Merry Christmas

Wishing all my blog readers a very Merry Christmas and all the best for a Happy New Year.

I hope to have the opportunity to work with you in 2012.

Caroline.x

Wedding A-Z: Y is for Your Day

I'm sure most of your married friends have told you that your wedding day will fly by! It's true. There's so many people to catch up with, they will all want to congratulate you - it's not surprising if you find yourself thinking 'Where's my new wife/husband?' regularly throughout the day. If you are getting married and holding your reception at the same venue, it's difficult to find some time alone together. However, I think its important that you make time to get away and spend a few precious moments together on your wedding day.

Here are a few ideas of when you can get away:

• Directly after the ceremony - ask the registrar to direct your guests to a different exit to you
• Before the wedding breakfast - ask your wedding planner to ensure all of the guests are at their seats before you make a grand entrance into the room as husband and wife
• Before the evening reception - take a few moments to get away and freshen up together before welcoming your evening guests
• Anytime - get together in a corner of the room and just watch all your friends and family having a great time

Your wedding day is one you will remember forever - make sure you have a few special moments that you can reminisce about together.


Photo credit: Ross Dean Photography
   

Wedding A-Z: W is for Wedding Planner

78% of Brides who have just got married wish they’d had a professional to help plan their wedding  (source: Brides Magazine)

So, why hire a wedding planner?

You work long hours and don't have the time
The average bride spends the equivalent of 6 full time working weeks planning her wedding. Hiring a Wedding Planner means you have one dedicated contact point who will be with you from the initial consultation right through to your wedding day.

You are hiring professionals to do everything else
Hiring a Wedding Planner is becoming the natural thing to do, 26% of UK Brides do. Why not get someone in who has done it lots of times before and has the experience of making the common mistakes, so already knows the solutions! A Wedding Planner will not panic when a problem arises, they will simply look at it logically and come up with a solution.

You will save money
With a keen eye for detail, a Wedding Planner will help you set your budget and more importantly help you stick to it! Wedding Planners work with venues and suppliers on a regular basis so can negotiate discounts and savings on your behalf.

You are really organised and don’t need any help
For really organised brides a wedding planner is an essential investment, especially on the day. Whilst you are at home getting ready the morning of the wedding, you can relax in the knowledge that your wedding planner is making sure everything is as you have requested. The napkins are in the right place, the chairs are positioned correctly, the cake has arrived, the florist has worked her magic with the table decorations and the caterers and venue are prepared for your arrival. You can enjoy the day without worrying about anything.

Creativity
Whether you want a traditional wedding that adheres to the conventional etiquette or a unique, wacky original design – a Wedding Planner will give your wedding the 'wow' factor.

Your venue includes a wedding planner in their price
On-site wedding co-ordinators know everything there is to know about their venue and can recommend suppliers. An independent and professional Wedding Planner will provide a personal, bespoke service that is specifically tailored to you.

You will not be stressed
Hire a Wedding Planner to deal with all the stresses of your wedding so you don't have to. You make all the decisions, we do all the hard work.


To find out more about hiring a wedding planner visit www.endless-love.co.uk.
  

Wedding A-Z: M is for Money Saving Tips

Weddings are costly affairs with the average spend at £19,265 in 2009 (source: You and Your Wedding magazine).

Here are my top ten tips for saving money on your wedding:

1. Set a budget and stick to it – use a budget planner to keep track of your budget, and ensure you have at least 5% put aside as a contingency.
2. Use local suppliers – by using local suppliers you will eliminate the additional costs that may be added for travel and delivery.
3. Get married on a week day or out of season – a lot of venues offer a discount for a non-Saturday wedding, and getting married ‘out of season’ i.e. October – April can reduce the cost too.
4. Use seasonal flowers in your bouquets and decorations – flowers that are not in season can cost up to twice as much as those that are. Work with your florist to choose seasonal flowers and keep the costs on track.
5. Serve your wedding cake as dessert – wedding cakes can cost as much as £500-£600, serving your cake as dessert can dramatically reduce your catering costs.
6. Think carefully about your guest list – around 40% of your budget will be spent on the reception; consider a smaller, more intimate ceremony and a big party in the evening.
7. Make your own playlist – instead of hiring a Band or DJ, create your own playlist and use an mp3 player, ask your guests to suggest some tracks when they RSVP.
8. Make your own invitations – you can buy everything you need to make your own invitations at a craft shop. Cut back on postage as well by hand delivering them where you can.
9. Shop around for your wedding attire – look in high street stores as well as boutiques and don’t try on anything that is out of your price range. Once you find your dream outfit, ring around other suppliers to see if you can get a better price.
10. Hire a Wedding Planner – wedding planners work with venues and suppliers on a regular basis so can negotiate savings and discounts on your behalf which can significantly reduce your costs, as well as covering the fee to hire a wedding planner!

 

If you would like help planning your wedding, visit our website to find out how Endless Love Wedding Planners can help. We offer a range of services from a bespoke hourly advice session to full wedding planning, including on the day co-ordination. Contact Caroline Gould on 01473 681201 or 07906 705191 for further information.

Wedding A-Z: I is for Intimacy

Have you thought about your wedding night?

The first night you spend together as husband and wife can be very meaningful and romantic.  It can also make you feel under pressure to have great sex when you are actually completely shattered and just want to sleep! 

Here's just a few top tips for enjoying your wedding night:

• Take your time and set the scene
• Spend some time talking about the day, share some of your favourite moments
• Pack a bag - make sure you have prepared for your wedding night and the day after.  I know a bride who ended up wearing her wedding dress the day after her wedding as she forgot to pack a change of clothes!
• Have a snack - its likely that you will have spent your wedding day celebrating and catching up with all your guests, you may not have eaten very much!

Just remember that the only people who know what happens on your wedding night are the two of you so please don't worry about it!
   

Getting Married Again

Second marriages are becoming more and more common. Planning your second wedding (or third, or forth even) will be a very different experience to doing it for the first time. You are probably that bit older and wiser and want to get better value for money. You will also want the actual wedding day to be different to your first. Perhaps your first wedding signifies a marriage that failed so what better reason than to make this wedding completely different.

There are several things you need to consider though:


Do you/your partner have children? Do you want them to be included in the ceremony? Do you want a big wedding or would you prefer to keep it low-key?

You may want to place more emphasis on the actual ceremony this time around, as it might feel more important to you or you might want to get away from it all and get married abroad.

Lots of venues have a civil ceremony licence, so the days of a church wedding and hotel reception are definitely over. You can even get married in Snape Maltings Concert Hall, or for a historical feel how about Christchurch Mansion or Kentwell Hall?

There are so many different ways you could get married, if you are getting married for the second time and want a break from planning it – hire a wedding planner to deal with the stresses so you don’t have to. By hiring Endless Love, you make all the decisions and we do all the hard work!

Photo credit: Gorgeous Bride

Royal Wedding Preview

I'm sure you haven't failed to notice that there is a very big event happening in London tomorrow!  The wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton takes place at Westminster Abbey at 11am, but there will be lots happening all day.

The Official Royal Wedding website has released detailed timings for the day as follows:

8.15 -9.45am The general congregation will arrive at the Great North Door of Westminster Abbey.
From 9.50am Governors-General and Prime Ministers of Realm Countries, the Diplomatic Corps, and other distinguished guests arrive at the Abbey.
10.10am The Bridegroom and Prince Henry of Wales leave Clarence House for Westminster Abbey. They arrive at the Abbey at 10.15am.
10.20am Members of Foreign Royal Families arrive at Westminster Abbey from Buckingham Palace.
10.20am Mrs. Michael (Carole) Middleton and Mr. James Middleton leave the Goring Hotel for Westminster Abbey. They arrive at the Abbey at 10.27am.
10.25am Members of the Royal Family (except those listed below) leave Buckingham Palace for Westminster Abbey. They arrive at the Abbey at 10.30am.
10.35am The following Members of the Royal Family leave Buckingham Palace for Westminster Abbey. They arrive at the Abbey at 10.40am: The Duke of York, Princess Beatrice of York, Princess Eugenie or York, The Earl and Countess of Wessex, The Princess Royal and Vice Admiral Timothy Laurence
10.38am The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall leave Clarence House for Westminster Abbey. They arrive at the Abbey at 10.42am.
10.40am The Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh leave Buckingham Palace for Westminster Abbey. They arrive at the Abbey at 10.45am.
10.48am The Bridesmaids and Pages leave the Goring Hotel for Westminster Abbey. They arrive at the Abbey at 10.55am.
10.51am The Bride, accompanied by Mr. Michael Middleton, leaves the Goring Hotel for Westminster Abbey.
11.00am The Marriage Service begins. The Marriage Service will be relayed by audio speakers along the Route.
12.15pm The Carriage Procession of the Bride and Bridegroom with a Captain’s Escort of the Household Cavalry, followed by The Queen’s Procession with a Sovereign’s Escort of the Household Cavalry, leaves Westminster Abbey for Buckingham Palace.
12.30pm The Bride’s Carriage Procession arrives at Buckingham Palace.
12.40pm Members of the Royal Family and Members of Foreign Royal Families arrive at Buckingham Palace.
From 12.40pm Other guests for the Reception arrive at Buckingham Palace.
1.25pm The Queen and the Bride and Bridegroom, together with their Families, appear on the Balcony.
1.30pm Fly Past by the Royal Air Force and Battle of Britain Memorial Flight.

Miss Catherine Middleton, accompanied by her immediate family, will spend the night before the wedding at the Goring Hotel. This was the Middleton family’s personal choice.
All arrivals at Westminster Abbey are at the Great West Door unless otherwise indicated.

The wedding will be shown on various big screens in London as well as extensive coverage on all the main TV channels.  I've already booked my seat on the sofa in front of my mun & dad's new big screen TV - my 3 year old daughter is most excited to see a real life princess getting married!

Where will you be watching the Royal Wedding?