The Table Plan

The Table Plan is Done!

(subject to change)

I had decided that this weekend was the weekend that the table plan was going to be done!

H2b and I made the decision to place our friends and family with people that they know. It’s quite traditional for weddings to mix up the guests so that your friends could be sitting with your cousins or with other people they don’t know.

H2b and I quickly decided we didn’t want that. A number of our friends and family don’t see each other very often and our wedding will be a chance for our guests to have a bit of a catch up, so we’ve decided to put people who know each other together, as much as we can.

Personally, I’m more likely to relax and have fun if I’m on a table with people I know.

Our Table Plan

I’m a very tactile person, and I just wasn’t able to visualise the table plan using the online software. I scrapped the computer and went old school. We started with cutting out the tables.

Double Happiness Paper Stamp

DIY Confetti

I’ve always wanted to make my own table decorations for the wedding. It was a money saving idea but it’s also a bit of a personal touch.

My h2b is Chinese so I wanted to incorporate that into our very British wedding. The symbol for a lucky Chinese wedding is Double Happiness. As I’ve been to more Chinese weddings than British weddings at this point, I’m fairly familiar with the symbol so it was that symbol I wanted to have at our wedding.

I couldn’t find lilac Double Happiness confetti anywhere so I decided to make my own.

A Spot of DIY

My Personal Touches

Many brides make lots of their elements of their own weddings and I am no different.

I went to a stationary lady to make our wedding invitations and orders of service, because it’s so difficult to get the printing in exactly the right place, and when it comes to the wedding, I’m not very patient.

But I did want to make some elements of the wedding that I was sure I wouldn’t be able to ruin.

I’m also making the table plan but I haven’t started that yet as I’m still waiting for all the RSVP’s to come in.

Favours

I didn’t make but I did buy the favours myself, and I am going to fill them with mini eggs.

2012 - A Big Year!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

I’d just like to take a moment to say a very Happy New Year to all my readers! I hope you all got a bit squiffy and had a wonderful New Year with friends and family.

2012 is going to be a big year for most of my readers: we’re getting married!

I almost can’t believe it’s finally here! H2b and I got engaged in October 2009, so it has been a long time coming – two and a half years! It does mean that we had a long time to shop around and get everything we want, but 2012 has been this far away year for such a long time.

I almost can’t believe it’s actually here.

So, a very happy new year from me and the best of luck to all the brides getting married in 2012, where ever you are!

2012 is going to be a very big year!

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

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.

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.

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!

Sneaky Peek #2

Our Wedding Invitations!

They have arrived!

And they look fantastic!

I want to completely and utterly recommend Special Occasion Stationary!! Sarah kept me informed through the entire process and the invitations look completely fantastic! They are so professionally made and beautifully printed.

I’m really, really happy with them!

H2b thinks they’re fantastic too! I text him to tell him they’d arrived and straight away asked me to send him a photo. He’s really excited, he said, ‘Now we can invite people!’

I snapped quite a few photos of them (I’m saving the big reveal for when they’ve been sent out to guests) and to make sure I got the right angle I did a bit of creative photography.

I used a small torch to light up the diamantés, surrounded the invitations with white card to give that clear, white background and then lay flat on the floor to get that perfect angle.

The invitations make me feel as if the wedding is right around the corner! Only 8 months (and 4 days) until I become a wife and I have a husband! That’s like being a proper grown up!

I’m so so excited!

Cupcakes

Wedding Cakes Cup Cakes

I don’t often post about food but a reader has asked for a blog post about cupcakes, so here it is!

Wedding cakes are costing anything from £150 – £450 and more! It all depends on the complexity of the design you want.

This post is full of photos of different wedding cakes for you to have a look to see a possible design you may like. If you see a design you like but in the wrong colours, still copy the picture and simply ask your cake maker to change the colours.

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.

Chinese Wedding Traditions

Your Questions Answered:

Another question asked in Google to find my blog was about Chinese wedding traditions.

I have only been to six Chinese weddings so I am not the expert, however I do know some of the traditions and their basis in culture.

The Proposal

The proposal was deep routed in tradition however these days many Chinese proposals are similar to Western ones. A few of my friends weren’t as much proposed to as they simply decided to get married.

Originally, a proposal was made by means of a go between or ‘match maker’. The process was dealt with between the two sets of parents and sometimes with the bride and groom.

The groom’s parents would identify a girl they decided was appropriate for their son and would, via the match maker; send gifts and fine foods to announce their intentions. If these intentions were reciprocated then an arrangement would be made. Marriage was for continuing the ancestral line, in the olden days, and arrangements were sorted out accordingly.

My mother-in-law and the farther of my sister-in-law’s now husband, had a ceremony that involved the groom’s father offering fruit and buckets and lucky money in exchange for the hand of the bride-to-be. All these items symbolised wealth, fertility and prosperity in the marriage. They are from Hong Kong and I think that each region of China (which is a fairly large country) have their own specific traditions.

The Day Before the Wedding

Brides would retreat into seclusion with their female family members and friends. The girls would sing sad songs about how they hated the match maker, the groom and his family and even the bride’s parents for sending her away.

The groom’s family would prepare the bridal bed. The bridal bed would have special red bed linen. They promote fertility and a happy marriage. I’ve seen them in my friends’ hotel rooms before, and although it is the groom’s family who arrange this, the hotel room was the bride’s so her family set it up.

The bride’s mother, or a special woman, will comb the bride’s hair the night before the wedding. She must brush the hair a certain number of times saying good luck sayings, or auspicious words, with each stroke of the comb. I remember when my fiancé's mum brushed my fiancé's sister’s hair, his mum was so touched to be passing on this tradition to her daughter. They did this in private but it was discussed before hand.

The Groom Goes to Get his Bride

The bride waits at her home, or hotel room, or where ever she chooses in modern times, for her groom to approach. At the weddings I attended, the groom arrived at the bride’s lodgings with his grooms men in tow and had to pay to enter. The money he gave was lucky for the bridesmaids. The number 9 is significant, and the money given can vary from HK$99.99 to HK$9,999.00. The four 9’s is significant.

Once he’s entered into the lodgings, he has to complete certain trails to encourage the bride to come out to meet him. In modern times, the games I’ve witnessed are drinking bitter tea, choosing lucky mahjong tiles from a bucket of ice, limbo-ing under hot chilly limbo lines and eating a hot chilly, dressing in women’s clothing, performing sexual yoga positions on male friends, singing songs with altered lyrics, signing a joke wedding contract and many more.

In more traditional times, drums and loud gongs marked the start of the procession from the groom’s home to the bride’s. A child led the procession as a symbol of future fertility. The procession also included dancing lions, musicians, and attendants carrying lanterns and banners. The bride’s family wouldn’t allow the groom to enter the home until he had satisfied them with lucky money.

The Tea Ceremony

The tea ceremony varies slightly from region to region. Sometimes the groom actually has a small meal with the bride’s parents, but in the weddings I saw, there were tea ceremonies. I even acted as dai cum jeh at one of my friend’s weddings.

The bride’s parents sit on chairs while the bride and the groom kneel in front of them, as the bride and groom are usually lower in rank than the parents. The dai cum jeh hands the bride and groom cups of tea which they in turn offer to the bride’s parents. The dai cum jeh then says some auspicious words while the parents drink the tea, blessings of fertility, wealth, happiness and prosperity for bride, groom and parents. The parents in return offer the bride and groom lucky money or jewellery.

Hong Kong Chinese brides often wear a golden pig necklace with piglets hanging off the sow as a symbol of fertility.

Bride’s Journey to the Groom’s House

The bride then goes to the groom’s house and the tea ceremony happens again but this time with the groom’s family.

One of the dai cum jeh’s duties is to hold a parasol over the bride as she proceeds to the groom’s house. Often, in the olden days, the bride would travel in a sedan chair. These days she will go by chauffeured car.

In the olden days, luck was very important in a Chinese wedding. ‘Great care was taken to ensure that no inauspicious influence would affect the marriage. The female attendants who escorted the bride to her new home were chosen with particular care that the horoscope animals of their birth years were compatible with that of the bridegroom. The sedan chair itself was heavily curtained to prevent the bride from inadvertently glimpsing an unlucky sight, e.g. a widow, a well, or even a cat. Attendants scattered grain or beans, symbols of fertility, before her.’ (chcp.com, May 2011)

Wedding Banquets

In my experience, the wedding banquet takes place in the evening of the wedding day. Many people are invited to ‘give face’ or kudos to the groom’s family, who traditionally pay for the wedding. I have been to weddings with up to nine courses, more modest weddings have just had five.

Shark’s fin soup, pig heads, pig skins and lobsters have featured highly at the weddings I’ve attended although they do provide vegetarian options. (I’m vegetarian.)

In modern times, the banquets sometimes begin with the signing of the wedding licence or sometimes the couple will perform the tea ceremony with any older relatives with whom they haven’t already shared tea.

At some weddings, after a few courses couples play games with their guests. I attended weddings where they had a bingo game, beer drinking game and how well do you know the couple game.

After the banquet, the bride and groom thank their guests for attending as they leave.

My Chinese Wedding

I’m looking forward to having our Chinese wedding! We will be following the traditions my fiancé's sister followed, as much as we can do, and I’ll be wearing a Chinese wedding dress for some of the day.

Your Comments

If you think I’ve said anything wrong here, please let me know so that I can keep my information as accurate as possible. If you have any other questions you’d like answering, let me know.

Sources

1. Chinese Wedding Traditions, CHCP.com, May 2011 http://www.chcp.org/wedding.html
2. Southern Chinese Wedding, Wikipedia, May 2011 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southern_Chinese_wedding

One Year to Go!

This Time Next Year….

This time next year we will be tucking into our four course wedding breakfast, worrying about what the h2b, my dad and the best man are going to say during their speeches and thinking about the first dance.

It is now less than a year to go!

It is strange thinking that in one year from now I will be a married woman. It will almost be over by the time I’m writing this. We’ll have some amazing memories, and hopefully our guests will have had a really fantastic time!

This time next year, our engagement photo shoot will have been done, will will have bought all our gifts for our parents and attendants, the wedding favours will have been done and the invites will have all been replied to. One of my friends will have had her baby, the hen do and stag do will be happy memories.

It’s amazing to think all the things that are going to happen in this year.

Still left to do is:

• finding me a dress (but I have made appointments for that so I might find my dress soon!)
• sending out full day invitations
• sending out evening invitations
• get bridesmaid dresses, fittings and try ons
• buying gifts for parents and attendants
• making the
  • wedding favours
  • seating plan
  • menus
  • table names
  • place labels
• ordering the chair covers (probably from Balloon Expressions)
• engagement photo shoot and letting our photographer know what shots we really really want of The Day
• sending photos of everything to the cake topper making lady so that she can make our cake topper
• gathering all the groomsmen for their fittings (but that doesn’t happen until much closer to The Time)
• confirming the menu and arrangements with the venue and all our suppliers, organising delivery and pick up times

So, all in all, not much left! :-S

And that’s all I can think of at the moment but I’m sure there will be a lot more! Weddings are amazing, there’s so much to do!

Top Tips

How to Pose for Your Wedding Photos

You are most likely going to keep your wedding photos for the rest of your life. You want them to be memorable, beautiful and filled with all your friends and family. You may also want to look your absolute best! Here are some tips on how to look your completely amazing in all your photos!

1. Stick out your chin!
   To avoid double chins in pictures find a natural pose where you can extend your chin or tilt it to the side.
   
2. Have good posture!
   While you don’t want to look stiff, you want to show your figure off at it’s best. If you slouch it will make you look saggy, keep your shoulders back but relaxed to make you look more perky.
   
3. Find your perfect angle.
   If you notice, on the red carpet actresses never look straight down the camera.  They always stand at an angle to have their picture taken. Do some experimenting either in the mirror or with a camera to find your perfect angel. Stand at about a quarter turn from the camera. Put one foot forward, straight ahead of you. The other foot should be turned to the side so that your body is at an angle.
   
4. Avoid the closed eye look.
   If you’re anything like me, you will blink when the flash goes off. To avoid this, ask the photographer to count to ‘three’ before he takes the picture. If take in a breath when he says ‘three’ then you won’t blink. Crazy but ezinearticles.com say it’s true!
   
5. Idol hands
   Make sure you do something with your hands. It needs to be a relaxed pose. A lot of the time when I’m posing for photos, I put my hand on my hips in a vain attempt to look thinner. You could vogue with your hands or hold hands with your hubby. Your hands may be hidden under your bouquet.
   
6. Smile or no smile?
   Don’t force a smile. You will probably feel like smiling lots and lots and lots! I feel like  smiling just thinking about it! There may be times during the day when you don’t feel like smiling and if your photographer snaps a picture of you during those times they can look lovely and peaceful.
   
7. Interact with your guests
   Some of the best photos are of people hugging or talking or being natural in pictures. Make sure you forget your photographer is there and talk to your guests. They are there for you and these natural photos will look fantastic in your album.

If you have any tips for posing for photos please let me know and I will include them in my post. Have you had your photos taken for your wedding? What would you advise?

Your Florist

Must Ask Questions for Your Florist

Choosing your flowers is difficult. I saw three florists and thought I’d never be able to choose a florist before I finally settled on Flowers by Andrew.

Here are some must ask questions for your florist:

1. Can we see examples of your work?
   It is essential that you see some examples of their work just to check that they can actually do what they say they can. Look at their arrangements, are you impressed? Do you think it’s beautiful?
   
2. What ideas can you give me within my budget?
   Your budget is a huge factor in every element of your wedding. Finding a florist that can work within your budget is essential. Your florist will also be the expert in providing a service that fits inside a budget, so this is a very important question.
   
3. Would you be prepared to do a mock-up of a bouquet before the day?
   Not all florists will do this as it will cost them money. It might be included in your quote. However, it does give you an idea of how your bouquet will look and feel for The Day.
   
4. Will I have to pay travel costs?
   This will depend on the distance the florist will have to travel. I would always recommend choosing service providers that are either local to your reception or ceremony venues.
   
5. When would I need to make payments?
   You will be expected to leave a deposit when you book the flowers and then a final payment would be at some point before your wedding day.
   
6. How far in advance would I need to place my order?
   You know from reading my blog that I believe booking as early as possible means cheaper prices, however that’s not always true. Ask your florist for advice on when the best time is to book.
   
7. What will be delivered, when and where? Will you need access to water?
   The answer to this question will depend a lot on what you want for your wedding day. The main things you will want delivered will be the buttonholes and the bouquets. To save money on delivery, you could ask a friend to collect the buttonholes to get them to your fiancé and his groomsmen.
   
8. Who will set up the flowers?
   Usually the florist will set up the flowers themselves. A good florist will show pride in their work and will want to display it to its best. Some florists will deliver the flowers to your venue and allow your venue people to put the flowers out.
   
9. How long will you need to set up?
   Your florist will no doubt ask you what time your wedding is, to ensure the bouquets are delivered well in time. S/He will want to know what time your reception starts to ensure that everything is set up at your venue well ahead of time.
   
10. Do you charge for breakages?
    The answer to this question will more than likely be: yes.
    
11. Do you provide bay trees and other accessories?
    You might want other little touches to your wedding such as mirror plates and tea lights which some florists provide. There may be a charge but some florists will throw those in for free.
    
12. Can you get flowers in unusual colours such as green or black?
    A good florist can. A friend of mine wants green gerberas in her bouquet and her florist will provide them. She is going to have to use ink to change the colour of the flowers but it can be done.

Good luck choosing your florist! You could leave a comment here to tell me about your florist experience.

Florist

How to Choose Your Florist

The flowers are one of the main aspects of the day along with the venue, the dress and the photographer. Your guests are going to be looking at your flowers as the flowers and arrangements you choose will reflect your preferences and your personality.

My h2b could not be less interested in flowers so I’ve been very lucky and had free range to choose the flowers and the colours by myself! Yay!

The first thing you do is:

Look through wedding magazines or flower magazines and choose arrangements that you like. If you’re anything like me, you wont know a narcissus from a delphinium, all I knew were the colours I wanted and the pictures from a magazine.

A florist can put together a beautiful display for your wedding but she won’t know the flowers you like. This is why it is essential that you put together an ideas collage of flower arrangements you would like to have. They will be able to expand on the ideas you give them, offering cheaper options if necessary. They will also be able to tell you if the flowers  you’ve chosen are in season.

Next:

Go to wedding fayres and look at the flowers the florists bring to display. This will help you get an idea of what the different florists are offering. You will be able to speak directly to the florists and give an idea of your budget and what they can offer you. I will also help you to get a feel of whether or not you’d like to work with this person.

You can also trawl the internet. I spoke to Lynn at Fine Flowers at a wedding fayre, and then looked her up on the internet. I was impressed with the range of flowers she was able to tell me about, and then I was able to check out what she was saying through her website.

If you google for florists in the West Midlands you will find a range of different service providers. My advice is to look through their websites, get a feel of whether or not you want to work with them, and then arrange an appointment to discuss your requirements.

Meeting with a florist:

I spoke to three different florists before I decided to book the fourth florist, and each time I spoke to a florist, I had a better idea of what I wanted for our wedding.

I would absolutely recommend speaking to your florist face to face. Your flowers are a key element to your wedding, you don’t want them to go wrong. Its fair enough to email your florist but for a real discussion and a real understanding of what you want, I think you can’t beat a face to face meeting.

Look at their previous work:

Do you like the arrangements they show you in the pictures? Do the pictures look up to date and modern or are they a bit old fashioned? Are they willing to work with you or do they keep saying that your idea is wrong? Are they paying attention to you and seem interested in what you’re saying? Do you feel comfortable with this florist? A gut feeling is always a good indicator. Go with your gut.

Questions to Ask

• Ask if arrangments in the pictures have been done by the person who will be arranging your flowers.
• After giving your florist your ideas, ask for their opinion or ideas. You don't have to take their advice but at least take the time to listen. You never know, you might like their ideas better then your own.
• Additional costs? Delivery charge? Setup costs?
• Will they rent you the vases, mirrors and candles?
• If you change your mind, what is the cut off point for having what you want?
• What times will the flowers be delivered to each location?
• Will the florist transport ceremony decorations to the reception location? Is there a fee?
• Can they make a sample of your bouquet and centrepiece? Some florists will, some won't.
• Will they write you up an itemized quote? Some won't in fear that you will bring it to other florists for a better deal.
• Are the flowers you've chosen in season? What flowers are in season for your date?
• You're on a tight budget, can the florist work with a mixture of silk and fresh flowers?
• Are there any additional or hidden costs?
• Is the florist familiar with your reception and ceremony locations?
• 1 month before your wedding date, call the florist and ask them if they can get the type and colour of flower you wanted?

Things to bear in mind:

If your wedding is, like mine, around a flower time of year such as Valentine’s day, mother’s day and Easter, your flowers will be a bit more expensive.  This can’t be helped. Also, your florist may be a bit busy around this time.

You don’t have to book right away. I took the quotes from the florists I spoke to and compared them to quotes from other florists. This way I felt that I was getting the fairest deal.

If you choose flowers that are out of season and need to be imported from Holland, this will cost you more as it will cost your florist more. I’ve tried booking flowers that are in season for my wedding. Besides, I have chosen to have a spring wedding, why not have spring flowers!

I hope this helps you in your search for a florist. Please feel free to share your experiences and leave a comment below!

Decisions, Decisions

The Average Wedding has 1000 Decisions!

Guest list, wedding dress, wedding breakfast: the average English wedding has one thousand separate decisions.

The first decisions:

The first decisions you will be making for your wedding will be when and where. What time of year do you want to get married, where do you want to have your wedding ceremony and reception? Do you want a civil ceremony at your reception venue? Will you be having a church ceremony and then head to a reception venue?

First write down some words that you associate on with your wedding on a piece of paper, and ask h2b to do it too, that way you can make sure that you share the same vision. Some of the words I wrote down were when I was thinking about my wedding were happy, bright, sunshine-y, lilac, traditional, luxurious, beautiful, big party, flowers. These were the words I associated with the idea of my wedding. My h2b wrote party, next chapter, party, p**s up, commitment so it’s clear what his priorities were.

Then we set a date. This was another huge decision as we wanted to make sure everyone who wanted to come would be able to come, and we also wanted to make sure that it was affordable. I also wanted sunshine, which in the UK is not a guarantee. After some fairly awful summers, I decided that Easter school holidays would be a good idea. If I wasn’t a teacher, I would have chosen June but I am restricted by the holidays.

Fantastic! The one of the biggest decisions made! Next: guest list. I have posted before that the guest list is THE MOST DIFFICULT PART OF THE WEDDING, for me at least! Making a list is easy, making all the people on the list fit in the venue is very difficult!

So now you’ve got a date….

So now that you’ve chosen your date and you know roughly how many guests you’re going to have it’s time to book venues! Are you having a church wedding or a civil ceremony? Are you having your civil ceremony at the same place as your reception venue or will you be travelling? What time of day would you like to have your wedding? What is your budget?

Unfortunately, the budget comes first. What can you realistically afford to pay? Will anyone be helping you pay for the wedding? Money is a cold hard but realistic part of a wedding and as much as we hate to think about that part, it is important. I have made some free to download spreadsheets to help with the organisation of the budget, but there are also many available on the internet. It’s important to get an idea of how much everything is going to cost so that you know how much you need to save. A lot of my friends have been paying for things as they have come up so a budget sheet can help to keep track of how much you’ve already spent.

Budget sheet set, it’s time to track down some venues! Civil ceremony, church ceremony, reception venue; we’ve all got our own ideas of what we’re looking for and what our budget is going to be, so make some decisions!

Budget set, venues chosen, what’s next?

Everything else!

• Invitations
• Colours
• Clothes:
• Bride’s wedding dress (or two or three)
• Groom’s suit
• Bridesmaid dresses
• Usher’s suits
• Mother’s suits
• Transportation
• Bride’s transport from where ever she is to the venue
• Do you want to provide transport for your guests?
• Food
• Music
• Flowers
• What kind of bouquet are you going to have?
• Buttonholes? How many and which flowers?
• Bridesmaid bouquets?
• Flowers for the mothers?
• Hen party
• Stag do
• Gifts for the various people who got involved in your wedding
• Honeymoon
• A little something extra to add a bit of wow and sparkle to your wedding

Each decision sparks hundreds of other little decisions. On the food alone, we want to offer a choice menu which means we need to make a decision on two starters, three main courses and two deserts! Those are seven separate decisions! Also, what time is the food going to be served? Are speeches going to be done before, after or during the food? Are you going to have a receiving line as this will also change the time of when the food can be served.

Hundreds of other little decisions sparked from one small item. Use a to do list to keep track of everything you need to do and be firm with your decisions. It’s your day and it’s going to be fantastic!

My Little Achievements

I’ve Lost Another Kilo!

Many brides lose weight for their wedding. The pressure of looking their best  and the photo

s that will last a lifetime is too much and we just want to look fabulous! The wedding dress diet comes in. Even Kate Middleton, who looks stunning anyway, is on a wedding dress diet!

I hate to admit this, but I am on a wedding dress diet. This will be a controversial but the diet I am on is healthy eating and exercise. Incidentally, this is not a picture of me! (I wish it was!)

I started at 78kgs and UK size 16 just after my h2b proposed to me. Now, a year later (so it hasn’t been the fastest weight loss in the world) I’m 75kgs and size 14. It’s my belly that’s the worst bit, and my arms, so they’re what I’m focusing on.

I’m not weighing myself on the scales everyday as weight fluctuates, I might weigh myself once or twice in fortnight.

I have been changing aspects of my lifestyle. Fad and short term diets aren’t effective in the long run. I want something that will start me on the road to being generally more healthy.

At work, I used to eat a biscuit (or two) at least every day, now I don’t have one at all. However, I am still hungry. I take in a banana or fruit of some kind to replace the biscuit, and as time goes on, I find that I don’t need a biscuit anymore. I’m not even craving one.

I’ve also cut down on portion size. I’m not sure if my portions were too big before, but I have bought smaller bowls for breakfast and I use smaller plates for my dinner. For lunch at work, I used to make a sandwich and then pack my lunchbox full of snacky extras. Now I’m packing a sandwich and a piece of fruit or low fat yoghurt. Yoghurt has a low glycemic index, which means it will keep you fuller for longer and it’s excellent for weight loss, as long as it’s low fat and low sugar. I’m eating the Muller Light yoghurts as they’re bigger than some other yoghurts but still only 85 calories at pot.

As for exercise, I’m going to zumba with some of the girls from work and I’m going to aerobics with mum on a Monday and Thursday. They are all really good work outs and I think zumba is the sole reason I’ve lost my extra 1kg.

I will keep you posted on my weight loss progress. They  may not be anything more to report but I will keep going to exercise and keep eating healthily and reducing my portion size and see what happens.

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NB: If anyone reading this a nutritionist or a dietician, I’d be happy to make any corrections if something is wrong. Or if you have some advice to offer it would be much appreciated!

Wedding Cars

Key Questions

When booking your wedding cars, you want to make sure that you get the right cars for your wedding. Here are some simple questions to ask your wedding car service provider:

• Will the chauffeurs be wearing uniforms?
  The uniform adds a really professional touch to the wedding and it just looks so much nicer. I haven’t yet seen a wedding car provider who doesn’t ask the chauffeurs to wear suits but it’s best to check.
• Will you provide matching ribbons to decorate the car?
  Most wedding car providers do supply their own ribbons for the cars. They add a lovely detail and everyone will know that you’re getting married as you drive along. Wedding ribbons are very cheap from Hobby Craft or Confetti.
• Will there be flowers in the car?
  Sometimes they will provide flowers in the back of the car. This looks lovely, I’m having flowers in the back of my car, and my friend had them in the back of theirs so I’m pretty sure most wedding car suppliers provide flowers.
• Will you do a trial journey before The Day?
  A trial journey allows the driver to know where any tricky slopes or parts of the journey will be. Conscientious wedding car suppliers will do a trial journey, find out if your provider will do the same.
• How many people will fit in each car?
  The first car will hold you and your father, and then you and your husband, but the bridesmaid car will hold the bridesmaid, the flower girl, the page boy, your mother and who knows what else! Make sure they all fit!
• Can we put our luggage and belongings in the boot?
  Weddings are busy times and you might not be able to get to the reception venue where you might be sleeping over before The Day. Popping your luggage in the back would make things a lot more convenient, if they let you!
• What happens if the car breaks down?
  Fingers crossed this will never happen, but you need to know that there is going to be a contingency plan if things to go pot!
• Do you do discounts or match prices?
  Well, if you don’t ask you don’t get and there’s always a chance that they may ask previous prices you’ve been quoted.

Good luck choosing your wedding cars! It wasn’t very easy for me!

Letters of Love

Fun Photo Wedding Gifts

I was reading a Hitched.co.uk twitter post by Fran (not me). I thought I would repost as it’s a very cool wedding gift! Alphabet photography!

If you are buying for a couple who have lived together for a while, or for a couple who didn’t give a wedding list, this would be a really nice idea. Often, guests feel uncomfortable giving money as a gift, this would be a fantastic alternative. (Even if they did give a wedding list this seems really special gift.)

The picture frame was spotted at The National Wedding show in London and Fran thought it was one of the most unique exhibitors she’d seen. I definitely think it’s a really unique idea however I’ve found at least two different companies that offer this service when I googled the idea.

The idea is that they take photos of objects everywhere, in architecture, in nature, in anything you can think of and use those pictures to make words. It’s very effective and a bit quirky, really unique.

This photo above is from Alphabet Photography. Their website says, ‘The Alphabet Photography team is proud to provide superior customer service and high quality craftsmanship.’ Their website seems fairly user friendly and I easily chose the pictures I wanted. If I didn’t like the pictures that appeared in the picture then I could click on each letter to change the picture. I thought that was a really nice idea.

This picture would set me back £45, which is an average price for a wedding gift. You can make all sorts of different words, and they offer different materials such as letters, posters and inspirational pictures.

The other company I found that provides this service is the  Letter Art Company. On their website, they say ‘An amazing gift concept that uses pictures of real world objects that resemble letters of the alphabet; Combining them to create truly unique, personalised gifts.’ They offer letter graphs, frames, mounts and custom framed letter art. A very similar service to Alphabet Photography, they ask you to type in a word and they will find pictures to match the letters in that word.

Like alphabet Photography, they offer to let you change the photos that it generates by clicking on the picture you want to change, and you probably will want to change the pictures.  It came out quite nicely, a similar standard to that from Alphabet Photography.

This picture would again cost me £45.

Personally I think this is a fantastic idea for a gift, not just for a wedding but for a Christening or a birthday. Wonderfully unique, which ever company you use as they are both very user friendly, you would find a lovely gift for anyone!