You and Your Wedding Webchat

I am very excited to be taking part in a webchat on the Your and Your Wedding website on Tuesday 9th November between 1-2pm to answer questions any brides-to-be may have about their wedding planning.

Log on to You and Your Wedding to take part and send in your questions! x

Beautiful Brights at Bignor

Introducing a new series of real life weddings, planned by me at The Pink Pumpkin. First off this fabulous wedding held on a sunny July day for one of my recent clients; Sally and Marcus.

Sally and Marcus chose the fabulous setting of Bignor Park for their wedding day. Set in acres and acres of glorious Sussex countryside with THE most amazing views, Bignor is a stunning space and is available to hire on a limited number of occasions per year for marquee weddings.

This wedding was filled with countless gorgeous details, from the outdoor ceremony in the Greek Loggia, to the vintage tea on the lawn and the beautiful floral arrangements in the marquee, the whole day was magical. I will let the pictures speak for themselves, but it was a truly fabulous wedding that will be remembered for years to come. 

Thank you to Sally and Marcus; it was such a pleasure working with this lovely couple, and I wish you much love and happiness for the future xx

Supplier Details:
Photography: Helen Maynard
Marquee: Meridian Marquees
Catering: Cottage Caterers with Rhubarb
Florals: Cindy Kirkland @ Creative Works
Cake: Purita Hyam

Staggeringly Good

Like most blokes* my man is pretty clueless when it comes to the intricacies of wedding planning. The vast majority of wedding related companies and resources are aimed at the Bride and the poor Groom is left to watch in bewilderment as his beloved's plans unfold before his very eyes.

Well not any more! Staggered is a fabulous resource for all grooms (and brides) to be. It is crammed full of advice and information about all aspects of planning a wedding, from what to expect at the wedding ceremony, to how to write your wedding speeches, to wedding suits for men and lots, lots more.

It also has an entire section devoted to stag do ideas, but the less we know about that the better (!) and a very useful suppliers' map.

Boys, get yourselves over there now; girls, the more time they spend on there, the more time you can spend poring over the latest wedding magazine or looking at pieces of pretty on the interweb! xx

* I know this is a sweeping generalisation; but it is also true. 99% of the time. 

Hola Espana!

Idyllic Days has gone all European and has been featured on Spanish Vogue's website.

Now, my Spanish is limited to say the least (!) so I'm not 100% sure what the article actually says, but am reliably informed that it speaks of the relationship between dinner ware and the landscape of weddings, and recommends various companies, including Idyllic Days, that brides can buy or hire lovely dinner ware from.

Adios xx

Pastel Perfection

Some Idyllic Days products were used in a recent shoot for You and Your Wedding magazine. The pretty as a picture cake from Little Venice Cake Company works perfectly with our cut glass bonbon dishes filled with sweet treats.

For a completely different look, mix gold filigree detailing and lace accents for a luxurious feel.

Lovely Ladies

Althought it's not the most glamorous part of my job, maintaining a well stocked and clean ladies loo is a must at any wedding. Clients (and I) have discounted venues completely on the basis of toilets, and whilst it's not something that the boys would probably even consider, for the girls it's a great place for a gossip and giggle! 

See my tips for a powder room in this month's issue of Wedding Ideas, and think about providing a little box of goodies to make yours a lovely ladies! xx

Beautiful Brides

Once again, Idyllic Days products have been featured in Brides magazine. This pretty shoot, full of pastel colours highlights a couple of the many different uses for our vintage crockery.

Teacups are used to serve chocolate mousse in and to display a single stem of peony perfection; my favourite flower EVER.

Squires Kitchen's Strawberry Tea

Squire's Kitchen are holding a Strawberry Tea event at their International School in Farnham, Surrey on 24th July to raise money for Breast Cancer Care.

The day will start at 10.30am and finish at 1.30pm. Ann Skipp will demonstrate how to decorate strawberry cupcakes, how to ice pink shoe and handbag biscuits and many other pretty pink ideas and you’ll also get a demonstration from the florists at Patricia Knowles who will share their secrets of flower arranging. Throughout the day you can nibble on biscuits freshly made on the premises, delicious scones, clotted cream and fresh strawberries, chocolates, mini cupcakes and a glass or two of pink bubbly.

They have 30 places available with tickets at £20 per person. Each ticket includes a one and a half hour demonstration, a raffle ticket for the chance to win some great prizes and a variety of sweet treats and bubbly. Every penny of the ticket price will go to Breast Cancer Care.

To book your place, email Claudia at school@squires-school.co.uk or call 01252 260262 now!

You could win the following raffle prizes:

• Any one day sugarcraft course in November at Squires Kitchen’s International School
• A beautiful bouquet of flowers
• A box of cake decorating and baking goodies from Squires Kitchen including pink cupcake cases, icing and SFP.

All the tea and cake at the event will be presented on Idyllic Days vintage cake stands, cups and saucers and Patricia Knowles Florist will provide the floral displays.

You can raise money for Breast Cancer Care by holding your own Strawberry Tea Party - visit Breast Cancer Care or call 0870 164 9422 for more details. 

For the perfect finishing touch to your Strawberry Tea Party, Idyllic Days are offering free tea plate hire when you hire 30 or more cups and saucers for your Strawberry Tea Party event in Surrey! Call 01483 233490 to place an order for hire and quote "strawberry" to qualify.

Cupcakes and cocktails ... the event!

BEVERLY LISTER LAUNCHES NEW DOWNTOWN COLLECTION AT EVANGELINE ROSE BRIDAL with cupcakes, Cosmopolitans and chic hair styling!

British gown designer Beverly Lister has announced the launch of her latest Downtown collection with an exclusive Cupcake and Cosmopolitan party. Taking place at Evangeline Rose Bridal, Godalming on Sunday 20th June from 12-4pm and tying in with the launch of the new Sex and the City 2 movie, the themed party will offer oh-so-stylish brides-to-be the opportunity to try on the gorgeous new gowns while enjoying complimentary Cosmopolitans and cupcakes from My Cupcake Kitchen. To bring out the ‘inner Carrie’ in every bride, wedding hair stylist Severin Hubert from the Hepburn Collection will be on hand to demonstrate chic hairstyles to complement the gowns.

Appealing to the fashion-savvy uptown bride, the Downtown collection features sleek and sexy shapes in a pretty range of colours from ivory and oyster to pink, duck egg and pistachio. Ranging from £750 to £2000, the made-to-measure gowns are all handmade in England using Duchesse satins and feature several sassy short dresses, ideal for summer weddings. For accessories to match, Evangeline Rose Bridal stocks a unique range of vintage headpieces, jewellery and shoes from designer’s including Vivien Sherriff, Glass Oyster, Polly Edwards and Rainbow Couture.

Rainbow Couture

Vivien Sherriff

All gown orders placed before 30th June 2010 will receive a complimentary pair of bridal shoes from the Evangeline Rose Bridal collection – who needs another excuse for a day out with the girls?

To reserve a limited space at the exclusive Downtown launch party, please contact Evangeline Rose Bridal on 01483 415199 or email info@evangeline-rose.co.uk. For further information visit www.evangeline-rose.co.uk

Cupcakes and cocktails

In this month's Marie Claire magazine, some of our cups & saucers were used in the styling of the "Staying in With Lorraine Pascale" article. Lorraine owns Ella's Bakehouse in Covent Garden, and shares some of her recipes in the piece.

My favourite - the Cucumber, Lychee and Mint vodka shots - I'm off to make some - surely that's three of my five a day! x