Oh my word! It’s so exciting!! After only hearing snippets of Jo’s antics since her last post in August, her next post is here with all the bits leading up to her and Leigh’s big day.. Which is just this month!! I’ll hand straight over shall I?
Since the last time I posted we have arranged SO many things and the weeks have flown by with barely a second to spare a moment to ourselves! We booked our band, The Hammervilles who perform rocked up versions of classic songs everyone knows which should keep the mood boosted… we have arranged some performers including fire breathers, burlesque, contortionists and a drag act as well as the incredible poet and comedy performer “Muriel Lavender” who is going to act as out circus ringmaster for the entertainment portion of the evening!
The biggest hiccup so far has been the caterer we booked. As well as being utterly useless at responding to messages and calls, After he saw our venue he declared that the terrace was ‘unsafe’ to serve food from and demanded his garish blue and white marquees be set up either side of the entrance to the venue. I couldn’t have that! The main reason we chose Cleeve House was for its beauty and the main approach down the drive has massive impact! As it turned out he just wanted maximum exposure for his business… so we sacked him. Or rather Leigh took great pleasure in sacking him!
Shortly after that we met with a chef called Peter Vaughn who had minor celebrity success with his own TV show a few years ago, he was so enthusiastic about creating a theatrical meal for our wedding by making posh kebabs and exciting finger foods people would enjoy experiencing as much as they would eating… he proposed dry ice and a theatrical presentation as well as the clincher for me… A CHEESE GROTTO TO FINISH! SOLD! As just over twice the price my incredible parents offered to help out and chip in for two thirds of the cost which meant we could afford to have Peter!
Around the same time, we also needed to get our official invites sent out, which I had been hand making for weeks… My computer had lost all its data and I lost our address list so we had to re-contact everyone and ask for addresses again! A bit of a ball ache but it came together easily.
A close friend of mine was getting married on Halloween and she had asked me to be a bridesmaid so it has been really useful to see her approach to everything and how organised she has been throughout this process. She had found an app called Appy Couple and had used it to provide all the guests with info such as times, where to stay and how to find the venues. I had a look and it was amazing, I could create a personalised website for people to visit using our unique wedding code and find all the info they needed on there! I put info on hotels, travel, on our registry, the guest list, a bit of info on the days events and loads of useful things for guests to help things go smoothly!
Having sent the invites out, people started to RSVP to the Appy Couple app and we got a good idea of how many people were planning to come. So far it looks like around 120 which is a good number as the venue will feel full without being cramped. As it’s Christmas a lot of people are off work already and hopefully will be in the mood for a good party!
In the midst of this wedding madness (don’t ask me why) but Leigh and I decided to sell our flat and buy a house… oh AND move shops… So things have hardly been quiet for us… Today writing this is the first Sunday I have had to myself in weeks and weeks… and when I finish this I will be making more bunting, pompoms, blackboards and decorating more jam jars! I can’t stop! And the worst part is because its almost Christmas there are LOADS of gold and black decorations everywhere which I keep buying! I’m a magpie for gold!
Mum and me went to Bath for a day out to look for things to decorate the cakes with… yes I’m doing that myself too… Can’t leave these creative things up to other people when I’m an artist myself! We found gold glitter galore and some 3D chocolate skulls to go on top…
We also found some gifts for my bridesmaids.. Each girl is having a little gift bag and my three main babes are having something a little bit special each too. I found some locally hand made matching headdresses for them to wear. Absolutely stunning 1920’s style gold pieces which will look gorgeous with the dresses they chose!
And so… my dress… IT’S BLACK!!.. Leigh wont read this now so I’m safe to say… and it’s reminiscent of my childhood hero… Morticia Addams. I feel so sexy in it and I can’t wait to show it off… I am adding my own little touches too which I am sure you will see when the day is done and the official photos are sent back to me! Yesterday, the bridesmaids dresses arrived from “Ok Dress”, an online shop recommended to us by a friend. They are really beautiful, the girls are going to look incredible in the pale colours they have chosen to contrast my black gothic theme!
There are so many other things we have organised… The bar “Mambo Mobile Bars” who specialise in cocktails and theatrical serving of drinks… amazing people and super helpful! We have a photo booth coming from the Party Photo booth Company and we have a room full of retro sweets, games, fake tattoos and tattoo sleeves and plenty of fun things to keep people enjoying themselves into the night! Our photographer Matthew Harris is ready to go and has some brilliant ideas on how to keep our photos as natural and un-posed as possible. I have seen some horrid wedding snaps with super over posed people who look uncomfortable and it doesn’t tell a story of the day which is what matters most to us! Real memories of a real occasion.
As well as all the thins I have mentioned, I have been painting blackboard signs by hand, making fans and bunting to hang in our black and gold theme, buying little thank you presents for the bridesmaids and my mum (ETSY has been a godsend for the little bits and bobs like this), working out like a demon and eating SUPER healthy to look good for the day AND I have had my braces off, teeth whitened and a false tooth put in which has made me happier than anything because I have ALWAYS hated my wonky teeth! Now my smile is almost perfect for the wedding.
We also managed to arrange some flowers for the bridesmaids and me, and buttonholes for the boys with a local florist who I love called “Bramble and Wild”. We have gone for cream roses in some dark foliage with some gold thistles (for my Scottish heritage) and some dark blue almost black berries. They will look wintery and gorgeous I can’t wait to pick them up on the morning of the wedding!
My good friend Alison came to do my rough hair trial this week, it was only a rough guide and we will be making it a lot more beautiful on the day but I loved it as a concept! Cant wait to do the full thing! I am wearing a half wig to add curl to my poker straight un-curlable hair, made by another good friend Becky. She has dip dyed it so I have silver ends to my black hair for the day!
Coming up next week is our joint stag/hen do at the Skirrid Inn, in Hereford, for a ghost hunt and tour and over night stay in a haunted house… We are very excited to spend the night with some of our closest friends!
All the rooms in our venue are booked for my closest friends to stay the night near Leigh and I so we can all have breakfast together the next day… I cannot wait to wake up as Leigh’s wife and have all my favourite people there to share it with!
I will try and do another post before the day, there is still so much I haven’t said!
Thank you for reading!
