New summer make up lines

A little while ago West Weddings was lucky enough to be invited to preview the summer make-up lines from Tom Ford, Estee Lauder and Clinique, at Bristol's Harvey Nichols store. We spent a happy afternoon testing out new products and found some lovely items that we think will be perfect for those of you planning a summer wedding and honeymoon.

With the warmer weather on the horizon, you won't want a tonne of make-up weighing you down on your wedding day; instead, think delicate products that create a barely-there glow. The Tom Ford skin illuminator in Fire Lust does exactly this, using real pearl extracts to create a lovely sheen. The matching illuminating cheek colour in Blush Guilt adds just enough colour to make sure you look radiant and natural in your photos.

Estee Lauder has a similar product in its Bronze Goddess range, the Bronze Goddess illuminating powder gelee in Heat Wave. 

This is an innovative mix of powder, gel and liquid that melts over your skin to create a delicate, pearlescent bronzer. Its lovely gold compact case will also ensure it won't look out of place in your wedding day handbag. For those of you that prefer more of a tanned look - or you are thinking of the honeymoon - go for the Bronze Goddess bronzing powders which come in a range of shades to suit all skin types.

Over at Clinique, its nail varnishes are a riot of summer shades. Our favourite was Really Rio, a beautiful coral shade that is perfect for warmer weather. We could easily picture this being used in a bridal pedicure, creating a pop of summer colour beneath your dress.

Clinique's lip smoothies are also ideal for brides wanting a slick of colour and a glossy finish without too much pigment. In our opinion, they're also worth buying for the name alone!

Thinking about the honeymoon again, we loved the Estee Lauder Bronze Goddess five colour eyeshadow palette in Batik Sun. 

The amazing turquoise shade immediately put us in mind of sitting next to a tropical sea, sipping cocktails while the sun blazes down overhead... 

Finally, we were seduced by the absolutely gorgeous - and unique - range of perfumes at Tom Ford. Tom's trick is to put together fragrances you wouldn't normally expect, such as coffee and rose, or to use unusual ingredients such as leather and frankincense. The result? Simply luscious perfumes that last for hours and smell amazing. Oh, and the packaging is pretty good too.

We hope this has given you some inspiration to try different looks for your wedding day make-up. After all, there's no better reason than a wedding to enjoy indulging in some new products. Happy shopping!

West Weddings was the guest of Tom Ford, Estee Lauder and Clinique. All opinions are, however, our own.

Planning a Wedding Without Breaking the Bank (Part 2) - Sarah's Story

After a week-long break we return with our second instalment of ‘How to Plan a Wedding Without Breaking the Bank’! This week we’re featuring a story from Sarah, who got married two years ago in her parents’ back garden. Read on to hear how she and her fiancé pulled off a lovely outdoor wedding on a budget.

(Also - don't forget to scroll to the bottom of this post for a chance to enter our amazing giveaway of 'A Priceless Wedding' - your one-stop-shop for ideas on planning a beautiful, memorable day.)

An English Summer Wedding: Sarah’s story

Photo Credit: Sarah O'Driscoll

1.       Tell us a little bit about you, your wedding, and your wedding budget:

My name is Sarah and I got married on August 7th 2010 in my hometown of Chichester in West Sussex. We had a fun, country style summer wedding (with only a small amount of rain!).  My husband James proposed to me in December 2009 and we planned our wedding in 8 months. One of the challenges of planning our wedding was that we have a lovely large family and wanted everyone to be included. After discussing with both sets of parents we agreed a joint budget that fell within the £5,000-£10,000 range.

2.       What elements of a wedding took top priority for you in your planning?

It was really important to us to have as many of our family and friends to celebrate the day with us as we could. We drew up our ideal guest list and it came to around 250 people! We were able to do this because we realised we could fit a marquee just large enough in my parents back garden. It was also really special that it was at home and everyone could be involved in the planning and preparation of the day. Another thing that was high on my priority list was having pretty flowers - I just love flowers!

3.       What was your experience of working on a budget, and what would you tell a bride who is worried that she needs to go into debt (or wait 10 years) to afford the wedding she wants?

Working on a budget can be a challenge. For us we had to look at all the elements we wanted and decide where we could and where we wanted to cut the costs and where we couldn't. Everyone will have their own expectations or hopes for their wedding day. If you don't want your budget to delay you getting married or push you into debt we found that there are many different ways to celebrate a wedding and have a great party. One of the most important things is to be realistic about what you can afford, think creatively, and enjoy it - it can end up being a lot of fun planning a wedding on a budget.

4.       What did you end up spending the least amount of money on? Why did you spend less on this, and how did you manage to keep the cost down?

One of the things we spent the least on proportionally for the wedding was the food and the flowers. We are so blessed in knowing many talented people who were able to help us out and make this possible.  For the food, we went for a local farmer who did free range hog roasts. He came and cooked the meat which cost around £600 for two hogs. Some of our lovely friends self-catered the rest of the food, simple salmon starters and Pimms; salads and accompanying dishes for the meat; and home-made brownies and strawberries from a local farm for pudding.

We spent around £200 for all the flowers by going to the local wholesaler and ordering them in advance. Our friends helped with the church flowers and decoration and my Mum and Grandma then put the bridal bouquets and button holes together the day before the wedding. I loved my bouquet as it was made of sweet peas which my mum had grown in her garden - they smelt so lovely!

5.       What did you end up spending the most on, and why? What made this particular thing a spending priority for you?

I think we ended up spending the most money on the marquee and all that was included (tables, plastic chairs, cutlery, and posh porta-loos – we used one called the ‘Royal Flush’!). 

We spent the most on this partly because of our guest numbers, but having this venue and the marquee allowed us to be much more flexible and save money in many other areas which other venues may not have allowed.

6.       What would you give as your top ‘insider tip’ for throwing a wedding without millions of pounds to spare?

I think my top tip for throwing a wedding on a budget would be to be creative, enjoy planning and ‘think DIY’.

Photo Credit: Sarah O'Driscoll

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Planning a Wedding (without) Breaking the Bank (Part 1) – Ruth’s story

We are excited to introduce a new blog series here at West Weddings. Over the next three weeks we’ll be sharing the stories of real brides who planned gorgeous weddings – on a budget.

Yes, we know. The word 'budget' is oh-so-taboo in the world of weddings, but the reality is that brides are beginning to realise that they don't have to break the bank to have a beautiful, personalised wedding that they love! 

We want these stories to provide inspiration - whether you have a sizeable savings for your wedding, or you’re a bride despairing over what seems like an impossibly small budget.

Before we jump into Ruth’s story, we also want to introduce a GIVEAWAY! In keeping with our theme, we will be giving away a copy of ‘A Priceless Wedding’ – a must-have wedding planning guide by popular blogger Sara Cotner. This book covers all the must-haves when planning a wedding, from ceremony to reception and everything in between. Sara will guide you through planning your wedding day while making it meaningful, memorable and affordable. Scroll to the end of Ruth’s story to enter yourself in the giveaway drawing.

Summer Love

For those of us who panic at the thought of a tiny bride and groom straddling wedding cakes, this could be a solution!

Kiki La Ru's Etsy shop says: "'Maddi' Cake Bunting has upcycled and vintage cotton flags in a cute mix of pinks, greens, and purples, handsewn together with pink thread. They are tied onto the poles and fastened with clear glue. Flag sizes and shapes will vary slightly, and are sewn in a cute, relaxed 'shabby chic' kind of style; see the close-up photos to get a detailed look!"

 

I'm in love with the whole idea of tiny bunting adorning a wedding cake.  It's such a sweet, simple idea and it would look great at a summer wedding!
 
Have a good week,

Hannah