Fabulous Singer

Last weekend we had the pleasure of dining at The Christchurch Harbour Hotel, Mudeford whilst being entertained by the beautiful voice of Jodie Elms who is singing at the hotel on Friday and Saturday evenings http://www.christchurch-harbour-hotel.co.uk. Jodie is a local talented singer/songwriter and vocal coach. See http://www.myspace.com/jodiesjazz and we are hoping to work with her in the future for weddings and events

Photographs courtesy of http://www.rickmilnes.com

Baby Showers - The American Way

Baby Showers – American style

It seems like the long-standing American tradition of throwing a baby shower is finally starting to take off in the UK. At last! As a former New Yorker, who has lived in England for the past 6 years, I am thrilled to see that more people are throwing showers as they are such a fab way to celebrate the impending arrival of a little one as well as to help prepare the Mum-to-be for her new role.

While every baby shower is different, there are three parts to a shower that remain consistent– the serving of food and drinks, baby shower games and the giving of baby-related gifts to the Mum-to-be.

Baby showers can range from holding a small get together at someone’s home for a handful of the mum-to-be’s closest friends to a lavish event for 50 + at a restaurant. Anything goes these days. It’s all about what works best for the mum-to-be and the hostess

If you would like us to help you throw a baby shower - call to speak to us

Stephanie Thorne

Images courtesy of www.designmom.com

and www.favortreasure.com

Email or not to email?

Whilst working on one of our weddings for spring 2010, we have been putting some thought into invitation etiquette with the bride and groom. The bride and groom would like to receive their RSVPs by email to keep things simple and organized but we have also talked about some guests like to have the opportunity to respond by formal paper RSVP. In the future, it may be nice for the bride and groom to keep these to look back on as memories of their wedding or is that just too sentimental in this day and age? Some people are choosing now to even send email invitations for their wedding and do away with formal stationary all together? Good cost saving and modern or a little to impersonal? Whatever you do, it must be the personal choice of the bride and groom and reflect their styles and personality. Have you had a modern style of wedding invite and what did you think? What about for other non-wedding events – would you be happy to receive an email invite and RSVP my email?

How about a joint wedding and christening?

The Church of England have come up with a novel idea of a 2-in-1 wedding and christening ceremony. Responding to statistics that 1 in 5 couples who marry in church already have children, the Church consider this is a great way of encouraging couples to baptize their children into the Church and avoid the costs of two ceremonies and celebrations. See this link. What do you think? Would this encourage you to have a wedding/baptism ceremony? If you chose to consider this for your own family let us know – we would love to hear from you and could certainly help you to arrange a wonderful double celebration and make great savings along the way.

Special Offer for On the Day Management

We have a few dates available for late September and October for our “On the Day Management” service and are offering a reduced rate - 10% off our normal price of £300 to £270 (no VAT). This fab last minute service can be introduced to your wedding plans late in the day – even 1 to 2 weeks before the wedding. We will meet with you and take details of all your plans and we then become the point of contact for all of your suppliers leaving you to relax and enjoy the build up to your wedding. We produce a schedule for the day with you and arrive on the day of your wedding to make sure everyone arrives when they should eg the room is dressed as you require, everything arrives as it should and we are there to deal with any trouble shooting or stress on the day – rather than you! Our package includes up to 10 hours of attendance at your wedding. Call now to discuss and check availability. 01202 533014

Props/theming for New Years Eve Charity Ball

We have recently spent some time at The Italian Villa, Compton Acres http://www.the-italian-villa.co.uk planning the theming and decoration of the Villa for our fabulous New Years Eve charity ball for Julias House. Its going to be very exciting – the ideas for turning the venue into a Moulin Rouge style venue are wonderful and the Villa is going to have a beautiful feel and look for the evening. Tickets go on sale in early September – you can email us to add your name to the waiting list for tickets when they are released: melanie@bellissimo-events.co.uk

Image - courtesy of www.the italian-villa.co.uk