Flowers

I feel that flowers or plants are a very important part of any wedding. Some people think that they are luxury and can be substituted for candles or balloons but flowers or plants bring a wonderful ambience and shouldn't be under estimated. I would even suggest that you cut other items from the wedding to insure having flowers or greenery but If cost is a concern, then there are ways of using fresh flowers that would match the cost of any alternative decorations anyway.

Before picking your flowers make sure you know what's in season so you don't get disappointed.

Spring flowers include 

Lily of the valley

Tulips

Daffodils

Primroses

Hyacinth

Bluebells

Summer

Hydrangea

Peony

Delphinium

Sweet William

Autumn

Snapdragons
Gladioli
Dahlia
Sunflowers
Arum Lily

Winter

Snowdrops

Fruiting Ivy

Dogwoods

Pussy willlow

Catkins

Heather

If you are on a low budget one large flower such as a Hydrangea or Gerbera in a fish bowl with grasses work well. Most florists will loan vases if you purchased your hand ties etc. from them or why not collect your jam jars up, go to a supermarket a day before the wedding and buy up all the flowers that are reduced to clear? This vintage/mis-matched style is very popular at present.

I'm a big fan of plants as table centres. These can then be given as thank you gifts afterwards. 
I recently worked on a wedding where we used no table cloths just beautiful wooden table tops with lavender in pots as centre pieces. Sunflowers in pots and little green plants or herbs look great too.

Photo taken from toastandtables.blogspot.com

We are very lucky to have some great florists in Bristol and recommend the following;

Edward Allen best for a fabulous design!

Lisa Elliott best for the professional touch.

Tilly Tomlinson best for a city centre florist.

Bella and fifi best for local flowers.

1st choice flowers best for budget.

Pompon just the BEST.

Georgina from PomPon flowers really does have green fingers. Her designs are professional, unusual and so so beautiful. 

Georgina when asked;

WHAT FACTORS SHOULD A BRIDE CONSIDER WHEN CHOOSING FLOWERS FOR HER WEDDING?


Came up with these 4 main points :

~ +1

~ In season

~ Less is more

~ Foliage as a flower

To elaborate on these a little;

~ +1

Think of your flowers for your wedding as a guest! They must feel part of the events atmosphere. You must feel comfortable having them there and they must sit well among the other guests. Discreetly noticeable! They affirm your past and the new lifestyle you are embarking on.

~In Season

While England is not known for its endless sunshine what you do have are amazing seasons. Take advantage of this! With this comes a richness and contrast of flower produce at high availability and lower cost. For me flower arranging is very like cooking ; picking different ingredients and combing them to create something delicious! Eat strawberries when its strawberry season…combine with a vase of Sweet peas on the table while eating strawberries = life’s simple pleasures!

~Less is More

This is my most important point! Nature is so beautiful, because it is just that…natural. Do not over complicate!!! Keep it simple. By doing so you create an air of informal elegance.

My way of achieving this is by providing quality, considered produce, with the design ethos of subtle repetition. Repetition acts as a powerful design tool.

~Foliage as a flower

Variegated hosta leaves in a low trough vase, heaven! A bridal poise of silver dusty miller foliage bound with sage green velvet ribbon = natures interpretation of fine lace. Magnolia leaf pedestals, striking and sophisticated. Ivy sandwiched between glass and placed as trays/coasters on the table. Beautiful rosemary herb, green on the surface of the leave, silver colour on the underside. When placed in vases on a white table cloth and with a set up table, the mirrored cutlery reflects the silver undertone hue of the rosemary, pulling the whole environment together…. 

I love foliage! I want more people to love foliage!

We are so dazzled by flowers we forget to notice the foliage. Do no underestimate foliage! Separate from the flowers, and then we begin to focus on the foliage and thus we realize how detailed and beautiful, in colour, form and texture leaves may be. A flower within their own right.

Daffodils and The Navy!

This was my first big wedding of the year and I was very nervous that everything should go well. Of course it did! Molly and Stuart loved everything and so they should as they had incredible taste and I loved helping them create their perfect day. 

These photographs are the courtesy of Sam Clayton Photography

Church - St. Mary Redcliffe, Bristol

Reception + catering - riverstation

Flowers - Edward Allen

Cake - Trethowans Dairy

Dress - unknown 

Theme

At this point it maybe a great idea to think about your theme. I guess you will already have an idea of what style you are after by the type of venue, invitations and dress you have looked into?... 

A great way of getting all your ideas together is by doing a mood board. You can then take this around suppliers and show them what you are after. In my wedding workshops we make mood boards a4 size. It's then easy to carry around. 

You can also do online mood boards. Style me pretty is a great website to try this out or visit Snippet and Ink for truly beautiful samples of the very best wedding mood boards I have ever seen.

If you're not very creative, why not get a professional to help? Most wedding planners will run through themes with you and venue stylists are mind blowing with coming up with bespoke ideas. 

Make sure you get someone who clearly knows what they are doing though. They should have a good website with a great gallery. I recently saw an event where the country theme was rather like a child's circus theme! Eek.. 

One of the best venue stylists in the South West is The Little Wedding Helper. 

Kirsten says - 

Some styling tips for personalising your day...

a theme can help you focus on a look for your wedding. Pick a style that reflects you both as a couple and layering your celebration with details that show this. You may have different styles but this is about thinking about how you describe your relationship. Will your guests recognise certain elements of the wedding as 'very them' or just recognise your reception from different magazines?

Whatever the theme or colour, it's the personal touches that really make it feel special. Think about adding old family wedding photographs, handwritten notes for each guests on their place setting, personalised homemade favours or naming each table after places you have visited together during your courting days! Family members are usually keen to help so if there is a family member who is great with the sewing machine - bunting! Great baking skills? Cupcakes or a selection of puddings! One couple that I worked with were both teachers and so they had a little quiz for each table on who knew them the best! Answers were written on mini blackboards & personalised stickers were printed for guests who got the correct answer!

Photo's above styled by The Little Wedding Helper and photographed by Jo Handsford photography and Howard photography

Wedding Dresses

Oh me, oh my, how do I possibly go about talking about the most important dress of your life! 

I think the most important things to remember when choosing your wedding dress is -


Have fun!
Push the budget if the dress makes you feel a million dollars.
Don't keep searching and thinking you can do better. This will only confuse you.
Don't get pushed into buying a wedding dress and putting a deposit down on the first visit.
Do try and order in advance.
Do think outside the box it doesn't have to be white and big! 
Don't be influenced by bridesmaids and mother in laws.
Do remember when trying on a dress in the shop you can always accessorise a classic dress to make it your own, it doesn't just have to look the way the shop has styled it.
Think about your venue and what would suit. 
Think about what time of year you're getting married. Nothing worse than getting married in a hot country with layers of gown wrapped around you and getting hot and bothered! 

 
 
I love The Mews, Bridal Gowns of Clifton village, Bristol. They have a beautiful shop with not hundreds of dresses but a perfect selection of different styles from vintage to contemporary, classic to the very modern. 
Gail and her team clearly are passionate about what they do. They welcome you with tea or champagne and spend time asking you questions about venue and the time of year you plan to wed. They stock dresses from Amanda Wakeley, Suzanne Neville, Stephanie Allen, Blue and soon to hold Jenny Packham and Matthew Williamson Bridal! Wow... 
 

Dress above from Amanda Wakeley

Dresses above from a collection from Stephanie Allen

If budget is a concern how about buying vintage? 
Websites like posh girl vintage is great if looks for a wedding dress from a bygone era or if looking a little closer to home try The vintage wedding dress company.

Dresses above can be found at posh girl vintage

Oxfam holds some wonderful wedding dresses and so does rokit in London. 
Vogue do some beautiful patterns if you're a dab hand on the sewing machine or why not speak to a college student? Think of the many designers that have emerged from St. Martins? 
 
I found some ladies to be a bit horrid when I was looking around wedding dress shops in the South west (wish I'd know about The Mews then!) and packed in the idea of going to another. Instead I travelled to London to Selfridges and had the most amazing service from a lady at Ralph Lauren. My dress was off the peg and not a wedding dress so I saved £££ but felt beautiful and special on my best day ever. 

Me below on my wedding day!

Read Lovemydress blog for wonderful inspiration!..

May has been manic... A few pictures from weddings that have been keeping me so busy!

Emma & John

6th May

Louisa & Stuart

14th May

Wedding dress blog next!

X

Invitations

The invitation is the first impression a guest gets of your special day.  Classically invitations would be sent by the brides parents and would usually be on white or ivory paper saying we accordingly invite you, etc... but now with so many of us organising our own weddings and being design savvy there are a whole host of options to suit every budget.

Classic invite pic taken from Weddingspot

There are stationers that will not only design your invites but style the whole theme of your wedding and dress your reception too. There are stationers that will design your save the date cards, invites, rsvps, place cards, menus and table plans! There are also many on line design your own invite companies and lots of dIY stationary tips. 

The choice is endless!

So how do you choose?  

If design is your thing and you have a little money to throw at invites then visit someone like Archibald Edwards to guide you every step of the way. You can visit them in their delightful cottage where you can sit and drink tea while some designs are drawn up on the spot for you.  

Ditsy chic have a fab selection of design savvy invites. I particularly like the wedding passport invites. Great for abroad weddings or if your throwing a wedding party on return from your big day!

If budget is a concern there are a few low budget options. The cheapest is at no cost at all! Getting married let you do online invitations that you can build in your own time and all you have to do is email your friends and family the link. Don't think that they look awful either, they don't.. They have some beautiful designs to choose from and you could wow your guests with your 21st century invitations. This is a great example -

http://hewiandsamcantwaittobe.gettingmarried.co.uk/

I would suggest if on a low budget you go for classic design rather than a bold print, as on cheap paper they can look tacky. Vista prints is a great website that you can create your own invites and has hundreds of designs. 

Another option if on a low budget is to make your own stationery. I did for my wedding party! I took a photo I had taken and had lots of copies made then stuck them to the front of some blank cards. I then tied a ribbon around the edge and had a ink stamp saying 'lets celebrate' stamped on the front!  You tube has some good step by step instructions on how to make your own invites very simply or why not print out your invitation on coloured paper and make it into origami?

Here are some great british wedding stationery companies I adore...

Hummingbird Card Company

Emily Golden 

In the treehouse

Inky ever after

Photo from Zahir Photography

Ok!

So in my last few blogs we have covered your budget, what time of year you would like your wedding to take place, legal stuff required, what type of venue and putting together a timeline...

Now comes the fun part! Shopping for your wedding!!

I will be covering invitations, wedding dresses, local suppliers, such as florists, venue decorators, entertainment, transport, photographers, cake makers etc.

I've also still got a couple of spaces left for the next 'Wedding Workshop' on April 23rd so please don't hesitate to contact me if you would like to join us for all your wedding questions answered and a spot of lunch on the harbor.....