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Trend predictions for weddings in 2018

Trend predictions for weddings in 2018

Photography by Squib PhotographyWeddings are a wonderful celebration of love and marriage. They can blend together families, traditions, cultures, creativity and lots of personal touches. Whether a religious, civil or humanist ceremony, a traditional or themed reception, these special days are about what is important to each individual couple.

Despite some couples’ originality, there are always trends that appear and popular themes that epitomise a particular era (think puff ball sleeves from the eighties). Sometimes fashion, films, television programmes, interior design, celebrity weddings and even current affairs influence these trends. Of course, there are some timeless and classic themes that never seem to go out of favour like a ‘romantic’ theme and personalisation is still key at the moment.

So what does 2018 hold for the world of weddings? Here is a curation of some of the top trends to look out for next year.

Choices
Making your special day all about you is the name of the game. With Pinterest at our finger tips, there are lots of ways to personalise your nuptials and break from tradition. In particular, I think that alternatives for the following aspects of wedding days will continue to be more and more original:

  • Alternative stationery – go beyond paper with different material types such as perpex, denim, wood or agate slices
  • Alternative guest books – think about things you’ll use or see every day such as recipe books, furniture and artwork (see more ideas at alternative wedding guest book ideas)
  • Alternative florals – the greenery trend has meant less flowers and more plants and foliage. Along with paper florals and other lasting alternatives to bouquets, consider new ways to wear flowers such as corsages, floral rings, anklets and chockers. My personal floral alternative favourite is succulents and air plants, as well as foraged items such as moss, fruit, vegetables, feathers, cones and other seasonal items from the environment around us. Plus the archway will be superseded by the ceremony wreath. And urns, vases, bell jars and different ways to show flowers will be big next year.
  • Alternative rings – mixed metal trends will start to be seen in wedding rings as well as décor, plus more finger tattoos are emerging as another option to wearing a ring at all.

Photography by Squib Photography

Culling
Uncertain times, call for purse strings to be a bit tighter. So I believe that budgets may be slightly dwindling in 2018. This could result in trends for:

  • More couples to diy and create, source or design elements themselves
  • Using industrial, blank spaces or open spaces as a blank canvas
  • Minimalist styling with one accent or monochrome colour schemes
  • Smaller guest lists
  • Later weddings held at a different time of day so couples don’t have to feed people twice!

Clothing
Bridal wear is continuing to see a shift in trends to provide new, innovative and unusual styles to make sure the bride makes a statement and is different to any other on her big day. Fashion trends that are appearing on the catwalks (that will surely influence weddings next year) include:

  • Covering up the arms with arms warmers, long sleeves or capes
  • Adornments on dresses such as cascading shoulder bows, butt bows, feathers, shirt collars and 3D flowers
  • Skirts will have plenty of drama with high/low hem lines or slits
  • Whilst the backs of dresses will continue to wow with the 18th century style Watteau backs (a section at the back of a dress that is gathered or pleated at the neck and falls unbelted to the floor)
  • Fabrics will be structured and sheer
  • With metallic detail and even black accents
  • Soft colour dresses will continue to grow in popularity
  • Accessorise with big earrings and embellished shoes

Photography by Farrow Photography

Colour and styling
So much influences our daily lives which in turn spills over to the world of weddings, including decorative elements from different arenas such as interior design, architecture, graphic design, lighting, furniture and textiles. One part that overarches these elements is the importance of colour.

  • The Pantone® Colour of the Year always plays a big part in influencing popular colours and I don’t think next year will be any exception. In 2018, the colour of the year is a striking blue-toned purple called Ultra Violet . Pantone are citing it as ‘optimistic and empowering color” for “originality, ingenuity, and visionary thinking” [take a look at my report about the colour of the year – https://www.hanamidream.co.uk/pantone-announce-the-color-of-the-year-2018/] and I’m pretty pleased as purple is my favourite colour! I think it will work particularly well teamed with the greenery colour of 2017. Here’s my take on the other colours to look out for in spring/summer 2018 – https://www.hanamidream.co.uk/top-spring-2018-colours-from-pantone/.
  • Textures – crushed velvet will become more prevalent for more luxurious styles
  • Transparent – Perspex chairs, tables, menus and signage will continue to grow in popularity for a modern style and this is evolving further to iridescent details
  • Metallic – the metallic trend isn’t showing any signs of tiring just yet. Next year will be the turn of copper to take to centre stage
  • Gem stones – agate (or hollow geodes) are still going to be at the forefront of designs, as well as marble. Plus pearl details are set to come back into the limelight in 2018.
  • Mix and match – you don’t have to settle on one style for a great fusion of modern/vintage, different cultures and mixed colours. I’m hopeful for vibrant folk art style weddings to be a great evolution of the boho festival trend.
  • Foraged items – my personal tip is for peacock feathers and all the bright associated colours of this beautiful bird

Photography by Squib Photography

Catering
Family style serving is still a great way to share the wedding reception which works so well on long, large banquet tables lining the room. Plus couples want their food to look amazing so that it is Instagram worthy.

Other food and drink highlights to support emerging tends include:

  • Local produce – organic, farm to table that supports local suppliers
  • Cakes – marbling icing, amazing geode crystal detailing and metallic cakes
  • Unusual catering vans, dessert tables and interactive stations at the reception – think gin bars, hot chocolate stations and make your own pudding
  • Dietary requirements – upsurge is requests for vegan desserts so that it caters for all guests
  • Personalised cocktails – have your own cocktails created and served as the ‘house’ aperitif instead of Pimms or Buck’s Fizz when guests arrive. Or how about two different personal cocktails to represent the different tastes of the couple.

Photography by Squib Photography

Culture
The world of films and tv always influences trends and 2018 looks set to be a year of blockbusters to choose from such as:

  • Comic book films like: Incredibles 2, X-Men: Dark Phoenix, Avengers: Infinity War, and Fantastic Beasts 2
  • Children’s classics including: Jungle Book, Arctic Justice, and Mary Poppins Returns
  • Sci-Fi movies such as: Solo: a Star Wars Story, Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom, Black Panther, and Aquaman – wouldn’t an Atlantis underwater wedding be amazing!
  • Action movies including: M:I 6 – Mission Impossible, and Ocean’s 8 – a brilliant female reboot set in New York
  • Love stories like: Fifty Shades Freed, and Love, Simon

Plus big tv shows such as Peaky Blinders, Dr Who (complete with a new female doctor after Christmas) and a new adaptation of Vanity Fair (set in the 19th century around the Napoleonic Wars) will help some wedding themes.

Film and video will continue to be more prevalent at weddings with couples choosing 360 videos, virtual reality experiences and drones to capture their big day. Along with social media being a part of the day and a way to capture everyone’s pictures of the day (it’s just the modern version of the disposable cameras on the table!) with personalised snap chat geofilters and your own hashtags for the day.

Photography by Squib Photography

Celebrities
As well as the wonders of Pinterest, couples are inspired by seeing others doing something first. So it’s no surprise that details from celebrity weddings will influence wedding trends. Here are some famous engaged couples that could make it up the aisle in 2018 and their special days will be ones to watch:

  • Prince Harry & Meghan – need I say any more! This will be THE wedding of the year and will surely spur some British street party style themes
  • Candice Brown & Liam Macaulay – she is a former Great British Bake Off winner so I’m sure there’ll be some wedding cakes goals emerging from this day!
  • Kate Mara & Jamie Bell – perhaps some Fantastic 4 or Billy Elliot themes
  • Matthew Lewis & Angela Jones – he played Neville Longbottom so will we see some more Harry Potter themes?
  • Rosie Huntington-Whiteley & Jason Statham – surely an action packed wedding expected there
  • Stephen Webb & Daniel Lustig – these guys are stars of Gogglebox and sure to have some original details to aspire to
  • Robert Pattinson & FKA twigs – Twilight themed weddings are still popular and great outdoor weddings

Photography by Squib Photography

Current affairs
You may be living and breathing your wedding and everything else in the world is taking a back seat. However, things are still going on around you and some national, local and annual events may have an impact on your guests involvement, availability and enjoyment. Here’s some events around the world that could influence your choice of dates and could also influence wedding trends:

  • Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea 9-25 February 2018
  • Commonwealth Games in Australia, 4-15 April 2018
  • World Cup in Russia 14 June – 15 July 2018

These are a few of my predictions for wedding trends in 2018. I’d love to hear what you think are going to be popular wedding trends next year. Email me with your predictions and take a look at more of my curation and inspiration on Pinterest.

May I take this opportunity to wish you a very Happy Christmas and all the best for the New Year.

Photography by Squib Photography

Are you getting married in 2018? Is your wedding going to be following one of these trends? Let me know if you’d like to share the detail shots of your day on my blog to inspire other couples who are wedding planning. If you (and your photographer) are happy, then take a look how to submit your wedding.

Inspiration: modern Edwardian Secret Garden wedding

Inspiration: modern Edwardian Secret Garden wedding

Based on The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett (published in 1911), this modern Edwardian styled wedding shoot is a perfect harmony of traditional and contemporary elements brought together with sheer glamour and sophistication. Planned and designed by Hanami Dream and wonderfully captured by Squib Photography.

Photography by Squib Photography

This elegant and delicate wedding is set in the grounds of a local English Manor House in the Oxfordshire Cotswolds of the UK (also used in the filming of another 1910s drama, Downtown Abbey). The lush greenery of a walled garden is discovered behind a secret locked door and its unseen natural beauty is unearthed after being concealed for many years.

Photography by Squib Photography

Complete with an intimate ceremony on the croquet lawn, drinks in a secluded corner of the garden, followed by a celebration in a stunning Cotswold stone barn, this wedding features modern twists on traditional wedding styles with a real sense of rejuvenation.

Photography by Squib Photography

With clear acrylic ‘stationery’ and signage with white brush lettering (where the greenery of the garden can be seen through), a hoop bouquet, a fresh take on the time-honoured wedding dessert of a croquembouche, vintage pearl details, antique keys and a friendly robin redbreast motif. Mary and Colin would be proud to attend this stylish wedding.

Photography by Squib Photography

The colour palette is soft and understated so nothing distracts from the abundance of sumptuous cascading foliage. White is accented with hints of pink Pale Dogwood and plenty of the Colour of the Year of Greenery. There’s a definite nod to the Pantone® Spring/Summer 2017 colours with some subtle inclusion of blues (a navy Lapis for the groom’s suit and a denim Niagara of the manor house internal doors), Hazelnut and more greenery in the form of Kale.

Photography by Squib Photography

Cogges Manor Farm  was the ideal location for this wedding with its very essence in this era. It is nestled in the lovely market town of Witney and offers two stunning seventeenth century barns as well as a beautiful walled garden, stunning grounds and an impressive Manor House as a remarkable backdrop.

Photography by Squib Photography

The couple got ready in the peaceful setting of the Manor House, strolled romantically through the walled garden, encouraged their families to ‘choose a seat not a side’ on vintage chairs (from Linda’s Vintage Hire) on the croquet lawn, and enjoyed the perfect blank canvas of the Barley Barn where modern, personalised details make this wedding complete.

Photography by Squib Photography

Hanging from one of the impressive beams is a large rustic wooden cartwheel from Oakwood Events, adorned with greenery along with stylish bulb cages around Edison type filaments, plus some added alliums (from Lark Rise Flowers).

Photography by Squib Photography

The top table is awash with greenery running down the whole of the table and spilling off the ends to the floor, courtesy of Lark Rise Flowers. Plus, the fragrance of the foliage was a delight to the senses with hosta, hedera, honeysuckle, laurel and hebe. Along with gentle inclusion of white flowers in the form of campanula, astilbe, lady’s mantle, sweet william, viburnum, rambling rose, helleborus seedheads and valeriana.

Photography by Squib Photography

The sturdy wooden table, along with vintage chairs from Linda’s Vintage Hire, is set simply with white crockery and silver cutlery, plus clear acrylic menus sit on green moss. Alongside each setting is a clear acrylic place name (with guest names paying homage to the character names from the book) attached to vintage keys, along with favours of charming wooden robins by Muffat Prague.

Guests are directed around the farm with stylish clear acrylic signage and find their places by referring to the reclaimed window pane table plan with white brush lettering thanks to The Paper Hare, completing the stationery suite of clear acrylic invitations and clear acrylic table number tubes.

Photography by Squib Photography

In the garden, the couple relax and enjoy a smooth glass of brandy whilst listening to the gramophone and admiring the remarkable cake by Cotswold Baking, a reintroduction of a traditional wedding dessert. This impressive croquembouche plays on the trend of wedding cake alternatives and sits on top of a plain white cake. The choux balls are decorated with edible pearl balls of varying sizes.

Photography by Squib Photography

The bride chicly carries a hoop bouquet by Lark Rise Flowers leaving a beautiful scent of jasmine wherever she sashays. She has strong smoky eyes, pinched cheek blush and barely-there pale lipstick reminiscent of the times and beautifully recreated by Blushing Brides.

Her hair is ornamented with a delicate pearl hair vine by Designed to Sparkle and gathered up to reveal the breathtaking backless dress.

Photography by Squib Photography

She perfectly fits the glamourous, champagne coloured bridal gown, made from Lux Charmeuse, featuring a high neckline, flutter sleeves, low back, attached silver beaded waistline and godet train by Justin Alexander, provided by Proposals of Witney. This 1910s styling is teamed with a multi-strand bracelet and necklace by Designed to Sparkle, made with navette set Swarovski crystal stones and pearls, in creamrose light shade.

Photography by Squib Photography

The suave, slicked-back groom suited the era with a blue three-piece suit made from a British fabric 100% wool, cut in a traditional style but more modern in shape from The Cotswold Tailor.

Photography by Squib Photography

It’s the little details that bring any event to life and this was made possible by the wonderful local suppliers who provided their time, services, venue and products for free. Together we have showcased the amazing talent that our part of the UK has to offer the wedding industry.

Take a look at the fabulous suppliers that were involved in this styled shoot – Keeping it local with suppliers for the Secret Garden shoot

And take a glimpse behind the scenes at the how the theme and designs came to life – Behind the scenes: Secret Garden shoot

And here’s the video from the shoot too – Video: Secret Garden Wedding

#keepitlocal

Planning & Design | Hanami Dream | www.hanamidream.co.uk
Location | Cogges Manor Farm | www.cogges.org.uk
Photographer | Squib Photography | http://www.squibphotography.co.uk/
Models | Úna and Daryl
Hair & Make up | Blushing Brides | http://www.blushingbrideshairandmakeup.com/
Bridal dress, shoes and veil | Proposals of Witney | http://www.proposalsbridalstudio.co.uk/
Groom clothing | The Cotswold Tailor | http://www.suitstailored.com/
Jewellery | Designed to Sparkle | http://www.designedtosparkle.co.uk/
Florist | Lark Rise Flowers | http://www.larkriseflowers.com/
Cake | Cotswold Baking | http://www.cotswoldbaking.co.uk/
Stationery | The Paper Hare | http://www.thepaperhare.com/
Lighting | Oakwood Events | http://www.oakwoodevents.co.uk/
Chairs, glasses & gramophone | Linda’s Vintage Hire | http://www.lindasvintagehire.co.uk/
Favours | Muffat Prague | www.muffatprague.com

Keeping it local with suppliers for the Secret Garden shoot

Keeping it local with suppliers for the Secret Garden shoot

Based on The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett (published in 1911), this modern Edwardian Secret Garden styled wedding shoot is a perfect harmony of traditional and contemporary elements brought together with sheer glamour and sophistication.

Photography by Squib Photography

It’s the little details that bring any event to life and this was made possible by the wonderful local suppliers who provided their time, services, venue and products for free. Together we have showcased the amazing talent that our part of the UK has to offer the wedding industry.

 

Thanks to all these wonderful suppliers #keepitlocal


Location Cogges Manor Farm

Cogges Manor Farm is nestled in the lovely market town of Witney and offers two stunning seventeenth century barns for weddings. They are a perfect blank canvas where you can add loads of personalised details to make your special day complete. Your wedding can be as individual as you are with your own choice of catering, furniture and decoration.

The magnificent and spacious Wheat Barn can seat up to 200 guests, with refurbished stone floor, and portable heating included in the cost of hire. The more intimate and adjacent Barley Barn can seat about 60 guests or is an ideal choice to use as a dance or ceremony area. Each barn can be hired separately, or as a combined hire. Cogges offers a civil ceremony license and is next door to Cogges Parish Church.

In addition to any indoor space you hire, you and your guests can use the charming outdoor space to wander and enjoy (and after 5pm you will have exclusive use of the site). Cogges has many perfect locations for your wedding photographs, such as the Manor House lawn, the walled garden or the orchard and you can even include the farm animals in your photos.

Photography by Squib Photography

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Photographer Squib Photography

I’m Steven, a full time professional photographer who set up Squib Photography in 2002 and is lucky enough to photograph some beautiful weddings in the Oxfordshire and the Cotswolds. I also cover pretty much the rest of the UK and have even been lucky enough to be booked to cover some destinations recently overseas.

After completing my studies at Oxford Brookes University I started Squib Photography and have photographed in excess of 450 weddings to date. I like to provide a professional, yet flexible service offering a mixture of formal and reportage photography to perfectly capture the atmosphere of a wedding day.

Every wedding is important to me and I will strive to tell the story of the day using natural light and little posing as possible. I do so in a relaxed, informal way so the couple can enjoy those special moments and leave me to document that for them.

I am always open to new ideas, input from couples and understand that every wedding day is very different, so will always work carefully with them to make sure you receive a personalized, bespoke service.

Photography by Squib Photography

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Hair & Make up – Blushing Brides

Blushing Brides Hair and Makeup, Hair and Makeup Artists are based in Oxfordshire and the Cotswolds.

With Blushing Brides you make one booking and get two artists working for you, two artists with individual skills, ideas and experience.

We are firm believers that with specialists who have honed their individual skills over many years you get a superior experience, the look you have always wanted and better value for money.

Lauren (Makeup Artist) and Laura (Hair Stylist) have many years experience working for brides and bridal parties, we bring all this to help you achieve the most beautiful look for your special day. Far better, we believe, than one person pushing themselves to do both.

 

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Cake – Cotswold Baking

Creating Crumbs of Comfort.

Cotswold Baking – made to order cakes, delicious desserts, tasty tray bakes and all things sweet, delivered to your door.

Photography by Squib Photography

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Groom clothing – Cotswold Tailor

The Cotswold Tailor is an award winning tailor, that takes traditional British cloths and tailors them with a contemporary twist. This results in unique, elegant designs, that stand out from the usual mass produced clothing on the high street. We emphasise the use of British manufacturers. Our British range of products include: trousers, socks, cufflinks, lambs wool jumpers, ties and all of the cloths used in the jackets.

Please take this opportunity to view our products online or alternatively if you would like to visit us, we are located in the bustling market town of Woodstock on the high street as well as our new shop located on Church Street in Shipston On Stour.

Photography by Squib Photographytwitter-1@Cotswoldtailor

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Jewellery – Designed to Sparkle

Designed to Sparkle is run by Fiona Self, creating beautiful jewellery and accessories from her studio in Bampton at the edge of the Cotswolds.

Gaining inspiration from the incredible natural beauty found all around, Fiona draws from the elements that she loves the most, and designs pieces that bring her joy!

Fiona personally hand makes each piece of jewellery using the very best materials and supplies that she can source, and paying meticulous attention to detail in the quality and finish of each and every element that she makes.

Photography by Squib Photographytwitter-1@DesignedToSpark

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Florist – Lark Rise Flowers

Lark Rise Flowers, are professionally qualified florists, based in the rolling countryside of North Oxfordshire. They provide flowers for weddings and events throughout Oxon, Bucks, Northants, and beyond.

Stock is sourced from the major flower markets, and if seasonally available from an expanding group of British growers. The Eco commitment continues with a policy of recycling waste packaging and surplus green material.

Sandra, the Proprietor, is happy to meet with you for personal consultations and site visits. She will work with your brief, budget, or theme, to create a unique day for you both.

The Lark Rise team have a wealth of experience, having provided many wedding flowers, and decorated most of the major wedding venues in the area. They take pride and care in their work, from the simplest buttonhole through to beautiful bridal bouquets and venue décor.

“Surrounded by nature – working with nature”

Photography by Squib Photography


Chairs, glasses & gramophone – Linda’s Vintage Hire

We provide a stress free vintage hire service for all occasions. If you are organising an event with a vintage flare we can supply furniture, crockery and a range of props and accessories to give your event that much loved nostalgic vintage feel.

We work with theatres, corporations, event and wedding planners, caterers, photographers and festivals to mention but a few.

So if you’re planning your vintage event whether it’s afternoon tea, the wedding of your dreams, a magazine shoot or creating something inspirational for a large festival there is no end to what can be achieved with the help of Linda’s Vintage Hire. We can deliver up and down the country.

Photography by Squib Photography

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Favours – MuffatPrague

MuffatPrague started life as a sonic and visual arts blog in 2011.

After a lifetime’s love of the letterform, all things typographic and a couple of decades of working independently in creative spheres, designer-maker team Rob and Hils decided to start hand-craft letters from their garden studio in 2014. Their Oiseaux, a simple bird form designed by Rob has now become their brand identity and signature design. Their work is handmade from locally sourced reclaimed ply, walnut and oak, finished with Farrow & Ball Eggshell and Oxfordshire beeswax.

They were voted Best Creative Producer (Bucks/Oxon) in the Muddy Stilettos Awards 2016 and have new ideas coming this year – keep an eye on their website and Instagram feed for more info.

The birds are available in 4 sizes with a single brass leg fitting or bakers twine loop.

Photography by Squib Photographytwitter-1@muffatprague

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Lighting – Oakwood Events

We supply lighting solutions for barn weddings with a focus on stunning design, technical excellence and day to evening transitions.

Our extensive range includes fairy lights, festoons, Edison bulbs, chandeliers, paper lanterns, ambient and party lighting.

Wedding lighting with style!

Photography by Squib Photography

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Bridal dress, shoes and veil – Proposals of Witney

 

Proposals is a family run business established in 2004. Our philosophy is to take personal responsibility and to provide an unforgettable exquisite experience. We pride ourselves on listening and understanding the desires of each bride and her party.

Since opening in 2004 we have grown in our expertise by constantly researching the requirements and expectations of all our customers having listened and learnt from each and everyone and pride ourselves on our excellent and enviable personal service.

Dreams really do come true at Proposals with over 100 wedding gowns to chose from including designers Ian Stuart, Justin Alexander, Essense of Australia, La Sposa and Maggie Sottero, you are sure to find your perfect gown.

 

Photography by Squib Photography

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Stationery – The Paper Hare

The Paper Hare is an illustration and lettering design studio based in the North Cotswolds.

Specialising in adding memorable adornments to special occasions with hand lettered touches, watercolour art prints for homes and nurseries and brushlettering workshops for those hoping to uncover their own creative style.

Photography by Squib Photography

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Take a look at a behind the scenes look at the briefs that were given to these fabulous suppliers and how the Secret Garden theme came to life with their designs and products.

And here’s the video from the shoot too – Video: Secret Garden Wedding

Behind the scenes: Secret Garden shoot

Behind the scenes: Secret Garden shoot

I was delighted to find a new photography partner to work with on a styled bridal shoot this May half term. It was wonderful to work alongside Steve from Squib Photography – another fellow Witney business and we discovered that unbeknown we had even lived next to each other in halls at University! We collaborated to produce an amazing bridal styled shoot based around The Secret Garden. It was also an honour to be able to showcase some amazing products from some fantastic local suppliers.

Photography by Squib Photography

Theme
I chose the Secret Garden theme as it is another classic story with a sense of much needed rejuvenation in current times (see some of my previous styled shoots based on classics books). Published in the 1910s, The Secret Garden focuses on an orphan who is sent to live with her uncle at his mansion. She befriends a robin and discovers a neglected garden that she is determined to bring back to life. I wanted to hint at this theme with slight nods to the book with the name places, wooden robin favours and vintage keys.

Originally my next shoot was going to focus on a stunning local location with beautiful blossom trees in full bloom and falling down like confetti (which obviously stems from my love of cherry blossom). A local jeweller, Designed to Sparkle, wanted to be involved in one of my shoots and she had some stunning blossom pieces that would have fitted this theme perfectly.

However, as planning continued I realised that timings meant that not only would the trees have already had their hanami but also that I wanted to focus more on foliage and really make the most of the Greenery Pantone® colour of the year 2017. I wanted to show case the lush greenery of a stunning garden.

Photography by Squib Photography

Styled shoot
A styled shoot takes almost as much time and effort to produce as a wedding day and entails bringing together the theme from many different suppliers.

The beauty of styled shoots (versus a real life wedding) is that it is a great opportunity to be a little more extravagant and really show off what you’ve always wanted to do. You can indulge your fantasies with new trends or products that couples may not have seen yet or something really unusual.

This styled shoot is a collaboration of like minded people that can create great things together but perhaps don’t have the budgets to produce this kind of work if they all worked independently.

Photography by Squib Photography

Brief
I am very lucky to live in a beautiful part of the UK and am surrounded by some seriously talented wedding venues, professionals and suppliers. I was honoured that so many wanted to be involved in this shoot and they certainly didn’t disappoint with the products that they provided.

I gave them all the same brief that I was trying to achieve:

bring the beauty of nature inside for a secret garden wedding brimming with
lush green foliage, clear Perspex signage and modern twists on wedding traditions

I also provided them with my collated vision and ideas on my Pinterest board.

The themes I wanted to encapsulate included:

  • Modern
  • Edwardian
  • Delicate
  • Elegant
  • Greenery
  • Clear Perspex
  • Pearl
  • Hoops
  • Keys
  • Robins

I wanted the use of colour to be kept to a minimum with hints of colour and an abundance of green with a focus on white and the following spring/summer 2017 colours:

  • Greenery (Pantone® 2017 colour of the year)
  • Pale Dogwood (a really pale ‘barely there’ pink)
  • Hazelnut (almost a champagne / pearl colour)
  • Lapis Blue & Niagara (blues to act almost like cooling neutral colours)

Photography by Squib Photography

Designs
The creative suppliers worked wonders in transforming my overflowing pot of ideas and pairing it down in to realistic and achievable products for us to showcase.

  • Stationery designsOne of the first ideas for this shoot came from an image that I saw of clear acrylic stationery and I fell in love with the current trend for Perspex furniture and modern ways to present stationery. I was concerned with how this could be photographed but Squib Photography used the natural light to make sure there wasn’t too much glare on the acrylic.
    My vision was to present lovely modern, clear acrylic ‘stationery’ and signage with white brush lettering, where the greenery of the garden can be seen through the clear acrylic – bringing the outside inside.
    I sourced the acrylic from a local builder’s merchants (and my favourite go to place for any materials) who kindly cut the acrylic to size and drilled holes in the right places. The reclaimed window pane was to be the table plan which my best friend kindly donated (or rather retrieved from the skip outside her house!) which she had going spare as a result of her building project.
    Next in stepped the highly talented The Paper Hare to wave her magic brush lettering over this raw material and make it look beautiful. The modern stationery included: menus A6 x6 (105mm x 148mm), invitation square (105mm x 105mm) with moss between 2 sheets, place names x6 (50mm x 50mm) attached to vintage keys from a local hardware shop with ribbon, ‘ceremony’ signage (297mm x 105mm), ‘garden’ signage (297mm x 105mm), ‘choose a seat not a side’ signage (297mm x 420mm), table plan on window pane (whole window is 600mm x 1060mm, each pane is 250mm x 300mm), table number on an acrylic tube (70mm diameter x 150mm tall).
  • Cake designI was really keen to reintroduce the traditional wedding dessert of a croquembouche to play on the trend of wedding cake alternatives at the moment. Producers of these pièce montée are few and far between in the Cotswolds, but I was delighted to discover the amazing Paul from Cotswold Baking who rose to the challenge (#sorry #notsorry for the cake related pun!) of creating this masterpiece for the shoot.
    A topic close to my heart is cake (do I mention it a lot?!) and I’ve written a bit on the history of wedding cakes. So I was intrigued to learn more about this style of French wedding dessert. Meaning crunch in the mouth, a croquembouche is made of choux pastry profiteroles piled into a cone and bound with spun sugar. Our dessert was made the traditional (and harder way) of being self supporting rather than being attached to another structure. An amazing and decadent centre piece, created in the late 1700s by a French pastry chef. Traditionally, the croquembouche used to be hit by a sword and the bridesmaids would catch the falling profiteroles in a tablecloth.
    Our impressive cake cone stood aloft a plain white cake adorned giving it yet more height and a great modern twist. Several of the little choux were decorated with pearls to tie in with the jewellery worn by the bride.
  • Flowers – I wanted this shoot to really highlight the modern use of florals including a circle bouquet and floral chandeliers (along with edison lighting). In doing so, it almost became an ‘anti flowers’ brief, as I wanted the emphasis to be on the foliage and greenery with just subtle hints of white or pale pink (either on the foliage or with minimal flowers). There was also moss under the menus and between the sheets of the invitation so the brush lettering popped out. Plus foliage in the acrylic tubes so guests could read their table numbers. More greenery was used to dress the window pane table plan and fragrant jasmine on the cake stand. Lark Rise Flowers really went to town with my brief of having a lush cascading table runner pouring off the ends of the tablescape. Here are the flowers that were used in the shoot:
    • Bridal hoop – made from twisted stems of salix, entwined with Jasminum polyanthum, Hedera, and Lonicera japonica aureoreticulta. Embellished with flowers of Paeonia “Alertie”, Rosa spray “Sweet Avalanche”, Ornithogalum thyrsoides, Helleborus orientalis, Phlomis
    • Boutonniere – Helleborus orientalis, Astrantia major, Jasminum polyanthum, Phlomis, Hedera, Erica
    • Landscape table runner – flowers: Campanula “Champion White”, Astilbe “Washington”, Alchemilla mollis, Dianthus barbatus “Green Trick”, Viburnum opulus “Snowball”, Rosa spray “Seagull”, Helleborus orientalis seedheads, Valeriana officinalis
      Foliages: Hosta “Francee”, Hedera, Lonicera japonica aureoreticulata, Aucuba japonica, Euonymus, Hebe
    • Window arrangement – Campanula “Champion White”, Ammi visnage, Dianthus barbatus, Phlomis, Hedera, Hosta ”Francee”, Dryopteris fern
    • Cartwheel chandelier – Hanging blooms of Allium “Mount Everest”
  • Jewellery – I was delighted to work with the incredible Fiona at Designed to Sparkle. Despite my brief evolving from cherry blossom to modern Edwardian, she developed some perfect pieces to fit the theme and echoing the pearl accents of the shoot. She created the following pieces for the shoot:
    • Estrella multi-strand bracelet and necklace, made with navette set Swarovski crystal stones and pearls, in creamrose light shade. Estrella means ‘Star’, which is the real essence of the burst of sparkle in these beautiful pieces of jewellery.
    • Avanna hair vine with Swarovski pearls in creamrose light shade. ‘Avanna’ means beautiful flower, which is so perfect for these clusters of tiny blooms along the length of the hair vine.
    • Classic Fresh water pearl earrings on sterling silver posts.

Suppliers
I couldn’t have been happier (and luckily) with the products that all the suppliers produced and provided.

  • Venue – The venue that I chose to use has an amazing walled garden (complete with green door) – an under-used aspect of a brilliant blank canvas of a local venue. Along with this, Cogges Manor Farm also has a stunning Manor House and grounds that have been used in the filming of Downtown Abbey. The Edwardian connections seemed to be adding up and I took the opportunity to combine traditional 1910s styled wedding elements with up to date modern twists. The barns are a great blank canvas – just look at the transformation!
  • Hair and Makeup – I was delighted that Lauren and Laura from Blushing Brides Hair and Makeup were another supplier to approach me to be involved in a styled shoot. They brilliantly interpreted my Edwardian brief complete with smoky eyes, pinched cheek blush and barely-there pale lipstick and even ensured that the groom’s hair was slicked back.
  • Dress – I saw exactly the dress I wanted for this shoot in the window of Proposals of Witney – I walk past their window nearly every day and when I saw it I instantly knew this was the one! A beautiful champagne colour, perfect styling for the theme and, most importantly, looked like it was made for our stunning model. Fabulous high neckline, flutter sleeves, exquisite low back and amazing train.
  • Groom clothing – The Cotswold Tailor provided a brilliant outfit for our suave groom. The blue suit is actually their own label based on the success of another blue suit they had last year through their ultimate formal hire. They have created their own suits as they were fed up of the cheap poly blends that most hirewear companies offer. It’s a British fabric 100% wool. Cut in traditional style but more modern in shape.
  • Lighting Oakwood Events are an absolutely amazing company – friendly, reliable and highly sought after. Despite their really busy schedule, I was fortunate enough to involve their services in this shoot and show case a brand new addition to their portfolio. They’ve now added a large rustic wooden cartwheel hung with 10 squirrel filament bulbs in various shapes, with stylish bulb cages and adorned with greenery. It certainly made the statement that I wanted over the table and fit the theme and surroundings perfectly. I love the Edison style lights which added another modern/traditional element to the décor.
  • Chairs, glasses & gramophone – To complete the tablescape in the Barley Barn, I called upon the services of Linda’s Vintage Hire who kindly provided their brilliant vintage mismatched chairs. They also lent their brandy glasses, decanter and gramophone to help style the garden scenes. I think the models were a bit disappointed that the glasses were only filled with apple juice though!

Photography by Squib Photography

  • Favours – Another item I was keen to use from the outset were the wooden robins crafted by those clever folks at MuffatPrague. I first spotted these at an Oxfordshire Makers’ Market at Relics in Witney and previously featured them in a wedding favour blog knowing that these cute fellows would make the perfect accompaniment for this Secret Garden shoot – in fact it wouldn’t have been complete without these guys!
  • Models – And lastly, but by no means least, the shoot was brought beautifully to life by the stunning models. I advertised for ‘the boy and girl next door’ type models (think Lady Mary Crawley in Downtown Abbey and Harry Styles with his new short hair in the Dunkirk movie) and was not disappointed with the lovely Úna and Daryl. They are a real life engaged couple and this was great practice for their upcoming wedding in Ireland shortly. Hope you’ve managed to trick your family with these ‘wedding’ photos. I can’t wait to see pictures from their real wedding in due course. Thanks guys for being such great sports!

See more about our Secret Garden shoot – Inspiration: modern Edwardian Secret Garden wedding

And take a look at the fabulous suppliers that were involved in this styled shoot – Keeping it local with suppliers for the Secret Garden shoot

Plus here’s the video from the shoot too – Video: Secret Garden Wedding

#keepitlocal

#UKWedLunch – Wednesday 15th March 2017 – wedding anniversaries

#UKWedLunch – Wednesday 15th March 2017 – wedding anniversaries

#UKWedLunch – Wednesday 15th March 2017

As well as general wedding planning chat, today we look at anniversaries – whether it’s your 0th, 10th, 25th, 30th or 40th #UKWedLunch

TOP TIP 1: Anniversary gifts increase in value to reflect the time the couple have invested in their marriage and each other #UKWedLunch

TOP TIP 2: Buy your new spouse an 0th anniversary present to celebrate your wedding day such as cuff links, jewellery or a photo album #UKWedLunch

TOP TIP 3a: Have an anniversary dance at a wedding instead of throwing the bouquet… #UKWedLunch

TOP TIP 3b: … All couples come on dance floor. One by one, couples are asked to sit down during the song based on the length of their time together… #UKWedLunch

TOP TIP 3c: …The last couple on the dance floor will be the longest-married couple and they receive the bouquet #UKWedLunch

TOP TIP 4: There are traditional and modern anniversary themes plus flowers and gemstones per wedding anniversary year #UKWedLunch

This week’s top tips are taken from ‘Happy Wedding Anniversary!‘ Good luck making plans for a new anniversary! #UKWedLunch

As well as general wedding planning chat, next week’s theme will be on ‘wedding themes’ #UKWedLunch

JOIN US EVERY WEDNESDAY! on Twitter between 1-2pm GMT

#UKWedLunch – Wednesday 15th March 2017 – wedding anniversaries

Happy Wedding Anniversary!

The summer is a really special time of the year for me. Not only is it the height of the wedding season but it is also when I celebrate my own wedding anniversary with my lovely husband. We had such a beautiful wedding day spent with all our friends and family and we love to look back on the day with great fondness.

Celebrating your wedding day (and more importantly the passing commitment of your marriage) is often celebrated with a specific gift based on the number of years you have been married. This tradition dates back to the Middle Ages and the gifts relate to bringing luck to the couple. The gifts increase in value to reflect the time that the couple have invested in their marriage and each other.

To mark our anniversary my 87 year old Nan (despite being self-titled Mad Nan) always gets it right with our anniversary gift. She still relies on her trusting diary and with the aid of the lists at the back can easily identify which gift corresponds to which anniversary. This year she bought us a beautiful pot plant, last year was leather bookmarks, before that was a sewing kit with cotton reels in it and she gave us books the first year.

I’m truly lucky to have seen both sets of my grandparents reach their diamond wedding anniversary (60th). A feat that will be harder for our generation to achieve so readily. Until their passing, it was a joy to see my grandparents walking down the promenade holding hands, or squeezing each other’s knees and still so much in love. On my wedding day, my grandfather (he’s now nearly 92) gave me away and his advice to a long and loving marriage was good communication. He said to keep talking about everything and never to go to bed on an argument.

I remember going to many silver and ruby family anniversaries as a child and thinking that it was such a long amount of time to have spent doing anything. They were always amazing occasions and sometimes the only time we saw some of our distant relatives. One set of my grandparents always had big wedding anniversary parties. I went to their 30th, 40th, 50th and 60th parties and it was so special to celebrate with them and see how much everyone had changed every 10 years. When my grandparents had their 50th anniversary we put together a big food hamper and had great fun collecting together any food and other products with gold in the title (Gold Blend, All Gold, Golden Syrup, Golden Wonder, St Ivel Gold, Golden Grahams etc. You’ll be looking now next time you’re in the supermarket!)

Lots of couples nowadays are choosing to renew their vows more often and have another wedding celebration, as well as having anniversary parties to mark milestone years.

Meanwhile, some other popular trends include buying your new spouse an 0th anniversary present which is a gift to celebrate your wedding day such as cuff links, jewellery or a photo album.

Another way to celebrate long marriages might be with an anniversary dance at a wedding instead of throwing the bouquet. This is when you ask couples to all enjoy a dance together on the dance floor. One by one, the couples are asked to sit down during the song based on the length of their time together. The last couple on the dance floor will be the longest-married couple and they receive the bouquet. What a wonderful way to celebrate their togetherness!

If you don’t have a paper diary with those handy reference pages then you might want to take a look below at our compiled list of both traditional and modern themes. Some of the gifts in the traditional column have options depending on which side of the pond you want to take inspiration from! There are also lists in my Mad Nan’s diary for which flowers to give as gifts depending on the wedding anniversary year, as well gemstone gifts per year. What a font of knowledge my Nan ends up being!

Year Traditional Modern
1st Paper Clock
2nd Cotton China
3rd Leather Crystal / Glass
4th Fruit / Flowers OR
Linen / Silk
Appliances
5th Wood Silverware
6th Iron / Sweets Wood
7th Copper / Wool Desk Set
8th Salt / Bronze Linen/Lace
9th Willow / Pottery Leather
10th Aluminium / Tin Diamond
11th Steel Jewellery
12th Silk / Linen Pearls
13th Lace Textiles/Fur
14th Ivory Gold Jewellery
15th Crystal Watches
20th China Platinum
25th Silver Silver
30th Pearl Diamond
35th Coral Jade
40th Ruby Ruby
45th Sapphire Sapphire
50th Gold Gold
55th Emerald Emerald
60th Diamond Diamond
65th Blue Sapphire Blue Sapphire
70th Platinum Platinum
80th Oak Oak

Whether you’re celebrating your 0th anniversary, 25th, 30th, 40th or planning to make a new anniversary then we wish you a very happy one.

champagne_congrats_anniversary