolutely gorgeous and wanted lots of fuss! I’m definitely a dog person so that was a huge bonus!

Quick Update

A Florist

Again!

Dad and I are off to see another florist tomorrow. I will let you know how it goes.

I really liked this one, they were really friendly and they’re even on Facebook! They are right round the corner from my parent’s house so they’re on hand if I need to pop in with some questions.

Wish me luck!

It’s All in the Details

Stamp Your Personality

Lets face it, in principal, all weddings are the same.

There’s a ceremony, be it civil, Christian, Islamic, Indian, Chinese, registry office or naturist. Then there’s a reception where you serve your guests a meal.

This is true for pretty much all weddings.

The interest is in the detail.

What will your guests be looking for?

The Dress

While every bride wears a wedding dress of some description (or not in the case of a naturist bride) each dress is different. I haven’t been to a wedding yet where the bride was wearing exactly the same dress as another bride.

The male guests at your wedding may not notice that your dress is fantastically unique and special to you, but the female guests certainly will!

The Flowers

Every bride has different flowers because every florist is different. Guests will be looking to see what colours you’ve chosen, which flowers you’ve had and where you’ve put them.

Sweet Tooth?

Little Lolli!

I received this email today from Little Lolli who do Bespoke Candy Buffets:

Hi Fran
We pride ourselves on being fair and honest with our clients and this is the underlying ethos behind our business.
We could sell you some eggs but it would mean us getting them from the wholesaler and then selling them on to you at a profit. 
You can purchase large 3kg bags of eggs from ebay for £23.95p  on the site pickandmixture.  This would be your best option and would be cheaper for you

I’d met Little Lolli at a wedding fayre and had asked about having pink, white and lilac mini eggs for our Easter wedding. The lady I’d spoken to said she would price up and let me know.

I think it’s so nice! Not only did they tell me it would be cheaper to buy it myself but also set me on the right direction! How many people, in a recession, would be that honest and nice and show that much integrity in business?

It is for that reason that I recommend Little Lolli to all brides who are interested in candy buffets!

Please please please, if you want a sweet bar at your wedding, email Little Lolli!

When you’re stressed about your wedding and you need a supplier that is reliable, full of integrity and just really really nice, Little Lolli is the place to go!

I’m just so impressed and touched and think that was so nice!

Little Lolli specialise in catering for all styles of weddings, christenings and funerals. The spread they did at the wedding fayre was certainly very impressive!

Book Little Lolli for a fantastic candy buffet!

The Best Wedding Fayre!

A Lovely Way to Spend a Saturday!

I went to the best wedding fayre I’ve been to yet at the church where our ceremony will be!

I think there were a number of reasons why it was the best wedding fayre:

• The mock wedding
• Talking to my suppliers (and getting something I’d wanted!)
• Bumping into an old friend from Brownies and Guides
• Magic by Mark

I came home raving about the fantastic wedding fayre I went to. It was really successful and I had heaps of ideas that I wanted!

It’s a Kind of Magic

Magic by Mark

Thinking of a bit of entertainment at your wedding? I recommend Magic by Mark.

I think I’m famously not a fan of magicians at weddings however I was really impressed with Magic by Mark.

He was amazing! Mark specialises in close up magic, and he’s just brilliant with it!

Mothers-in-Law

Communicate with Your Mother-in-Law

You might feel a bit shy around your mother-in-law, or you may be very lucky and she’s like a second mother!

However, as wedding fever reaches it’s highest pitch it can be easy to forget to include your MIL.

To stay on her good side, as you marry her little boy, follow the tips below:

Lots of Updates

Whenever you get a quiet moment, give your MIL a quick ring to know what’s happening with the wedding plans and let her know what’s going to be organised next.

If you don’t want to call, send her a text!

She’s going to be thinking about the day as much as your mother is so try to keep in touch with her.

Get Together

Start inviting your MIL out on shopping trips with your mum to buy your dress. Buying the wedding dress is serious bonding time and you could stop for a quick bite to eat along the way (and a glass of wine!).

Happy Hens

Pink penises and getting blind drunk isn’t everyone’s idea of a good time so try to include your MIL in something a bit more tame in your hen do.

Are you going out for a meal before hand? Are you doing some fun, non-alcoholic activities? Invite your mother-in-law!

Tips for Your Groom!

A Guide to the Groom’s Speech

Imagine sitting on the head table. Your face is aching from smiling for all the photos, and your belly is full of delicious food. You see the MC enter the room to announce the speeches and that’s it, you’re up!

The difference between being terrified about your speech, or being quietly confident will be the following tips!

Do the Research! Be Prepared!

Websites and books are a fantastic resource for nervous speech givers. Most groom’s speeches follow a typical pattern (the thank you’s, what a beautiful wife you have) so that there is an enormous amount of help on the internet and in books.

I’ve picked out Making the Father of the Bride’s Speech to buy for my dad to help him with his speech writing.

And, I also have Confetti’s Wedding Speech book, which I think is really good.

I cannot recommend iamstaggered.com enough! The quirky, fun way of writing on Staggered is fantastic inspiration for anyone wanting to give a speech.

I really like Wedding Speech Builder but you can only access 2 tips per section before you need to pay to use the website.

And, of course, I have heaps of tips on writing your wedding speech!

• Wedding Speech Jokes
• The Speeches
• Spice Up Your Wedding Speech
• What Have You Got to Say?

A History of Wedding Dresses

Where Do They Come From?

Your wedding dress is going to be one of the toughest decisions you make as you plan your wedding. I went famously went to seven wedding dress shops and tried on a whopping twenty-eight dresses before falling for The One!

Along with your christenings and funerals, your wedding is the one time you will be seen at a special public occasion. Historically, these kinds of public events have required special outfits.

Origins

Colour, style and ceremonial importance of the wedding dress varies from culture to culture.

The Middle Ages

Marriage in the Middle Ages was more to do with sealing the relationship between two families, towns or even countries. It was expected that the bride would dress in suitably as befit her position.

Brides were dressed in fine fabrics and amazing jewellery (given as part of their dowry) to display her family’s wealth and importance. Brides usually wore bright colours, velvets and furs, to display wealth.

The purpose of the wedding dress was to say, ‘I’m richer than you.’ The bride rarely chose her gown but was given it, sometimes in her family colours.

Over the Centuries

Brides continued to wear fine dresses made from expensive fabrics that followed the height of fashion. Brides from ordinary families wore their Sunday best.

Blog Posts to Come!

Keep Checking Back!

You may have noticed a lack of new blog posts… Unfortunately, with it being the beginning of term, things have been manic at school and my evenings have been filled with laminating, cutting and sticking things for work.

Things have also been a bit lax on the wedding front. Dad is working on finding us a florist but other than that, there’s nothing else to report!

However, over the next few weeks we will be having some blog posts about

• speeches
• saving money
• the history of wedding dresses
• DIY design tips
• mothers in Law
• wedding faux-pas’s
• beauty tips
• questions for your stationer
• miscellaneous questions
• different venue pros and cons

and many more!

Keep checking back for more blog posts, and of course updates for my own wedding!

Only 6 months, 22 days to go! (29 weeks 1 day!)

Your Comments

My Thanks

I just wanted to write a quick post saying a big thanks to everyone who has been leaving comments on the blog. It’s good to know that the post are helping brides and grooms with their weddings!

If you have any questions you’d like me to look into, or require further information about any subject I’ve written about, please feel free to leave a comment or write a question.

My dream is that every bride and groom have the wedding they want and if I could help, that would be fantastic!

If you would like any photos from your wedding to feature on my blog, feel free to get in touch. Make sure that you check who owns the copyright to your photos before you send them!

Good luck and best wishes for your weddings and many years of happy marriage!

Theme Weddings

Being Different

Some lucky people are able to go to a lot of weddings! I haven’t been to as many as I’d like but those I have been to have followed the main traditions of that culture.

But what if you want to be different? What if you’ve had enough of white weddings and want to make a stand for individualism?

I think it is very important for every bride to have the wedding that she (and her h2b) wants. Forget convention, forget what other people want, just focus on what you (and h2b) want.

Here enters The Theme Wedding.

Theme Weddings

Theme weddings are unique in that they are all different, depending on your theme.