Adding the Wow to Your Wedding

Adding the *Wow* to Your Wedding

I’ve been thinking about my wedding reception. I want something ‘wow’ to happen. I’ve got a wow venue, I’m hopefully going to have a wow dress (will be looking for it in Easter) now I want something to make my wedding reception stand out from the others. But what to do?

My wedding venue have recommended a DJ to create a party atmosphere and set the tone for the evening. I wanted a wow DJ and our venue recommended this DJ because he provides a screen to display pictures (we are fond of photos), he has various lighting options and is very experienced. I’ll write more about that later when I’ve actually spoken to him at the wedding fayre on Sunday.

But as well as a DJ, I wanted something else. Something really special. At my friends wedding recently, she had a video booth stand where guests could go to record a video message of 30 seconds. At a wedding which serves alcohol I’m sure you can imagine that was an interesting activity. I remember using the video booth 4 times, but apparently I left many more messages than that! I thought it was a good way of personalising your wedding. It gives a unique element to your wedding.

Video Messages!

A number of companies offer the opportunity to record progressively drunken messages for your friends and family. It’s a touching way to share your love and best wishes with your loved ones – you could even record a message for each other to watch later at home. A lasting memory of how much your friends enjoyed your wedding reception!

Here are some suppliers that you can use in the West Midlands:

• The Dream Screen offers their standard price of £325 with optional extras ranging from £5 - £30. This was the company my friend used for her wedding and I thought they were pretty good. It’s a bit unfair to recommend this company but this is the only one I’ve experienced. It had a simple touch screen, a quick count down so you knew when to start speaking and a count down so that you knew how long you had left. Most companies probably offer a similar thing but this one was good, in my opinion. However, it is a substantial chunk of a wedding budget!
• Video Booth Systems offers a kiosk for £349. There is no limit on the number of messages your guests can record and you will then own an exclusive DVD containing personal greetings left for you on your wedding day. Services include:
• Delivery & Setup prior to your guests arrival and collection up to midnight.
• Personalised on-screen welcome message
• Table cards informing your guests of the video kiosk location.
• Professionally edited DVD of all your guests video messages within 10 working days.
• VidMe offers a similar service for £375 (plus delivery/collection depending on your area). The freestanding booth will be delivered to your venue and set up in good time, including personalised screens for your occasion. This can feature your chosen colours and themes to tie in with your wedding. They will also supply table cards for your guests to encourage them to leave their message.

Caricatures

To add a twist to your wedding, what about caricatures? Some artists can draw a very accurate drawings very quickly so your guests won’t have to sit too long, and they could have a memento to take home from your wedding. Some suppliers from the West Midlands include:

• Spitting Image, a man called Graham Davies. His pictures look fairly good, his drawings of Tiger Woods and Gordon Ramsey are very accurate.
• Magical Memories say ‘Not only will our wedding caricaturists leave your guests with the most unique gift that they will ever get, your wedding day will leave a long and lasting impression for everyone.’ You will need to email them for a quote but they look pretty good. They say that, ‘When your guests are waiting for their photographs to be taken, or after the speeches when things need livening up - a caricaturist can add the ideal entertainment.’

After checking Book-A-Caricaturist.co.uk, I have found…

• Steve Callaghan who charges £215 in Warwickshire, and helooks pretty good. I can’t draw so I really think it’s amazing that they can quickly sketch subjects on the spot! Steve’s website says ‘Caricatures are excellent wedding entertainment, filling those wedding reception lulls and providing wedding mementoes to help make your wedding day unique.’

Casino!

I’ve also seen casino nights that brides and grooms have offered to their guests by way of entertainment. They have held a casino night at my wedding venue, Madeley Court Hotel, where they held the dancing reception upstairs and the casino in the bar downstairs. It looked fairly fab! It would certainly add an element of ‘wow’ to your wedding and give your guests something to remember.

Here are some suppliers who offer casino weddings in the West Midlands:

• Andy Smith Presents: On Andy’s website he says, ‘All of my Casino tables are full size and are professionally built from the leading supplier in the UK. The cloths are made by John Huxley one of the leading supplier in the world. All the chips, cards and accessories have all been used in actual play in top Las Vegas Casino’s and hotels. Blackjack and Roulette are the most popular and requested casino tables at every Wedding Reception. All tables come with intimate lighting and set up professionally barrier roped together with floral features to create the look and atmosphere of an authentic Casino.’ A casino night from Andy Smith will cost you between £400-500 for three hours.
• Royal Casino Promotions is another company providing casino nights to weddings. Their website says, ‘We've got full size luxury casino tables, Vegas Backdrop, slot machines, large flame lights to enhance your surroundings, Vegas Girls, as well as various other add-ons.’ They suggest that you look at their packages but I didn’t spot a package link so you may have to email for prices.
• Spin 2 Win Ltd offer a similar service for £150 per table including a Croupier and 3 hours of play. Their website says, ‘Here at www.spin2winltd.com we offer all kinds of Fun Casino services including Black Jack, Texas Holdem Poker, Caribbean Stud Poker, Roulette and many more coming throughout 2011. And what's best is that we bring the casino to you! … We can manufacture customised "Fun money" to your own design and also suggest themes for your event (additional cost may apply). Take a look through the site and see how you we can add a touch of magic to your event.’

A Cultural Twist

Along the theme of gambling, my Chinese relatives would quite like a mah-jong table at our wedding. I went to a colleagues wedding in Hong Kong and she had mah-jong tables to the side, so I thought, “what a good idea! Lets copy it.” The venue has room for about 3 mah-jong tables, which would provide gaming for 12 people. That is interesting and unique, and also adds a bit of h2b’s culture to our very British wedding. (That’s me there playing mah-jong with my colleagues and friends.)

Without meaning to stereotype, how about a steel drum performance if your h2b is from Jamaica, or descended from people from Jamaica. Or how about an Indian dance performance if you or h2b is Indian. Many of your guests may not be from the same culture as you or your h2b, so a little insight into something typical from your culture would not only entertain but inform! However, saying that, I definitely would not have a maypole dance at my wedding!

Game Time

Also popular at weddings and with kids are the oversized games, such as chess and jenga. Jenga  is fun at the best of times, but oversized jenga is hilarious! Big Fun UK offer oversized Connect 4, Jenga, Snakes & Ladders, Twister, Noughts & Crosses, Chess, Draughts, Limbo and much more! The possibilities for silliness and for entertaining and kids you have at your wedding are endless! But check with your venue first as many venues offer oversized games as part of their wedding package. I need to check if mine does too!

However, I would discourage against any games that can be played with just one person, such as arcade games, as social games would be better for a wedding, like Jenga! Have I mentioned Jenga?

Whoosh and Pow

The ever popular fireworks! Fireworks would definitely add a bit of wow to your wedding. It might be an idea to only have fireworks if you’re having a late spring or summer wedding as your guests dressed up in their finery won’t want to stand out in the cold. The only thing I would say about fireworks is to be aware that the weather can ruin your firework display. Rain or strong wind will make the fireworks less impressive.

Firework providers in the West Midlands:

• Jubilee Fireworks cost between £650 and £1250, depending on which type of display you go for. Jubilee Fireworks are one of the leading display companies operating in this market, staging well over 100 shows a year. They say, ‘our vast repertoire of pyrotechnic effects is such that you can select from a wide spectrum of colours to complement the theme of your wedding, or even 'press the button' to fire the opening volley of fireworks in the display.’ They are based in Kingswinford, just outside Dudley.
• Shockwave Pyrotechnics are based in Redditch. Their website says, ‘Shockwave Pyrotechnics can create a unique show for you and your guests for your Wedding or Civil Partnership. Imagine a Professionally fired Display to round of your special day. We can create Fireworks Displays for all budgets from £600 to £10,000, for you and your guests to enjoy.’
• Sirotechnics cater to the whole of the UK with a variety of wedding packages. Their website says, ‘we are constantly thinking of new and exciting ways to wow the bride and groom, their family and friends on this very special occasion........the first large shell timed to coincide with the cutting of the cake, a musical firework display to accompany the first dance, or a multitude of bright silver fountains lining the walkway as the happy couple exit the church.  The options available from Sirotechnics are virtually limitless as every wedding firework display we create is designed in consultation with you.’ Personally I wouldn’t like to have fireworks go off when I leave the church but I do believe it’s important to have what you want for your wedding, and if that’s what you want, this company will offer it! Prices for packages range from £600 to £2500.

This blog post could go on forever! And it almost has! Personally I think that getting h2b to propose to me in the first place would be ‘wow’ enough for those that know him! I would like to add something special to my wedding. Something in addition to mah-jong, which is adding a cultural element to the wedding. I will continue to hunt for ‘wow’ wedding things and post more later!

To Tan or Not To Tan

To Tan or Not to Tan

It’s your wedding day, one of the biggest days of your life. You want to look your best! You’ve spent hundreds of pounds on a dress, you’ve spent money on your face and your hair. You may have bought some lovely new sparkly jewellery. You have put a lot of effort into your appearance, but what about the colour of your skin?

If you’re lucky enough not to worry about a tan, can I say how jealous us pasty girls are! I accepted a long time ago that I will be pale, I will remain pale and never tan no matter how much I try. All my makeup is geared towards my pale complexion: foundation pale enough not to make me look orange, pink blusher, soft coloured lipstick and lip gloss.

But now with recent developments in the tanning world, a tan is an option! I haven’t tried sun beds, it’s not just the health reasons but I don’t tan through sun exposure so that would be a waste of money. But now there’s spray tanning, having a nice healthy glow is an option.

But here’s why I’m hesitating. Firstly, my makeup is pale. The trial at the makeup artist lady will be pale. If I get a spray tan, won’t that mess up all my makeup? I’m sure she’s talented and experienced enough to deal with that slight skin tone change but what if my makeup looks silly?

Secondly, I buy my wedding dress based on how I look now, what if the dress looks silly when I have tan?

Thirdly, I’ve never had a tan. I just don’t tan, I could sit outside all day in the sun in the middle of summer (wearing lotion because I want to avoid wrinkles and skin cancer) and I still wouldn’t tan. I used to be called the Milky Bar Kid when I was at school. What if I don’t like how I look with a tan?

More importantly, fourthly, h2b met me when I was pale, he proposed to me while I’m pale, he loves me as a pale pasty woman, what if he doesn’t like the tan! I’m walking down the aisle in my mismatched makeup and silly looking dress with a tan and he won’t like it!

Maybe I’m over reacting a little bit. In Bride Wars when  Anne Hathaway (who is almost as pale as me) has her fake tan sabotaged, she was normal colour by the time her wedding came around thanks to lots of showers and lemon juice. So, even if it does go wrong or I don’t like it, there options available to me.

But would h2b like me with a bit of a healthy glow? Would it be an idea to have a tan before we go on honeymoon? I do want to look nice in the pictures. Which way to go?

If you have spray tan regularly or have something to say about this post, please leave a comment because in this instance I need your advice!

Your H2B vs. Your Big Day

Keeping Your H2B Involved
…but Still Having Your Big Day

Most women have been dreaming about their wedding days for years. The last thing you want is h2b coming along and messing it all up. You’ve dreamed about your colours, your bridesmaid dresses, your dress, the venue and the evening party. H2b may have his own ideas and you may or may not want to hear them.

Sometimes h2b has some good ideas.

It is difficult to maintain a balance between involving your h2b and having what you want for your wedding. You may also have parents, siblings and friends who have their own ideas about your wedding.

My top tip to involve your h2b in planning the wedding it to sit down and carve up the jobs. You may be super woman, but no one can plan a wedding by herself and splitting the tasks with your h2b will not only take the stress off you a little but will also set up a partnership that you can take forward into your married life.

Compile a list of wedding jobs. You may feel a little uneasy releasing some of the tasks for your wedding but this is the man you want to marry, he’s going to know how to do things right. If possible, ask h2b to take over the jobs that are stressing you out the most, that way you can concentrate on the fun elements of your wedding.

The logistics of our wedding was stressing me out. How to transport 100 guests from the church to the reception venue across the West Midlands, most of them never having been to the UK yet, never mind the West Midlands! Mum says guests know that they need to arrange their own transport when they attend a wedding but with so many guests taking the time to travel across the world to attend our wedding, we want to provide transport for at least some of the journey. This stressed me out, so I passed the job to h2b.

I love my engagement ring. H2b did a fantastic job choosing my engagement ring all by himself. He chose the diamond, then chose the band. It’s exactly what I wanted. He must know what he’s doing so I asked him to organise the wedding rings. I explained the kind of wedding ring I’d like and found some pictures of it on the internet.

H2b is having an input in the suits for the men. Initially, I wanted dark grey Prince Edward suits, then it changed to charcoal and now they’re black tails! All because h2b had an input, and he’s completely right! I am glad I listened to him and the changes are brilliant.

I also wanted to go back to tradition. Traditionally, it was h2b’s family who planned and paid for the honeymoon so I thought we should continue that through to the modern day and ask h2b to plan our honeymoon. It may be romantic for couples to plan their honeymoon together, or maybe you’re a bit worried h2b will plan a lad’s holiday. Either way, giving the honeymoon responsibility wholly to your h2b might not be your idea of fun. Personally, I’m really looking forward to the surprise. I’m sure over the next 14 months h2b will discuss ideas about the honeymoon with me but the main part will be a surprise! Very exciting!

If you see my free download page, there’s a document available to download which includes a To Do List. You could split up the list and tackle the planning and organising the wedding as a team!

Of course, you could apply to Don’t Tell the Bride and let him organise the entire thing! 

My Venue, Madeley Court Hotel

Madeley Court Hotel

view Madeley Court Hotel website

We’d almost booked Rowton Castle, we almost booked Somerford Hall so that when we looked at Madeley Court I wasn’t expecting much. I absolutely fell in love!

It does have that winding drive way, albeit along side a leisure centre, but a row of trees would hide that fence. It is an old country manor house; it was a catholic stronghold, owned by an abbey but it passed into private ownership at the dissolution of the monasteries. It has been lovingly restored by Madeley’s previous owners and has recently passed into the ownership of Mercure Hotels.

We first saw Madeley Court Jan 2010, I went with my mum to have a look. I was sceptical. The gate house did make me gasp as we came around the corner as it looks like an old castle gatehouse. Just stunning. We had a meeting with Peter, the wedding coordinator, who was so professional and friendly and took the time to show us all around the hotel and the Mill, where our reception will be held. 

The Mill has recently been restored and looks amazing, with a medieval style.There are two minstrel's galleries at either end, medieval paintings across the walls, a gorgeous carpet which can be removed to reveal a dance floor, and plenty of space! The Mill is on two floors, the ground floor is a spacious but dark bar and the top floor is a vast room big enough for a wedding breakfast.

What we wanted was a room big enough for a wedding breakfast and then big enough for a right old knees up in the evening. The Mill at Madeley Court is the first wedding venue that I saw which achieved this. I knew this was something h2b was concerned about, having enough space, so as soon as I saw that this was one of the biggest rooms I’d seen, then I was hooked! It also has the second room for those of your guests who want to retreat from the loud music, the bar downstairs. I also wanted to set up space for some mahjong tables, as I will be having some Chinese guests, and the Mill has plenty of space for this.

And Peter is absolutely fantastic. He’s serious and dedicated and he has a brilliant sense of humour. Just talking things through with him the other day really put a lot of our thoughts at ease. He is full of funny wedding stories, I could listen to him talking about past weddings! My friend’s little sister is getting married at Madeley Court in June, and as soon as I mentioned her name he reeled off her wedding date and knew exactly who I was talking about, even though he must be working with hundreds of couples each year. And yesterday, I was asked at a wedding fayre where my venue is and as soon as I mentioned Madeley Court the chap said Peter was fantastic and we are in safe hands. I really do feel that I’m in safe hands and I believe that Peter will do his best to give us the most wonderful day!

Why We Booked
I have a check list of things I wanted from my venue and Madeley ticked most of the boxes! 

1. Old manor house with lots of character and original features
2. Long, romantic, winding drive down to the manor house
3. Large room for the wedding breakfast and the evening reception
4. Second room for guests to go to if they don’t like the music but still being a part of the wedding
5. Catering and bar services all sorted for us
6. On site accommodation for us and our guests
7. An amazing wedding coordinator who also works as master of ceremonies
8. Ample parking
9. In the countryside

The only element that I don’t like is that Madeley Court is in Madeley and is surrounded by the leisure centre and houses. Luckily it is difficult to see any of these from the grounds and you’re so surrounded by history and beautiful buildings that one tends not to look outside the grounds.

You can see from my photos that the houses and leisure centre are nowhere to be seen. I feel like Madeley Court is a wow venue, and with so many of our guests attending our wedding coming to the UK for the first time, we really wanted something that was going to wow them.

My Recommendations
As Madeley Court is my venue of course I’m going to recommend it. I think that Madeley Court is ideal for a bride who has a moderate sized budget, who loves history and beautiful architecture, and who wants a large-ish space for a wonderful party. It’s ideal for a bride who wants to be taken care of by a wonderful wedding coordinator and yet has her own ideas for how she wants things to be.

It’s difficult to think why I wouldn’t recommend Madeley Court, I think everyone should get married here! Everyone who wants a historical venue. If you want an ultra modern wedding venue then Madeley Court is not for you.

Venues – Sandon Hall

Sandon Hall

View Sandon Hall’s website

This is where a colleague of mine got married. Her wedding photos looked absolutely amazing, especially the ones where she descended down an oak staircase with her new husband. That is the kind of entrance I would like to make at my wedding.

I haven’t actually been to Sandon Hall myself – yet – but it is an impressive building just from these photos. An ancestral mansion, visited by royalty and celebrities, Sandon Hall could be yours on an exclusive use basis!

Their website describes Sandon Hall as ‘beautiful grounds, wood-panelled interiors and majestic sculptures guarantee first rate photographic opportunities.’ You know how I like my photo opportunities. The only point that is a negative for me is that it’s not possible to stay over at Sandon Hall, but they do recommend local hotels.

It wouldn’t be fair for me to make any recommendations as I haven’t been there myself, but I think my colleague who got married here would definitely recommend Sandon Hall for your wedding.

Venues – The Moat House

The Moat House

View the Moat House website

This is the venue at which my best friend held her wedding reception and we had a fantastic time! It’s also where I brought my mother for her 65th birthday! I’m a fussy eater but on both occasions, the food was absolutely delicious! And without us asking, or letting them know we’d booked for a birthday, they served my mum a special birthday selection of chocolates which I thought was very kind!

My friend’s wedding here was wonderful. The day went very smoothly with delicious food and a beautiful back drop for your wedding photos. There is more than ample parking across the stream from the hotel.

We were greeted at the door with reception drinks and my friend had chosen mini doughnuts to be served as a welcome snack between the photos and the wedding breakfast. They were absolutely delicious.

The main room was wonderfully decorated with flowers supplied by the venue and we were seated and served our dinner. I had soup, vegetables in pastry and a chocolate brownie for pudding. All completely delicious and well presented. The service was brilliant and staff were very helpful.

At night time, there are tiny sparkly lights in the trees casting a beautiful light over their small lake. If your photographer is sticking around into your evening do, he/she could take some spectacular photos with that as a backdrop.

Why We Didn’t Book
I didn’t want to have the same wedding venue as my friend. She says she doesn’t mind but we have the same taste in colours, I didn’t want to have the same venue as well! Also, there’s no long winding drive. This winding drive is important to me, I would like my venue off set from the road quite a way. Also, I think the room was a tiny bit small for the number of guests we’d like to attend our wedding.

My Recommendations
After attending a fantastic wedding at The Mill I cannot recommend them enough! I know that my friend had an amazing day and we were well looked after. The breakfasts in the morning were amazing as well. I would recommend The Mill to a bride who is looking for a stylish, beautiful and accessible wedding. It’s easy to get to and stunning to boot!