Keeping Your Guests Informed On the Day

Whether you are having a civil or a religious ceremony, by providing your guests with an 'Order of Service', an 'Order of the Day' or a 'Wedding Programme', you can ensure everyone will know what to expect to help the day to flow smoothly.

From a simple service summary to a full programme, there are a range of design options- scrolls, a single sheet of card, a booklet, information on a fan… the list is endless and all are great ways to fit in with your wedding style and personalise your ceremony.

They can help your guests follow the ceremony, understand cultural traditions and also become familiar with your bridal party; they serve as a wonderful keepsake too.

When greeting guests your ushers can hand these out, or try placing them on the back of each chair. This is a pretty way to display them whilst adding a touch of color to your ceremony decor.

The content can be as brief or extensive as you’d like, here is a general guideline of what can be included:

The cover Both of your names Ceremony venue Date Wedding Party Both sets of parents Best Man Chief Bridesmaid Ushers Bridesmaids Readers Musician The Ceremony Songs – list the titles and singer / composer listed Readings (mention titles) Order for vows, exchange of the rings and pronouncement Optional Inserts Explanation of traditions (religious, cultural, family, etc.) Thank you message Schedule of the day Table seating plan Wedding breakfast menu

Picture credits: 1- Jenifer Carrol, 2- Cherry Gorgeous, 3- reader contribution

DIY: Paper Flower Escort Cards / Name Settings

Nella from www.lostmykitty.etsy.com has generously shared more of her creative DIY wisdom with us in the form of these delicate paper flowers to use as escort cards or name settings.

They are such a pretty decoration, I am planning on giving these a go over the weekend- would love to see yours if you try them to. Have fun! xxx

And over to Nella....

What you will need:

• Craft paper 4” square
• Fabric leaves 2”
• Skeleton Leaves 2”
• Adhesive Glue
• Scissors
• Needle and Thread

Instructions:

Step 1: Draw a spiral on a 4 inch square. I’ve used 90 weight paper purchased at Jarrold’s though regular coloured craft paper would work equally well.

Step 2: Cut out the spiral along the lines you’ve drawn. If you’re really clever, cut out the spiral freehand. It will keep you from hunting down an eraser as I forced my husband to do for me.

Step 3: Roll the spiral from the outside.

Step 4: Use a spot of adhesive to glue the body of the flower onto the round bit left.

Now you’re finished with the flower!

Step 5: Use a pencil to faintly write your guests’ names in a pretty cursive. I’ve used pen for emphasis and don’t forget the table number for escort cards.

Step 6: Follow the lines using small stitches. You could also use paper if you are not so keen on sewing.

Step 7: Attach the skeleton leaf and your personalised leaf to the flower.

Martha Stewart may be able to make 100 of these in 15 minutes but for us mere mortals make a party of it with a bottle of champagne and a few friends – nothing like the promise of food and a mimosa to corale some slave labour - or you can always contact me through Etsy (Nella, www.lostmykitty.etsy.com).

Real Wedding: Nathaniel and Tamara at Lillibrooke Manor, Maidenhead, Berkshire

Late this summer we co-ordinated Tamara and Nathaniel's wedding at St Lukes Church and Lillibrooke Manor in Maidenhead, Berkshire. These fantastic shots were captured by the incredibly artistic Jamie Thompson from Studio Rouge.

Tamara and Nathaniel had planned the perfect wedding, but wanted the peace of mind that the logistics were managed to ensure it became a reality on the day.
We met a year before their wedding and were in regular contact to provide supplier suggestions. Closer to their wedding we extensively discussed the day's arrangements. Following this meeting we produced a wedding day plan and a timings schedule, then spoke to and confirmed the details with all the suppliers.

Tamara paid great attention to detail with lots of special Zimbabwean touches that made their day meaningful, from the invitation design to the family wedding car, sourcing the national flower to relabelling the bottles of wine and the cake topper to the favours; there was a whole host of personal touches that made for an extra special day. During the week of the wedding we reviewed the final plans and timings together as well as collecting and storing all of their decoration items.

On the morning we decorated the church and Lillibrooke Manor, see the video of the set up here. Luckily we were equipped with our emergency kit with our ivory umbrella to hand when the rain came. We greeted all of the suppliers and supported their set up, organised the guests going to the buffet table, helped book taxis, stored the veil, moved garden games and liaised with the best man for announcements amongst many other things.

Being the point of contact on the wedding day ensured everything went smoothly and relieved the couple of any stress.

Wishing you both a wonderful married life together filled with much love and happiness x

Credits
Photography: Studio Rouge
Videographer: Capture the Day
String trio: Giardino Strings
Caterers: Complete Catering
DJ: Sound Bookings
Cake: Especially Delicious

Top 20 time saving tips - Part 2

Further to our recent top ten tips on saving time when planning your wedding, here are another ten suggestions:

11. High street bridesmaids

There are lots of dresses in high street shops such as Debenhams, Coast and House of Fraser that are just as gorgeous as any bridal shop ones, but without the time delay of ordering the dresses in.

12. Use a Wedding Planner

Ask an expert to create shortlists for suppliers you are having specific trouble sourcing. They will know of reputable local companies and may even be able to negotiate you a better rate.

13. Manage your RSVPs

Send a stamped self addressed envelope if you are mailing RSVP cards with your invites to speed up the replies. Or quicker still use an online RSVP option on a wedding website.

14. Back to basics

Skip some of the unnecessary tasks, such as having wedding favours, that can take a lot of hours to find and you may not feel are critical.

15. Thank you notes

Write your thank you notes as you receive gifts to save having a long list to complete when you return from your honeymoon.

16. Venue styling

Save time on the day by using wedding decorators to set-up and remove the decorations for you.

17. Pre ceremony photo shoot

Meet with your husband-to-be before the wedding ceremony for a photo shoot to save time after the ceremony, leaving you to relax and enjoy the arrival drinks with your guests.

18. Cheat with the cake cutting

Have an extra cake in the kitchen that your caterers can pre-cut so after your cake cutting ceremony is complete they can serve the cake much faster.

19. Skip a receiving line

Depending on how many guest you have these can take a huge amount of time, a less formal way would be to visit each table between courses during the meal.

20. Keep storage simple

Have a room aside to keep everything related to your wedding in- so everyone know where to put things after they have been used and most importantly where to go to pack everything up swiftly at the end of the day.

Photo credit: A SugarBlossom wedding at Brockhurst School, Newbury by Francis Beaumont

Top 20 time-saving options- Part 1

Time-saving options to help you plan your wedding if time is tight.

Are you struggling to find the time to fit planning your wedding into a busy lifestyle?

1. A focused checklist Work out what needs to be done in what order to prioritise your time, always start by finding your venue and booking the registrar/church to get a date confirmed.

2. Know your budget Before you start looking for the perfect wedding dress, flowers etc.. make sure you know what your budget is to save time further down the line having to rethink what you can afford.

3. Decide on your guest list Scribble down a rough idea of numbers to invite for the day and even to help direct you when making your venue choice, this may rule some options out straight away.

4. Wedding fairs Local wedding fairs can be a great inspiration at the start of your planning. Wear 'comfy' shoes and bring friendly support to help collect all the information to browse through at home.

5. Surf the web Visit supplier websites to find pricing, see portfolios of work, and read testimonials to build a shortlist before spending time calling or meeting with lots of different suppliers.

6. Wedding chat rooms Sites such as www.youandyourwedding.co.uk are a great place to meet with other likeminded brides to ask questions for quick answers or pick up new ideas.

7. One email fits all Once you have found a selection of suppliers online you can draft an email with all your questions to copy and email to multiple companies. This approach will save time calling each person and help get consistent replies to compare.

8. Let your friends and family help Make a list of things that need to be done (but not necessarily by you) and delegate! Your bridal party can help make phone calls, prepare invitations, do odd jobs when you need them.

9. Meetings at your house Most suppliers will be more than happy to come to you to meet to save you time driving between locations.

10. Referrals Sharing tips on excellent service providers with recently married friends will give you piece of mind that everything will run smoothly on your special day.

Look out for the next 10 time saving tips!

Photo credit: A SugarBlossom wedding at Englemere, Ascot by Neale James at www.breathepictures.com

Sneak Preview: Tamara & Nathaniel's Wedding at Lillibrooke Manor

Look out for more pictures and details from Tamara and Nathaniel's fantastic wedding coming soon!

Photo credit: www.studiorouge.co.uk

Related posts:

Behind the Scenes: Lillibrooke Manor Wedding

Details we love: bottle escort cards

A thirst quenching alternative to a table plan.

Photo credit: Jonas Peterson via 100 Layer Cake

Real Wedding: Nik and Lisa at The Dairy, Waddesdon Manor

We have been looking forward to sharing the gorgeous pictures from Lisa and Nik’s wedding, they celebrated their marriage in May at The Dairy, Waddesdon Manor near Aylesbury. This stylish wedding was shot by Stuart Bebb photography. Stuart and his assistant captured photos from slightly different views which gave Lisa and Nik a wide variety of photos. Down to Earth Flowers did an unbelievable job with all of the floral arrangements.

Whilst the guests were making their way to The Dairy, Lisa and Nik had some romantic secluded shots taken in the vast grounds, the venue is pretty amazing with woodland areas and waterfalls.

Don’t the tables look pretty with these little vase name holders from Cox & Cox, they were accompanied with small bottles of Prada perfume for the girls favours and miniature bottles of Port for the guys. The band, Limited Edition, kept everyone dancing all night playing songs from Lady Gaga to Dianna Ross. We were so impressed we have already booked them for another clients wedding next summer.

Congratulations Lisa and Nik, thanks so much for letting us post your pretty day! www.sugarblossom.co.uk

Q&A: Our reception venue is quite dark, but we are not allowed to use candles. Can you suggest some alternatives for lighting up the room?

Last weekend we used battery operate candles, available from Cox and Cox , they were effective and lasted all afternoon and evening.

You could also use fairy lights to create a romantic atmosphere. They are easy to get hold of and not expensive, try wrapping them around bay trees, archways, banisters, in clear vases or look for blossom style ones like these from Debenhams or Laura Ashley.

Photo Credit: One Love Photo via Rock n’ Roll Bride

Sneak Preview: Lisa & Nik's Wedding at The Dairy, Waddesdon Manor

Look out for more pictures and details from Nik and Lisa's wonderful wedding coming soon!

Photo credit: www.stuartbebb.com

Behind the Scenes: Lillibrooke Manor Wedding, Maidenhead

Yesterday we had the pleasure of co-ordinating Tamara and Nathaniel's wedding at St Lukes Church and Lillibrooke Manor in Maidenhead.

It was fantastic to work with them to help plan their day, they are a lovely couple and had so many wonderfully unique ideas to incorporate into their wedding.

This video shows a small part of Janet and I setting up in the morning. The day began with an hour of steaming open freeze dried peony heads- fiddly, but worth it when you can not rely on fresh ones being available, they looked beautiful on the arrival drink table.

We moved on to the church to sweep away debris blown in and move papers from the doorway, before organising the confetti, spare readings, reserved seats and order of services.

The next stop was displaying road signs to direct guests to the remote manor house, after our sat nav directed us the wrong way up a one way system on the first visit we decided this was a must!

We then ran through some checks with the catering company, resulting in a quick dash to buy the missing raspberries needed for the arrival drinks and locating the lost desserts still en-route from London.

Janet and I then unloaded the decorations we had been storing and set to work on decorating the barn with many items that reflected their personalities and Zimbabwean roots. This included scattering the national flower, Gloriosa, on the top table, name settings in elephant favours, an elephant cake topper, safari animal table names, table plan, guest book, card box, wine with personalised labels, gifts under the top table, child seating, toys and much more.

The DJ arrived early to build his equipment, after showing him the space we tested the back up music we had for the wedding breakfast and the first/second dance songs.

The courtyard was the next location to organise the garden games, throws, flowers, arrival drinks and the string trio, but moments before the Routemaster bus full of guests pulled up the rain started to fall so a quick turn around and the set up was duplicated inside the adjoining small barn.

This was all simply the preparation, look out for our next post on the wedding celebrations. We can not wait to share some of the photos with you and less wobbly professional video footage, including all of the great supplier details who all made the day so special.

Book your free wedding consultation - Wokingham & Maidenhead fairs

These short 20 minute slots are an easy way to quickly gain expert help and guidance from experienced wedding planners from SugarBlossom. Meet with us to discuss a wedding issue or to ask any questions you may have about wedding planning, such as choosing your venue, your theme and styling, money saving tips, choosing and managing suppliers or wedding etiquette. We are taking a limited number of bookings for complimentary wedding consultations at:

• Fredricks Hotel, Maidenhead Sunday 5th September http://www.fredricks-hotel.co.uk/
• Wokingham Town Hall Sunday 3rd October http://www.wokingham-tc.gov.uk/

Both fairs are free to attend and open from 11am to 3.30pm. After each consultation you will be given a SugarBlossom Wedding Planner to check you are on track with your all important tasks. Simply click here to let us know which fair you will be attending and your preferred time to meet. We look forward to hearing from you, Hannah and Janet

http://www.sugarblossom.co.uk/ info@sugarblossom.co.uk 0783 225 4187, 0118 988 7988

Q&A: Do you know if there is a gift list company for outdoor present, we’d love to create our dream garden?

Absolutely, although many of the department stores with wedding lists have garden options they may not be as varied as you may like.

The Bottom Drawer is a more flexible online gift list option, you can choose to have your garden landscaped or pick products from turf and flowers to lights and decking.

Enjoy relaxing in your new garden!

Photo credit: www.gardenvisit.com

Balloon Save the Date

Found on FPO via Green Wedding Shoes

This is an incredibly fun and creative idea for a Save the Date.
"After ten years together, Jen + Kevin got engaged in Paris – a location they subtly acknowledged in a nod to Albert Lamorisse’s short film The Red Balloon when designing their save the date announcement. Wanting to treat their wedding as a big party more so than a traditional event, each guest received a deflated, red balloon tied to a letterpress printed card reading: “Hello! Please inflate the balloon.” Once inflated, the piece reveals all relevant information and sets the desired tone with humor and playfulness."

Photo credit: http://www.underconsideration.com/

Q&A: I was hoping to wear a vintage dress, but can’t find anything suitable- do you have any ideas?

We have lots of beautiful bridal boutiques here in Berkshire, but not those that specialise in vintage dresses so a trip to London would be the best approach.

Make sure you book appointments in advance, a good place to start and reasonably priced is Annies Vintage Clothing in Islington with original Twenties mid-calf lace wedding dresses with silk under slips that sell for around £200 (www.anniesvintageclothing.co.uk).

Other city options to visit are Candy Anthony (www.candyanthony.com), Half Penny London (www.halfpennylondon.com) and The Vintage Wedding Dress Company (www.thevintageweddingdresscompany.com).

Have a fabulous day out and be sure to update us on your search for the perfect dress.

Photo credit: www.halfpennylondon.com

Equestrian name setting

If you are an animal lover add a touch of personality to your tables with a tiny chalk horse. These horses can have names scribbled on in chalk to make a unique name setting. They are available here on Etsy.

Easy tool to create your seating plan

Simply register with www.marthastewartweddings.com to access the online seating chart tool, you add your room dimensions then start populating with tables and names to drag and move around to get the ideal arrangement. Easy peasy!

Q&A: How can I make the RSVP process easier?

An online RSVP option is becoming more common as wedding websites grow in popularity, this is a quick way for guests to reply and easy for you to manage whilst being environmentally friendly, although it may require a few calls to Grandparents and those less comfortable with the internet.

Expecting guests to send a postal reply can be a slow process unless you include your own RSVP cards, removing any delay in guests having to find a suitable acceptance card. Including an addressed and stamped envelope makes this even simpler and speeds up the time for you to get your numbers confirmed.

Tip: Number the guest list and the backs of the RSVP cards, in case someone forgets to write in his or her name.

Image credit: www.studiobelle.co.uk

Q&A: When should we send our thank you cards?

Try to send hand written thank you notes no later than a month after your wedding referring to the gift they have given you. To make it easier to manage start writing them as soon as people start buying you gifts rather than having masses to do after your honeymoon.

DIY: Seed Matchbook Favours

These floral favours make a pretty decoration for your tables and symbolise the beginning of a relationship that grows over time, a unique memento for your guests. The free template to edit and directions can be downloaded here.

Found on Martha Stewart via iDIY

Photo credit: www.mathastewartweddings.com