Photography Credit: Sugar and Fluff (full shoot can be seen here)

After the success of last week’s ‘average spend’ post it note, a number of you messaged me to say you’d love to here some ideas of how to save the pennies on certain areas. So, over the next few weeks I plan to do just that. Starting this week with wedding flowers.

As ever, please let me know in the comments below (or email me directly if you prefer) if there are any areas of your wedding planning you’d like particular help with. I’m here to serve!

Flowers are one areas of your wedding where it’s really easy to make your budget go further, as Emma from The Green Parlour in Pangbourne told me,

“If people are willing to listen to a florists ideas on how to make the most out of your budget, you can actually achieve something really beautiful for a relatively low price. My top tip is always go for seasonal flowers and to get the most out of your budget try to use as much as you can in your various venues (like moving your ceremony displays to your reception).”

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Photography Credit: Joanna Millington (full shoot can be seen here) Event organised by A Most Curious Party

Oh the wonders of the great British hen do (bachelorette party for my American friends). A time to let yourself go…your last night of freedom…an excuse to get horreniously drunk and snog a stripper.

Erm…Or maybe not.

I’ve been asked by a number of you for some non-tacky, non-sucky hen do ideas including Cynaide Kiss in the comments last week,

So I’ve called upon vintage hen do expert Abbie (AKA Tattybojangles) of The Vintage Hen House. Her hen do planning website is the place to go for amazing and unique hen do ideas, without a willy straw or L-plate in sight.

Over to you Mrs ‘Bojangles…

There are a lot of alternatives people can choose from that don’t involve the usual L-plates, pink fluffy head bands etc you’re only really limited by your imagination. I would always take the bride-to- be as the starting point as use her likes, dislikes, dreams, wants, desires to think about activities, places to go and where to stay. If the bride to be is planning on having a DIY heavy wedding I may suggest that she looks at crafty options, you can find classes in jewellery and fascinator making, millinery, cupcake making and decorating, flower arranging and pretty much anything else you can use a glue gun for.

Have a look at Fabulous Tiaras who do jewellery making parties, Handmade by You and Silver Sixpence in her Shoe for handmade craft parties and Sharper Millinery for millinery parties.

Photography Credit: Hannah Dornford May Making party with Silver Sixpence in her Shoe. Full event can be seen here

Lots of girls will wear their creations on the day which I think is lovely.

If the bride is a bit of an extrovert I would recommend a photo shoot. There are lots of stylist, hair and make-up artists who do hen parties and lots of photographers who can offer a range of styles from pin-up for girls who love the vintage look to more fashion styled shoots.These are an amazing way to capture this milestone in a really positive way. I love looking at my hen party pictures they are a great keepsake. Dont forget to ask your wedding photographer if they do hen party photography, it would be a nice change from an engagement shoot if your other half is camera shy.

For companies that specialise in pin up and hen do photography check out Ruby Demuir, Rockabetty Studios and Julia Boggio Studios (Kat even did one of these!)

Photography Credit: Lee Allen (full shoot can be seen here)

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Credit: Valerie & Craig’s wedding invitation – how cute? (full wedding on the blog soon!)

This week’s Post It Notes topics have turned into quite long answers so I’ve decided to split the post into two. Pop back at 12pm today for this week’s Business Note on how to get more blog comments.

Knowing how to word your wedding invitations can be tricky. Should it be from you or your parents? What if your parents are divorced? If they’re paying for the wedding does it make a difference?

Luckily these days wedding invitations can be a little less formal than times gone by, especially if you’re having an informal wedding – after all they do say that the invitations set the tone for the day.

Here are a few of my top tips for getting those invitations right…

♥ ‘Proper’ etiquette states that the invite should be sent by the parents of the bride (if they’re paying for the wedding). However these days it’s getting more and more common for the invite to read “bride name & groom name, along with their parents, would like to invite you to attend etc etc…”

“I never have set wording for my brides and grooms”, stationery guru Lucy Ledger advises. “I tell them that it is a great opportunity to let their personalities shine through. Having a carnival themed wedding? Why not start with ‘roll up roll up’! A theatrical theme? Why not have your parents names as ‘Jones and Smith company presents…’ You certainly don’t have to stick to the traditional approach and It will create a great buzz of excitement for your big day.”

♥ If you’re sending Save the Dates out I’d recommend posting them as soon as you’ve decided on your wedding date. Final invitations should be sent out around 3 months before the wedding day.

♥ Have a separate invitation (usually just a simpler version of the main invite) for any guests that you are just inviting to the evening reception. Be sure to make it clear that they are just invited to this part of the day – you don’t want extra gusts showing up for the sit down meal!

♥ Including some extra info with your invitation will make it easier for your guests and save you having to answer the same questions over and over. You can either simply include a word document print out or your stationery designer can work it into your invitation. Things to think about including are a map or directions to the venue, local accommodation recommendations, asking guests about any dietary requirements, gift list info and dress code.

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