And we are back in the game…

From my previous blogs you will have read that I had a bit of a situation in the last few months. Unfortunately I was suffering with a certain back problem, this has resulted in me being extra quiet these last few weeks as I finally had the surgery done.

That was three weeks ago, so I have finally started to think about the wedding again and though I won’t have fully recovered until September I can now look forward.

There has been progress in my wedding plans and I'm sure by the amount of blogs I have already done you do realise just how many elements a wedding takes. So I pursued the cake and looked at where I would like to go dress shopping.

The cakes I have discussed previously and whilst chasing price quotes at the moment, I’m keeping options open. Flavours, tiers, design … it’s a lot to think about but I will be trying to squeeze a tier of chocolate in there somehow.

The dress … where do you start? The first words out of mum’s mouth were lets go to London and try dresses on there. My response … No. I don’t intend to try on £15,000 dresses to find the perfect one and then break my heart that I am not spending anywhere near that type of price. Now ladies I don’t want you to curse me here but for me it’s NOT all about the dress. (Well to an extent)

 

Do you need a designer frock ?

 

I feel like there are so many options out there for girls these days on how and where to find their designer wedding dresses. At the National Wedding Show thousands of brides-to-be flocked to try and find their gown amongst the railings for much more afforadable prices. These days charity wedding dress stores are also becoming increasingly popular as the trend of second hand gowns are on the rise to save some pennies. And finally with this new media age upon us it's only right that the wedding industry has joined in with more and more women relying on a screen to choose their dream gown and with a few clicks have purchased the dress probably quicker than I can choose a pair of shoes from online Debenhams.

 

So do I follow any of these new methods to beg, borrow or steal the ultimate designer dress... (whether it's second hand or not)?

In my personal opinion I’m going to wear the dress once (unless I have a rough day and decide to have a 'Rachael, Moncia and Pheobe' moment and wear it around the house). I would much rather have a beautiful venue or spend  that little bit extra on a honeymoon. I'm pretty laid back about the dress experience, as we have gathered by now from previous blogs I'm a bit of a traditionalist so I will be going to try on my own dress though. I want to be the only person that wears my dress, I don't want to try it on in front of thousands of people and knowing my luck if I purchased it online it would probably turn up in a different colour. So I think I sit very firmly in the middle between 'not caring would wear a bin liner' and 'would swap my husband for the perfect dress' scale.

 

Don’t get me wrong, what do I want out of a dress ? Well that’s simple, I want to feel like the most beautiful girl in the world that would put any Disney princess to shame. Ha! So not too much! But isn’t that what all wedding dresses are supposed to do anyway ?

 

I'm happy to adapt into my almost certain Bridezilla mode to make sure the venue, church, cake and food is perfect because that's what my guests are experiencing, however as long as the dress fits and looks fabulous enough for some photo's then we are good to go.

Style – Most people have an idea of a style they like and are drawn to, I must say I’m not like this at all. I have so many magazines now and apart from the most hideous couture gowns I seem to love them all. Did you know Disney have the own brand of wedding dress? How tempting to become a real life Disney princess !

For me I am going to create my own princess wedding though, I like to think of it as Princess Kate meets Disney with my own style. I love buttons along the back and you can’t go wrong with some lace but I’ve heard so many people tell me it’s not worth having a style because you usually find something completely different. Well I can’t wait and when I find it and I will make sure it becomes a best-kept secret.

Weddings make people smile.

My last post was about the upcoming excitement of Luke's sisters wedding and how dramatic life has seemed during the month of April.

May is different - things have calmed down, in fact i'm stuck in limbo; unable to drive,  waiting for this damn surgery date to come through, and it has remained the same all month. You might think it's a great time to get some wedding things done, but we still have a long way to go and i don't want it all done at once.

I will return to Carli's wedding. Going to a wedding before your own is great, you get good ideas, and it also helps confirm ideas you may have had floating in your head prior. Were you thinking of doing things the same way? I have to admit that's what terrified me before going to Carli's - she is Luke's sister so there was an element of whatever they do i personally wouldn't want it to look the same etc.. It's petty but when half the guests are going to be the same you don't want the touch of nostalgia - seen it all before thoughts going through their head. I'm so happy to say that Carli & Lewis's wedding was wonderful and that ours will be completely different. Both sides win !

Attending the wedding did put some things into perspective for me - Things unexpectedly will go wrong - so be prepared (as the old Scout saying goes). Such as bell ringers not turning up. Every wedding magazine i have read tries to prepare the bride for this type of thing. At the end of the day your marrying the person you love and it doesn't matter, (Luke i love you) but Yeah Right - i would be fuming. Staying calm on your wedding day is a nice thought but it's inevitable i would go bonkers. I was discussing this with a friend that got married last year, her cake was delivered over 2hours late - she had every damn right to get pissed!

As this was my future sister-in-laws wedding i was fortunate enough to be there during the getting ready period. Carli was shaking like a leaf until the second she put on her dress - she changed and i can see that she  was ready. To me that was incredible - will i be like that ? I fail to stop thinking that i might be a little bit more of a wreck.

The wedding was beautiful and Carly looked stunning. The weather stayed right just long enough and the food was great. I can't forget one of my favourite parts of their wedding ... in front of the head table their was a ginormous Mr & Mrs sign - LOVED IT ! But, your all hearing me list off another wedding so back to my own prep.

We have a photographer !!! I have now confirmed with my photographer Kirith that she will be taking the photographs. She has her work cut out for her, i can't stand the posed gazing into each others eyes photos. To be honest i'd rather take the photos myself but you can't really do that on your own wedding day. Kirith's fab and i'm sure after some discussions we can understand the exact look we are going for.

I am aware this blog is already running away with me so i will make sure i write my next one very soon to discuss my photography and the exciting new progress of bridal hair haha.

Few missed weeks - The up's and down's

Hello to my readers, you must have wondered where i had gone. Three missed weeks; has it really been that easy for me to cave and get bored. No! Don't be silly.

The last few weeks have been rather hectic and as with the prep for any wedding we have our up's and down's. All i can say is thank goodness they have happened now and not this time next year.

So we will start with an up - i have had some progress with a hair stylist. Actually this was something i believed i would have to research A LOT but it happened to fall right in front of me on my screen. You see in it's own little way Facebook can be useful. So i have made no decisions but i can say i like what i see. After receiving a their wedding package i believe it's one more thing on a list, as long as me, that has stepped in the right direction. So Katie if your reading at some point i will be phoning you for a chat. :)

Then we move to negative - my 'are you fricking kidding me' moment. As a lot of you close to me know, i have suffered from a bad back for quite some time. After intensive physio for over 6 months it hasn't got better and unfortunately in the last 2 it's got quite crippling and is making me quite immobile. The reason for a scan has shown is a herniated disc(heart falling to the floor moment - i'm only 23 !) After a quick consultation it looks like i am going down the surgery path. SURGERY !!! I'm not going to dwell on this in my wedding blog as i have tried not to dwell on it in real life. There is a problem - i'm fixing it. Thank goodness this hasn't happened next year. At least with recovery time comes more time to plan.

My final positive for the wedding came the Saturday before i headed to Gran Canaria for my sisters 21st birthday. Me and Luke went to visit our church. I think that last part sums it up - it was our church! On a beautiful spring day the sun was shining on the quaint country-like church.On arrival we met Eileen who told us the whats what of church weddings. We walked it through, finding out some special moments of the ceremony itself and we got a chance to picture what it's going to be like standing there in just over a years time.

There are lots of rules to getting married in a church one of which i have already mentioned in a previous blog, that we will be attending church once a month for a year. There are also things like the Banns forms that have to be filled in completely right. It should be about now that i tell that this went completely to plan until we got home spoke to my Dad and realised i got his middle name wrong. I am now sat here waiting to pluck up the courage and phone Eileen to tell her the form that can't be wrong - is in fact wrong.

Well only me hey!!!

The important thing is that we left feeling excited. That we are not copying anyone, that this is our wedding unique to us, in the place we want to be.

So from future surgery, a holiday, wedding hair research and the church visit it's been so busy. The theme of weddings will continue this week as Luke's older sister will be getting married on Saturday. The excitement she must be feeling right now must be huge!! I'm sure i will have lots of ideas and things to comment on next week. Of course along with photos. So don't worry the blog won't fizzle out there's is much to discuss.

Wedding Stationary - The Do's & Don'ts

The Do's                                                   The Don'ts


This week i got a sample through of a wedding invitation design. When me and Mum went to the National
Wedding show i realised there is a specific part of the wedding planning that i seem to be quite fussy about, and that is wedding invitations. I go along the lines of elegant yes, frilly no. These days it wouldn't surprise me  to see the box invite like in the movie Bridesmaids where a butterfly flies out - no don't get any ideas.

Wedding invites cost money. When you think of stationary you want it all to match - who knew there would be so much. The standard stationary list consists of
* Save the date
* The Invitation
* The reply card
* Order of Service
* Name cards

I know not all of these are required but it's things you don't even know exist!!! What am i made of money?

Save the date - Are these a new invention? Basically an invite for the invite ... What's the deal with that!!!! Would i do it, probably yes haha. Only due to the sheer fear that i would hate to lose precious guests because they were unsure. As a counter argument i must admit i cannot remember some friends dates of their weddings this year and they did send me 'save the dates.' DON'T WORRY GIRLS - they will be in the diary somewhere. So actually i'm on the fence about them, if i decide to make them how do i make them creative? Do i send them at the end of this year when everyone is filling in the new year calendars. Or do i take the route of harassing people so they know damn well not to book anything on the date of my wedding.

Anyway back to the sample invitation. I found myself saying - no and that's hideous, that's to frilly to almost everything i saw at the show. However, one caught my eye - now i'm not going into detail as i need to leave some things as a surprise but there were things i would change and things that were perfect.

So now i have a decent copy of an invitation  the question is - Do i save the cash and DIY or pay to get them done professional. People i have spoke to seem to be 50/50. Firstly how much will DIY actually cost me? I need to purchase the card, decorative bits, need to print them. I'm not actually the most creative person in the world so being dainty and delicate might not work hmmm... or do i fork out big money for a professional to take it - figuring that i still will need to pay for postage as well.

Thank goodness i don't need to decide yet.


We are at the stage of collecting ideas and next week i will mention my new world of Pinterest but the pressure is soon going to loom again. Next stop photographer and band.

Week 12 - Hear the church bells ring

My last blog was securing the wedding venue. But as a new bride to be i was faced with the mind boggling thought how do you arrange it all for the same day without the worry that one of the other elements is going to be booked.

Luckily for us girls, venues, churches etc have already thought of this and they offer a simple solution. Before a deposit is required most places will hold the date for you for two weeks. Phew.

This makes life so much easier and we were lucky enough to put both the venue and the church on hold. It's quite amusing just how much stuff you can get done in a mere two weeks.

When we first got engaged Luke mentioned that he would like to get married in a church, ok sounds good with me. I think church wedding and i hear an organist, i imagine walking down the aisle and it all being perfect.

So we set our mind to the church wedding, how hard can it be organising a church wedding - UM..... Did anyone know there are rules! I respect the church and their religious ideals of marriage but i wasn't prepared for the RULES!

If you want to get married in a church here are the rules - You/Your partner
* Must have at any time lived in the parish for a period of at least 6 months
* Was baptised in the parish concerned
* Was prepared for confirmation in the parish
* has at any time regularly gone to normal church services in the parish church for a period of at least 6 months

Or, that one of your parents
* has lived in the parish for a period of at least 6 months
* has regularly gone to normal church services in the parish church for a period of at least 6 months
* was married in the parish

After finding the venue, there was a clear and obvious church that we wanted to get married in...the church next door. It was quaint, idyllic bowers and a short walk away. Our problem was that we didn't comply with any of the rules.

After contacting the church to discuss the possibility we discovered there was one option. An option that we are now going to look into at our first church meeting on Saturday 13th April. For us to get married in the church we have agreed to attend one church service every month for a year. Make way mother Theresa, Luke and I are coming to pray!

When faced with the option it was quite an easy decision for us. Why not, we are using their venue, we get to learn the sanctity of marriage through religion. It does make me wonder what i'm supposed to wear though? Am i allowed to wear heels? Does Luke have to dress in a suit like they do in the Simpsons? Are we expected to sing the hymns, because i don't think they're in my range (they go very high). We will be heading into uncharted territory and to be honest i'm quite frightened. I guess it's all for the greater good.

Week 11 - It's booked!

This blog is slightly delayed from when I usually post. It’s been a frantic couple of weeks and not for the better.

But we don’t dwell on the bad and so I focus on the good and with the wedding it’s been very good.

After a second look at the venue – the feeling came flooding back. Smiling from ear to ear I can feel this is it, this is where I can feel like a princess and I can marry my prince J

 We got to look around the rooms and visualise everything. It’s perfect for us. So mid discussion of size (which was a concern) it gets flagged up that the capacity is 120 and not 150. SHIT!

 Once we’ve left here’s how it plays out, Luke sits there a lot calmer that there isn’t going to be such a squeeze, and I start to cry !

 After deliberation in Frankie and Benny’s over a burger and a plate of pasta as to whether we can cut 30 places the verdict is YES we can (memo to self Luke can be ruthless.)

 
The very next day I called and booked. So this will remain short and sweet but we are getting married on Saturday 20^th September 2014 at Orton Hall. So excited !!!!

Week 10 - Last weeks trip to the wedding fair

Last week was a wedding themed weekend, therefore this weeks post will focus on last Sunday. After an action packed Saturday venue hunting Mum came to stay Saturday night ready for our Sunday adventure to the National Wedding Show at the NEC in Birmingham.

I guess this was our type of mothering Sunday a week early. Getting to the MK train station was a mission in itself. Armed with a broken sat nav we realised common sense was going to play a rather large part in getting there. The one problem with Milton Keynes is all the bloody roundabouts! After driving past the train station a couple of times we finally managed to park up and set on to the NEC.

It was busy. I'm sure a lot of you have been to some sort of shows in the past (food shows, outdoors exhibits etc...) and this was just like all of those - the difference is everyone in the room was with a highly charged  bride-to-be who knew exactly what she wanted.

Unfortunately i wasn't as clear in my mind. Frantically me and mum got stuck in. Something i wasn't prepared for was the wedding dress saga. Thousands upon thousands of dresses. Picture the scene from Friends, there is Monica, Rachael and Pheobe with whistles battling it out for the best offers. That was the wedding show. Don't get me wrong these dresses were incredibly discounted and quite decent and i can imagine if you don't mind the scrambled experience then it's a great way to do it. Lets strip down in the middle of a ginormous room to try on these dresses while others are oggling and critiquing (lets face it - i did make comments along the lines of urgh i don't like that). I've noticed that i am quite a traditionalist in this wedding planning drama and the experience of trying on a dress in a store with just nearest and dearest and no one else around me is more my thing. I would get quite bashful with thousands of people looking at me.

Saying all this there was a brief period where we did succumb and a quite enjoyed the pushing and shoving to grab a dress and judge it. It was nice, gave me some ideas, we moved on.

We were able to watch the fashion show, i like to think me and mum got more out of it than others watching. Whilst most would judge the dresses we decided it was more fun to judge and take the mickey out of the models.

One model we did encounter was in a slightly more unusual circumstance. Strolling through the endless maze of stands we happened to pass ANOTHER dress stall and the initial thought was a girl was trying on a dress. No it turns out this girls was a life model, paid to stand in heels, in a wedding dress all day. After a quick comment from me and mum we were pounced on by ladies from the stall opposite.

Their response was "Oh my god, she has been there for three days and just stares." I believe these ladies just needed sympathetic ears to rant to, we were happy to oblige. Hearing us talking about her, on cue she turned and stared. Her doll like features reminded me of something at a standard American thriller - we decided to quickly move on.

The entire day was fantastic and as everyone warned "careful you will come back with too much stuff" PLEASE SEE PIC BELOW ... WE DID

For all of those new brides wondering if it's worth going to the National Wedding Show my answer would be absolutely. Enjoy a day out with your mum and the fun-filled opportunity of having a completely wedding themed day. Enjoy some drinks, mock models in dresses and get some great ideas for your day. We even bought comedic cake toppers, but they're a surprise for another day.