Sometimes you find a website that you’re no longer going to be able to live without. And Cox and Cox is it. If you are DIYing your wedding it’s the perfect place to find unique decorations and accessories. It’s one of our favourite places to start when we’re styling weddings (and our houses too!). You’re sure to find something you love in the first few clicks!
All images from Cox and Cox
I hope today’s post reaches everyone feeling very patriotic. I went to a Jubilee ball last night organised by super florist Rhoxan Hayes and her team of helpers. The marquee looked fantastic decked out in red, white and blue with brilliant homemade knitted bunting. Each table had to dress as an era from the Queen’s reign and ours was the 50’s. Luckily we did a vintage wear special on the blog last month! Whizz over to our Facebook page to see the pics!
This week on the blog started with our Fabulous Find of the week, Charlie loves Lucy, a wedding stationery company based in Kent and ran by super talented Claire Hawkes. Next up was a little peek around a lovely wedding venue in Sevenoaks, Dorton House, with a shoot by Nataliya at Akira Photography.
Then we were super excited to bring you a two-part wedding special of Phil and Billy’s English Country Garden Wedding. With gorgeous vintage elements and a Spring feel we absolutely loved working on this wedding as wedding planners. In Part 1 bride Phil takes us from wedding planning stages through to the Church ceremony. Then Part 2 takes you from the reception right up to the last dance.
Finally yesterday we gave you some essential wedding reading with our five favourite books based around getting married. Just perfect with a hangover and a cup of tea!
Happy Sunday x
Credits: Josh Spencer Photography for English Country Garden Wedding
I’m a big cake fan. The biggest. There’s not a single type of cake I don’t like and so I’m in heaven when it comes to helping brides source wedding cake and sweet treats. So today I’m very excited to share with you Little Boutique Bakery of Tunbridge Wells, who are makers of gorgeous wedding cakes, cupcakes and cookies.
Their cake flavours include Madagascar vanilla, chocolate truffle, lemon and orange zest, as well as the more traditional rich fruit cake and the list of fillings is enough to send me over the edge. Buttercreams of Madagascar Vanilla Bean, Belgian Chocolate Ganache, White Chocolate, Organic Lemon, Orange Zest and Salted Caramel, all of which can be teamed with quality preserves of Strawberry, Raspberry, Morello Cherry and Apricot plus Organic Lemon Curd.
We caught up with owner and cake designer, Jennie Bishop, to find out more about ordering with them. Jennie tells us “We are known for our elegant and unique designs and attention to detail, we only take on a limited number of commissions per week so we can ensure the utmost quality and time required to complete your order. Booking early is advised, especially during the peak wedding season as we work on a first come first served basis. Right at the start we have a complimentary design consultation and tasting session with you so we can come up with the perfect design for you.”
Jennie will ideally need a minimum of three month’s notice to create your wedding cake so booking early is advisable. Delivery is available in Kent, East Sussex and Surrey.
And lastly, if you need a taste tester you know where to find me….
Today we are glad to be supporting the Charity Wedding Auction who are raising funds for Pilgrims Hospices through a fantastic wedding auction.
The “go live” button is only days away as the auction runs from 21st to 27th April. During this time you can bid for a stunning wedding package worth in excess of £10,000, which includes the venue, photography, cake, dress, a wedding website, rings, flowers, entertainment, hair and makeup, wedding stationery, a wedding correspondent to record those special moments and wedding co-ordination for the big day and much more.
The auction has been organised by Sally Laker of Sally 4 Cakes, Nicola Blackledge of Bay Images Photography and Glen Laker of The Whitstable Computer Company. All of the businesses involved have generously donated their services and products for free and 100% of the proceeds from the auction go directly to Pilgrims Hospices.
Pilgrims Hospices provides free hospice and specialist palliative care services to the local community both in the hospice and in the patient’s home. Deborah Kellond, Regional Fundraising Manager at Pilgrims Hospices said “We are amazed at the generosity of local businesses that are supporting the wedding auction”.
Full details of the wedding package and how to take part can be found at Charity Wedding Auction.
Happy bidding!
Learn how to make wedding cookies, cupcakes and cake toppers or find out the secrets of perfect piping at Kent Cake School, Sweetie Darling.
March courses include making couture cookies, which can be used as favours for guests, or learn how to stack your own wedding cake for a chance to DIY some of those wedding jobs.
Day courses start from around £65 per person and include icings, buttercream, edible materials and the use of all the equipment needed. You only need to bring an apron (and sometimes a cake!).
Billie Loveland, who runs the school, limits each course to only eight places, which means you will get all the one-to-one tuition you need from their lovely teaching rooms near Canterbury.
Visit their website to find out more and book your place.
From our experience nothing makes Brides break out in a cold sweat more than deciding on wedding favours. But worry not. Wedding favours kept simple and stylish will bring a cheeky grin to the face of your guests and leave you with a smug wedding smile. They are a great way to express your inner creativity and if you don’t mind doing the work yourself, they don’t have to cost a fortune either.
If you are willing to try your crafty hand then a good place to start is Martha Stewart Weddings which is brilliant for all things wedding DIY, or take a trip to a local craft fair (there are so many brilliant ones in Kent) for inspiration. To get you started here are our favourite five ideas, which all have that personal touch and are not to complicated for any crafty beginners.
1.Vintage Personalised Sweet Bags
Get your own custom designed stamp made up and then use it to print your thank you message onto muslin pouches. Fill the pouches with old-fashioned sweets for a unique little favour. You can put different sweets in the bag depending on guests favourites.
2. Paper Flower with Dahlia Bulb
These eye-catching tissue paper flowers make lovely additions to your reception tables and can be made to fit in with your own colour scheme. They are really easy to make from the template on Martha Stewart Weddings and can be tied up with a planting instruction tag and ribbon to look like little leaves. At home, guests will peel back the petals to reveal a dahlia bulb which they can plant and enjoy.
3. Vintage handkerchiefs
A really lovely little gift which requires hardly any crafting at all, but does involve lots of shopping (now you’re talking I hear you cry) is the vintage hankie. Granny’s favourite is now making a huge comeback and you can easily get beautifully printed hankies from boot fairs, antique shops and online. The fun really is in the collecting! When shopped out simply write your message on a little card, hole punch and secure to the hankie with a ribbon. Another take on this is to buy plain old hankies and use a personalised stamp with your own wedding message or pattern on them (see personalised stamp above!).
4. Honey Stirrer
Buying a little usual gift is a good way of guests remembering your big day for years to come. A little honey stirrer is really lovely ribbon-tied to guest place names. If you really want to go for it you can match them with little honey pots that can be adorned with custom-made wedding stickers. Check out Moo for brilliant sticker ideas and cheap printing too! Lovely to add that special touch to a country wedding theme.
5. Whole lotta love in a bottle
How about giving your guests an after dinner drink they won’t forget in a hurry? Make your own infused vodka, put in miniature bottles and tie on your message. You can find loads of recipes online but our favourite is for Blackberry Vodka by the fabulous A Thrifty Mrs that has been tried a tested by your’s truly. It is easy to do but is time-consuming so don’t attempt if you are seriously lacking in patience or have left it until the last-minute. If you can’t stretch to making your own then do it the cheats way. Buy small bottles of juice or your favourite tipple, soak off the labels and put on your own designer stickers.
Have fun and let us know how you get on. See you in Hobbycraft Ladies!
Image Credits:
1. Martha Stewart Weddings, 2.Martha Stewart Weddings, 3. Photography by Chloe Browne of Caught the Light via Martha Stewart Weddings 4.Lindsay Flanagan Photography via Weddingwindow.com, 5. mydiyweddingday.com
The Wedding Dolls 