Tag Archives: preparation

Surprise your guests

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When it comes to weddings, there are many opportunities to surprise the bride and groom. Be it with gifts, a fun interactive game for the newlyweds to engage in during the wedding reception or the Best Man’s speech, each surprise is sure to delight and entertain those in attendance. But what about surprising the bride and groom with some wedding entertainment? Here are three brilliant options.

Singing Waiters

Perhaps the most famous of the surprise acts, since their arrival on the events scene over the past decade, Singing Waiters have been a hugely popular booking for weddings each and every year. Working as part of the catering staff throughout the wedding breakfast, Singing Waiters surprise every person in the room by breaking out into song at a pre-arranged time. Perhaps the bride and groom have a special song that would be perfect for the Singing Waiters treatment? Hugely fun, this is sure to stun the room.

Stand Up Opera

One for the couple who love a bit of musical theatre, Stand Up Opera is a comedy and music performance unlikely anything you’ve ever seen! The concept begins during the drinks reception, where two charismatic performs will mingle with other wedding guests. Later in the day, the duo take centre stage to commemorate the new Mr. & Mrs. but their witty chatter quickly turns into an impressive and unexpected performance with operatic and classical crossover duets. The perfect blend of laughter and spine-tingling music for your big day!

Breakdancing Waiters

For those who are familiar with flash mobs, Breakdancing Waiters shouldn’t be too hard to explain. For the uninitiated, a flashmob is when a group of people who appeared not to be linked suddenly break out in song and dance! If you book Breakdancing Waiters for your wedding, you’ll receive a troupe of performers who immerse themselves among the wait staff and then break out into a stunning dance routine that will shock everybody in the room. A tremendous alternative to Singing Waiters but just as enjoyable!

 

Planning a wedding when pregnant

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Life has an excellent little habit of throwing lots of stuff at you at once and getting hitched when you’re pregnant to some women may be totally daunting. Often you don’t plan a wedding around a pregnancy and vice versa, however, it is possible to plan and have the best wedding ever when you’re a pregnant bride. Here’s how!

The dress

Some advice to all brides, pregnant or not, is to choose a wedding dress that makes you feel fabulous and is comfortable. Comfort is often treated as the second cousin, when it comes to wedding attire, which is a shame because a big factor in looking good is feeling good. If you can’t breathe, sit down or dance without wincing, if you have to wear three spanx to suck it all in, then maybe that’s not the dress for you. If you’re looking for maternity dress inspiration, then there is a plethora of celebrity pregnant brides to check out, very few of which, hid the bump. Whatever dress you choose make sure you have a good chat to your seamstress about how alterable the outfit is as it can be hard to predict how your body is going to be changing.

Shoes

This is one that’s often forgotten but pregnancy can cause swelling in lots of different places, one in particular…your fingers! Be mindful of your wedding and engagement ring size. If you have a wedding ring fitted while you are pregnant, it may need resizing later on. Another option is to use a substitute ring on the day, get something cheaper and save the real ring for later when you finger return to ‘normal’.

The party

It’s a big day… emotions are heightened, endorphins are flowing, make sure you look after yourself and listen to your body. If you need a rest. Have a rest. If you want to dance your behind off, then by all means, have a great time!

Planning

Be strategic in your planning. Work in ways to sit when you can, schedule in little down time moments and use other people to help you. YES, you are superwoman…we all are but you will be surrounded by many helper bees that want to assist you on the day and in the lead up to your wedding. Accept help, drink lots of water, have snacks at the ready and make sure you have easy bathroom access!

 

The perfect smile

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When planning a wedding 20% of adults feel judged because they have crooked, bucked or goofy teeth, and it looks like weddings make those people even more self-conscious!

Many of those surveyed described landmark events like weddings, christenings, special birthdays and so on, as a primary motivation to enhance their looks, with 6% undergoing orthodontic treatment to get themselves the perfect smile ahead of a milestone event.

The survey also revealed that weddings are the landmark event where concern about our appearance is most prevalent – 63% looked for ways to improve their looks before a wedding. Perhaps because so many pictures are taken on the big day?

Smiles are on full display, not only for the bride and groom, but the other members of the bridal party too – the mother of the bride, the bridesmaids, in fact, everyone will get snapped up by the wedding photographer at some point!

The rise in the use of digital camera and smartphones has led to a massive increase in the number of pictures being taken, particularly at the major events in our lives, like weddings! It is estimated that last year, there were 809 billion photographs taken in 2014, up from 664 billion in 2013.

Weddings are the landmark event where concern about our appearance is most prevalent – 63% looked for ways to improve their looks before a wedding. Perhaps because so many pictures are taken on the big day?

Little wonder the number of adults straightening their teeth is growing exponentially every year. This has been attributed to the fact that straightening one’s teeth has never been simpler or more discreet.

Invisible braces have become so popular and so frequently requested by adults because it is virtually undetectable. It has been equated with contact lenses compared with glasses – where no one needs to know that you are having correctional treatment. The system works by repositioning teeth discretely, little by little, using a series of custom made clear plastic ‘aligners’ which are changed in two weekly increments.

The aligners are custom made according to a treatment plan, specially trained orthodontists and dentists who combine their clinical diagnostic skills with the use of the latest digital scanning technology and 3D software to plot the way the teeth should move over a period of weeks – and this is demonstrated to the potential patient before they embark on their treatment so that they can see the predicted desired outcome at the outset.

 

Wedding Shoes

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Whilst the wedding dress is usually the most exciting part of your bridal look, your wedding shoes are just as important. Here are some wedding shoe tips to ensure your shoes are comfortable and perfectly complement your wedding dress and personal style!

  1. Wear your Wedding shoes in.

We recommend breaking them in before your big day. Wear them around the house, to help soften them up and practice that all important walk!

If your wedding shoes are particularly slippy it may also be worth gently sanding the soles with sand

  1. Shoe Accessories

Make sure you have these must have shoe accessories for your wedding day!

  • Heel grips – if your feet keep slipping out the back
  • Gel insoles – to reduce the pain you get on the balls of your feet from standing up or dancing, for a long period of time.
  • Shoe protector spray – to protect your shoes from watermarks and stains.
  • Clean heels – to stop you sinking in the grass!
  1. Do they compliment your wedding dress?

There are a couple of reasons to try on your wedding shoes with your dress. Firstly you want to ensure that the colour and style suit the style of your bridal gown. If you have already been wedding dress shopping you will have come to realise that wedding dresses don’t just come in ivory or white.

Obviously carrying your dress around with you whilst you shoe shop isn’t exactly convenient, so try and get hold of a swatch of the fabric that matches your dress. Either ask the bridal shop where you purchased your dress, to send you one or see if there is something small from the dress you can take such as a sash or removable strap.

Secondly it is important that you try your shoes on with your dress to check if the hem needs altering. Ideally you want the hem to sit just off the ground to ensure you don’t trip. Bare in mind that when you are walking down the aisle, you are going to have a bouquet in one hand and the person that is giving you away in the other. You won’t have hands free to hold up the front of your dress too.

  1. You get what you pay for.

Brides to be usually feel it’s a waste to spend money on something that won’t really be seen under a long dress and that you will only wear once. However, you are going to be on your feet all day so we recommend investing in a good quality, comfortable pair of shoes, which won’t ruin your day with sore feet. Good quality wedding shoes don’t have to break the bank.

  1. Wearing the right shoe size

Do you go up or down a size? We’d always recommend going up. Your feet will swell as the day goes on, which means they will begin to pinch if you opted for the smaller shoe. Shoes that are slightly too big can easily be amended with insoles and heel grips and can be removed later in the day when your feet swell to fit.

  1. A comfier pair for the evening.

If you just can’t resist those sky scraping heels, get yourself a second pair of lower, more comfortable shoes for the evening. From pretty pumps, to flip flops and customised Converse, there are styles to suit everyone. Bare in mind however, that if you choose to lower your heel for the evening and you are wearing a full length dress, it will drag on the floor, so be careful not to trip!

Avoiding family feuding

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It’s so easy to forget that there’s an entire family unit (equally important as your own) that may be completely oblivious to the upcoming wedding plans; and although many in-laws are perfectly happy with this scenario for others, it can lead to feelings of rejection and sometimes even resentment if they don’t feel the same level of involvement.

The date has been confirmed, and almost instantaneously, your neatly arrange personal wedding planner is bunged with wedding dress appointments, wedding fair flyers and Wedding cakes sampling sessions. Yet in the midst of all this creative carnage, there may be a few VIPs left feeling a tad isolated… the in-laws.

Out of nowhere tensions rise and emotions flare as you’re left wondering why you’ve been lumbered with such a treacherous display of family feuding. Is this a tiny glimpse of what to expect during married life? A moody mother-in-law offloading her dismay to anyone who’ll listen? Or worse still, comparing you to her other daughter-in-law who is seen as the definition of perfection.

As we all know, when planning a wedding it isn’t just about the Wedding Dress and elaborate selfies. It’s a time when two families become one, so make them feel that way before the big day.

Organising fun family get-togethers can be a great way of helping everyone bond, relax and feel included. It’s always a good idea to start off with a neutral environment such as trying out a new restaurant together. If all goes well, keep up the momentum with joint barbeques, birthdays and regular catch-ups.

Inviting both mums along to help you pick a wedding dress is a great way of making everyone feel extra special, particularly if your mother-in-law has no little girls of her own to coo over. However, if this seems a little too invasive then why not ask for her help with choosing the bridesmaids dress or accessories? It will really help in making her feel a big part of the leading ladies.

Seeing as many grooms enjoy mulling over the manly aspects of wedding planning such as choosing wedding cars, then why not encourage your future hubby to invite his dad along for the day? The two men can spend an entire afternoon bonding over some vintage vehicles, maybe grab some grub and have a good old father-son catch up.

If your groom’s dad is a whizz in the kitchen or his mum’s an expert in arts and crafts, you have the perfect opportunity to include their input for the important finishing touches such as making little edible favours or creating artistic centrepieces for the guest tables. You’ll be amazing at how thrilled they’ll be to show off their creative skills!

Why not start out with a chirpy text message or email? At least they’ll know you’re thinking about them and aren’t as likely to feel completely left out of the loop.

Being able to build and maintain healthy relationships is something we all struggle with at the best of times, however regular communication can help avoid many unwanted feelings of exclusion. As they say, prevention is better than a cure.

 

Traditional speeches

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Traditionalists will expect a run of speeches after the wedding food, but don’t let that deter you from changing things up. It’s your day, so you have every right to do it your way. If you won’t enjoy making a speech or one of the traditional speakers wouldn’t, then why let the nerves and stresses ruin the celebrations?

Here are four things you can do if you or a member of your bridal party doesn’t want to give a speech.

LOVE LETTERS

Not a fan of speaking in front of a large audience, put pen to paper before your big day to make sure you write all that was important to you. You can then have the wedding speech printed beautifully and include a copy with each place setting. When the time for speeches come, wedding guests will be asked to read their copy.

Rest assured this won’t be lacking the emotion of a live speech, once the sound of pages turning ceased, the smiles and tears will be free flowing! You could also mix and match this approach with a regular speech by using print outs, flip charts or other visual aids to distract attention from you.

STUNT DOUBLES

If you’ve got a willing friend who is more of a public speaker, why not ask them if they’d mind speaking instead? It could be on your behalf or a speech entirely of their own – whatever you prefer. For traditionalists, this will keep your speeches full even if the conventional people don’t deliver them.

NOT CAMERA SHY?

If it’s more the ‘here and now’ element of giving a wedding speech that worries you, why not pre-record your speech instead? We think the best wedding speeches balance thoughtful stories and anecdotes that you’ve planned ahead with a touch of improvisation on the day to inject the intense emotions you’ll doubtless be feeling.

Don’t worry, though, because we’ve got just the solution to make this happen for pre-recorded speeches too! Once you’ve hooked up the projector and played the speech, simply raise a toast with a few in-the-moment (romantic!) words for your new spouse afterwards. Best of both worlds? We think so!

RAISE A GLASS

For a more relaxed approach, why not ditch one or more speeches altogether and consider an alternative instead? Simply raise a glass of your chosen tipple, toast to the day, to your love, to each other, and you’ll create just as heart-warming an effect as the traditional counterpart would, without any of the stress, formality or fuss. Simple!!!

 

Things to do for your bridal shower

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Planning a bridal shower for your sister, best friend, cousin, or another special person in your life? Then you need a creative bridal shower theme! Some brides are all about wedding flowers and lace while others just want something unique.

1. Seaside themed bridal shower.

Nautical decor is simple and tasteful, using lots of navy blue, gold, and white. You can also use natural elements like, rope, driftwood, or seashells. For more of a beach vibe, use faded colours like coral, teal, or yellow. Natural elements fit beautifully into this theme, too. Phrases like “Tying the Knot” or “Two Less Fish in the Sea” can be used on your decor to add a little romantic flair to the party. Refreshments are pretty flexible. We suggest white wines, oysters, or other tasty seafood for the classier nautical theme. Fruity cocktails like Pina Coladas or Tequila Sunrises are more beachy. Fresh fruit, and other easy finger foods are fabulous for beach themes, as well. Let your bride be a beach bum for a day and let all her wedding stress fade away!

2. Make time for Wine

Wine is a girl’s best friend sometimes. And why not use this as inspiration for a bridal shower theme? Your bride will no doubt welcome the chance to sip some wine, open presents, and just enjoy some time away from the planning process. White wines pair well with white meat or light foods like quiche. Red wines complement richer flavors like red meat and roasted vegetables. So sit back, sip, and enjoy the party with your bride!

3. Brunch and Bubbly

What’s classier than champagne? Hosting a “Brunch and Bubbly” theme for your bride allows for lots of blush pink, gold, and cream. Fresh flowers, white or cream tableware, and cloth napkins are all a must when decorating for brunch. If you’re really ambitious, you can have brunch at someone’s house. If you’d rather have someone else handle the details, hiring a Caterer is always a great option!

4.Mad Hatter Tea Party

A Mad Hatter Tea Party bridal shower theme is perfect! You can get creative with decor and refreshments, too. Use mismatched teacups, plates, tablecloths, and napkins to add to the eclectic feel of the party space. For refreshments, tea of course! And other miniature desserts like petit fours, macaroons, or cupcakes are perfect for a tea party. Adding “Eat Me” placards or even putting the words on cakes or cookies is a great way to incorporate Wonderland into the party. You can serve other drinks like lemonade or wine spritzers, but don’t forget the “Drink Me” tags!

5. Kick back and relax

Planning a Wedding is stressful. Being “on” all the time can take a toll. Laidback bridal shower themes are definitely the best choice for the stressed out bride-to-be. Set up a taco buffet bar with different shells, meats, and vegetables. Add some crisps and homemade salsa or guacamole for tasty appetizers. What would a taco party be without margaritas? There are lots of fun recipes out there besides the traditional lime margaritas. Shake it up with strawberry, mango, or even pomegranate flavors! Cucumber margaritas are a growing trend and are super refreshing in the summer months. Let bride to be kick back with her favorite food…and a cold margarita for some laughs with friends and family!

 

Book great entertainment

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After your guests leave your wedding and have returned to their daily routine, they’ll remember two things about your special day: the interaction between you and your spouse-to-be, and the rockin’ band or DJ. Details like centrepieces, name cards, and dinner selections will trail far, far behind in the memory banks of your friends and family. That’s why you should look at all your options and carefully choose the most amazing wedding entertainment out there.

Tips for Booking the Best

When you’re searching for that perfect wedding entertainment, it’s important to do your homework. If you’ve never heard or seen their performance, you can do a little research to see what they offer. Reviews are always a great option as you can hear from some of their happy past clients. However, in some cases, reviews may not be available. If you’re interested in hiring a performer but you want to dig a little deeper to make sure they’re the perfect fit, then you should do the following:

 

  • View their website.
  • Look at their social profiles to see how they interact with fans and followers.
  • Have a contract with clear and precise terms.
  • If at all possible, go see a live performance.
  • Reach out to the entertainer to discuss their prior performance experience. They may be able to connect you with clients they’ve worked with for a referral.
  • Most importantly, you must trust and like who you are dealing with while negotiating the booking.

 

This is a very special day in your life, and like any milestone event, planning can get hectic. It’s wise to be prepared for last-minute hiccups and do everything you can to make sure the wedding entertainment is what you’ve always dreamed it would be.

 

Wedding makeup

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  1. Peach your cheeks

Choose a peachy blusher and apply to the apples of your cheeks for a fresh and natural look. When applying this type of wedding makeup, blend upwards and along cheekbones to finish.

  1. Wear eyeliner and make it gel

Gel eyeliner is magic! It creates real definition like liquid liner but is so much easier to apply. It looks great on and lasts all day, something you’ll need with all the attention. Opt for brown for fair skins and black for darker complexions.

  1. Line your lips for great definition

Use a lip liner (in a natural shade) all over your lips before applying your lipstick or gloss. It creates natural definition and the colour lasts for hours!

  1. Get your skin in shape

Seek professional advice to ensure your skincare routine is right before your big day. This way, your skin will be in tip-top condition and your foundation will look ultra-flawless. Try using a facial oil at night for powerful and quick results.

  1. Prime your canvas

For perfect bridal beauty on your big day, be sure to start with a primer all over your face to even out skin tone and texture, and help your foundation to last all day.

  1. Choose long lasting foundation

Choose a long lasting foundation to avoid shine and dullness throughout the day.

  1. Get rid of those dreaded bags

Do not use light reflective concealer under your eyes as you risk having white eye circles in your photographs. Instead use a matte concealer or your wedding makeup foundation to hide those bags.

  1. Focus on your eyes

When it comes to the best wedding makeup for eyes, use waterproof mascara to avoid panda eyes in pictures, but comb through your lashes after each coat to eliminate clumps.

  1. Eliminate creasing or fading around the eyes

If you suffer from creasing or fading, make sure you start off with a good base. Use an eyeshadow before your shadow to keep it smooth.

  1. A quick pit stop – touching up on the day

On the day itself, carry with you 3 essential products for touching up; your lip liner, lip gloss/stick and a translucent powder for stopping shine. This will ensure you look your best throughout the entire day. Why not buy yourself a little wedding makeup bag as a treat for the day

 

Autumnal Weddings

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Planning a Wedding of your dreams? Autumn is the perfect time to get married. Something about this season just makes you want to curl up with a blanket and a cup of hot chocolate, and who better to do that with than your new husband or wife?

Plan ahead.

Schedule Wedding Suppliers ahead of time. In most cases, you can do this through the same service that provides your chairs and tables. Because weather is flippant and unpredictable, most vendors will have a reasonable cancellation policy for marquees, allowing you the freedom to make the call much closer to the date without scrambling to find a marquee at the last minute. Talk to your vendors. They want your day to be perfect, too.

Keep It Simple

With so many vibrant colours around you all of the beauty that nature has to offer- clean, classic decorations go a long way.

Indoor or Outdoor?

It’s tempting to have an outdoor wedding in Autumn, especially for those in the leafy areas. Keep in mind that while it is very beautiful, the Autumn can be quite chilly. Never fear- you can have both the comforts of home and nature’s beauty, whether you’re inside or out.

Lights.

Consider using white string lights, vintage-style iron lanterns, or round paper lanterns to offset your colourful surroundings.

Sparklers

Sparklers are the new confetti and it’s no surprise why. Aside from being beautiful and inexpensive, sparkler send offs make for gorgeous wedding photos and by opting for sparklers over confetti.

Let Mother Nature Inspire You

Natural wood tables and chairs. Going with a very simple and natural looking wood will bring the feeling of nature inside.

Leaves.

This one’s a freebie! Bag them up and bring them inside to decorate. You can line the aisle with bright, multi-coloured leaves for an outdoor feel.

Take advantage of what the season has to offer by using autumn colours, serving seasonal food and drinks, and using your favourite things about autumn to create beautiful centrepieces, placeholders, and other decorations.