All that glitters is .... Simply Stunning

Top 10 Tips for Choosing Your Wedding Jewellery

Your wedding day is the single most important day of your whole life, especially if you are the bride. Months and months and often years and years are spent planning for the perfect day. Each and every detail is meticulously chosen and one of the biggest details when it comes to the bride’s outfit is the Wedding Jewellery. The right Wedding Jewellery will complement the wedding dress perfectly and will complete the bride’s outfit. Here are our top tips when it comes to choosing your Wedding Jewellery.

1. Don't start to think about your Wedding Jewellery until you have chosen your dress. Your gown will influence the style of your accessories and you don't want to spend money on something that doesn't match.

2. Use wedding magazines and wedding websites for inspiration for your Wedding Jewellery and to get an indication of the range of styles, trends and the latest prices.

3. Set a Wedding Jewellery budget but allow a 10% leeway just in case you see the perfect pieces, which might be a little over budget.

4. Leave yourself plenty of time to find your Wedding Jewellery. We would recommend at least a month of searching if you timescale permits. Finding the right sparkles to finish your wedding look can often take a lot longer than expected.

5. Bespoke or ready to wear Wedding Jewellery? Having a bespoke creation is a wonderful experience but might cost more than buying a ready made set and it will invariably take longer for you to get your jewellery.

6. Colour? Don’t think that you have to choose Wedding Jewellery, which matches the exact colour of your dress. This is often impossible anyway given the many different shades of white, ivory, champagne and other coloured dresses available today. If you are going for pearls, then ivory freshwater pearls will go with both white and ivory dresses perfectly. They will also look fabulous and contrast wonderfully with other coloured dresses as well.

7. If you can’t decide between several different sets of Wedding jewellery, or you are worried about whether a particular set will go with your dress, see if it is possible to take all of the jewellery along to a dress fitting so that you can try each piece on with your dress before you make a final decision.

8. Decide how you will be wearing your hair and if you will be wearing a veil or not. This will help you to decide whether or not you are going to need a tiara or other bridal hair accessories as many Wedding Jewellery retailers stock tiaras and hair accessories to match their Wedding Jewellery or can make them to match for you.

9. Don't forget your bridemaids’ jewellery! Give them their jewellery as a thank you gift on the morning of the wedding. It will allow for some special moments between you all and it also means that you don't have to buy both their jewellery and a thank you gift.

10. After your wedding day, make sure that your Wedding Jewellery is clean and in tact before wrapping it carefully and storing it away somewhere safe. It is best to keep pearls and sterling silver jewellery wrapped in a soft cloth or jewellery pouch placed inside an airtight plastic bag. This will prevent it tarnishing.

With thanks to Chezbec an outstanding and award winning company and a lovely team.
www.chezbec.com

Look and smell as beautiful as you feel

With only 2 months to go until your wedding you should now be putting the finishing touches to your wedding fragrance, perfecting your make-up and even keeping your feet in good condition!

Something that often get's overlooked in all the preparations for the big day is the the brides fragrance. Think about it though, all day guests will be greeting you with kisses and moving in close for that well meaning hug. Here's a few tips to help you choose the right one for you.

• Match it to the theme of your wedding day.

• Timelessly traditional? Floral scents are a great choice.
• Small and intimate? Go for romantic, oriental scents.
• A raucous party? Try bold oriental or fruity scents.
• An outdoor affair? Floral or woodsy will blend well.

Layer your chosen scent. Use the bathing bubbles, then the talc and the body lotion (allow to soak in thoroughly) of all the same fragrance, and remember to walk through a mist of your chosen fragrance before you slip into your dress.

You'll look and smell as beautiful as you feel.

Wedding beauty tips - 3 months to go

So it's a step closer to your dream day, we give you advice on everything from manicures to tanning.

3 Months to go

• Plan ahead and book your treatments.

The beauty salons and beauticians often get booked up months in advance. If you use the same salon regularly then tell them your wedding date as soon as you can. If you are trying a few then now is the time to make the choice and book them before they get snapped up

• Book a course of facials.

Don't leave it until the last minute to book a facial. As with the beauticians we mentioned earlier, the best ones tend

to book up months in advance. Also, if your skin needs a specific treatment, it will need time to settle

and return to it's healthy glow.

• Test your tan.

Whether you're going for the full Saint-Tropez or a bronzing gel, choose your shade with care.

Choosing your shade

Fake tans come in different shades and choosing one that’s too dark is a big mistake. You will find that tans come in two basic types.

Golden – This is a yellow-based tan best for blondes, redheads, those with black hair, those with Asian-type or very pale skin, and anyone whose brown hair gets golden lights in summer

Bronze – This is for everyone else. Remember that your face never goes as dark as your body; keep it one to two shades lighter for a natural look.

Healthy, glowing, sun kissed skin set off by your ivory wedding gown - gorgeous!

In our next instalment we look at choosing your wedding perfume to help you smell as beautiful as you look.

Top 10 Wedding Beauty Tips

In the first of our series of wedding beauty tips we look at what all you gorgeous brides to be should be doing to make sure that you are in peak condition for the biggest day of your life.

6 months to go

• Drink water! Preferably 8 glasses a day, but don't rush to drink it all at once. Slowly sipping over an 8 hour period allows your body to absorb the excess fluid. Your skin should start to shine and take on a healthy complexion.

• Find the perfect skincare regime for your face. Many of the big department stores will offer a free consultation giving you the chance to find products that are perfect for your skin.

• Start scouting for a make-up artist. Word of mouth is best for finding one, the referral from another bride he / she has made up is the best advertisement a make-up artist can get! But make sure you're comfortable around them and that they understand what you currently wear.
• Establish a skincare routine for your body. Ex foliate at least twice a week and dry brushing in circular motions before a daily shower clears away dead skin and encourages blood flow and circulation. Also, remember that you're getting your skin ready for the honeymoon too - ex foliating helps to maintain a tan!

In our next post we'll be looking at treatments, facials and giving tanning advice.

Hen Party Inspiration

I regularly get asked by brides and bridesmaids-to-be to offer some hen party inspiration. The trend in the past has leaned towards weekends away but lately, I find brides are happier with something a little closer to home that is easier on everybody’s wallet.

La Cucina Caldesi, based in Marylebone London, offers hen’s a delicious day out with all sorts of Italian inspired cookery classes. Eleven friends and I recently trotted off to Marylebone Lane to try it for ourselves.

Met by the charming Giancarlo Caldesi we started with glasses of prosecco. With sleeves rolled up we learnt how to make fresh pasta from scratch with a number of sauces, my favourite being a zesty vodka and lemon sauce. A couple more friends joined us for dinner afterwards to enjoy the fruits of our labour which were served to us along with beautifully paired Italian wines.

Another great idea Giancarlo told us about is Hell’s Cucina at Caldesi in Campagna, Bray. There, guests get the chance to become their version of Gordon Ramsay, working behind the “pass” dishing out abuse to their fellow chefs in the kitchen! A group of 12 to 16 get to cook for their guests, up to 40, experiencing what it is really like to work in a professional kitchen.

www.caldesi.com
email julie.tooby@essentially-you.net for more information

A rose by any other name...

Your bouquet gives the perfect opportunity to add in one of your old, new, borrowed or blue items. I have previously added a little blue ribbon at the top of the stems, a beautiful antique brooch and a granny’s handkerchief tucked into the flowers.

Spring flowers are now in the market from October/November onwards, so always ask your florist what’s available and when.

If a tulip is one of your favourite flowers you are not as limited as you may think. They come in stunning tones of reds and oranges and make the perfect autumnal centrepiece.

Do think carefully about the height of your table decorations, whilst people worry that flowers too high will block the flow of conversation, if the flowers are too low they have no impact at all when you walk into the room and all you see is a mass of wine glasses.

With thanks to Emma Lappin
www.emmalappinflowers.com

Here comes the.... rain

If it is raining on your big day, fear not some of the best photos I have seen are in the rain. So grab an umbrella and go for it!

Keep the chill of your shoulders by adding a wrap to your ensemble, sophisticated and practical.

Check if a gazebo is available at your venue, these can be invaluable in any weather as shelter from all the elements.

Activity tables, perhaps set up a table full of fun for your younger guests, this can keep them entertained whatever the weather, put out some colouring books and pencils, lego and puzzles and it will keep the kids happy for hours.

Hire a wedding planner, they cannot influence the weather, we are in England after all, but they will be able to come up with a back up plan.

Whatever the weather brings do not panic, we can not always predict it, so it is not worth getting stressed over, remember the meaning of the day and just relax.

Thanks to Llewellyn Robins Photography
www.lrphotography.co.uk