Its all in the detail...

Whilst you want your wedding as a whole to be stunning and special, your wedding day is ultimately about you, the Bride and Groom. Obviously you want your guests to have a fantastic day, but don't get too caught up on this, bring the day back to yourselves! Its a celebration of your future life together and should be special for the two of you. Its a really lovely idea for the Bride and Groom to do something special for each other. The small details really can make your day perfect.

We wanted to share with you some of our favourite details that Brides and Grooms have done for each other.

Writing letters to each other to be opened on the wedding morning is a really special thing to do. Hand written letters are really romantic and after spending the eve of your wedding apart it will be really comforting and touching to read letters from each other. The letters are just between the two of you so you can write from the heart exactly what you are feeling. Ask the Best Man to deliver the letters to the two of you on the morning of the wedding so that you don't see each other before the ceremony and so that you don't get tempted to open it the night before! If writing a letter really isn't what you are about as a couple then draw illustrations instead. They will be treasured forever.

Image courtesy of Angela Ward Brown Photography

Giving each other gifts on the morning of the wedding is also a lovely idea. Its a popular idea for the Groom to give the Bride jewellery or perfume to wear on the wedding day. It is also popular for the Bride to give the Groom cufflinks or a pocket watch to wear on the day. Why not make it even more special by having the item engraved. It could be engraved with your initials, the wedding date or why not even have the co-ordinates of the wedding venue engraved? If you want to create something even more personal then create a scrap book or memory box filled with all of your special memories so far, something you can continue to add to throughout your future together.

Image courtesy of Columbia Photography 

Create a time capsule on your wedding day! On your wedding day write letters to each other and seal them in envelopes. Place the letters in a chest with a bottle of champagne or your favourite wine and then seal the box. Open the box on your 5th wedding anniversary (or 1st if you don't think you can wait that long!) and then read each others letters whilst you enjoy the bottle of champagne. To make it even more special, get your guests to sign the bottle of bubbly or wine. You could always extend it so that your guests write messages to you to put in the box or provide a Polaroid camera for them to take photos of themselves at your wedding to put into the box which you won't see until you open it 5 years later! Guaranteed that it will bring special memories of your big day flooding back to you!

Image courtesy of This Modern Love

Everyone loves a surprise- especially on their wedding day. A wedding car is usually something that is booked for the Bride but not necessarily for the Groom so why not surprise him with one on the morning of the wedding. Or if the Bride has given up her dream wedding car to pay for other parts of the wedding then book it for her as a surprise- she will be bowled over at the gesture!

Music is a big part of any wedding day. Does your Bride or Groom have a favourite song or is there a song which is 'yours'? If you don't want the full version blaring out whilst you leave the ceremony then ask a string quartet or an acoustic singer to do a special arrangement for you as a surprise. It will be worth it just to see the look of surprise and excitement on your Bride or Groom's face. Bellissimo's Melanie did this for her husband at their wedding. One of her husband's favourite songs is 'It must be love' by Madness and they had chosen to have a string quartet at their ceremony as opposed to tracks played from a stereo so she asked them to do a special arrangement of his favourite song so that they could leave to something more upbeat and to something that had real meaning to them. Four years after their wedding and he still talks about it and is still bowled over by the fact that she did it for him.

Design your wedding bands together so that you have something unique and something that has a bit of each of you in it rather than buying plain bands from the jewellers. Or if the Groom is feeling confident then he could design them as a surprise for the Bride! The fact the Groom has designed them will make them really special and one of a kind. If you don't want to design them yourselves or you can't afford to then get the inside of the bands engraved with a special inscription to make them personal and unique to you. The date of your wedding is always a great way to make your wedding bands unique or how about the title of your first dance? Melanie and her husband have 'always follow your heart' engraved into their rings- it should be something special to you both which means something really special. 

Image courtesy of Harriet Kelsall Bespoke Jewellery

Your wedding dress is something to treasure and keep forever but the Groom's suit often doesn't have the same significance. Make the Groom's suit really special by having a bespoke suit made- after all unlike your dress, the Groom's suit is something that can be worn again and again over the years. Your special day will be remembered on every special occasion that the suit is worn. To make it really special, have your wedding date embroidered onto the collar of the jacket. It won't be seen when he's wearing it but you'll both know its there as a special memento from your day. Melanie's husband had this done for their wedding and they both signed the collar on the wedding day.

We love all of these ideas- they are so personal and romantic! What did you do for each other on your wedding day? We would love to hear your stories! Please share them with us on our Facebook page!

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Gemma and Stuart's Elegant Sunny Wedding

A gorgeous sunny day, Saturday 1^st June 2012 was Gemma and Stuart’s wedding day.

Their reception was to be held at on Stuarts’ parent’s farm in Wimborne. The marquee from Pole to Pole Marquees was set up on their lawn the week before and was installed with cream carpet and stunning crystal chandeliers chosen by Gemma. The day before the wedding, we went to the marquee to dress it. With 120 guests, it took us all day to make sure everything looked perfect!

A special thank you should go to Damien Bailey who was the photographer for Gemma and Stuart’s special day and has allowed us to use his stunning images in this blog.

Although the rain threatened on the morning of the wedding, it soon cleared off to be a beautiful sunny day! We were back to the marquee bright and early the next morning to greet the arrival of the flowers, cake, bar, photo booth and technician for the band.

Gemma and her bridesmaids got ready for the day at her Mum’s house in Throop. Gemma looked breath taking in a custom made Suzanne Neville dress. The beautiful lace and low buttoned back were a perfect, romantic combination. Gemma’s bridesmaids wore pale rose pink floor length dresses by Two Birds which can be tied in up to 15 different ways. Their dresses matched perfectly but allowed them to each wear a style that suited each of them.

The ceremony took place at Throop Church and the girls were all driven to the church in a stunning black and cream classic car provided by Barnes Wedding Cars. Gemma’s Dad gave her away and the ceremony was an extremely moving one but luckily Melanie was on hand with tissues! 

After the ceremony Gemma and Stuart went back to her Mum’s house to have some photos taken in her stunning garden which backs straight onto the river.

Whilst Gemma and Stuart were having photos taken, all their guests made their way back to Stuart’s Parent’s house for the reception. A smaller drinks marquee was set up right next to the house where guests were greeted either with Champagne or Elderflower presse. Gemma didn’t want guests to go into the marquee straight away as she wanted it to be a surprise to them all when they first walked in to sit down for their meal so it was our job to make sure they stayed out! As it was such a beautiful day, all the guests were more than happy to stay outside and enjoy the sunshine! Guests were entertained by Keysworth String Quartet who played amazing versions of songs both new and old- a cover of Coldplay was a particular favourite of ours! They were also treated to delicious canapés of Mini bangers and mash on toast with red onion chutney, Smoked salmon & dill mousse on crostini with keta, Asparagus wrapped in Parma ham with truffle oil, Gazpacho soup shot with basil oil and Wild mushroom and herb tartlets

 

At 2.45pm Melanie called everyone in to the marquee to be seated for the wedding breakfast. By the front door of the marquee was the stunning seating plan in an ornate white antique style frame which was made by Emma Farwell Designs. Next to this was a vintage ivory bird cage for guests to put their cards in. The tables were laid with Ivory table cloths with gold table runners, silver cutlery, ivory napkins rolled and tied with gold ribbons, gold rimmed red wine glasses, gold rimmed white wine glasses, gold rimmed champagne glasses and water glasses. 

The place names also made by Emma Farwell Designs were luggage tag style which were tied around the stem of the wine glasses. Gemma and Stuart opted to give their guests charity pin badges as favours which we put into cute little gold envelopes and leant against the water glasses. In the centre of the tables were stunning floral arrangements by Arcade Flowers. Some arrangements were high whilst others were low and were made up of blush pink coloured roses, stunning peonies and cream roses which also matched Gemma’s bouquet and the bouquets carried by the bridesmaids. The flowers were placed on mirrors and had glass tea lights place around them.  The guests were bawled over by how stunning the marquee looked. Gemma and Stuart were equally as delighted with the end result. In the centre of each table was an envelope. Guests were asked to write their names on either a ten or a twenty pound note and put them in the envelopes. Melanie then went round each table and pulled a note out of the envelope and whoever the winning not belonged to won the beautiful table centre! All the money was donated to a childrens' charity.

Melanie announced Gemma and Stuart in and they were received by a huge cheer and round of applause. Once Gemma and Stuart had made their way to their seats Beales Gourmet started serving the food. The starter was Buffalo mozzarella, avocado and tomato timbale with pesto dressing, followed by roasted Sirloin of Beef with horseradish mashed potato and vegetable bundles served with red wine jus for the main course and a delicious quartet of desserts of fruit skewers with strawberry dressing, apple crumble with rhubarb sorbet, chocolate espresso mousse and passion fruit cheesecake. It was such a beautiful day that Jason from Pole to Pole marquees was able to take the sides off of the marquee.

After the food it was time for the speeches, all of which were very moving but amusing!

By the time this was all done, it was time for the evening guests to start arriving  which meant it was time for cutting the cake followed by the first dance!  But before this it was time for Gemma to change into her Jimmy Choo’s for the evening and add a stunning crystal belt to her dress to add a bit of sparkle for dancing! The cake was a three tier white sugar paste cake which was delicately decorated with lace which was copied exactly from the lace on Gemma’s dress- stunning! The cake was made by Lisa Notely Wedding Cakes and was made up of a chocolate layer, a sponge layer and a fruit cake layer. For their first dance Gemma and Stuart danced to 'Long to be close to you' by The Carpenters and treated their guests to a choreographed dance at a pre-wedding dance lesson. 

Then it was time to get into the real party mood! The cocktail bar provided by the Great Mobile Bar Company was now in full swing and going down very well with guests! The photo booth from Smiley Booth was also set up and getting busy with some fun and fab photos which were to be put into a guestbook for Gemma and Stuart.  Gemma and Stuart also declared their sweetie bar officially open and guests loved  filling up their white and pink stripy paper bags with pick and mix sweets and taking them back to the dancefloor! It was an indulgence that took may right back to their childhood with marshmallows, bonbons, love hearts and sherbet lollies. Gemma and her Bridesmaids had worked really hard creating this sweetie bar and they did an amazing job - it looked fantastic. 

The band, Fat Chance and the Disco provided by MaxDiscos kept the guests entertained and got everyone up on the dance floor! After dancing away, guests were beginning to get hungry again so went outside to indulge in fish and chips from a traditional fish and chip van! Not surprisingly this was a big hit with the guests. And for pudding, a slice of wedding cake which was a choice of traditional moist fruit, chocolate and lemon cake. 

The party continued long into the night, with all the guests enjoying the music and cocktails! 

When Gemma and Stuart returned from their honeymoon they sent us a lovely thankyou card which was so appreciated:

'To Melanie, We miss you! The wedding already seems like a lifetime ago, I wish we could do it all again! Thank you so much for making our day perfect, we have had so many compliments from people and so many guests commented on how fantastic you were. You truly are every girls dream to a perfect wedding! Lots of love Gem and Stu xx'

We loved working on this wedding. Visually it was stunning and we hope we achieved the look exactly how Gemma and Stuart had imagined it but also we loved working with Gemma, Stuart and Gemma's wonderful Mum in the 18 months prior to their wedding day to ensure everything ran perfectly on the day. Gemma and Stuart made their own decisions but valued out ideas and suggestions which made them the perfect couple to work with. We wish Gemma and Stuart lots of love and happiness for their future together.

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Suppliers for Gemma and Stuart's Wedding:

Wedding planning- Bellissimo Weddings- www.bellissimo-weddings.co.uk

Wedding styling- Melanie and Nicolle, Bellissimo Weddings- www.bellissimo-weddings.co.uk

Marquee- Pole to Pole Marquees- www.poletopolemarquees.co.uk/

Photographer- Damien Bailey Photography- www.damianbailey.com

Catering- Beales Gourmet- www.bealesgourmet.com

Wedding Car- Barnes Wedding Cars- www.barnesweddings.co.uk

Flowers- Arcade Flowers- www.arcadeflowers.co.uk

Wedding stationary- Emma Farwell Designs- www.emmafarwelldesigns.co.uk

Cake- Lisa Notley Wedding Cakes- www.cakesbylisanotley.co.uk

String Quartet- Keysworth String Quartet- www.keysworth.co.uk

Bar- The Great Mobile Bar Company- www.thegreatmobilebarcompany.com

Photo Booth- Smiley Booth- www.smileybooth.co.uk

Band- Fat Chance- www.fatchanceband.co.uk

DJ- MaxDiscos- www.maxdiscos.co.uk

Traditional Fish and Chip van- Wedding Fish and Chip Catering- www.fishandchipcatering.co.uk

A day at the races...

On Tuesday we were treated to a very special day out. A couple of months ago a crisp white envelope dropped through our letterbox and inside was a silver embossed invitation, inviting us to a wedding planners hospitality day at Goodwood House. It was an invitation we couldn't turn down, having seen stunning photographs of the venue we were delighted at the prospect of viewing the house and boy were we spoilt! 

Our invitation- we loved the dress code of 'effortless chic'!

Coming down the driveway we were wowed by the impressive Goodwood House. The building from the outside is simply stunning, a very grand Jacobean stately home. Having said this our view was slightly interfered with by a traditional Carousel which was on the lawn right outside the main entrance!

Image courtesy of brucenevillephotography.co,uk

We were greeted by Jill and her lovely team of staff at Goodwood house and were straight away treated to a glass of Champagne. After a quick introduction we were then told it was time for us all to have a go on the carousel- and what fun it was! It took me right back to my childhood although Melanie wasn't sure that she had ever been on a carousel before even as a child so it was a new experience for her! Shocking I know! Being ladies we sat side saddle, going round and round and taking in the breathtaking views of the Goodwood Estate.

Melanie and Nicolle after their ride on the carousel

The day also gave us chance to meet some of our fellow wedding planners from around the UK and catch up with a few old friends from the industry. We love meeting our fellow wedding planners and hearing all about the weddings they have been working on.

Then it was on to the educational part of the day. The tour of the house was stunning! Our guide gave us a potted history of the house whilst the house manager gave us details of how each room would be used for a wedding. The front hall opens out onto the front lawn for sunny days and is a fabulous space for a drinks reception. The dominating marble columns are a stunning feature and the paintings of the local hunt give the room real character and tell the house's story. For a perfect winter wedding the roaring log fires can be lit to create a cosy atmosphere.

The Front Hall- perfect for drinks receptions
Image courtesy of www.statelyhomes.com

We were then led through to the 'old' part of the house which looks out over a small courtyard and lily pond and the beautifully landscaped gardens. The room was filled with amazing portraits and paintings including two paintings of The River Thames and Whitehall which were painted by the famed artist Canaletto. The detail was phenomenal and they looked exactly like photographs. This room could be used for the wedding breakfast for up to 80 people but more often than not, the room is opened up for the drinks reception to allow guests to wander around and have a look at all of the paintings and furniture. The Tapestry room leads off of this room which your guests are also welcome to walk around during the drinks reception. This room is home to stunning tapestries given to the Duke of Richmond who owned Goodwood house in the late 17th Century by Louis XV.

The Tapestry Room
Image courtesy of www.countrylifeimages.co.uk

The very regal Ballroom was jaw dropping. The Ballroom is the most common room used for wedding breakfasts and can seat up to 180 guests. At one end was a huge mirror which adorned the whole end wall, reflecting the room back whilst at the other was the minstrel's gallery which would be the perfect space for a string quartet to play whilst enjoying your wedding breakfast. The spectacular red and gold colour scheme gives a very opulent feel for your reception. The Ballroom opens out onto the Supper room which is a stunning setting for dancing in the evening. 

The Ballroom
Image courtesy of www.stately-homes.com

View of the Ballroom from the Minstrels Gallery- great photo opportunity!
Image courtesy of Segerius Bruce Photography

Whilst the Egyptian dining room is licensed for civil ceremonies, as stunning as the yellow marble walls are, it could be considered a bit of an acquired taste. The Yellow Drawing Room was designed as the grand reception room and is the most popular room to take your vows. The walls are covered with gorgeous rich yellow silk and the room can seat up to 150 guests for a ceremony. The Yellow Drawing room is also the perfect setting for your wedding breakfast and can seat up to 80 guests. Coming just off of the corner of the Yellow Drawing room is The circular Card room. This is where the gentlemen would have retired to play cards after dinner and is now home to a stunning set of Serves blue and green porcelain dessert service. This room is ideal to sign the registers of marriage as it allows the Bride and Groom a few private moments alone together. The space also serves well as a place where the Bride, Groom and Bridesmaids can safely keep their belongings and retreat to for a few moments to themselves.

The Egyptian Dining Room
Image courtesy of www.stately-homes.com

The Yellow Drawing Room which can be used for the ceremony and/or your wedding breakfast
Image courtesy of Country Life

The Card Room
Image courtesy of www.goodwood.co.uk

After the house tour we were treated to a fabulous sit down meal meal where Melanie was head of the table! The fresh local food was just delicious! The waiting staff poured our wine and water and offered us freshly baked bread that was still warm. The main of Pan fried lamb rump, potato gratin and garden pea fondue with thyme jus was incredible. This was followed by Spiced roasted pineapple with bourbon vanilla iced parfait and mango which was divine whilst all the time the attentive waiting staff refilled our glasses with wine and water. This was all finished off with coffee and petit fours.

The menu and our place settings from lunch

As if seeing the spectacular house and being treated to a delicious lunch wasn't enough, it was then time to enjoy a taster of the races at Glorious Goodwood! We were transferred to the racecourse in a private car and were escorted to the Richmond enclosure to our own private box! I did say we had been  thoroughly spoilt! Our box looked directly over the pathway where the runners were led out onto the course and back after the race so we had prime seats. We were also the box closest to the course itself and so had a fabulous viewpoint of the finish line.

Our Passes

The inside of our private box

On arrival we were again greeted with a glass of champagne and wandered out onto the balcony to enjoy the view. Now it was time to get serious and place some bets- its all part of the fun of a day at the races! We decided to take it seriously and not just pick the horses which we liked the colour of the jockey's silks so I spoke to a friend of mine who writes for the Racing Post who gave us some tips for the afternoon's racing. Confidently we placed our first bets and excitedly watched the first race. Despite our tips from a very good source, we didn't win! In fact Melanie's horse came last. Our luck didn't improve over the course of the afternoon, not one of our horses won. And unbelievably, every single one of Melanie's horses came last! Not even the horse named 'Sand and deliver' who we thought might bring us luck with the Beach Weddings Bournemouth connection came through! 

Part way through the afternoon we were treated to afternoon tea which consisted of a selection of sandwiches, homemade sausage rolls, homemade scones and homemade bakewell slices. It was very indulgent after our delicious lunch but we couldn't resist!

OK so we didn't win any money but its the taking part that counts right? We still had fun cheering our horses on and congratulating the few of us in our box that did win. 

Melanie and Nicolle with our amazing view in the background

Overall we had a fantastic day so a big thank you to all of the staff at Goodwood House who looked after us so well. The house was beautiful, the food delicious, the races fun if not lucrative, the company great and the staff were wonderful. We can't wait to go back- hopefully to plan a wedding there!

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