Merry Christmas!

With Christmas just around the corner we thought we would create a Christmas inspired mood board to give you some ideas if you are busy planning a Christmas wedding for next year (Probably a bit late for any Christmas weddings for this year!) or to give you ideas of how to style your home this Christmastime.

We wish all of our clients, colleagues, friends and family a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Melanie, Nicolle, Hazel and Natasha
at
Bellissmo Weddings and Events, Simply Events and Beach Weddings Bournemouth

xxxx

Image credits
Christmas Tree Rockefeller Centre- nycinsidersguide.com
Christmas Pudding- itv.com
Branches and baubles- picasavadymguliysgallery.com
Christmas table setting- potterybarn.com
Wedding tables- Jeremy Enness Photography
Christmas cocktail shakers- potterybarn.com
Holly- woodlands.co.uk
Snowey Wedding- James Melia Photogrphy
Bridesmaids- Susan Jackson Photography
Bauble- wallcoo.net
Gingerbread Christmas Tree- dreamingofwinter.blogspot.co.uk
Candles- Jeremy Enness Photography
Fireplace- freechristmaswallpapers.net
Candy cane floral centre piece- myecochicwedding.com
Bauble Christmas Tree- CHS Creative Productions
Front Door- potterybarn.com
Sledge- potterybarn.com
Fireplace with stockings- Jeremy Enness Photography
Outdoor Christmas Tree- Jeremy Enness Photography
Pine cone place names- ehow.com
Christmas presents- debretts.com

Autumn Wedding Styling

We were that inspired by the Autumn moodboard we created that we have been on the hunt for great Autumn themed wedding styling! And boy have we found some beauties! Here are some of our favourite ideas

Image courtesy of www.papa-products.com

What a wonderful back drop for your photos on your special day! The colours are magical.

Image courtesy of aveniabridal.com

Yummy toffee apples reminiscent of Bonfire night! Great idea for a sweetie table, favours or late night snack!

Image courtesy of www.joyofkosher.com

Perfect idea for place names- very simple but will look very striking and can suit two completely different colour schemes depending on whether you choose to use red or green apples.

Image courtesy of www.potterybarn.com

Very simple but incredibly effective. Let the excitement of your big day build by going to collect acorns or chestnuts with your fiance in the few weeks running up to your wedding.

Image courtesy of www.potterybarn.com

This interpretation of jars of acorns has a really rustic handmade feel to it- the perfect way to personalise your wedding.

Image courtesy of www.potterybarn.com

Create a striking entrance table to your venue by filling glass jars full of natural goodies collected on long autumn walks.

Image courtesy of www.potterybarn.com

These autumn lanterns will add a warm glow to your wedding, making it feel all cosy and romantic! Perfect for lining the aisle, using as centre pieces or putting outside to lead to way for your guests in the evening.

Image courtesy of www.terrymatthews.co.uk

Maybe not technically styling, but setting up an area for a game of conkers would be a fun way to get your guests involved and interacting with each other. Might be a good idea to provide rules and goggles for anyone who gets too competitive though! A themed area set up with rules, conkers and signs would look really great.

Image courtesy of www.potterybarn.com

Pumpkins! The epitome of Autumn. These gold painted pumpkins look amazing in a bowl altogether as a centre piece or would look great as place names with brown luggage labels tied onto the stalks.

Image courtesy of www.potterybarn.com

Inject a bit of colour with some coloured glass. These are real statement pieces and would look fantastic on pedestals at the entrance.

Image courtesy of Blue Sky Photography

Create a 'wow' focal point with minimal effort- collect some logs to create chunky candle stands. Be sure to cover up the naked flames with covers like these.

Image courtesy of Blue Sky Photography

You might think this is an idea reserved for Halloween only, but we disagree! Bring some fun into your big day and carve pumpkin lanterns for when it gets dark. This example fun but still remains classy and romantic. If you're up for some real fun, buy some pumpkins and get your guests to carve them, hours of guaranteed entertainment but make sure you provide aprons so the ladies don't get their frocks covered in pumpkin!

Image courtesy of www.styleunveiled.com

A fab alternative to a guestbook and perfect for an autumn wedding- each of your guests can add leaves to your tree by leaving their finger prints. A really personal idea which will look beautiful framed and hung on your living room wall afterwards!

The great thing about autumn weddings is that they are perfect for simple, home made and rustic styling. And whats more, most things can be found around you in your garden or out on a walk- you will have great fun collecting bits and pieces with your loved one in anticipation of your big day and each of you will feel proud of your contributions on your big day!

x

Autumn Inspiration

This past week has seen the colder weather creeping in, with Autumn technically starting on 22nd September this year. Whilst autumn that bring depressing thoughts for some meaning that its almost winter, we think autumn is a wonderful time of the year! So many rich and wonderful colours around as the leaves begin to fall from the trees! Autumn is the perfect time of year to enjoy a walk through the woods or the park, with wellies on, kicking the leaves around.

Autumn weddings are by no means the most popular but they could be considered the most beautiful and interesting with heaps of inspiration if you're looking for a more rustic, natural wedding.

We've put together a moodboard to inspire you for an autumn wedding! There are so many different rich and vibrant colours you could choose from- the silver of the tree bark, the reds and oranges of the leaves, the greens of the vegetables and conkers, the golds of the autumnal sunsets. The colours are simply stunning and all work really well together.

x

Image credits

Wedding dress in the woods- thaoski.com
Leaves- reception-wedding.com
Cart with pumpkins- my.opera.com
Tree lined avenue- irishviews.com
Green Bridesmaid dresses- weddingdresses4love.com
Orange Tree- vanniconstruction.net
Orange Bridesmaid dresses- Todd Rafalovich
Orange tree lined avenue- wallpaper-pack.com
Green, yellow, red and orange trees- gbweekly.co.nk
Vegetables- Oli Scarff/ Getty Images
Leaves- todayifoundout.com
Kicking leaves with wellies- happenupon.files.wordpress.com
Orange bouquet- aperfectcelebration.com
wedding dress with wellies- thaoski.com
Conkers- thefamily.com

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!

x