The Start of the
Wedding Prep
Image from Mine Magazine Cover Shoot
Welcome to my wedding diaries. I decided that bi-monthly, I would update you on what exactly is happening so far with my wedding day planning. I asked on my Instagram what you wanted to see and hear about, and after thousands of messages calling for pretty much all details possible, I thought that starting a diary could be fairly useful. Not only for me, to allow me a space to look back on what I'm planning and organising, but for you to see what I'm doing, who I'm choosing, what I'm deciding on and whether these things could help with your own wedding planning; now or later.
17/01
How I'm Feeling?
Reluctant to get stressed or stressy. Trying to enjoy every single moment of the organisations. I know that as soon as my wedding is over, I'll be thinking about all the ways I could have enjoyed this once in a lifetime (hopefully) process a lot more. And so I don't want to look back with regrets. I'm throwing myself into loving this whole process; and for the most part I'm actually having the most amazing time organising. But thank goodness I have someone to help me - Annabel. She works for an events agency called Profirst, and having been to a number of events that she has personally organised, I realised she was my one and only. So far we are crossing any little hurdles together and I couldn't love her more.
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18/01
What have I done thus far?
Honestly, I'm getting quite a lot organised without actually realising it. Well in my head anyway, I know a lot of the details thats I'm going for. Then leaving the finer details and bookings to the wonderful Annabel, thankfully.
First of all - where is the wedding? Hopefully South of France in Provence. I went there a few years ago and my heart beated a little faster. And it's going to be in August 2019, if I have my way.
The wedding playlist has been made already on Spotify and I have it permanently on whenever I leave the house. I'm almost vetting each and every song to ensure it will be perfect. But also, this playlist is a collection of some of the best songs ever, so I can't stop listening to it. My idea is to give this playlist to a DJ - like a DJ who does this for a career, with mixing decks and all. Who can then mix each and every song into a beautiful cocktail of rhythms.
Then DRESSES. Honestly, I was going to keep this a secret until the big day, but then I realised that you won't know which actual dress it is, even if I did tell you the designer. So, I wanted to share with you guys. As the event is three days long - Friday evening, Saturday ceremony and party and then Sunday brunch, I lusted for four outfits. I get married once, and I want to ensure I have the chance to wear as much bridal as I possibly want to - as it's not going to be happening again. So, I'm going for it. Four outfits for each part of the event.
So. Why not tell you about my actual wedding day dress designer. Drum roll please...
Phillipa Lepley. The lady who creates the most exquisite couture bridal dresses you will ever see. There is an immediate warmth as soon as you meet Phillipa, she is a ball of shining sunlight and unbelievably sophisticated. As soon as you walk into her boutique in Chelsea, you are greeted by happy smiles and an excitement of what's to come. And truly, you will be blown away by the sheer variety and extreme beauty you will find on the rails within this beautiful boutique space. Her dresses are unique, intricate, a special statement and yet so demure. I fell in love as soon as I stepped carefully into one of her corseted creations. I first had the Phillipa experience when I was getting ready for the Mine Magazine shoot - that these photographs have been taken from. I went along merely for a fitting, and left two hours later having tried on five dresses and unable to wipe the smile from my face. I booked in, there and then for another appointment to bring my Mum. And on that second visit, Mum in toe, I found the one. In fact, the two dresses, that took my breath away.
This is one of Phillipa's creation in the photo - and one I thought at one moment could be the one. But then I tried on a few more and each one became the 'one' as I tried on the next. I'll be able to keep you updated during the whole process of my fitting moments, over the next few months.
But other than my dresses and the venue choices, I haven't started many other conversations to this point. But I have some things that I love and potentially might pursue...
Kitten Grayson flowers have stolen my heart and I just adore her ethereal, whimsical displays. I think she could bring this celebration to life in a way I can't even imagine yet.
Pronovias Bridesmaids Dresses are top of my list for my 7 girls. I've have a sneak peek of their spring dresses and they're just divine. But even their cocktail dresses make the most perfect Bridesmaids styles so I'm super excited to see what my girls think.
Dior Candles would be my dream. I need a touch of Dior somewhere in my wedding and this could be the perfect way.
Larry King - you probably all might know of Mr King, but he's the guy who takes care of my hair, so I don't think I'd trust anyone else. If I can fly him to France to make me look my best than I'll be so happy. Let's see.
But, every single little detail has to be thought about, down to what colour cutlery we go for, what plates we use, how we lay out the tables, what cake display we use. I've realised it's like organising your dream party. That one party that will play your favourite music, be filled with your favourite people, serve your favourite food and have everyone in their best moods partying the night away. So I can't wait for this to come together.
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19/01
Panic Moment!
Well, what a difference a day makes. I'm sat on a train on the way to Nottingham for a sleepover at my best mates place to spend the next few hours covered in Baby cuddles. No makeup, no cares and the cosiest knitwear I could be bothered to find this morning. I went to bed last night feeling deflated and worried that I might have to change all of my wedding plans thus far. I barely said a word to Alex and went to sleep trying to remove the negativity of the day as fast as I could. Fast forward to the morning and I spark an idea to look at the second venue that I have loved throughout the whole process. I put in the dates for my wedding and pressed search on their hotel rooms. It quickly told me that in fact, the hotel was booked on my dates. My heart literally sank. I honestly thought I would need to postpone the wedding as goodness knows where else would still be available at this late stage in the game. I sat on the floor of my bedroom, laptop on my lap whilst Alex walked in and asked me why I was just sitting on the floor all forlorn.
I quickly messaged Annabelle to let her know the dreamy venue was gone. All the scream face emojis and exclamation marks I could bother to add. And then she says, “Oh no, the hotel is reserved for us, until we decide this week.” I could have cried the happiest tears. All hope was not lost. Two of my dream venues are still technically on the table and all we have to do now is crunch the numbers to work out which one is actually feasible.
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20/01
People might finally get invited
So tonight I spent an hour on the phone with the lovely lady who is helping me to design my wedding invitations. Design by Pye is a beautiful site featuring luxurious, perfected stationary that I immediately fell in love with. It's chic and modern with foiling and calligraphy and blush envelopes and all those gorgeous extra things that can take your invitations to a swoonworthy moment on arrival. So we set to discussing what exactly I could imagine.
I'm thinking thick invite cards with foiled edges, detail cards that help instruct on transport and accommodation, as well as an A6 RSVP card that my guests can send back. But after chatting with Alex over his homemade broccoli soup, perhaps we might make a website that has menu options and an RSVP section, to save on extra stamps and postage. Hold that thought.
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Check in soon for what's next - I'll be updating the blog bi-monthly or even weekly with The Wedding Diaries, so stay tuned.
