Its all about the cake...

The tradition of a wedding cake is believed to date back to the Medieval times. Originally made of wheat which was a symbol of fertility and prosperity. Since then it has evolved into something so much bigger with cakes now looking like stunning pieces of art with so many flavours to choose from it really does become such a huge decision in the wedding planning process.

(photo courtesy of cakesbylisanotely.co.uk)

Amazing chocolate fudge wedding cake by the talented Lisa Notley. 

Melanie had this cake for her own wedding so can certainly vouch for how wonderful it was!

Traditional wedding cakes used to be one tiered with multi -tiered cakes reserved for English royalty. Now we see wedding cakes with all sorts of numbers of tiers with some elaborate creations. All the flavours you can imagine can now be used as the basis of these cakes.

As with everything cakes seem to go in and out of fashion  Since the summer we have seen the increase in couples choosing alternatives to the traditional tiered wedding cake. Traditionally  fruit based cakes  with white icing was the choice for  a wedding. However a good wedding cake creator can normally offer you a range of flavours - why not have each tier in a different flavour and maybe one in traditional fruit to keep for the future? 

Cupcakes have seen a rise in popularity over the past few years and it still seems to be a choice for some brides for 2011 and 2012 weddings.  It is a bit of a "Marmite" thing - either we find brides who are set on having a tower of cupcakes or during our initial consultation the conversation gets on to cakes and its a definite "no" to cupcakes with traditional cakes ruling the way!

(photo courtesey of foxs-cupcakes.co.uk)

Cupcake tower created by Fox's Cupcake Company. 

Fox's Cupcake Company based in Dorset can create some delicious cupcakes in all manner of colours and flavors. In the image above you can see a selection of cupcakes in a tower with one tier of a traditional cake on top. To incorporate both the traditional and this new cupcake fashion this could be a good option. 

(image courtesy of foxs-cupcakes.co.uk)

A wonderful cupcake tower with miniature and standard cupcakes coordinated with the couple color scheme and a traditional one tier cutting cake on top which is a good idea if you would still like to have the tradition cake cutting photograph/ceremony.

If your looking for something a bit different this is available in the form of alternative wedding cakes and other delightful treats! The Wedding Cheesecake Co will supply you with a cake but this is no ordinary cake it is one which is layers of cheese! For all you cheese lovers out there this is the perfect wedding item for you. It will give the guests something to talk about when they walk in and instead of seeing an iced cake they see a fabulous selection of cheeses,  this can be taken and cut down in the kitchen to serve as an alternative to desert or perhaps a cheese course following desert or maybe used for your evening buffet served with a beautiful cascade of breads and olives and fruits. This can be a good way of saving some costs on the day.

(photo courtesy of theweddingcheesecakeco.com)

 The Wedding Cheese Cake Co.

(photo courtesy of cakesicles.co.uk) 

Another little idea- decadent miniature cakes on lolly sticks. Dipped in chocolate and coated in your choice of sprinkles or drizzles.

The Cupcake Boutique based in Dorset have introduced the Dorset wedding world to a little thing called "whoopie pies". Described as a sinfully sweet sandwich, these are an alternative to the fashionable cupcakes. They are sandwiches of cakes filled with cream or frosting. The Cupcake Boutique are offering five flavors currently consisting of: Vanilla, Chocolate, Lemon, Chocolate, Raspberry truffle and Passion fruit. Alternatively they will be happy to try out any new flavors you may have in mind. 

(photo courtesy of thecupcake-boutique.co.uk)

The wonderfully colorful Whoopie Pies! 

Cupcake & Co  based in Poole Dorset can create stunning cupcakes with any of your ideas. Established in April 2009 by a mother and daughter team their cupcakes are of the highest standard and they are created with you in mind.

These cupcakes were created by Cupcake & Co for one of our brides in 2010. Lemon cupcakes with vanilla frosting and edible gold leaf. The bride and groom didn't want a traditional cake with cake cutting so decided on these elegant cupcakes that fitted in effortlessly with their vintage theme.

(photo courtesy of Cupcake & Co)

What about Louise Sinclair of award winning Dorset based Couture Cake Company who creates beautiful bespoke cakes designed to your specific needs. Also a patisserie queen Louise is perfect for all your event needs. After making cakes and other treats for friends and family Louise decided to turn this passion into a business and is in the process of completing all sorts of  further certificates in sugar craft, patisserie, baking and confectionery.

A recent New York skyline cake created by Couture Cake Company for a surprise birthday party which we recently planned for one of our clients.

Fancy a cupcake in a jar? Or what about an apple pie flavored cupcake look no further than Lulubelles Cakes. Available in a huge array of flavors and themes they can create your dream cupcake selection.

 Beautiful pastel cupcake tower from Lullabelles

Cupcake jars from Lullabelles- a possible wedding favor idea or just a lovely unique gift for someone. 

Representing togetherness the traditional cake topper became a huge craze in the 1950's in the United States. Traditionally it would be the bride and groom in formal attire, with the bride in her white dress and veil and the groom in his suit. However this has changed with the times and now you can get almost anything to decorate the top of your wedding cake.

 (image courtesy of weddingcaketopperstore.com)

Traditional wedding cake topper. 

(image courtesy of weddingandcakes.com)

A non traditional yet very chic wedding cake topper. Perfect for all those couples going for a very modern wedding. 

Or you could opt for a fun and very modern cake topper like those created by Nikki from Cake by  Creative Cakes by Nicki/Clay Buddies 

If you have a real sweet tooth there are so many other ways to incorporate lots of treats for you and your guests. How about a candy buffet table? filled with your favorite sweets. American queen of candy buffet/dessert tables Amy Atlas. Her creations are a sweet lovers heaven. 

(image courtesy of wendymyers.wordpress.com)

An example of a Candy Buffet table that can be colored to match the scheme of the day.

 (image courtesy of decor8blog.com)

 A stunning creation by Amy Atlas

(image courtesy of decor8blog.com)

The work of the amazing Amy Atlas

Locally in Dorset you can have your very own dessert bar created for your wedding or event  by Sweet Dream Events - Hannah is extremely talented and her work which you will find details of on her website speaks for itself  Sweet Dream Events

Going for a vintage theme? What about a wonderful vintage ice cream van to arrive during the wedding breakfast to serve some delicious traditional ice cream to all the guests. Vintage scoops will serve traditional home made ice cream out of there beautiful 1950s ice cream van named 'Betty'

(image courtesy of fiftieswedding.com)

Betty would be a great addition to anyone's event.

I hope this has given you some ideas for your wedding day. When going to discuss having your wedding cake made be sure to sit down and express all your ideas, companies are willing to do as much as they can to make sure your cake or your alternative is the way you want it. Try to have a taste of the type of cake or treat which you intend to serve as some cakes can look great but the taste is so important so be sure to try too - that's one of the great sides of planning your wedding! 

For more help on supplier sourcing for your cake or sweet treats then contact us

We would be happy to help!

Frances Edwards

UKAWP - Wedding Planning Excellence Seminar 2011

As a member of the UKAWP this year they have asked Melanie to speak at the UKAWP's Wedding Planning Excellence seminar which is to take place Friday 4th March and Saturday 5th March 2011 in London and the subject Melanie will be covering is about the legal aspects of wedding planning drawing on her previous career in law and her current business of a wedding planner.  Melanie is hoping to shed some light on valuable points which planners may wish to have some clarity on regarding those legal issues which can arise in the life of a wedding planner.

The seminar is a designed for wedding planners to enable them to increase their knowledge of the wedding world. UKAWP hope all those attending will leave with lots of exciting ideas for how they can develop their business in the future. This year they have a wide range of speaker in attendance talking about all sort of elements that go into a wedding. With two full days filled with opportunity to improve and promote your business.

The UKWAP website states the benefits of attending as:

• Detailed and highly practical presentations from industry experts
• Motivational business presentations to drive your business on
• Opportunity to invest in your future
• Networking opportunities with your colleagues 

Melanie was delighted to have been featured today in a speaker's focus blog about the event which is set out here for you 

WPE Speaker Focus: Melanie Kiani

January 31st, 2011 by Sandy

Following on in our series of introductions to WPE 11 speakers, I am very pleased to introduce one of our UKAWP members, Melanie Kiani of Bellissimo Events, who will be drawing on her previous career to present the legal issues surrounding weddings……….

What’s your USP?

Giving my clients the highest possible level of service and attention to detail in everything that I do with an experienced legal brain thrown in to ensure all the legal considerations of any wedding or event is covered.

What’s your signature dish?

I am a big foodie so I have lots of dishes I love cooking for friends and family - whatever I do I just love having the house full of people enjoying themselves and eating my homemade food and drinking plenty of good wine. Savoury is definitely my thing but I do also made a mean chocolate brownie.

Do you have a favourite restaurant?

Depends on what food I am in the mood for but a nice meal out with my husband or friends has to be The Guildhall Tavern, Poole Quay - wonderful fish with an ice cold bottle of Muscadet and they always look after you and remember what you like.

How would your clients describe you?

I am honoured to say that my clients say that I am one of the my organized and efficient people they have ever met and really enjoy having me on board and working with me which is hugely satisfying.  Having had a 12 year career in the law leading up to starting my business which is now in its third year certainly helped develop those skills. I am a “details” person so I am always looking for the detail in everything.  That’s very important to me and I like to think that my clients notice that and like that about me.

Have you ever had a challenging client and how did you deal with it?

All clients are challenging in their own way as each wedding or event you plan and each couple you deal with is completely different and may require different skills. I find that good communication with my clients from the outset to establish what they can expect from me and what I can do for them is a great way to get the relationship off on the right food.  There will always be challenges along the way but I thrive on dealing with those and turning around any difficult situations.  Good people skills is essential for this job.

What’s your biggest achievement since launching?

You have to look back quite often to see where you were in the beginning and where you are now to remind yourself of the achievements in launching a business from nothing - during hard economic times which some people would say is crazy!  Going into profit in year three is an achievement and I was pleased to be asked to present the last series of Three Grand Weddings due to be shown on Wedding TV during 2011. However, most of all I feel a huge sense of achievement with the weddings and events that we have helped to plan and co-ordinate and the lovely comments we get as feedback afterwards and knowing that our clients have had the day they wanted and your involvement has made a big difference.  Seeing the photographs or videos and receiving those thank yous afterwards is very satisfying and at a lot of weddings since launching we have had special “thank yous” and mentions during wedding speeches which is a real honour to be included at such an important part of the proceedings.

What is your vice? 

Wine, cheese and bread - all the things I shouldn’t have!  Plus anything for the kitchen and shoes!

Describe yourself in 3 words

Organised, hard-working and efficient

Name one blog you follow religiously

Ok hands up - I have lots of great blogs on my reader account but I am not great at religiously following them!  I try to concentrate more on keeping my own up to date and spending time on my Twitter and Facebook pages and when I get a free hour or so I have a hunt to see whats new and whats around.  I do prefer bridal magazines to keep in touch - old fashioned kind of girl in some ways!

This entry was posted on Monday, January 31st, 2011 at 10:16 am and is filed under Speaker Focus, WPE 11. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site. 

For more information about WPE 2011 log on to  WPE 2011

 

Frances Edwards

Christmas and New Year engagements - congratulations!

Whilst some of us were waking up to gifts that were the norm  for Christmas this year, some were waking up to a proposal and a beautiful rings. As the clock struck midnight on New Years  Eve many were set for a very exciting 2011. It is known that the festive period is a very busy time for wedding proposals and  I'm sure 2010 has been no different.  We usually see a flurry of activity around this time with couples making enquiries with us for this year or next following an engagement over the festive season - happy times!

 (image courtesy of weddingwhirlwind.wordpress.com)

Newly engaged couples will now be busy scouring those magazines and surfing the net for ideas for their own weddings and civil partnerships and looking for ideas and for venues and those all important suppliers. However for some the thought of organising a wedding can be a very daunting experience. Whether it be because you have too many ideas and can't pick one or you have a very demanding life that simply won't allow for what is said to be an average of 250 hours needed to plan your wedding.  Some people are just not cut out for hours and hours of hunting through websites or would rather use someone who has the experience to know who to use - or more importantly - who not to use!

 (photo courtesy of Jennifer Sinclair Photography)

Some people believe wedding planners are reserved for the rich and famous, however they couldn't be more wrong. In using a wedding planner you could in fact save the amount on suppliers that it has cost you to hire the wedding planner in the first place. Wedding planners have good relationships with suppliers and can point you in the direction of the best deals for your money.  Also we aren't there to make all the decisions for you, we will work with you and incorporate every idea you have.

(photos courtesy of Angela Ward Brown)

The team at Bellissimo are here to help in whichever we can and since the business was established we have helped our couples in a variety of ways.  Whether you need your whole day planned or you need help with finding your venue. We have a selection of services to suit you, if you have any specific requirements please don't hesitate to contact us and we will do what we can to make sure your day is perfect.  Some of our couples use us for everything - full planning.  Some just for on the day co-ordination.  We also offer services in between.

No matter to what degree you use our services one thing is clear that we are so lucky to have had so many  nice comments and testimonials from our couples who are delighted that they found us and helped to make their day so special and stress free.  Take a look at what some of our couples say about us Bellissimo Testimonials page .  All of our testimonials are entirely genuine and we are proud to share these. 

We offer a free consultation for couples who then go on to book our services for partial or full wedding planning or if you just want to "brainstorm" some of your ideas why not hire us just for that?  During January and February we have a fresh new offer for you where we can come to you (within a 20 mile radius of our offices in Bournemouth) and offer you a 2 hours brainstorming session to get you to started and for us to give you some insider knowledge and hints and tips on where to start for £75 all in.

So, if you want to get off on the right track with your wedding plans then give us a call.  We are here to help you.

Frances Edwards

01202 533014
www.bellissimo-weddings.co.uk