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Top tips for choosing a wedding photographer

Wedding group

If it’s taken you two years to plan your wedding, get the dress right, squabble over the seating plan and spend two months choosing between pavlova or poached pears, you’re going to want it to be immortalised by exactly the right person. These are the indelible records of a perfect day, so the wedding photographer has to be…well…perfect. So how do you pick the right one for you? We have spoken with Paul Clarke a professional photographer to get his top suggestions on choosing the right photographer for you.

 

How to be more ethical on your wedding day

Ethical wedding

We are all more aware of being ethical in our day to day lives but you can also have an ethical wedding. There are venues and catering companies offering ethical values but there are other ways of reducing the footprint of your special day and it’s all about looking to see what you already have to reduce waste.

For instance, one way of making sure your dress is ethical is by asking your family what they have that could possibly be re-used or upcycled. Your Mum might still have her dress or veil which although might not be your style can be cut up and completely restyled by the right designer.

The Evolution of the British Royal Wedding

Royal wedding

There’s not long to go now until Britain comes to a standstill for the royal wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, a ceremony that will garner headlines across the world and attract millions of viewers on Saturday 19th May. It won’t just be on television sets that the world will be watching, either; if next month’s nuptials follow the lead of William and Kate’s wedding seven years ago, you will also be able to catch a live stream on YouTube.

How To Get A Royal Smile In Time For Your Wedding

Royal smile with White Glo

Meghan Markle sports one of the most famous smiles in the world, with thousands of women desperate to emulate it. But none of us have a royal budget to get the royal smile of our dreams. Kate Middleton allegedly had dental surgery just before her wedding, but this could have cost her between three to ten thousand pounds. So it’s not surprising most use of us a myriad of different teeth-whitening solutions to get the perfect smile for our big day.

The Social Media Wedding Couple

Social media wedding couple

Will you be a social media wedding couple? We hear so much about social media these days that it seems we cannot go through the day without checking one platform or another.

Social media, smartphones, tablets and Internet technology are ubiquitous in today's world and it has really opened up our horizons in terms of travel, fashion, weddings, beauty and so much more. Social media is a way to connect with people but it also is a fantastic source of inspiration for many people and many niches.

A beautiful wedding arch you can keep forever

Wedding arch

Saying vows under a wedding arch is a centuries old tradition full of romantic meaning, symbolising the home that the couple will build together. For weddings held outdoors, arches and arbours also provide a beautiful focal point for the ceremony, and an attractive backdrop for pictures.

If you are planning an outdoor wedding, there are many hire companies around the country from whom you can rent an arch for the day. A much more special alternative, though, would be to be able to take your very own wedding arch home with you, to keep in your garden as a constant reminder of your big day. You could even grow your own wedding flowers over it, seeing them grow larger and stronger with every anniversary that passes.

Lavish wedding love matches revealed!

Lavish wedding

Have you ever wondered what the name of your future spouse will be? Or, how the first name of your intended could determine if you have a lavish wedding or somewhat thrifty? This concept inspired British online marketplace, OnBuy.com to investigate –with some very interesting results.

Methodology 

To achieve the figures, OnBuy.com utilised Adzuna’s ‘ValueMyName’ tool. To create the tool, Adzuna took data from over 500,000 CVs uploaded to ‘ValueMyCV’ and extracted their first name and salary. This allowed the company to provide an average (mean) salary for 1,200 first names. 

How much you should spend on that wedding gift

Wedding sign

The upcoming wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle has sent the nation into a wedding frenzy. With wedding season kicking of this month, guests across the country will be asking themselves the same questions: how much should I spend on a wedding gift and is it okay to give cash?!

Research* from personal loan provider, Hitachi Personal Finance, has got to the bottom of just how much the nation spends on (and expects to receive as)  a wedding gift, and if cash/vouchers or a physical gift is better.

The Wedding DJ Checklist

wedding DJ

You might think that, in these modern times, you can't go far wrong with a wedding DJ. If you can find someone who can provide and operate their own laptop, then you've instantly got access to pretty much every song ever. At the click of a button, the person behind the keyboard can summon anybody's all-time fave, so you must be onto a winner.

Dremel’s top tips for a personalised wedding

Engraving wedding glasses

Weddings are a joyous occasion to celebrate the love between two people and what better way to commemorate this than making your personalised wedding stand out from the rest by adding extra personal features to the day itself.  

Whether it’s table decorations, wedding favours or gifts for your bridal party, Dremel offers a variety of tools to help put your own stamp onto items for the big day. Here are some of Dremel’s top suggestions to help make your special day even more memorable:

Dremals top suggestions for a personalised wedding

Heart Garland

A unique wedding venue at Drayton Manor

Drayton manor wedding venue

Drayton Manor Park’s onsite 4-star hotel, set in the beautiful Staffordshire countryside offers a unique wedding venue for your special day.

At Drayton Manor, they believe that you should have everything to look forward to and nothing to look after. They will work with you during every stage of the planning process to ensure that all your requirements are treated with the utmost care and attention. From your initial viewing of the venue to a menu tasting with their Chef, you will be able to relax and cherish every moment of your special day.

Mr Kipling unveils limited edition range for royal wedding

Mr Kipling Royal Wedding Cakes

Last week we brought the the great competition from Mr Kipling to win a wedding makeover, for couples getting married the same weekend as the Royals. Now we can tell you about the new limited edition range of Royal Wedding cakes that they launched yesterday!

We have had the pleasure of tasting them in the office and we think they're delicious! If you want to get your hands on them get down to Asda today, where they'll be on sale unitl the 16th May.

The wedding of the year is fast approaching, providing the perfect excuse to celebrate. However you're planning on celebrating the big day. Mr Kipling has got you covered with it's limited edition range of cakes, especiallu made for the Royal Wedding on the 19th May.

How selfie frames can entertain your wedding guests

Wedding selfie frames

Every bride and groom want their guests to have an amazing time at their wedding. However, making sure that such a large mix of people have a fun and memorable time all day long can be tricky. Have you considered creating your own selfie frame to entertain your wedding guests? Fun to use and easy to get online, selfie frames today come in a variety of customised designs to suit individual weddings. If you want something quirky to add excitement for your guests, these are fast becoming a must-have item. But why are they so popular?

Say ‘I Do’ to the new range of Wedding Essentials at Aldi

Aldi Fairy lights

As the nation’s excitement for Harry and Meghan’s wedding builds, Aldi is launching a brand new Wedding Essentials range on the 17th May, to show shoppers that weddings don’t have to cost a royal fortune. With lots of great-value accessories for brides and grooms to make their special day perfect, from sending out the invitations to throwing an enviable reception, Aldi has celebrations covered with its beautiful craft-inspired products that shoppers are bound to fall in love with.

The new range will be available to pre-order online from Sunday 13th May and in stores from Thursday 17th May. Lovebirds need to be quick though, as with all Specialbuys once they’re gone, they’re gone.

Get wedding inspiration, with a monthly Wedding Box! MAGIC

Magic, wedding box

Vows and Venues would like to introduce you to this great new idea, for you to get inspiration for your wedding. The monthly wedding box - MAGIC! Read all about it here...

Getting engaged is such an exciting time of your life, but, once the dust has settled, many brides are left overwhelmed by the huge choice of products they could buy for their wedding day. It can be really confusing if you aren't quite sure what you'd like, or if you have a pushy friend/relative who's trying to take over and do things their way!

Spending your evenings trawling the internet, or pouring over wedding magazines can be very enjoyable, but sometimes it's just nice to have a product to hold before you decide if you'd like it for your wedding.

Wedding trends of 2018, according to RIBA

RIBA wedding trends 2018

As the wedding season closes in we have taken the time to talk with Moya Maxwell, Director of Venues at RIBA, about what she thinks will be the wedding trends of 2018.

From lace dresses to vibrant colour schemes and questionable cakes, we’ve seen a fair few wedding trends come and go throughout the years. As we head further into 2018, we’ve been thinking about the wedding trends we expect to see throughout the year.

 

Wedding trends 2018Venues that tell a story

Vitamix: The machine that does it all

Vitamix Slider

Between booking your venue, choosing your favours and picking your bridesmaids, it is hard enough already to find the time to stay healthy in the run up to your big day. But we might just have found the solution! Vitamix blenders have long been the choice of passionate foodies for their speed, reliability and versatility making it easier than ever to whip up delicious recipes that will keep you on track long after your wedding day has finished.

it's puppy love this wedding season at Slaley Hall

Slaley hall exterior

Having your beloved pooch attend your wedding is no longer seen as a ‘barking’ mad idea, according to the wedding experts at Slaley Hall the luxury Northumberland country hotel, this National Pet Month.

Dog loving couples hoping to include their furry bundle of joy in their special day are in luck as Slaley Hall is offering dog-friendly wedding ceremonies.

Often seen as a member of the family, four-legged friends no longer have to miss out on seeing their owners tie the knot, and can even play the part of ring bearer or doggy guard of honour.

Following the nuptials and once the reception begins, pups can relax in their owner’s hotel room after playing their part in the ceremony. They can also enjoy room service with the happy couple the next morning. 

5 Unique wedding favour ideas

wedding favour

A Wedding favour is a token gift that newlyweds present to their guests as a small thank-you for attending their special day. Traditionally, guests were offered 5 sugared-almonds to represent the 5 pillars of marriage: Health, Wealth, Happiness, Fertility and a Long Life. Modern weddings bypass this tradition, and we see more creative offerings – everything from little knick-knacks that form part of the table décor, to pre-party aperitifs, that help kick start the celebrations.

Britain’s Best Bridesmaid top tips revealed

best bridesmaid

A bridesmaid’s duty is to stop her bestie from going full bridezilla, yet bridal parties are consumed by drama far too often! As the summer wedding season kicks off, group travel experts Red7 reveals the top five tips from the 2018 cohort of Britain’s Best Bridesmaid competition winners. 

 

1. Brides love surprises - make her feel special.

Britain’s Best Bridesmaid winner, Nicole Hutton, surprised her bride by secretly arranging for friends and family to meet her in Las Vegas. Bride Elizabeth Upward says: “When I arrived in Vegas she was waiting at the airport with a limousine and champagne!”