ceremony

“Get me to the church on time…” may well be a well-known wedding song, but one of the principle features of most weddings is the transport to get, predominantly the bride and her party, to the wedding venue on time. If you are planning a wedding, no doubt, booking the wedding transport will be pretty high on your ‘to do’ list. Venus Bridal, specialists in diverse and beautiful bridalwear, take a look at the different modes of wedding transportation, designed to turn heads on your big day.

1. Horse and carriage

On July 22nd Ceri and Dave were all ready to say their vows with a beautiful outside ceremony at noon but at 11.55 only one registrar had turned up and there was no sign from the other who was conducting the wedding. The owner and wedding coordinator Julia Pugh refused to have the wedding cancelled and offered to step in and marry them both. 

Garthmyl Hall on the Powys and Shropshire borders is a brand new Exclusive hire wedding venue, offering the day that the couple want not what we dictate. We believe in going above and beyond for our couples and this wedding really proved that! It was only the halls 4th wedding as they only opened late April this year.

Most couples wait between 13 and 18 months from saying “yes” to saying “I do”. [i]And in an ideal world, long engagements present the perfect, relatively low-pressure opportunity to thoroughly consider (and sometimes reconsider) exactly how you want your wedding day to be. Do you want a luxury venue or something simple and low key? Do you want to go abroad or do you want to stay local. Church or registry office? Full length and fabulous or on-the-knee and quirky? Rustic summer ceremony or romantic mid-winter wedding?

A bride has told of her excitement as she prepares to take part in the UK’s first official social media wedding.

Zoe Anastasi’s big day will be captured and broadcast by iPhone-carrying photographers every 15 minutes on social media. Her ceremony will be live streamed over Twitter and there will be social media walls at her reception. Her day has even been organised over Facebook.

For Zoe, from Derby, it was a no-brainer to have a professionally-run social media wedding.

“Your wedding day is the biggest day of your life. You worry that it’s over in 24 hours, and I think it’s great to enjoy the build-up, to get more people involved in it. It makes it more special.

As a stylist and wedding planner identifying trends is something that’s so important to keep on top of. While it’s always important not to go too over the top with ‘trend over timeless’ and risk your wedding photos looking dated, incorporating new and exciting elements can set you apart as one of the coolest, most creative couples.

Prince William, the Duke of Cambridge and his wife Catherine, the Duchess of Cambridge (formerly known as Kate Middleton) celebrated their fifth wedding anniversary recently. At the time of their wedding back in 2011, it was one of the most highly anticipated Royal weddings of all time rivalling that of Prince William’s parents.

The wedding ceremony was held in Westminster Abbey in London on April 29th in 2011 and 237 tweets were being sent every second prior to the ceremony, such was the level of interest!

A study conducted by an online voucher code website has found that 44% of couples do not want to have a traditional ‘white wedding*’ with just 20% wanting one.

In addition only one in three people in England and Wales have a religious ceremony**. So we ask; are we seeing the end of traditional weddings?

Are we seeing an end to the traditional White Wedding in the UK? According to research, just 1 in 5 couples want to have a formal wedding, something that is traditional. In addition 30% of couples would rather get married in a hotel compared to just 9% who would opt for a church service.

Traditionally the bride arrives at the wedding marriage ceremony with her father, or the person chosen to give her away. The mother of the bride travels separately in a car with the bridesmaids to arrive about ten minutes before the bride.

The groom should arrive at the place of marriage well ahead of the bridesmaids together with his best man and the grooms party including the ushers.

Following the marriage ceremony the bride and her new husband travel together in the brides car to the reception venue.

The Radio Kings are a premium 3-14 piece band specialising in good-time music! We pride ourselves on providing a wide range of musical styles, and can cover everything from the ceremony, to cocktails, canapés, and the best live party music to start your married life on a high.

As professional musicians, we’ve worked alongside the likes of George Michael, Gotye, The Shires, and in a number of popular stage and touring shows. Our experience ensures the calibre of music that keeps everyone on their feet. Before making any decisions, you can come and see the band live on stage at a regular showcase event - no hiding behind re-takes and overdubs!

Finding the perfect wedding entertainment can seem like a daunting task. Should you choose a band or a DJ? And what about live music throughout your drinks reception, wedding breakfast or the ceremony itself?

You want music that you and your guests are going to love, but where to start?! Going through an agency can take away much of the hassle, when it comes to the nitty gritty of actually booking and when using the UK’s leading agency like Tailored Entertainment, you know quality is guaranteed. 

Unlike other agencies, Tailored Entertainment specialise in exclusive representation of the UK's finest live bands for weddings and other events.

Sarah Davies is a professional Harpist in North West Area and has been playing for weddings for 8 years. She plays for the ceremony, drinks reception and Wedding Breakfast.

Live harp music at a wedding can really add a layer of atmosphere that recorded music simply cannot. It’s a fantastic talking point and ice breaker for guests who may not necessarily know each other, and is sure to make your event more memorable.

Are you looking for the perfect soundtrack to celebrate your big day?

The Blue Lions are a premium 3-14 piece band playing music for your feet! Specialising in high-energy music yet versatile enough to cover a broad range of styles; everything from the ceremony, to cocktails, canapés, and the best live party music to start your married life on a high.

As professional musicians, we’ve worked alongside the likes of Ellie Goulding, Mark Knopfler, Peter Andre, and in a number of West End and touring shows. Our experience ensures the quality of music that keeps everyone on their feet.

A wedding blessing overlooking one of the world’s most beautiful sunsets along the Turkish Turquoise Coast, a long stretch of wide-sanded beach bedecked with roses and lanterns on which to say your ‘I Do’s ‘, Alanya’s loveliest hotel, the newly refurbished Alantur Hotel is sure to delight all members of your wedding party.  

Nestled elegantly on a wide swath of inviting beach fronting the deep blues of the Mediterranean Sea in the shadow the majestic Taurus mountains, this modern resort,  just steps from the water, is in an ideal location.  Set within a naturally rich botanical garden, Alantur Hotel is an oasis of calm and beauty -and the perfect starting point of the rest of your lives.

A thought that crosses most couple’s minds when planning a wedding is, should we invite children or not? And if we are going to invite them, how do we avoid the cliché crying during the ceremony and knee sliding on the dancefloor? Sure enough to invite children or not to invite children is the question.  If you have decided to invite children to your wedding ceremony or reception, here’s a few ideas on how you can make sure they’re kept happy and that your guests’ attention stays firmly where it should be: on you….I mean….on you and your new husband!

Keep them entertained

When you’re daydreaming about your big day, do you envisage a festival-style wedding complete with tipis and circus tents? How about having a street-food set up serving Turkish Meze, or a 1930s themed wedding with vintage 7” records for table name markers? Enter Canvas & Stone, the new country house collective offering ‘anything goes’ weddings on the grandest of scales.

The wedding industry is worth in excess of £10bn a year and the big trend for 2016 is personalisation - adding personal touches that make your special day stand out for all the right reasons.