Good afternoon ladies, how are you on this fine day? I do hope you’re well and your wedding plans are ticking along nicely? How you finding this whole wedding experience? Thrilling I hope? I sure know though how it can leave you feeling a tad daunted, especially where wedding inspiration is concerned! So, what the hell’s a girl supposed to do if she doesn’t have the foggiest idea where to start?. Well, good news my lovelies, I have a fab post and excellent advice from my fellow blogger and friend Lou… Read on!
What’s the wedding you want?
So your fella’s popped the question and you’re floating on cloud 99 waving your sparkler at anyone who’ll stand still long enough. It’s a wonderful time to wallow in. And in between all the excitement and giddiness, your mind is bound to turn towards the planning of your Big Day.
But where on earth do you start? What if you’re about as creative as a cornflake or you’re not conveniently marrying a stylist/designer/someone who knows what a colour palette is? What theme do you choose? Do you even need a theme? How do you avoid making the day look like last year’s panto? Or a Channel 4 documentary? With so many gorgeous weddings out there and so much to organise, it’s enough to make you want to run screaming onto the nearest flight to Vegas.
But panic not. As with anything creative, there are no rules. Some like a big idea. Some don’t. Some want a big extravaganza, some keep it simple. Some use one colour to hang everything together. Others use the whole rainbow. Remember, it’s your day, you can pretty much do whatever you want. (One small watch-out though. A friend of a friend of a friend of mine went a bit berserk and apparently copied various ideas from every wedding she’d ever been to/seen on telly, thus creating a wedding that resembled a car crash in
a branch of HobbyCraft. Eek.)
When my hubby proposed, I promptly ran to the nearest newsagents and hoovered wedding mags for inspiration. But it was information overload. I didn’t know my bouquets from my buttonholes. So I tackled the problem from a different angle. I sat down with my HTB and made a list of the things we knew we absolutely didn’t want. It’s amazing how this simple exercise can set the tone and provide that vital springboard for ideas. It also puts the focus of the day back on you as a couple.
Let me share a few things from that list. (and I just want to say, there’s nothing wrong with any of these things, it’s all a matter of taste isn’t it?)
A big, over the top, complicated, fuss. This was my Yorkshire hubby’s influence. He’s
a ‘does what it says on the tin’ kinda guy. Not one for flounce, he’s much happier with a pint and a bag of scratchings in a proper pub, than a cocktail and a nano-slice of bruschetta with balsamic dip in a swanky bar. And that’s exactly why I love him.
Huge expense. We didn’t want to get carried away with cash. It’s an important day, but for us it wasn’t about spending a fortune on diamond-encrusted, peacock-feathered table decorations. We wanted to splurge on the honeymoon instead.
Too much match-matchy gubbins. Chair sashes that match the groom’s tie, the napkins, the waiter’s underpants and the bog roll all felt a bit formal for us.
Bridesmaids in matching frocks. I’m going to be controversial here. I don’t like the word bridesmaid. There I’ve said it. I guess for me it just conjures up images of frothy peach puffballs, and seething resentment from the girls for being forced to wear a dress they don’t like. And I know it doesn’t have to be that way these days, we’re no longer in 1983. But still, the whole idea just jars for me.
Too many guests. We wanted to be able to speak to everyone who came, and also not look back on photos and think ‘why did we invite them?’
Doing it in London. Even though we were living in London at the time, and although it’s
a special place for us cos that’s where we met and ‘courted’ (such an underused word)
it never really seemed the right place to marry. So we steered away from big fancy city venues requiring top hats and tails. Or whatever they wear in London.
That’s the very edited version but hopefully you can see how it helped. Our wedding needed to be relaxed, informal and surrounded by fields and trees. A simple gathering
of our favourite people (no more than 60). A casual hog roast rather than a three course meal. Best Girls rather than Bridesmaids – wearing any outfit they wanted to. Then for all the nitty gritty decoration and detail, we took inspiration from our joint favourite things…
the outdoors, pies, (yes pies) a good pub and generally having a giggle. Easy.
So what would be on your list of no-no’s? Or indeed maybe you already have a list of things you actually want. Either way, thinking outside the wedding box is an excellent way to get the creative juices flowing. And if that doesn’t work, maybe just hire an expert – cue the shameless plug for our lovely Sonia’s services.
Love Lou ~ Wedding In Wellies xx
Another fantastic guest post from Louise! She really does know what she’s talking about, great advice!!
