Real Bride Feature

Real Bride Feature - Wedding of Hilary & Jeff

Background

Jeff proposed to me soon after I got back from a 3 week trip to Australia for my cousins wedding.  He must have really missed me!  As soon as I said yes I started looking into planning our day.  The first thing I realised was that you mention wedding and people add on the pounds, however if you have the time it is good to look around and the internet is great for that.

Venue

We wanted somewhere that had character but was accessible for my cousin who is in a wheelchair (you would not believe the conversations we had with venues about their accessible toilet being up 4 steps or he would have to go through the kitchen to get to the reception rooms). We finally found Parklands and it ticked all of the boxes and the people were very helpful and friendly.

Theme

Not sure we had a theme as such other than my bridesmaids were in purple as were the flowers on the tables and the table plan and table numbers.  Because I wanted to make life slightly more stressful for myself I asked my cousins to be bridesmaids 1 lives in America and the other lives in Australia and my chief Bridesmaid was down in Kent, so we looked at Alfred Angelo dresses because they were available in the 3 countries, they chose their own dresses and they were all quite similar.

The Ceremony

The ceremony was outside under their gazebo which is surrounded by roses, It was very beautify and the whole day was brilliant.

Things that made it special

We spent a day making our wedding rings at the wedding ring workshop in Hatton Garden and we would recommend this to anyone.  It was a really good day and they really looked after us.

All our family and close friends stayed at Parklands the night of the wedding and we had breakfast the next morning, it made the day last a little bit longer.

Our photographers did a great job of our photos and they did a pre-wedding shoot so we got to know them and we were much more relaxed on the day.

Our cake came from a local lady who did us a top tier of chocolate and then individual cakes of traditional fruit cake and lemon sponge so there was something for everyone.

Our Florists did a great job and were able to source the flowers I wanted for my table decorations.

Something we were unsure about was the first dance and so I found a company who had a local dance teacher who helped us with the dance, it defiantly made it less stressful.

My Chief Bridesmaid made our place pebbles which were the finishing touches to the table and everyone took their pebble home and several people have them on display at their homes.

Live music by     http://www.essenceduo.com/

Flowers by         http://www.wflowers.co.uk/

Cake by             http://www.cakesbyshelly.co.uk/

Venue                http://www.quendonpark.co.uk/

Personal wedding ring making http://www.weddingringworkshop.co.uk/

 I would like to take this opportunity to say a special thank you to Hilary & Jeff for letting me take part in their special day

If you would like to share your special day with us here on our blog, please contact me at whiteroseweddings@live.co.uk

My Very Own Real Wedding

I guess my story is almost one of a romantic fairytale, which actually sounds quite funny considering i am now in my 40's.  Like alot of women nowadays after two previous failed relationships I began to give up really on love. Then one day a friend of mine asked me to go online and check out a guy who she was about to meet off a dating site she was on. I agreed but in order to do this i would have to set up a profile. So i did, he checked out ok and i guess curiosity got the better of me so i must admit i did check out some of the guys profiles. Then one day i recieved a message from a lovely man in Australia, he was chatty and we found that he had links back here in the UK and we had a fair few things in common. Ok I thought here is a man who is far enough away to avoid anything complicated, after all he was in a different country completly over the other side of the world plus he was good company and we would pass away the day chatting for hours over nothing really lol. After about 3 months it was decided he would come over for a 3 month holiday to give us chance to get to know each other even better. Well he did, we had a great time,  I instantly realised that we had a real connection and well before long we realised we were soulmates. After hours of talking via internet and phone - gosh the bills! then me visiting him over in Australia we made plans to be together. As Sean was born in the UK there was no problem with him moving, We did discuss me moving to Australia but my daughter has an illness which meant really our options were a little restricted. So Sean moved over just over 3 years ago, we got married on 3rd July 2010 and the rest is history.

Our Venue

We both decided as this was not our first marriage we just wanted something personal, low key but had our personalities written all over it.
After spending 6 yrs in Kent prior to moving to North Yorkshire we decided that it would be the best place to hold our wedding. After all most of my friends were based down south, we had some guests flying over too so to be based not too far from the main airports was definatly a plus point. It did mean though that along with my parents we would have a 250 mile commute for our wedding. Still although it would be a challenge we knew it could work.

After looking around we found the most beautiful barn location called Ratsbury Barn

based in the Tenterden countryside it was peaceful, rustic and surrounded by fields and beautiful scenery. Perfect!! it was pretty much a blank canvass for us to put our own stamp on.

As we were on a pretty tight budget i decided to make my own menu's and save some money by making my own table decorations.

I decided as with all my flowers due to the distance we were travelling for our wedding that using real flowers would not be practical, so I decided to use foam roses and a butterfly or two to go with my theme.
The logistics of getting our home made wedding cake down to kent was interesting as it was chocolate and we were in the midst of a really hot summer. Still we got it there intact.
I was pretty lucky as i was still visiting kent for work on the odd occasion so it made talking to my chosen suppliers easier.

Theme

Our theme was pastels with pale pink, cream and lilac along with the odd butterfly here and there. To add a little of our personal touch to things I had a bouqet with some eucalyptus in and bought my husband and the best man Australian flag cufflinks so that there was an aussie touch to the day. Oh and not to mention the choice Australian music played by the DJ, such as Men at work and kylie lol.

I also put out a little sweet table, its amazing what glassware you can find in shops and charity shops, this proved a popular touch to our day

Food

To fit in with the rustic charm of the venue we opted for a kentish cream tea followed in the evening by a carvery in a roll, things went down a real treat

Bridesmaids

I had 4 bridesmaids, two of my best friends Hilary and Debbie and My neice Abi and My daughter Caitlin. The adult bridesmaids went for victorian lilac Alfred Angelo dresses and the two younger girls went for butterfly themed dresses from BHS.

The Ceremony

The Ceremony itself was beautiful, it was a kentish ceremony and we had already made pre-arranged changes to some of the vows and wordings just to make it more personal. We were joined by 40 of our closest family and friends. Unfortunatly Seans Mum had passed away prior to his move but she was with us on the day as i carried some of her worry beads in my bouquet, we knew she was pleased for us had given us her blessing.
we kept things informal mostly with just the formal touches such as the greeting line, speeches and first dance.

I cannot repeat some of the suggestions that were made about tying me to the anchor and dropping it in lake

I really enjoyed my wedding day, we did things our way, it was relaxed and we managed to get around and spend time with all our guests. If i could change anything it would be to add a bit more flair to my candy table and maybe have the cake made by someone nearer to my wedding destination as it was a very stressful affair for my mother who not only made it but transported it.

 On the whole our day was everything we hoped it would be.

My Tip

As we had alot of outdoor space we took along some garden games such as noughts and crosses and giant pick up sticks even outdoor chess is good fun. It gives guests something else to do and they are relativly inexpensive to purchase.
As our wedding was around the world cup we also took the opportunity to play football and we had some amazing shots of us all running around in our finery, even something that small made our day memorable.

Finally I must say that my day wouldnt have been what it was without the help and support of my wonderful family and friends.

My dad and his friend did a great job of the wedding photography and dvd for us, they did a really professional job.

flowers by www.sarahsflowers.co.uk

Venue : http://ratsbury.com/

Real Bride

As promised here is my first feature on our real bride Holly.

 As well as being a Wedding Planner, I am also very proud to be Holly's Mum, so I guess my blogs will be coming from three different perspectives, My daughters, Mine as mum and objectivly as a wedding planner. So i think this will be an interesting journey to follow over the coming year.

Holly and Fiance Jeff announced their engagement just after valentines day after a romantic proposal on the beach. As her mum I was really pleased to hear their news as Jeff is a lovely guy who I know really loves Holly and I know he makes her happy. So the wedding date is set for April 2013.

Living in Bristol I knew that one of their favourite places for a day out was at the Zoo, so it did not really come as a suprise when they told us that their chosen venue for their wedding is Bristol Zoo.
Now getting married at a Zoo may be a little unusual but think of not only the photo opportunities but the fact that all your guests get the freedom during the day to take a walk around the Zoo itself.

At the beginning of the month I took a trip down to Bristol to look around.

Clifton pavillion

Weddings take place in the Clifton pavillion which has its own entrance, there are two rooms, one on the upper floor and one on the lower floor.

Holly's wedding will be on the lower floor which has a pretty little terrace at the back with a courtyard ideal for photographs.

 I must admit it was a fairly glum day so these photographs do not do the venue justice.

The room itself is large and really well lit, they have the most amazing floor as you can see, again it can be hard to imagine things transformed for the day, but once all the wedding decor has been added it will look amazing.

So with the wedding a year away Holly has already started to get some ideas of what she would like. The only thing that complicates things a little is that both Holly & Jeff both work in the Royal Fleet Auxillary, which means they are usually away at sea for 4 months at a time, so when leave comes in the summertime we will be able to swing into action. As a mother I am most looking forward to seeing my daughter choose the dress of her dreams, a moment that I know I will cherish for a lifetime. Holly has a good idea of the kind of dress she would like and has narrowed it down to three options. One thing that alot of people will tell you is how you can often go into a shop with your perfect dress in mind, then by the time you come out you have ended up with a completly different dress! its that feeling of "this is the one" and you just know when you have it on and see yourself for the first time looking back at you in the mirror. Either way its going to be an enjoyable day.

I look forward to divulging more after our dress shop, but there will be no photos until the after the big day itself, dont want to spoil any surprises.

I know a few people already who have said, " oh so you will be organising the wedding then",  a fairly common assumption I guess as weddings is my work, its nice in the way i can offer advice on where to look for things and how to get the best discounts, but it is Hollys day, just as with any bride I work with, I am there to provide support and advice. Wedding planners do not take over the whole arrangements for a wedding unless that is how they have been employed, most of the time we work in partnership with a bride to assist bringing things together, and saving some time, money and stress. Knowing others in the wedding industry helps too. So the assumption that Wedding planners are for people with big budgets or celebrities is just a modern missconception, we are used by people who have time restrictions, or just need that extra support getting things done for the day.

So on this occasion first and formost I will be mother of the bride.

I hope you will enjoy following Holly's experiences in the run up to her big day





Presenting Mr & Mrs Kneil

Another Beautiful Bride walked down the aisle on Saturday, what is extra special about this wedding is that Kimberley suffers from Cystic Fibrosis. I was really lucky enough to get to know Kimberley last year when i offered my services free of charge to any Bride or Grooms with the condition that may find my help useful. After all organising a wedding is hard enough without also having the additional challenge of a life threatening illness.

Kimberley i must say is a total inspiration and is a pure fighter that will not let anything get in her way.
She has a lovely sunny disposition and in our conversations it was obvious to me that she truly had found her soulmate in Stefan, her husband to be.

Kimberley knew exactly what she wanted (A wedding planners dream really) right down to her beautiful dress that she designed herself.

Pink and Black was the theme of the day.

                                              I think you will agree their smiles say it all!


                         We wish you all the best for your future life together Kimberley & Stefan

Congratulations to the Bride and Groom

Here are some photos of a very beautiful bride on her special day, Kirstie is just one reason why i do my job, to see the joy and happiness on Kirsties face, i hope she gets her call very soon.