Monday 14 December 2009

Wedding Disasters - Top 10 weddings that go wrong

A bride wants everything to be perfect on her wedding day – to look back on that special day with a smile, laugh at the wedding photos and videos and have a great story to tell.

Click here to read the entire article with videos....

Unfortunately, for the unlucky few the day doesn’t always go according to plan, as Welsh couple discovered recently when a family scrap broke out at their Port Talbot reception.

From sinking brides to the truly tragic we look at the top 10 worst weddings. Bridezillas beware….

1. Wet wedding
Both the bride and the vicar end up in the swimming pool after a clumsy best man loses his footing.

2. Hurricane Wedding
Barbara and Doug Rozenboom planned their wedding for nine months- perfecting every detail but they scheduled it late in the summer of 1996, just as Hurricane Fran hit the Carolinas, causing floods, massive power failures and at least 26 deaths.

3. Wedding Earthquake
A couple watched the church they were getting married in crumble around them as the Sichuan earthquake hit China.
Considered the strongest and deadliest earthquake to hit since 1976 it killed and injured thousands.
Luckily the 33 attendees and bride and groom were not inside the church at the time but the wedding photographer managed to catch these shocking snaps.

4. Lost Wedding
Despite spending £4,000 on a Caribbean wedding, Mike Goodhall and Heidi Loader were unable to prove that they were legally married because of a spelling mistake on the marriage certificate.
A clerk in the Dominican Republic, where the couple were married on a beach, spelt Mr Goodhall’s surname with an “e” instead of the first “l”. The couple returned the certificate to travel company Thomas Cook to be amended but they lost the information meaning Ms Loader was unable to get a passport or credit card in her married name.

5. The Versailles wedding hall
In one of the worst civil disasters in Israel’s history, Keren and Asaf Drors' wedding was bought to a tragic end when the third floor of the four-story Versailles Hall collapsed as revellers danced on it. Bride and groom survived but 23 people died and approximately 380 were injured.

6. Heartbreaking
It was a wedding day to remember... for all the wrong reasons.
Brian Ashton and Sarah Ward had their wedding plans brought to a tragic end when the white limo carrying the groom and his mother crashed yards from the church causing the groom's mum Maureen to have a heart attack.

7. Caribbean Chaos
A couple's Caribbean dream wedding turned into disaster after they discovered they may not actually be married. Clare George and John Bevan spent more than £6,000 flying their family to Jamaica for their big day.But troubles arose when they arrived to find nothing prepared for them. Despite organising it all last minute once back home, doubts were rasied as to whether the Valentine's Day ceremony was legally binding as no documentation was ever received.The couple's travel agent is investigating.

8.Cake Catastrophe
A slightly clumsy bride tries to have her cake and eat it…unsuccessfully.

9. Best Man Blunders
The pressure of being a best man can get to some people as this poor guy proves.

10. Runaway Groom
All brides fear being left at the altar and that's exactly what happened to Lilibeth Gaviola when college sweetheart Ryan Sesante left her humiliated in front of friends and family and ran off with another woman just as he was about to say "I do".
Lilibeth got her deserved revenge suing Ryan claiming moral damages of £26,500.

Click here to read the entire article with videos....

Friday 27 November 2009

Way to make the bride snap: Groom orders two-foot wedding cake in the shape of an ALLIGATOR


The stress of organising your big day is enough to make any bride anxious.

However, if your husband-to-be ordered this for your wedding cake, you’d be forgiven for snapping at him.

But that’s exactly the situation one American woman found herself in, when her football-mad fiancé asked EB Cakes for a homage to his favourite team, the Florida Gators.

The alligator, the team's emblem, is more than two-foot long and is holding ‘The Swamp’ which is the name of the team’s stadium.

The bride and groom are placed on top – both wearing Florida Gators’ kits – along with three teamplayers, including quarterback Tim Tebow.

However, for what could arguably be described as the ugliest wedding cake in the world, the design is faultless – and every part of the creature is edible.

Wednesday 11 November 2009

Up, Up and Away - Hot Air Balloon Wedding Over Tuscany?


Tuscany with its landscapes and historical sites, offers a great opportunity for hot air ballooning. The surrounding areas of Florence (Chianti, Mugello valley) or Siena (Crete Senesi, Pienza, San Gimignano, Montepulciano), Volterra and the north of Maremma (etruscan archeological sites) represent some potential areas for unforgettable flights.

We can arrange additional balloons for your guests. Or you can choose to have the ceremony on the ground and then just the couple take off.

The balloon wedding might be a better option for a couple eloping, so for just the two of them, alone, in Italy for their wedding and honeymoon.

We suggest you fly early in the morning or afternoon, when winds are calm and gentle. Flight duration can last from 45 minutes to 1 hour or an hour and a half, depending on the speed and direction of the wind.

After the flight, in the best tradition of ballooning, pilot and crew will be glad to offer a "champagne cheers" to our wedding couple and a personalized memento of flight.

Email us for further information: info@weddingsabroad.com

Tuesday 10 November 2009

Martha Stewart - Winter Destination Weddings

The Winter 2009 issue of Martha Stewart Weddings is a sublime celebration of destination weddings, a special travel issue devoted to everything you'll need to plan and perfect the ultimate wedding abroad. It's all there, whether the celebration is a union of two people in love or something entirely different. In this issue, we discover light wedding dresses for tropical locations, creative ways to personalize your destination wedding (gift baskets for guests with location-appropriate goodies) and learn about 51 of the best places to host a destination wedding. There is also a feature on the best locations in the United States to host a destination wedding, if passports aren't your thing. We get an inside look at two gorgeous weddings, one in the Caribbean and one in Ethiopia. It's a beautiful, lavish issue, perfect for the conquering the gray days of winter.

Click here to read the entire article..........

Friday 6 November 2009

More wedding planning reality shows coming to TLC

Nov 5th 2009 | 12:46pm
Just when you thought that reality television had exhausted all possible angles on wedding planning, TLC is launching some more programs that explore everything from Las Vegas weddings to cheap options for saying "I do."

According to Variety, new competition-based show Battle of the Wedding Planners is set to debut on November 13, featuring three professionals competing to create the best budget wedding for couples.

Another fresh program this winter is Four Weddings, which will see brides-to-be rate each other's nuptials, the news provider reports.

If you are thinking about a destination wedding, you may be interested in Happily Ever Faster - set in Las Vegas' Chapel of Flowers - or Manhattan Marriage Project, with Gino Filippone.

Speaking of wedding-themed reality shows, if you just can't wait for these new arrivals to get your matrimonial fix, you might want to tune in to E! this Sunday, November 8, for the special episode of Keeping Up With the Kardashians in which Khloé gets married.

After all the hype, aren't you just the least bit curious to see how it goes?

Wednesday 14 October 2009

A few random thoughts from me.....


Inspired by some articles I was writing today for a new wedding site - exciting news to come on that soon (watch this space) - I realised it has been some time since I shared my fabulous finds.

I came across these unusual wedding favours, perfect for all weddings but ideal for the destination bride! Love the accompanying text on the Caesars Wedding Favours site :-)

"
Shore up your event plans with these beach themed spreaders as your event favors You’ll really “sea” what a difference great favors can make when you add these unique beach-themed spreader favors to your event tables. "


For further details check out http://www.caesarsweddingfavours.co.uk/contents/en-uk/d965.html


It's no secret that I adore, love and worship the work of my friend Natalie, who makes the most amazing cakes, large and small!

So beautiful and I love the use of the flowers on the miniature cakes, along with various textures. These cakes are works of art and perfect for any celebration...check out Natalie's fabulous array of birthday cakes too. Make sure there are no small eyes around if you check out the "adult" cakes - Nat had a weird request the other week, the proof can be seen in her gallery - let's just say many people dined out on the story of her "special" cake last week"!

Based in Mill Hill, NW London, Natalie bakes and ices delicious cakes and then individually hand decorates them to your specifications with elaborate sugarcraft modelling to the theme of your choice.

Click here to see a selection of Natalie's Creative Cakes in her gallery or email her mail@nataliescreativecakes.com





Another personal recommendation is for a fabulous company www.candy-spa.com - more to come about their products in the coming weeks, but for now check out the site.

Special offer too -

Pamper the Diva in You!
Get 10% off your next order with every purchase
from Oct 14th until Oct 23rd 2009.

Go on spoil yourself......

Wednesday 7 October 2009

Bride and Gloom: World's worst wedding photo's...


A wedding photographer has been ordered to reimburse a couple after a judge described photos of their big day as "woefully inadequate".

Marc and Sylvia Day paid Gareth Bowers, from Fresh Images, £1,450 for these pictures. Do you think they are worth the money?

Click here to read the entire article and see the images......tell us what you think

Saturday 3 October 2009

Get Married Magazine Is The First Bridal Publication To Use The Cutting-Edge Microsoft Tag, Bringing Print Pages to Life

With the click of a smart phone camera on the pages of Get Married magazine, busy brides connect instantly to videos, websites, photos and information while on the go

ATLANTA, August 4, 2009 – Get Married Media, an integrated tri-media wedding planning resource with national platforms online, on television and in print, announces today that Get Married magazine is the first bridal publication to ever use the new Microsoft Tag technology, giving readers instant entertainment and connection to videos, website, photos and information on a mobile phone. Throughout Get Married magazine, select editorial and advertisements will have a Microsoft Tag printed directly onto the pages. After a quick download of the free application to an internet-enabled camera phone, busy and on-the-go brides just aim and snap any Tag within Get Married magazine, immediately turning the still Tag into rich, interactive content on their phone.

As part of its fresh approach to planning weddings, Get Married is using multi-media in an innovative way as never seen before – integrating its expertise in TV and production, along with its internet proficiency, with a print medium - Get Married magazine.

Microsoft Tags, the sophisticated technology powered by High Capacity Color Barcodes (HCCBs), will enhance the Get Married magazine readers’ interactive experience. The technology allows the users to interact with the content in the magazine in new ways using their mobile device, making it more informative, immersive and fun. “Tagged” editorial and advertisements will turn traditional magazine reading into ground-breaking, rich, multi-media experiences within the wedding and bridal industry.

Get Married magazine’s promise to reinterpret the rules starts with the publication itself, and integrating Microsoft Tag changes the way brides read a magazine, gather inspirations and connect with advertisers,” said Stacie Francombe, founder and president of Get Married Media. “We are bringing our expertise in video and online to the magazine pages, moving beyond the traditional ways of delivering a bridal publication -- from the newest interactive technology and latest trends in bridal shopping and style to a colorful, fresh voice in the wedding genre.”

With the small, colorful Microsoft Tags, Get Married magazine offers brides - who are busy working, planning and playing - quick, easy and convenient connectivity to information when and where they want it – with no typing, fumbling with URLs, texting short-codes or launching browsers. Brides can learn more about a product, save Tags for later viewing, and make a purchase – directly from their phones. With Tag, Get Married makes the process of planning a wedding more convenient and even more fun.

“Get Married is taking user interaction to the next level with Tag. They have brides who are really engaged, incredibly focused on planning and shopping for their weddings, and Tag allows them to stay in the moment,” said Aaron Getz, business leader for Microsoft Tag. “Advertisers in Get Married magazine can deepen the relation with the brides making their ads immediately actionable and more entertaining. Besides they can track the actions brides are taking and inform their marketing strategy.”

Get Married is working closely with advertisers to incorporate Microsoft Tag in their print ads and to track and monitor the success of the campaigns. The Tags enable advertisers to further connect brides and consumers with their brand, while influencing purchase decisions and enhancing brand loyalty. For its first issue launching October 2009, Get Married magazine is offering free Tags to advertisers on full- and half-page ads. In addition, advertisers can provide the video or Get Married will produce with existing advertiser footage and content.

For more about Get Married magazine’s Microsoft Tag, please visit www.getmarried.com/magazinetag for a step-by-step, including free application download, list of Tag-friendly phones, as well as actual Tag to test on your mobile phone.

Click here to read the entire article........

Friday 25 September 2009

For Wealthy Indians, Trip Down Aisle Often Requires a Passport

Margot Cohen is a Bangalore-based writer - Wall Street Journal

PUNE, India -- When Indian entrepreneur Suniel Mutha had his wedding, he tied the knot in his wife's hometown of Chennai, then known as Madras. The nuptials lasted three days and included more than 900 guests.

He and his wife wanted something different for their children. So when it came time for them to marry, the Muthas jumped on the latest trend sweeping India's bridal business: destination weddings. Son Sidaarrth, now 26, was married in a dazzling display in Macau last year; daughter Shweta, 27, was wed in a big bash in Bangkok in July. Each wedding stretched over five days, included hundreds of guests and had all the trappings of a traditional Indian wedding -- down to the team of 60 chefs and kitchen assistants flown in to prepare thousands of special meals, and a horse for the groom to sit astride for his grand entrance. The tab for the Macau wedding alone totaled $4 million to $5 million.

India has long been famous for its lavish weddings. For many, a wedding is a status symbol, and families often save for decades to host a big fat one. And while the global economic slowdown may have pinched incomes and reined in conspicuous consumption elsewhere, Indian weddings appear recession-proof, as wealthy families strive to host an unforgettable event. Now, the Indian wedding has hit the road as families try to outdo each other in far-flung locales like Dubai, Thailand, Macau and even France.

"If there was a large enough rocket and spaceship, you can be sure that the first big wedding in space will be an Indian one," says psychoanalyst and author Sudhir Kakar, who lives in Goa. "It is not keeping up with the Joneses but keeping ahead of them—'Eat your heart out, Joneses, you pretenders!'" more.......

Click here to read the entire article......

Tuesday 15 September 2009

UK Military Get Chance to Win a Free Wedding Worth £15,000

The UK’s leading social networking and relationships web site for members of the armed forces, forcespenpals.co.uk, has joined forces with the Support our Soldiers Charity and Chocorococo to offer a free wedding to one lucky member of the armed forces. The wedding, worth over £15,000 in value, is open to all serving members of the military and includes everything from flowers to the bridal cars.

Bruno Mustone, managing director of forcespenpals.co.uk said; “When we were approached by Support our Soldiers and Chocorococo we thought that the competition was brilliant and we knew that our members would be interested. Forcespenpals.co.uk has had a number of weddings over the years and by offering the competition to our members you never know who may pop the question next.”

The competition prize includes:
· Wedding Venue
· A three tier chocolate fountain from Chocorococo
· Wedding cake
· Toastmaster
· Rings
· Formal Wear Hire
· Cars
· Bridesmaids outfits
· Music and more

The closing date for entries is 31 October 2009 with the winner announced shortly afterwards. Terms & Conditions Apply.
The competition is open to any serving member of the UK Armed Forces (Army, Navy, RAF or Marines) serving at home or abroad. For full rules and to enter the competition see www.forcespenpals.co.uk/
wedding

forcespenpals.co.uk has over 94,000 active members who are looking for love and friendship. Launched in 2003 the site was set up to provide members of the forces a way to meet people outside the military environment whether at home or on operations.

Monday 10 August 2009

Wedding Professionals......


If you are an wedding planner or represent a wedding venue, and would like to work with the World's Leading Destination Wedding Company WeddingsAbroad.com please contact us for further details.

Due to increasing demand for weddings overseas we are always on the lookout for new and exciting destinations for our clients.

Email us for further information and start getting enquiries from us today!

August 8 Most Popular Wedding Day of Year.......

In Finland!

August 8 is this year’s most popular wedding day, according to Finland’s Evangelical Lutheran Church. Many couples want their special day to coincide with a memorable date.

The long-time favourite day to tie the knot, July 7, fell on a Tuesday this year. However June 6 and August 8 were both Saturdays, which made the dates wildly popular with couples. July and August are typical wedding months in Finland. August is becoming an increasingly popular wedding month for those favouring end of summer celebrations.

Today, a growing number of Finnish couples are getting married abroad, with some couples choosing to fly their guests in to foreign venues. Popular wedding destinations include the United States, Spain and Thailand.

Couples getting hitched closer to home are also putting their own spin on traditional church weddings. More and more people are personalising weddings by saying their “I do’s” at home, in gardens and even in the middle of nature.

An emerging trend among young adults today is to roll the christening of their children and their own wedding into one big ceremony.

Monday 3 August 2009

Four Weddings ....


FOUR WEDDINGS FANS – FOUR WEDDINGS CONTINUES TONIGHT, 9PM ON LIVING

• The battle of the brides continues this week in the ultimate wedding eavesdrop show Four Weddings, exclusively on LIVING. This new and outrageously entertaining series sees four competitive couples go head to head in out-and-out wedding warfare as they bid to win every newlywed’s dream prize – a luxury honeymoon! For a chance to claim the romantic getaway, each bride must allow LIVING cameras, and her three rivals, to scrutinise every aspect of her big day, with the other brides scoring the venue, the food, the overall presentation and, of course, the dress.
• Mandie and her fiance Jason are both in the army so they’re determined that their wedding day will reflect their military background – including a drumming battalion, while Stacey’s wedding is set to take place at Portsmouth Football Club.
• Girly girl Donna has her heart set on a Cinderella-style affair and has hired the same horse and carriage that carried glamour girl Jordan to her reception. But while Donna is determined to have a perfect day that goes precisely to plan, the final bride Sharon is aiming for something more unconventional – a pagan biker wedding. With one bride entering to martial music, another in a fairy tale carriage and the last on a roaring motorbike, conflict between these girls is assured. Viewers can watch them battle it out this week only on LIVING.


Check out the official fan page NOW http://www.facebook.com/fourweddings for sneak previews, photos and updates on previous episodes.

Also, take the Four Weddings quiz to find out how much you REALLY know… Go to http://www.facebook.com/l/;www.fourweddingsquiz.co.uk to test your wedding knowledge and be entered into a prize draw to win £100 worth of Selfridges vouchers! What do you have to lose?

Wednesday 22 July 2009

If you are in the Wedding Industry - Please Read - Fraud / Scam Alert


In Sept 2008 I wrote a blog posting about "suspicious" emails that we receive almost daily, the response both via the blog and direct emails has been incredible. I have decided to repost my original article and hope you will continue to comment and add to it. I shall add to it the latest emails I have received this week. The new scam appears not just to target wedding planners, but all wedding service providers and even interior designers. Please forward this new post to everyone in your address book and let's hope we can stop anyone from losing money! Thanks for your support. To read the original post and comments please click here. Or paste the following into your browser (content is pasted below):


http://weddingsabroad-destinationweddings.blogspot.com/2008/09/if-you-are-wedding-planner-please.html



In addition to brides and grooms, I know a lot of wedding planners and service providers log on to the Weddings Abroad Blog. Today, I'd like to take a moment to warn them to be on their guard for email scams targeting wedding planners. There isn't a week goes by that I don't receive at least three of these emails.

This current scheme has been going on for the past year that I know of, and basically involves sending in a credit card payment or a cashiers check for an amount greater than what you've billed them, they then ask you to transfer the remaining funds elsewhere. The cashiers check clears into your account quickly, you transfer them the money, and weeks later your bank realises the check was a fraud and deducts the amount from your account.

Below is an email received yesterday, as usual it immediately raised my suspicion. Basically a groom or bride-to-be contacts you from somewhere in Europe or the USA saying that they need help planning their wedding from afar. See more details of the scam and a copy of a similar initial email wedding planners were sent last year here. The minor details (name/date/location) change, but otherwise, everyone is receiving similar emails.

As an International Wedding Planner, I am asked everyday to provide information on planning a wedding when overseas, but I am now an expert at ascertaining the genuine ones....others may not be so lucky, there are many new wedding planners joining our industry all the time, and may not be aware of this scam yet.

Here is the email I received:

My Name is Mr Cross James Allen,

I am looking for an experienced wedding planner who will handle my wedding and arrange the reception dinner for a group of people who will be attending the wedding ceremony.

The wedding is expected to hold on the 4th of Febuary 2009 and 25 to 40 guests are expected to attend. As i do not know what the guests might choose for their meals and drinks, i will make a prepayment as initial deposit for this booking via credit card once availability is confirmed by you.All checks and balances will be made with you on 13rd October which is the final day of the booking, You are to arrange for a a venue for the wedding (its a christian wedding), a place for the reception ,Videography, Music Entertainment,Photography,cake and flowers.

If there is any these items that is beyond your capability,you let us know so that another company can handle it. Get back to me with your response as we don't have much time with us so that we can process our accommodation within the region more convenient for you and us.

Pleas get back to me via my personal email which is jcrossalen@rocketmail.com

Best Regards,
Mr Cross James Allen
jcrossalen@rocketmail.com


If this blog entry helps one person then it's served it's purpose....especially in the current economic climate we can do without giving away money and wasting our valuable time! If you have received similar emails lately please feel free to add them to the comments of this thread to make everyone aware.




UPDATED 29/07/2009 - Please read the comments attached to this post to see updates on other current email addresses being used on this and various other "scams"......

Latest email addresses to be cautious of:

lasoreservationagencies@gmail.com
gibsonwhyte1999@gmail.com
atkins111@yahoo.com
benjaminspencer300@gmail.com
bspencer100@yahoo.co.uk
bob.robinson00@gmail.com
frank.paker104@googlemail.com
giljay101@gmail.com
davidwaltermail@ymail.com
owen.fletcher107@gmail.com
lasoreservationagencies01@gmail.com

Thursday 16 July 2009

Ant and Dick set to hijack the airwaves!!!!


Ant and Dick are all set to take over the airwaves with their new show on Feile fm the Ant and Dick show will go out live on sunday afternoons from 3-5pm the cheeky duo will playing love songs and answering dating and wedding dilemmas for the shows love stricken listeners

“We are so excited” exclaims Ant “ There's nothing we love more than a bit of gossip and slushy music, so combining the two live on air couldn't be better, though I am a bit nervous we are used to doing television where you can have more than one take but the show will be completely live – crikey”

Dick says “ coming to Northern Ireland was a big step, but ever since I have arrived I have been made to feel so welcome, doing the show on Feile fm really is the icing on the cake for what was already a fun and exciting new chapter in my life.

In addition to the radio show the boys also have their own budget furniture range hitting the shelves soon, and are also fronting an Ant and Dick love range at House fraser, if this wasn't enough the cheeky pair are also hosting this years Wedding Extravaganza show at the Odyssey and subsequently the hastings hotels wedding shows.

“ we are so lucky to be as busy as we are, the credit crunch has hit a lot of people very hard and whilst it hasn't been completely far from us we are continuing to build our business, we consider ourselves very lucky boys indeed” says Ant.

“ the furniture range will be available soon and we are working on the instore promotional materials for the house of fraser range” explains Dick

If you would like to know more about the boys visit www.antanddick.com or tune into feile fm 103.2fm if you are outside of the catchment area you can listen in online at www.feilefm.com

Tuesday 14 July 2009

TELL YOUR WEDDING/RELATIONSHIP STORY - AND GET PAID

Medavia features agency is currently looking to speak to women who have an interesting or unusual wedding or relationship story to tell.
Did your wedding almost fail to go ahead? Did you have to beat all the odds to get married? Was your wedding day extra special for an unusual reason? Is your groom one in a million because of something he's done for you? Or perhaps your honeymoon was unusual?
Maybe your relationship alone is worthy of a story? Did you meet in an unusual way? Are you an unlikely couple? Did you kiss a lot of frogs to find your prince?
Your story could be published in a women's magazine - and you would be paid up to £1,000. You would also get to hear the words before it was published so there would be no nasty surprises.
If you're interested email emily@medavia.co.uk To find out more about Medavia go to www.medavia.co.uk


Saturday 4 July 2009

Four weddings and a catfight: Would YOU let another bride criticise your big day?

The last thing you want on your big day is three other brides giving you marks out of ten. But that's what the contestants on a new TV show signed up for - with predictably scary results...

Picture the (expensive) scene. You are a bride who has spent £77,000 on your fairytale wedding. Your flowers alone have set you back an eye-watering £4,500. No detail has been left to chance.

Your guests will be serenaded by a pianist during the banquet, their place settings scattered with sequins. Afterwards, they will be encouraged to gather on the steps of the venue to watch you and your husband release doves into the sky.

Now, fast forward to after the confetti has settled. How would you feel if you discovered that some of those glugging your expensive Champagne had been less than appreciative?

That one guest had turned her nose up at the exquisitely presented seafood starter, dismissing it as 'salmon thingamibob'. That your must-have doves would be for evermore referred to as 'those bloody white pigeons' by another. Or that the killer phrases 'Very Posh and Becks' and 'Just like Jordan' had been uttered - and on more than occasion?

Alas, for the newly married Mel Cooper (nee Boorman, a former glamour model), such is the reality.

The Wag wannabe was one of 40 women to sign up for Four Weddings, a TV show in which, every week, four rival brides attend each other's wedding, then offer up criticism - and the bitchier the better.

Click here to read the entire article........or click here to visit the Four Weddings website on Living TV

Four Weddings, Living, from Monday, 9pm.

http://www.livingtv.co.uk/shows/four-weddings/

Thursday 4 June 2009

Why so many couples are opting to have their weddings abroad


Planning your wedding is probably one of the most important, and the most stressful, things you will ever do. Your wedding is arguably the biggest day of your life and it’s only natural that you want everything to be perfect. But there’s just so much to think about, and too often it ends up becoming less about the actual day than the amount of money it costs to reach that level of perfection. No one wants money to get in the way of their big day, but it’s not unusual for weddings in the UK to end up costing upwards of £20,000, a huge financial commitment especially during a recession when times are hard. And that’s just the wedding, without even considering honeymoon costs.

But there is another option, more and more couples are choosing to cut their losses and travel abroad not just for honeymoons but for the actual wedding as well. Weddings abroad are a relatively new trend but are catching on fast which is not really all that surprising considering the average cost is less than a quarter of what you would pay in the UK. And when you really think about it, it really does make sense. Not only does the wedding cost less, but there is literally a whole world of choice to make your wedding the most perfect day for you, wherever and however you want to do it.

A destination wedding could be the solution to all your problems if you’re struggling with the credit crunch. You get to combine your dream wedding with your dream honeymoon in any location you choose – it’s the perfect romantic holiday and unlike with UK weddings, you’re even almost completely guaranteed good weather on the day! Yes, you might have to compromise a little on numbers and guests, after all not everyone can afford luxury European, African or Caribbean holidays at the moment and a lot of guests won’t be able to make it, but as long as those closest to you are there surely it’s worth the compromise? And you can always have a big party to celebrate when you get back. When it comes down to it, it’s your big day and it’s your choice – so why not choose to do something different, stand out from the crowd and make your day as perfect as it can be.

Click here to read the entire article........

Sunday 10 May 2009

Wedding Babylon: An insider's account of how the super-rich tie the knot...

Weddings have become much more fashionable recently in celebrity circles. It used to be un-hip to tie the knot, but now everyone from Pink to Peaches and Liam Gallagher to Tom Cruise has got married. Even Cheryl Cole is standing by her footballer husband, despite his alleged affairs.

The British wedding market is worth £7.5billion a year and the average bride spends between £21,000 and £25,000 on her big day. Celebrities, of course, spend a lot more.

While there are plenty of fixers around the country who can put together a good bash, once you break the £150,000 barrier, the bride tends to look towards London for advice.

Cheryl Tweedy and fiancé Ashley Cole just before their marriage in July 2006

Stand by your man: Cheryl Tweedy and fiancé Ashley Cole just before their marriage in July 2006

There, the air is rarefied and populated by the likes of Peregrine Armstrong-Jones, who organised Peter Phillips and Autumn Kelly's wedding, or the legendary Lady Elizabeth Anson, who has been planning the parties of the rich and famous for more than 40 years.

We at Penrose are somewhere in the middle. We've planned weddings costing £30,000 and five-day celebrations for £2million. Our fee is 20 per cent of the total cost. There are four of us in a first-floor office in South Kensington. Bernard is in charge and I am his number two.

Bernard has been a wedding planner for 20 years. There isn't a lion tamer, elephant handler, pyrotechnic practitioner or ice sculptor whose details he doesn't have in his Rolodex.

Today we have our new client, Keeley, the footballer's wife-to-be, coming in. All celebrities, no matter how Kate Winslet bangers-and-mash low-key they say they want their wedding to be, always manage to take over - and go over the top.

They're weather vanes to fashion. Victoria and David had their wedding dinner à deux - with Brooklyn next to them in a matching crib - because that's what Mel B and Jimmy Gulzar did.

There was no top table, just a table for two and a couple of matching thrones. Not conducive to a night of jolly conversation - but when you spend most of your reception posing for photos for a reputed £1million magazine deal, the dinner is not that important.

The caterer we use says celebrity weddings bring him out in hives. Firstly, no one eats because they are anorexic, bulimic or on drugs. Secondly, you never manage to serve dinner properly. At the last celebrity wedding he did, the guests had to wait two-and-a-half hours while the couple were photographed.

Keeley arrives looking like a symphony of honey: honey-coloured hair, honey-coloured skin, honey-coloured Juicy Couture tracksuit. She has a socking great Fox's Glacier Mint on her left hand, which appears to be the same size as the diamonds in each ear.

'It's lovely to have you here at Penrose,' says Bernard. 'First things first. Do you have a magazine deal? Is it one of those exclusives where we have to keep everything a secret and spend most of our time running away from the Press?'

'Well, I'm not sure at the moment,' Keeley says. 'My agent is talking to a few people.'

'Would you like a piece of advice?' Bernard asks. 'Don't.'

'Oh,' she says. This is clearly not what she wants to hear.

Bernard then explains that on the announcement of the engagement, offers come in. Sometimes magazines will call in favours, saying: 'Remember the topless photos of you that we bought to keep off the market? Well, it's payback time.'

Jordan and Peter Andre's wedding

In the pink: Jordan and Peter Andre's 'circus horses' at their wedding in 2005

The more famous you are, the more control you have. If you don't command many headlines, then you may as well sell your soul down the river. Not only can magazines tell you what to wear and what the theme will be, but they issue edicts such as: 'No black, no red, no cameras, no mobiles.'

If you are short of famous friends, magazines invite their own guests to make your wedding look more showbiz. Out goes plump cousin Lucy in her mint dress, and in comes Brenda from Emmerdale. Suddenly the likes of Bonnie Langford creep into your family albums.

The strangest bridesmaids turn up at star-studded events - how else did Martine McCutcheon end up at Liza Minnelli's side when she was marrying David Gest at their seven-figure-deal, ten-page-spread wedding?

'So,' says Bernard, 'if you don't have to sell your big day, don't.

'Although the money's not to be sniffed at. In the old days the most you'd get was £400,000, which is what Emma Noble and James Major managed to pocket for their wedding.

'But Posh and Becks broke the barrier. They got a million. Catherine Zeta and Dinosaur Douglas got a million as well. Wayne and Coleen got £2.5million.'

'But their wedding set them back just under £5million,' I say. 'She spent £85,000 on trips to New York for dress fittings.'

'And the dress was £200,000,' adds Bernard. 'And Westlife [the wedding band] were another £400,000.'

'Look, Keith's on more than £90,000 a week, so we really don't need the cash,' says Keeley. 'I just thought it would be nice.'

'Trust me - it will be nicer without,' smiles Bernard. 'So, do you have any ideas that you'd like to share first?'

'We were thinking abroad is nice,' says Keeley. 'Like David and Victoria.'

'So, Luttrellstown Castle, Phoenix Park in Dublin?' says Bernard, jotting it down. 'How many people?'

You would be amazed at how many people invite celebrities to their weddings rather than real friends. Much like everyone who has ever met Elton John asks him to be their child's godfather, so anyone who has even so much as sat next to a celeb invites them to their wedding. Who wants Uncle Jim there if you can have Denise Van Outen instead?

But inviting people you don't know never makes for a good party.

We organised a wedding for a Russian oligarch a few months ago. There were 180 guests and we had an unlimited budget. There was enough vodka to drown a small Greek island and enough caviar to sink the QE2. We'd had the centrepieces made by Aynsley China in Stoke-on-Trent and there was a £60,000 floral bridal arch.

The Cristal champagne flowed, but the conversation was dead. No one knew anyone. They were all the bride's father's business associates. It was a damp squib of a party.

'Food?' Bernard asks Keeley. 'What's your favourite meal?'

'Oh, it's got to be Christmas dinner with all the trimmings,' she replies.

Bernard winces. What is it with WAGs that they all love Christmas dinner so much? Maybe it's the only dinner they allow themselves to eat.

We know the guys who did Posh and Becks' wedding. She wanted roast turkey for 250, which is impossible to do in a marquee without the meat tasting like old slippers.

Eventually they plumped for guinea fowl. They took some persuading on the guinea fowl, as neither of them knew what it was. It wasn't until the tasting when Victoria pronounced it 'just like chicken' that it got the go-ahead.

Keeley is disappointed, but Bernard consoles her by saying Christmas dinner is perhaps not the best supper to be serving at the beginning of July.

'No one wants to dance with a bellyful of food,' he adds. 'I presume you want dancing?'

'And a band,' she says. 'How much do you think for Take That?'

'I'm not sure,' says Bernard. 'Elton and Rod are a million each. Robbie is the same. You can get Girls Aloud for about half of that, but I would guess Take That are up there with Elton and Robbie. Anything else?'

'A white carriage with four white horses with plumes,' she enthuses.

'Plumes are for funerals and circuses,' says Bernard, without looking up. 'You'll be a laughing stock.

'Animals are just another thing that can go wrong. One poor bride I know was two hours late for the church. The horse had bolted and ditched the driver, and she ended up going round in circles on Clapham Common.'

'And if you arrive riding on one horse you end up looking like Lady Godiva,' I say.

'Or worse still, Trudie Styler,' says Bernard, rolling his eyes. 'Who can forget her smug mug on the back of a horse being led around by Sting as if she was on a donkey on Blackpool beach?'

If Keeley wants her wedding to appear in the Press, she needs us to help her get it right, otherwise she'll face endless derision from journalists.

It took five years for the style Press to stop smirking over the Beckhams' wedding. Jordan will be for ever cast in pink and Peter Andre is the man in the white suit.

Doing it well can bring huge rewards. Coleen and Wayne Rooney's wedding was surprisingly well done: she looked fabulous and the venue was beautiful. By the end of the day, a style queen was born.

'You're right,' Keeley says. 'Keith and I will have a chat about it, and I'm due in again on Thursday, right?'

'Correct.' 'Excellent,' she says, getting up and smoothing down her tracksuit over her perfect backside.

She sweetly shakes everyone's hand. As the door closes behind her, Bernard lets out a loud yawn.

'Anyone fancy a drink?' he sighs.

Click here to read the entire article........


By Imogen Edwards-jones and Anonymous

Sunday 19 April 2009

Strut up the aisle in the $1.5m wedding dress made up of 2009 peacock feathers ....


If you want to stand out on your wedding day, this dress made up of 2009 peacock feathers could be just the ticket.
The $1.5million creation was made at a wedding dress factory and took eight workers 40 days to sew together.

An average male peacock sheds around 200 feathers during his annual moult – meaning the makers would have had to have harvested the feathers from more than ten birds over the course of a year.

Male peacock tail feathers grow to be several feet long but are shed each year just before the breeding season.

The feathers feature a design resembling an eye and are made up of shimmering blues and greens.

Despite the dresses' eye-catching beauty, prospective brides should be aware that peacock feathers are considered bad luck in some cultures.

While the live birds themselves are thought to bring good luck, having peacock feathers in your home bears the risk of inviting in trouble and sorrow.

The dress was assembled in a wedding dress factory in Nanjing, east China's Jiangsu Province and features a bodice created with brocade and Suzhou embroidery.

Click here to read the entire article
........

Friday 10 April 2009

Affordable Destination Weddings

Even if you've dreamed about getting married in a place far, far away your entire life, that doesn't mean that you have the funds to actually pull it off the way you want it.

The truth is, a destination wedding can be much more affordable for the bride and groom - it's their guests that have to shell out the extra cost. But even then, an affordable destination wedding can be done for everyone if you make the right choices.

First, plan well in advance. This gives both you and your guests time to shop around for the best rates on airfare. If you're set on a certain destination - Jamaica, let's say, or any other destination that only has one major airport - then let everyone know the place and the dates so airfare can be booked right away. Some airlines will offer discounted rates on big groups of people, so you might be able to cash in on that for your immediate family members - or the entire group, depending on how many people are going.

Second, shop around. Don't be afraid to negotiate with hotels for any extras, such as upgrades. These are troubled times, and the hotel industry is feeling it just as much as anyone else. That means they're willing to give you a little extra incentive to book your gala there.

In conjunction with the second tip, make sure you are getting a discount of some sort. Automatically, a hotel or resort should offer a discount for booking a large group.

Fourth, make your affordable destination wedding also affordable for your guests by keeping them in mind when choosing the location. If you couldn't afford to go there on vacation, then your guests probably can't either - after all, while you've been saving up for and dreaming about this day for years, most of them probably haven't.

If you do go for a little bit more expensive destination, make clear to your guests that their presence is the only gift necessary. This isn't the time to be greedy.

Fifth, as with any other wedding, an affordable destination wedding will be cheaper when it's smaller. Cut the guest list, if you have to. The good thing about destination weddings is that they typically only include people who would do anything to see you get married, so it makes the reception less expensive.

Destination weddings (and all weddings in general) are only as expensive as you want them to be. By limiting things a little, you can have the affordable destination wedding of your dreams.

Click here to read the entire article

About the Author:

Thursday 2 April 2009

Broadcast your Dream Wedding

These days many couples are whisking away to some pretty exotic places to say “I Do” Then there are those who don’t want to go exotic but still want to have their weeding in a beautifully romantic place, such as the Wedding Pavilion at the Grand Floridian Resort, Walt Disney World. While this sounds great to the excited couple, it may not be so exciting for those friends and family members who cannot join them.

Destination weddings have exploded to include a little over 15 percent of all weddings—quadrupling in under a decade. However, the problem of disgruntled guests and ultimately, empty seats, has remained steady.

Live video streaming services is now the answer to the problem of absent guests at the couple’s dream wedding by providing an inexpensive, uncomplicated technological solution. Now, live video streaming services can capture the wedding, during and after the actual ceremony.

When planning a wedding, the bride and groom of course get caught up in what they want. They have grandiose dreams what their perfect wedding should be like and where it should be held. Then, reality sets in. Suddenly brides and grooms realize that many invited guests cannot make it to the wedding due to travel costs, health concerns or conflicts. The number one reason many guests cannot attend is the high cost of travel. It doesn’t stop there though. Travel is not only expensive but if also requires many people to request time off of work, which becomes an issue as well. This huge realization ca often cause the couple to feel guilty for indulging in their dream wedding being held in a non-traditional location.

In today’s age of growing technology, it is now possible to broadcast the event live so those who are unable to attend can still be there, in a way. Keeping the technology simple, live video streaming services can be used worldwide and by both professionals and amateur videographers.

Those guests who cannot make the live event can receive information explaining the login protocol and reminding them of the date and time. If the guest forgets to watch in real time, the video is available for download moments after the nuptials are made.

With live video streaming services; there is no need for the bride and groom to feel guilty about the location they choose for their wedding. They can still have their dream wedding in any location they choose and be assured all guests will be able to experience the event.

About the author:
S. Brown has had great success using live video streaming services for special events.

Tuesday 24 February 2009

Wedding Vendor Website Survey

My colleague and friend, Emilie Duncan of Emilie Duncan Event Planning is conducting a great survey...take a look below!

*********************************************************
I promise, this will only take a minute of your time! If you wouldn’t mind, please click on the link below and answer 9 quick, easy questions about different design aspects of wedding vendor’s websites.

Wedding Vendor Website Survey

We won’t record anything about you other than what state or country you are from - we don’t even ask for your email address so no spam or anything like that. You will likely see this link on lots of other blogs and sites - this survey is being shared all over the blog-o-sphere so please take the survey only once.

If you have additional comments on the subject, please feel free to email me with those and I will share them with the other wedding vendors who are participating! We can’t wait to hear what you have to say! (If you are a wedding vendor and would like to participate, just copy this post to your blog and email the link to mailto:emilie@emilieduncan.com - I will send you the results once we have closed the survey in March)

Saturday 14 February 2009

Kian and Jodi set the day for their €1m Barbados wedding

It promises be the €1m showbiz wedding of the year. But the questions on everyone's lips is when will Westlife star Kian Egan (28) swap vows with his former Jodi Albert (24)?

And although the smitten couple have done their best to try and keep details of their big day under wraps, the Diary can exclusively reveal that Friday May 8, has been scheduled in for the event.

The young couple, who have been together for nearly five years, won't have to worry about the poor weather ruining their glitzy nuptials either -- they have chosen to have the ceremony in sunny Barbados.

The two fell in love with the Caribbean destination during a holiday there in April last year while they were on the hunt for their dream wedding venue.

Now as well as forging ahead with Jodi's new girlband, which Kian co-manages with Louis Walsh, the couple are busy putting the final touches to their wedding plans.

Luxury

No expense will be spared and they're even eyeing up Dermot Desmond's multi-million euro luxury resort of Sandy Lane as a possible venue .

The guest list is expected to read like a 'who's who' of big industry names, with all of the Westlife gang already on the list, as well as Jodi's showbiz pals from Britain.

"They want everything to be just perfect for their big day so they're leaving nothing to chance," said a source.

"Because both of them are so busy with their careers, Kian and Jodi have hired a celebrity wedding planner to help them with all the details.

"Kian also loves surfing so somewhere like Barbados is perfect for him."

Speaking recently about their forthcoming wedding, Jodi confirmed that they had found their venue but wouldn't comment any further apart from saying that they're "really happy with it and that I'm so excited".

She added: "The wedding reflects exactly who me and Kian are as a couple. It's so 'us', it's our vibe and everything. It's brilliant and I can't wait for it!"

Kian popped the question on Christmas Day 2007 and will this summer follow in the footsteps of his married Westlife pals Nicky Byrne and Shane Filan.

Click here to read the entire article

Wednesday 4 February 2009

ARE YOU OR IS A FRIEND GETTING MARRIED BEFORE MAY 2009?

Channel 4 are making a unique observational documentary about weddings in the UK for the prestigious Cutting Edge series and we are looking for a huge cross section of couples to get in touch!

From traditional weddings to jetting off to Vegas or planning the alternative ceremony of the year, we would love to hear from you.

If you’re the lucky bride or groom, or you know someone who is getting married, get in touch now. By contacting us, you are not committing to being filmed, we are keen to speak to anybody for research.

CALL / TEXT Angela on 07505 902 510 or email myweddingday@monkeykingdom.com

Sunday 1 February 2009

*NEW* Weddings and Honeymoons in Mauritius.......


Mauritius has all the ingredients for a truly romantic wedding abroad or a superb Indian Ocean honeymoon. It offers everything from superb beachside hotels, romantic accommodation, plenty of free activities, superb cuisine to excellent, relaxed service from friendly staff.

WeddingsAbroad.com - *NEW* Weddings in Mauritius

If you are looking for a wedding abroad Mauritius is perfect. Nothing much beats saying 'I do' on a beach lapped by the Indian Ocean, and with a choice of eight romantic, beachfront hotels in Mauritius we have the perfect location for your wedding abroad.

We arrange over 300 weddings in Mauritius each year so you can rest assured that your big day is in trusted hands. We in fact guarantee only one wedding a day at the Beachcomber hotels in Mauritius ensuring that your special day is just that - special!

Before you depart the UK you can call our friendly reservations team at anytime if you have any questions and they can advise you on everything about your wedding in Mauritius. Once at your hotel you will also have the services of a dedicated wedding planner who will sit down with you and your partner and arrange the finer details of your wedding day from location, flowers to the music you want played.

WeddingsAbroad.com - *New* Honeymoons in Mauritius

Mauritius is a superb honeymoon destination, in fact over 25% of our business to Mauritius is honeymoon holidays, so you can rest assured your honeymoon is in safe and experienced hands.

  • Having pioneered tourism in Mauritius Beachcomber Hotels had the first choice of some of the island best beachside locations. If you are looking for a romantic beachside resort we've got a great choice - from the private Le Morne peninsula to a hotel right in the heart of lively Grand Baie.
  • Each of our 8 Beachcomber Hotels are unique, with their own individual style and character - so we have a resort for all tastes and budgets. 4 of the hotels offer an all inclusive package.
  • Being linked with our own hotels in Mauritius means we have a real understanding of how to get the best out of your holiday to Mauritius. In fact, we just sell our own hotels and our knowledge of these hotels is unsurpassed.
  • All of our staff have been out to the hotels, have stayed in the rooms, eaten the food and know the staff.
  • Importantly we appreciate that Mauritius is a longhaul destination and understand how important it is to choose the hotel that is right for you - to pick the right room and get the right facilities - as experts on the island
    that's exactly what we can do.

Please take a look at our extensive selection of weddings and honeymoons in Mauritius and contact one of our experienced wedding and honeymoon planners for your tailor-made quote.

Click here to contact us today, we can advise you every step of the way to find your dream wedding or honeymoon in Mauritius. If you would like a brochure too, just ask.....

Thursday 29 January 2009

If you are a wedding planner.....you should read this...

I thought I should add another entry on my journal about the email scams we are subjected to each and every day.

Rather than posting all the information again, please take a moment to click on the link below and read the original thread and comments.
http://weddingsabroad-destinationweddings.blogspot.com/2008/09/if-you-are-wedding-planner-please.html

Please forward this post to all of your colleagues in the "wedding world"

Thanks for your time

CREATE A LASTING REMINDER OF YOUR WEDDING DAY - AND EARN UP TO £1,000!


Do you have an unusual wedding story to tell? Perhaps something went wrong on the big day or you received an extra special surprise. Or maybe there's something unusual about the way you got together with your partner - or something poignant or moving they did for you before your wedding day that you want to pay tribute to?
Whatever your wedding or relationship story Medavia can help you reproduce it in print - and get paid up to £1,000 for doing so!

Medavia is a media consultancy based in Bristol. Our team of experienced journalists write features for national newspapers including the Daily Mail, Mirror and Sun and a whole host of women's magazines, ranging from Cosmo and Company through to Grazia, Reveal, Woman's Own, Bella, and Take a Break.
If you chose to tell you own story through us we would ensure you were happy with the feature written and paid an approved fee. In addition, it is important to us that any message you want to put across, or cause you wanted to highlight, is adequately done so through the feature. We would work with you to ensure that was done.
To find out more contact Emily Retter at emily@medavia.co.uk or visit www.medavia.co.uk

Thursday 22 January 2009

Been invited to a wedding abroad? Then plan carefully....

One sixth of Britons now marry abroad. Alice Olins went to three weddings last year - in Italy, South Africa and Florida...

In the last five years, the number of British couples getting married abroad has increased by 43 per cent to an estimated 51,300 in 2008. According to a Mintel report, that’s a whopping 16 per cent of all marriages registered in the UK.

This is extremely good news for the bride and groom. But what about the guests?

Well it certainly beats the local registry office. But being invited to a wedding abroad involves more than just the celebration.

There’s the cost for one. Then the extra days out of the office. And what about the fact that you might be travelling to a destination you wouldn’t previously have considered?

When you break it down, sometimes a wedding abroad can feel more like a burden than a joy.

Last year I was invited to – and attended – four destination weddings. This makes me well placed to suggest some ways in which you can make this unexpected addition to your travel plans still feel like a worthwhile holiday.

My foreign wedding relay kicked off with a colleague’s alpine nuptials in Chamonix. The next leg was at a South African vineyard, where my fiancée (for the record, the furthest we are dragging our own guests is West Sussex) was best man.

Then in May, we headed to Italy for my brother’s wedding in a Piedmont castle. And finally it was on to Miami in October, where a British friend of mine married her Argentine love.

I do not want to sound spoilt, it was an amazing year of travel but thanks to all these overseas marriages, I now have an aching overdraft and no more holiday time.

Click here to read the entire article.........

Thursday 15 January 2009

CALLING ALL BRIDES-TO-BE!!


ARE YOU GETTING MARRIED BETWEEN
JAN AND JUNE 2009?

HAVE YOU ORGANISED THE WEDDING OF YOUR DREAMS?

WOULD YOU LIKE TO WIN A FIVE STAR LUXURY HONEYMOON?

Four Weddings is a brand series for LIVING. During each episode four brides attend each other’s weddings. The bride with the best day will the 5 Star honeymoon of their dreams!

For more info email

Jonathon.ridgard@itv.com or weddings@granadamedia.com

or call 020 715 73812 for more information!

Hurry we are casting now!


Here comes the credit crunch bride: Bhs offers entire wedding outfit for £100

As the recession continues to bite a high street chain is offering a wedding outfit for £100 in its latest bid to lure in cash-strapped shoppers.

The ensemble, sold by BHS, consists of a white strapless corset top with a tie-ribbon back, A-line skirt and shoes.

Bridesmaids can also be kitted out with a skirt and bodice from around £85.

The outfits, made from 100 per cent polyester, come in ivory and range in sizes 8 to 22.

The simple satin shoes feature a bead, sequin and pearl heart-shaped design.

The retailer is the latest in a line to offer cheap wedding attire at knock-down prices.

Last year Marks & Spencer cut a bridal dress to £15, a 10th of its original price, as it cleared out old stock.

Supermarket giant Asda led the charge in 2006, offering a range of wedding dresses for £60.

UK couples pay an average of around £20,000 for their wedding, with the dress typically costing nearly £1,000, according to You And Your Wedding magazine.

Some brides manage to save money by opting for a second-hand dress.

In September last year, Heather Saint, from Teesside, managed to find hers on eBay for 5p.

Click here to read the entire article.......

Tuesday 13 January 2009

'There's no stress!': Couple tie the knot in Taco Bell fast food restaurant

For most couples, a fast food restaurant would be the last place they would pick for their wedding reception let alone the ceremony.

A picturesque church, imposing castle or a registry office are usually the venues of choice for those walking down the aisle.

But this was not so for a young couple in the US who opted for a rather more unique spot for their nuptials - a Taco Bell.

Customers inside the Mexican fast food joint even carried on buying tacos and burritos as Caragh Brooks, 21, and husband Paul, tied the knot.

'It's appropriate. It's an offbeat relationship,' the groom said.

Employees had decorated the restaurant with streamers and balloons for the ceremony.

They even customised the hot sauce packets with the words 'will you marry me?'.

Unsurprisingly, the wedding in the ironically named town of Normal in Illinois, was a cheap affair - setting the couple back just $200.

The bride wore a $15 hot pink dress and their friend officiated in a t-shirt after being ordained online as several dozen guests looked on.

'This is the way to go - there's no stress,' said the groom's mother, Kathy Brooks.

Caragh, who is originally from Australia, met Paul, 30, on an internet dating site.
They already had the same last name and immediately became close.

After writing to each other and talking on the phone for nine months, Caragh made the move to the US.

Her new husband said: 'We have the same brain, just in two bodies. We think alike in virtually every manner. We have the same interests, viewpoints.'

He proposed on New Year's Eve and, because they like to spend time at the local Taco Bell, they decided to wed there.

The restaurant's manager, Carl Harmlow, was pretty taken aback by the request.

'I would never have expected in my life in working here there would be a wedding,' he said.

Click here to read the entire article.....

Sunday 11 January 2009

Something old, something new and something cheap


With the cost of weddings generally rising in the UK and Ireland, the demand for overseas weddings is once again increasing in 2009. The deciding factor is once again value for money and ensuring that your wedding day is perfect in everyway.

To limit the effect of the current economic climate, our preferred partner, Gran Canaria Weddings and Celebrations launched a Credit Crunch Wedding Package where the couples can make significant savings on their wedding day without cutting corners or reducing the quality of service provided.

Getting married in Gran Canaria is fast becoming a favourite destination for overseas weddings based on the cost effectiveness and year round outstanding weather. With the average cost of a wedding in the UK as much as 20,000 pounds compare with as little as 4000 pounds in Gran Canaria, it is no surprise that more people are now looking at Credit Crunch weddings as the best option for their special and memorable day.

"Gran Canaria weddings offer exotic but affordable versions of celebrity-inspired weddings. As the credit crunch bites and recession looms, this could be the perfect cost-saving measure allowing couples to have the wedding day they have always dreamed of," says Paul Gibson

A potential downside is that while the bride and groom often benefit from a cheaper celebration, weddings abroad can prove an expensive affair for guests. But Gran Canaria Weddings has also been able to establish outstanding relationships with hotels and also tour operators to minimize the costs of flights and accommodation as much as possible including group discounts, which is why more people are attending weddings in Gran Canaria and taking a holiday at the same time.

With the addition of Hen and Stag party weekends in Gran Canaria, the whole wedding package is now arranged by the couple’s personal wedding planner, making the wedding package more attractive and more accessible for everyone.

Click here to see our selection of weddings in Gran Canaria