Teamwork makes the dream work

At the beginning of the year I started planning a photo shoot, I contacted some of my favourite South Wales wedding suppliers, chatted to a few members of my family and asked them if they would be my models, everything was coming together.

And then the dreaded virus happened, not only did it put a pause to all of my beautiful bride and grooms plans, but it also meant that any photo shoot was impossible.

Or so I thought. The only issue I had was that I couldn’t meet up with anyone or photograph people. You were only allowed to go out for exercise, for food and to help the vulnerable. If I scaled back to show the amazing items my friends in the wedding industry create, I could quite easily photograph the session at home adhering to all guidelines.

So I turned it into a product session. I contacted Lovelee Wedding Stationery, Queen of the Meadow flowers and Centre Stage Cakes, to see if they’d like to take part, they were all up for it – yay! I created a board on Pinterest of ideas to show off the style I was looking for and everyone came together to create the most perfect items!

My friend Abbe also helped out by lending me her wedding items to use as props. Getting hold of wedding items when shops are shut is harder to do. Her dress was a Stephanie Allin gown from Pritchard and Moore, I always recommend them as I love their ethos and what they do.

So this may not be the session I had been planning, but I enjoyed every minute of it. The suppliers were all very happy for me to photograph their work and in this time of difficulty within our industry its very important for us to support each other, whether its a photoshoot, a recommendation, a share or a like, theres always something we can do – and for me it was to showcase suppliers work. So here it is…

Suppliers that took part:

.

Lovelee Wedding Stationery

I’ve known Kate for quite a few years now, we met at Cwtchfest back in 2017 and I’m a huge fan of her designs. I was over the moon when she agreed to take part in my photo shoot.

Kate is wonderfully creative and has an amazing eye for detail, one of the key skills of a graphic designer.

Isn’t her work gorgeous! I’d recommend her every day of the week.

Kate gave me a selection of stationery to photograph so I could choose which ones would sit perfectly, she has a variety of designs to suit different themes and colours in her range. As well as stationery, she also offers a selection of table plans, place cards, table cards, menus and thank you cards.

So enough from me, heres some words of wisdom from Kate Lee…

Where to begin?

Many customers often ask me where to begin. Pinterest and Instagram are a good source of inspiration.

These platforms will allow you to find what you like and equally what you don’t like. Ask yourself what feel and style you want your wedding to be: Vintage, woodland, botanical, floral, classic, romantic. Use these keywords when researching online. Once you have created a vision, you can then source products online, search local suppliers and get some costs. Check the suppliers website, social media platforms and see if they have good reviews. It is also important you request a price list before you go any further. We all have a budget that we must ’try’ and stick to! Lovelee will always provide a price list first, then produce a quotation upon request. You can request this via the website https://www.lovelee-design.com/contact

I always suggests stay local if you can and recommendations are even better. Trust together with quality is so important when planning your wedding and choosing your suppliers. Consultations (online or face-to-face) are a great way to meet your supplier. It’s not always about just the finished product. You have to have a connection with the person you are working with also in order to achieve the best results.

When to start?

If your wedding is over a year away, I will always suggest Save the Date cards or magnets https://www.lovelee-design.com/products.
These small A7 cards are a great way to let your guests aware of the wedding date and pop it in their diaries. The magnets are very popular, as they won’t be missed on a fridge.

If your wedding is within a year, invitations are a great start. These are usually sent out anywhere between 3 – 9 months. Factors usually determine your timeframe: If you are offering your guests a choice of menu, it is important you include this information in the invitation and RSVP so they can let you know their choices within plenty of time. Your venue will arrange a taster with you and will also inform you when they require the information back (usually 6 weeks before the wedding). If your wedding breakfast is a set menu, this doesn’t need to be included in the invitation, therefore when you choose to send your invitations is entirely up to you.

What theme?

Lovelee has a collection of themes to choose from, they range from florals, to botanicals, to classic confetti and vintage lace https://www.lovelee-design.com/themes. As a graphic designer by profession, I am passionate about design, colour, print, typography and paper – I incorporate these elements into all of the Lovelee themes. If you can’t quite find the perfect theme from the collection, Lovelee has an image library. We also offer a bespoke service from as little as £30.

What format?

There are so many formats to choose from and styles have most definitely changed over the years. Gone are the days of pocket-fold invitations which hold individual inserts, it’s now all about the folded, gatefold or concertina trifold. These are a perfect solution to housing all of your information in one piece. The concertina is the most practical solution as this format includes a perforated RSVP. The gatefold is popular for its beautiful aesthetic nature: it just looks so pretty and gives the wow factor when sealed with a wax seal for example. https://www.lovelee-design.com/products.

What are my options if my wedding is postponed?

I am so sorry if you have made the heartbreaking decision to postpone your wedding due to the current situation. Lovelee is offering free e-cards in any of the Lovelee themes to send to your guests digitally. If you have already sent out your invitations, Lovelee is also offering Change the Date cards or magnets to send to all guests by post. Alternatively you can opt for a larger postcard format to send to all guests without the need for an envelope. Get in touch if you would like a free e-card or a quotation.

Kate

.

Queen of the Meadow Flowers

I’ve been a huge fan of Kirsten’s work for quite a while, being a girl of nature I loved the style of her bouquets and arrangements, they’re perfectly wild and yet expertly chosen.

When I received the flowers they were perfect, lots of thought had been taken into what would suit the stationery, the style and how it would sit, she also provided me with the flowers for the cake, the stationery shots and the button hole, and they all looked perfect! as you can see from the photos.

I really enjoyed photographing the bouquet, the flowers are all locally grown in our beautiful Welsh countryside, and I loved the way the ferns trailed, the shapes of the flowers – lush!

I love Kirsten’s style, to me they look so naturally beautiful which is definitely my thing, and perfect for the bride wanting something a little different or boho.

Heres some words from the girl herself, over to you Kirsten!…

When to book your florist

I am asked this question a lot. I would always recommend booking your florist as soon as possible! I like to book only one wedding per day, which means that my diary fills up quite quickly. Unfortunately, this year many of my weddings have been postponed to 2021 which means next year is going to be very busy! If you haven’t already booked a florist and your wedding is on a weekend, I would definitely do so very soon. Its good to get the ball rolling by contacting a florist you like to see if they have your wedding date free. If they do, then organise an online meeting to start planning. Most florists will always ask for a deposit or booking fee to secure your wedding date in their diary.

Which flowers are available on my wedding date?

This is one of the most important questions to consider, but you may very well not know the answer to it! Pinterest is a great tool to help plan your wedding but some of your favourite flower images may not be an option for your wedding day if the flowers are not in season. Your florist will be able to advise you on which flowers are available for your wedding date. I would always recommend using seasonal flowers as they are better quality and are not as expensive. I always buy British grown flowers where possible, favouring locally grown flowers from Blue Hill Flora flower farm or from my cutting garden. Many people do not realise that most of the flowers used by florists are shipped from abroad, these are still called seasonal flowers. I think that British grown flowers have a softer look to them and their form are more organic in appearance. It is important to know where your flowers come from as many grown outside Europe are treated with pesticides banned in the EU and some workers on flower farms are exploited in many ways. If you don’t yet know which flowers to choose then this is fine, your florist can help you decide.

How do I choose my bridal bouquet?

There are two things to consider when choosing your bouquet, size and shape.

There are several shapes to consider; hand tied, cascading, sideways, and front facing. Sideways bouquets have a boho feel to them, cascading bouquets are a little more formal and the flowers often have to be wired in order to trail downwards.

Recent trends dictate the size of a bouquet, for example pampas grass. This is a large grass, so your bouquet will therefore need to be large. If you are a petite bride then you may not wish to be ‘swamped’ by a large bouquet! A hand tied arrangement might be a nice option if you want your flowers to be wild and delicate. Again, Pinterest is a great tool to use when deciding on the look of your bouquet.

There are finishing touches to consider as well, like ribbons. I use only natural hand dyed bamboo silk or cotton ribbons. I love the texture and finish of them, I hate shiny ribbons! These are a great alternative and look beautiful when trailed down from a bouquet.

Kirsten

.

Centre Stage Cakes

Alison makes incredible wedding and celebration cakes, so when I considered photographing a cake I got in touch with her.

I supplied her with a photo of the type of cake I was looking for and what I received was perfect! gorgeous marbling, edible gold foil, so smooth and the smell was a incredible – it almost distracted me from photographing it!

I was very fortunate to be able to taste it after photographing it – I chose to have Lemon and Elderflower flavour and OMG it was delicious! I don’t normally get to have cake at weddings so this was a real treat!

She gave me so many flavour options –

• Classic sponge with jam and buttercream
• Lemon
• Lemon and elderflower
• Chocolate (fillings- vanilla buttercream, chocolate buttercream, chocolate fudge icing, cookies and cream buttercream, peanut butter buttercream, Nutella)
• Chocolate orange
• Chocolate mint
• Carrot
• Red velvet
• Cherry bakewell
• Coconut and lime
• Golden syrup
• Salted caramel
• Coffee with or without walnuts
• White choc and raspberry
• Chocolate chip with cookies and cream buttercream
• Pink champagne and strawberries

So, heres Alison with a little bit of useful info about ordering your wedding cake…

Ordering your cake

We recommend that you enquire about your desired date as early as possible, summer dates can book up very quickly and often more than a year in advance. With all the unfortunate postponed weddings this year, 2021 dates are being booked up faster than any other year to date. If you would like to chat to us with a view to booking your wedding cake for next year, we can’t emphasise enough how important it is to get in touch ASAP. Please message us via our website, once we have confirmed your date is available, we can then discuss initial design details in order to give you an estimated price. Don’t worry if you are unsure on design details as we can go through general pricing; many people secure their date before they have finalised a design for their wedding cake.

All wedding cakes require a booking fee of £50; this is a non-refundable deposit which ensures your date is booked into our diary.

With every booking we offer a complimentary cake tasting and design meeting where you get to choose your flavours and decide on your final design. This usually takes place 6-9 months before your big day.