What to Look For When Hiring a Wedding Car?

Your wedding day is certainly the most important day in your life, and you want it to pass flawlessly, without any blunders. Hiring the finest wedding car for this day is as critical as selecting the perfect dress. Here are some tips to help you find the ideal wedding car hire in Manchester.

Consider the Overall Journey

It is imperative to first think of the pick-up points as well as the people who will be in the vehicles. How many flower girls, pageboys, and bridesmaids will you have? This is to determine the exact number of vehicles you will need.

If you are considering hiring a traditional car, you can pick a classic seven seat Daimler Limousine, for example. You can also ask a relative or friend to help you with any bulk luggage as not all vehicles have adequate storage space.

Think of the Car Colour and Model

Nowadays, wedding car hire firms ensure that they list all cars they have in their list of rentals. If you want to hire a wedding car for the bride-to-be, you should keep in mind her favourite car model and colour. You can also consider hiring a car that compliments your wedding venue's theme. If the theme colour of the wedding is blue, for instance, then you should book a car in the colour that compliments that theme.

Consider Being Classic

Luxury radiates from quite a few models that include the classic limousine. Most people prefer these models over any other car as wedding transportation. Other than the classic limousine, you can also shop around for cars that are regarded as ‘sophisticated' or ‘elegant'.

Examine the Vehicle

Some vehicle models are used regularly with minimal maintenance. Hence, they are fragile and unworthy of hire. It is advisable to always examine the car before making any payments. A wedding car is a reflection of affluence and class; you cannot afford to choose the wrong vehicle.

Compare the Options

There are many wedding car hire companies out there. Thus, you need to compare their charges and offerings. With the stiff competition, you will have a wide range of options with regard to the major models in wedding cars, from which you can make your choice. You can shop around for different companies, noting down their offers. Afterwards, you will compare the mdels and select the ideal model that fits your needs and budget.

Check for Insurance and Security

You need to look for a well-established wedding car hire company with fully licensed chauffeurs. Also, ensure that the firm has public liability insurance. Be careful not to select one of those hobbyist wedding operators out there, who don't operate as proper businesses.

Survey the Vehicle Interior

Wedding cars ought to have a sparkling, comfortable and magnificent interior for your relaxation while enjoying the ride. There are wedding hire companies that provide extra services and accompaniments like customised ribbons with the wedding couple's names, soft drinks, water, as well as free champagne. Take this into consideration when looking for a wedding car hire.

Conclusion

The wedding day is naturally the most cherished day in a person's life. This is why everyone would go to great lengths to make the day as great as they can possibly imagine, including hiring the finest wedding transport. To those looking for wedding car hire in Manchester, you have no cause to worry. Opulence Executive Travels, a Truly Great Luxury Car Company, offers a wide range of prestigious vehicles from which you can choose the one that perfectly fits your taste and budget.

Wedding industry gives same-sex marriages a mixed reception

More than 15,000 same-sex marriages have taken place in England and Wales since it became legal to do so, but the wedding industry still has far to go in catering for them, say experts.

There were 7,366 ceremonies for couples not already in a civil partnership, and 7,732 who converted their existing civil partnership into marriage, according to the Office of National Statistics. Yet as the business around same-sex marriage grows, there was criticism that the wedding industry as a whole has been slow to respond to this lucrative market.

“It is still waking up. There is a long way to go,” said Gino Meriano, founder of gayweddingshow.co.uk, which organised six gay wedding fairs across the UK last year. “If two women go into a bridal shop, do not assume one is the bride and one is the chief bridesmaid. Which happens. A lot,” he added.

Since the Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Act was introduced on 29 March 2014, with the first ceremonies taking place moments after midnight, 15,098 same-sex couples legally married during the period up to 30 June 2015, with 55% of ceremonies being between women, and 45% between men.

The number of civil partnerships fell by 70%, from 5,646 in 2013 to 1,683 in 2014. In December 2014, just 58 civil partnerships were carried out.

Laura Metayer, who founded Mrs & Mrs Products, specialising in same-sex wedding cards, invitations, personalised gifts and cake toppers, started her website four years ago when she and her partner had a civil partnership “because we couldn’t find any products ourselves”.

Today, business is booming, she said. “We specialise in things specifically for same-sex marriages. One of our new products is congratulations cards that say “to our daughter and daughter-in-law” or “son and son-in-law”. Even “sister and sister-in-law”. We have had some card companies make them up specially for us and they have sold really well. Especially to parents, as they like to get something special for their children,” she said.

“This has been our best year. Most of our business comes from guests rather then the couple themselves.

“We have done gay wedding fairs and have contacts with a lot of other people in the industry, and I think it has definitely increased.”

Gay wedding planner Petra Truneckova, who has published a guide to same-sex weddings, said: “The market is getting bigger and bigger. It’s virgin territory and I think we are creating a gay wedding etiquette right now.

“I love the creativity. There is much more flexibility. You can have the grooms entering the room together. You can have so many different options, which is what I like. And the magic is you have room to create.”

She is now expanding her business to promote destination weddings for gay couples. “Especially gay men. They tend to have a bigger budget, and are travelling more, and generally don’t have children, and are bigger spenders than straight couples,” she said.

“The market, generally, all around the world, is increasing a lot. It is a millionaire industry now,” she added. “I wouldn’t be opening my markets and expanding if that was not the case.”

But, she cautioned, the wedding industry still discriminated against same-sex couples by often using terms such as “bridal suite”, “bridal car”, “bridal favours” and “bridal party” in their literature. The terminology needed to be updated, said Truneckova, founder of Bellus Events.

“Many venues are still using these terms, and then the two grooms get really upset. I get that constantly. Wording is really important,” she added, saying she always checked such details before forwarding on to her clients.

The ONS figures showed the number of same-sex marriages peaked at 844 in the month of August last year. “Historically the most popular time for marriages to take place is during the summer months, with ceremonies being less popular in winter, “ the ONS said. “Marriages of same-sex couples are following this seasonal pattern.”

The majority of those who wed a partner of the same gender had never been married or in a civil partnership before. Just over 14% of women and 8% of men had been divorced. The ONS said: “The majority, if not all of these previous marriages, will have been with a partner of the opposite sex.”

According to a survey by marketing and research company Out Now Consulting, a total of 868,000 gay men and lesbians in the UK are expected to marry over the next 15 years. Taking an average of £20,983 per ceremony, “that implies the UK gay and lesbian weddings market to be worth £18.2bn during the next 15 years”, CEO Ian Johnson said.

Meriano, whose company produces Pink Weddings magazine, distributed at the gay wedding fairs he arranges, said the indications were that there would not be a dramatic rise in the number of same-sex weddings. The market was worth an estimated £570m between 2005 and 2013, before the legalisation of same-sex marriage, and an estimated £62m in 2013, he said.

“The wedding industry is five or six years behind,” he added. “Many of those who exhibit at the gay wedding fairs do not have products specific to same-sex weddings. It’s got to wake up,” he added.

Anti-gay marriage Oregon bakery defies state order to pay damages to couple

The owners of a Portland-area bakery are refusing to pay $135,000 in state-ordered damages to a same-sex couple who were denied service, despite a crowdfunding effort on their behalf having raised more than $500,000.

Melissa and Aaron Klein, owners of Sweet Cakes by Melissa, cited religious beliefs when they refused to bake a wedding cake for Laurel and Rachel Bowman-Cryer more than two years ago.

State labor commissioner Brad Avakian awarded the damages in July for emotional suffering, saying the owners had violated the women’s civil rights by discriminating on the basis of their sexual orientation.

The Kleins have filed an appeal of the ruling and are defying the order to pay. They are claiming financial hardship despite the crowdfunding efforts on their behalf, the Oregonian newspaper reported.

The couple closed the Gresham store in 2013 and now operate the business from home.

“It’s difficult to understand the Kleins’ unwillingness to pay the debt when they have, very publicly, raised nearly a half million dollars,” state labor bureau spokesman Charlie Burr told the Oregonian in an email Wednesday.

“They are entitled to a full and fair review of the case, but do not have the right to disregard a legally binding order.”

A lawyer for the Kleins, Anna Harmon, told the Oregonian she couldn’t comment about her clients’ actions, citing the ongoing litigation.

A 2007 Oregon law protects the rights of gays, lesbians, bisexual and transgender people in employment, housing and public accommodations. It provides an exemption for religious organizations, but the agency ruled that exemption does not allow private businesses to discriminate against potential customers.

Love, marriage … and a barrage of shoes

Shoe-throwing may now be mostly a political act. But not long ago, it was a common rite of marriage, writes James Crombie of Aberdeen, who has gathered some matrimonial footwear-hurling facts into a 24-page treatise called Shoe-Throwing at Weddings.

This was in 1895, when readers may have empathised with Crombie’s opening thought: “Pelting a bride and bridegroom with old shoes when they start on their honeymoon is a custom we are all familiar with, and in which many of us have participated.”

Some 113 years later, in 2008, Muntazer al-Zaidi recategorised the social role of shoe-throwing when he hurled size-10 shoes, and some words (“This is your farewell kiss, you dog”), at US president George W Bush at a press conference in Baghdad.

Crombie’s article is pretty apolitical, and makes no bows to podiatrical correctness. Though his paper was published in the journal Folklore, Crombie was no worshipper of footloose or flighty tales. He helped establish the first seismological observatory in the Aberdeen area and was a generous donor to Oxford Observatory.

Crombie writes that around the world lots of people make a practice of throwing something at newlyweds. Rice, especially, has had wide popularity.

Victorians put their best foot forward in the choice of missile, Crombie writes: “For whereas we find the custom of throwing rice, or some other cereal, prevalent in almost every land, we find shoe-throwing practised mainly, I think, in those parts of the world inhabited by Englishmen or directly influenced by them, among the wandering Gypsies of Transylvania, some parts of India, and one or two other places.”

Nuptial bombardment is meant to induce luck, he says. Sometimes it summons more than luck. Crombie points to the large Indonesian island of Celebes (now called Sulawesi). “At South Celebes,” he writes, “rice is thrown on the head of anyone in whose honour a festival is held, with the object of detaining the soul, which at such times is in especial danger of being lured away by envious demons.”

Shoes, he writes, are sometimes essential wedding elements even when hand-delivered rather than heaved – especially in Germany and Finland. “According to a sumptuary law of Hamburg, enacted in 1291, the bridegroom was bound to present the bride with a pair. They almost played the part of our engagement ring and were, as it were, evidence of betrothal.”

And in his own era, in east Finland, Crombie says, a mother-in-law would not permit her new son-in-law to bed his bride until the young man had presented the mother-in-law with a pair of shoes.

Shoes, he tells us, can also be essential, symbolically, at the end of a marriage. “A Bedouin form of divorce,” Crombie reports, is, “she is my slipper, I have cast her off.”

Picture perfect: how to make it as a wedding photographer

Experiment with interesting angles and risky compositions, says wedding photographer Steven Rooney. Photograph: Steven Rooney

 Not so long ago, the wedding photographer was the man in the smart suit with the flashy camera who lined the families up – the bride’s, the groom’s, then all together – outside the church door. His work was concentrated in a fleeting window of about half an hour, reeling off as many shots as possible before the guests began to groan. Then, with the cutting of the cake, his responsibilities ended and well before the dancing was over he could be back home.

The early 21st century wedding photographer bears little resemblance to this old caricature. Today they work within a fast-growing, highly competitive, dynamic industry, straining to portray the wedding day in their own unique style. Some work like photojournalists, gliding invisibly between the guests, looking for candid moments. Others choreograph scenes with all the sophistication of film directors, capturing shimmering dresses, leaping groomsmen or epic backdrops.

Meanwhile, the barrier to entry remains low. Anyone with a camera can set themselves up as a wedding photographer and pitch to one of the quarter of a million couples getting married in England and Wales each year, part of an industry across the whole UK that is worth an estimated £10bn. The lure of the money, the freedom of the job and the scope for turning a hobby into a business ensures that the sector is a competitive one. So what does it take to succeed?

Steven Rooney, a wedding photographer from Southport, has watched the evolution of the profession. As a boy, he learned his craft from his grandfather, a teacher who used to photograph weddings in his spare time. Those times with his grandfather’s Canon AE1 camera and Ilford black and white film were the genesis of Rooney’s career. Though originally trained as a teacher, he kept up his photography and one day a friend asked him to shoot his wedding. It was the stepping stone into a career that has seen him become one of the north-west’s leading wedding photographers.

The support of his friends and family has been key to Rooney’s success. His brother designed his first website, a friend who worked for an accounting firm helped him to set up as a limited company and then his wife, Sally, joined him. She takes care of the admin for what is now a family business. “She holds our business together,” Rooney says. “She’s much more organised than me, she also designs the albums, runs the house and looks after the kids while I’m shooting weddings.”

Rooney’s business expanded slowly. It was a gradual slide into weddings rather than a sudden move from teaching. For Rooney this was important as he could build his portfolio steadily, picking the assignments that interested him. “I followed American photographers like Jeff Newsom and began to develop a client base of people who liked my style. There are lots of different techniques: double exposures, long exposures, pictures of stars, painting with light.”

Business is also going from strength to strength for Ann-Kathrin Koch, a Birmingham-based, German wedding photographer. Koch has a reputation for beautiful documentary shots, a style of visual storytelling that she puts down to her training as a freelance film editor.

Like Rooney, Koch built her business gradually. “I was able to do both the film editing and the wedding photography for quite a long time,” she says. “I had started out with photography in my early 20s, using websites like Flickr. The community back then was all about Flickr and I would take pictures of everything around me and post them. It also got me interested in how others did what they did.”

Social media was not just a training ground for Koch, but also a source of clients during her first year as a wedding photographer in 2011. She says: “I did a handful of weddings that year – friends and connections through Flickr. I then started to blog about everything I was doing – mostly it was about photography, but it was not exclusively about weddings.”

In 2012, she went full-time and shot 26 weddings. Since then the numbers have continued to rise; Koch sets herself apart by using a Hasselblad H2 film camera and medium format film, and benefits from an growing digital profile and word of mouth recommendations. Last year, she travelled 33,531 miles through 13 different countries.

It is intensive work. Katrina Otter, a wedding and event planner, points out that there is so much more involved for photographers than before. “They are really involved in the planning process. Often they meet me or the couples beforehand to plan how they’re going to tell the story of the day. Then they have to work in different environments and adapt quickly to changes in conditions – the light or the weather.”

Both Rooney and Koch acknowledge the importance of making this connection with the couples prior to the wedding. It’s part of the hidden work a wedding photographer does. Rooney explains, “When someone enquires, I speak to them about the wedding. I think this is very important. We meet up at their house or we find a cafe. More often than not we get on, and we talk about the day.”

But, Rooney explains, that is just the first part of the process. He adds: “People often say, ‘This is a nice job, what do you do for the rest of the week?’ They don’t realise that afterwards you go home, back up the cards, back up the backup and render the files, chose which to edit, then spend about 10 hours editing before uploading them into a gallery or a slideshow and getting back to the couple.”

It’s a workload that aspiring wedding photographers might underestimate, and it’s also one of great responsibility. Rooney admits to taking a backup of his photographs on holiday for the sheer terror of losing them. Another common pitfall is being asked by friends to work for free. Koch cautions against this: “The most important thing to remember is that it’s a business you’re running, and not a hobby anymore. If you are running it as a hobby you’ll always lose out in the end. It’s not a sustainable business that way.”

Far from being an added-extra, for Otter, the wedding photographer is an essential part of the day: “On my planning list it is pretty much top of the list after the venue. I have so many friends who have decided to save on their photographer so they can put more towards the dress, the alcohol or the food and they really regretted it afterwards. You will always notice your wedding photos, much more than you’ll look back at your shoes.”

Ann-Kathrin Koch trained as a film editor Photograph: Ann-Kathrin Koch

Here are five wedding photography from Steven Rooney:

1) Practice - a lot. Take your camera everywhere with you until you know it inside and out and can use the dials and buttons without looking.

2) Always have backups and spares. Spare cameras and lenses, disc drives and backups of your work. When you pay the bills with your camera you can’t risk anything going wrong.

3) Charge what you’re worth and work out what your income and outgoings are to be to make sure you’re earning what you should. A good accountant can really help with this.

4) Try, fail and improve. In order to be unique and stay creative try different things, interesting angles and risky compositions. Be yourself and develop your own style.

5) Keep in touch with other photographers. It can be a lonely job sometimes but there are some great photographers who are happy to help you along the way, from social media groups to official organisations, networks and training courses.

The Skype ceremony – the young Tajiks getting married online

A Tajik bride on her wedding day. Couples say Skype is an increasingly convenient way to take their vows. Photograph: Ksenia Diodorova

In Shahnoza Idrisova’s wedding photo, the 27-year-old economist is dressed in white and accepting a water-filled bowl from her new mother-in-law, a ritual normally performed by both bride and groom just after marriage.

Her groom, however, is a continent away from the ceremony working as a translator in Tunisia. Just moments before the photo was taken, the couple had exchanged their vows via an online video chat service.

Idrisova’s husband is one of hundreds of thousands of Tajiks living and working abroad, making Skype an increasingly popular way for young couples separated by distance to tie the knot.

“We’d been dating for 10 years when Parviz got a job contract and abruptly left abroad earlier this year,” Idrisova says. “My father didn’t allow me to join him without being married to him. We didn’t want to wait another five years until he returns, so a Skype marriage was the solution.”

There are no official statistics on how many Tajiks have married via Skype, but we spoke to five couples who said they performed the Islamic wedding ceremony nikah through the video chat service, which they say is becoming even more common in more the country’s rural areas.

Tajikistan is a major source of cheap migrant labour across central Asia, especially to countries such as Russia and Kazakhstan. That, combined with a predominantly Muslim population – where relationships outside of wedlock are generally frowned upon – have made the need for Skype all the more pressing for young couples.

According to recent estimates, nearly half of Tajikstan’s GDP comes from abroad, and one in four Tajiks lives and works in Russia.

Though just 17% of the population have access to the internet, when it comes to family matters young Tajiks like Idrisova are taking full advantage of new technology.

Alambi Murodova, a housewife from Tursunzoda, west of Dushanbe, has a 29-year-old son living in Canada who recently got married via Skype.

Her son, Saidehson, and his 24-year-old bride Sayora courted online for two years before making their vows in a ceremony that included a modest banquet in the town centre and a ceremony that spanned the 10,000 kilometres between them.

“Like any parent, I dreamed of my son’s wedding, but he couldn’t come home for financial and visa reasons,” Murodova said.

The young couple began married life apart, with Sayora living with her in-laws and her husband staying abroad. Murodova says that they plan to unite soon, and Saidehson has been trying to obtain a visa for his new wife.

Getting a visa out of the country isn’t easy for newlyweds: the staunchly secular government refuses to recognise Islamic marriage ceremonies – whether conducted over Skype or in person – unless the couple first marries at the civil registry office.

Marhabo Zununova, head of the Family and Marriage Centre in Dushanbe, also warns that dating and marrying strangers via the internet raises the risk of human trafficking, particularly when it involves younger women.

Some Tajik mullahs also dispute the validity of Skype marriages on religious grounds, in a country where a wave of divorces by text message prompted Islamic leaders to issue a fatwa against such annulments.

But many believe Skype marriages are here to stay. “If bride and groom are compatible, [the] marriage will work out well, it doesn’t matter how they met and how they got married – on the internet or in the city,” says Zununova.

“There are many happily married Tajik couples who met online. Skype marriages will be a norm, too, eventually.”

Getting married over 40: fashion for the meringue-averse bride

Tina Knowles with friends and family at her recent wedding. Photograph: Instagram

“Women are often wearing a cool pantsuit or a glamorous all-in-one as an alternative to the traditional wedding dress,” says Natalie Kingham, buying director at Matchesfashion.com. Recent bride Tina Knowles looked chic, but could have taken a leaf out of her daughter Solange’s book, whose recent wedding attire included a jumpsuit and matching cape. Today, the identikit wedding with the rigid dress code feels passé and unappealing. Who wants all the fuss, fascinators and a debt burden to rival that of Greece?

These questions are particularly relevant if, like me, the people around you getting married are in their 40s and over. And for some of them it’s not the first time.

“I didn’t want to wear white. I never wear white,” says 41-year-old photographers’ agent Harriet Margolies, who got hitched in a purple Amanda Wakeley evening dress that cost £400 in the sale and was customised by a friend. “I like a big, extravagant frock, but I wanted to feel like me. Not like I was in costume.”

Feeling relaxed and comfortable and not as if you’re in fancy dress is the modern way – as Kingham concurs: “The feedback we have had is that women want to feel special, to look and feel their best but, most importantly, they want to feel like themselves.”

Spending loads of money on a princess-for-a-day dress that’s going to end up in mothballs seems unnecessary. Particularly if it’s a second wedding: “Mature women marrying for the second time often look for something structured that isn’t too flouncy and over the top,” continues Kingham. “Dolce & Gabbana and Erdem are popular because they make beautiful lace dresses that work for a wedding and can be worn again.”

Style blogger Lisa Carnochan describes her experience: “The first time round I obsessed over a dress I’d seen in a magazine and hunted everywhere until I found it. The second time, I cared less and only went shopping because my sister wanted to go and bring her daughter along.” At the age of 57, Carnochan chose a one-shouldered white tulle teadress, subsequently altered to remove a couple of frilly layers: “I like to think wear and tear on a woman increases tulle’s style quotient. And I’m not usually a fan of asymmetry, but there was nothing about being 57 that would stop me one-shouldering.”

This contemporary approach is something retailers are considering. The ShopStyle website has an online boutique dedicated to alternative wedding dresses featuring designers such as Valentino, Emilia Wickstead and The Row, as well as high-street favourites such as Ghost’s Hollywood Cassidy style that can be dyed to order. Taking the anti-wedding approach is Julia Douglas, a former head of brand publications at M&S, with the soft launch of her new MyDayMyWay website. “The plan is to ditch the cliches that are so prevalent in this industry and to give the bride more choice. If someone calls up and wants a white biker jacket, I will source it for them.”

And men are moving things forward, too. Photographer Tom Parker plans to marry in June wearing a bright-green suit and trainers, while strategy director Patrick Lodge tied the knot with his husband dressed in a Paul Smith shirt and pair of old jeans. “We deliberately didn’t want any fanfare,” says Hodge, “I just wanted to buy stuff I’d wear again, which would remind me of a really happy time. My whole thing was that it didn’t have to be an orgy of commerce.”

Could this more-relaxed attitude be an age-related phenomenon for the older and wiser? With maturity comes an appreciation for the things that really matter and less of a tendency to play keeping up with the Joneses. “I think it’s definitely age,” adds Lodge. “I’m 44 and I know that I don’t need that much money to have a great time. It’s down to the ingredients: the right mix of people, the mood and where you are.”

Wedding costs can quickly grow, but couples need not say ‘I do’ to paying an average of £7,500 on their big day

Wedding daze: couples should think creatively to cut spending on their big day. Photograph: Tetra Images/Alamy

The wedding season is in full swing, and while some couples are happy to throw cash around like confetti, others try to slash the cost of their big day. Those tying the knot can expect to pay an average of £7,500, according to Nationwide building society (that’s for couples of all ages, which includes the lower amounts older couples tend to spend), or more than £24,000 if you’re a reader of Brides Magazine.

But celebrating with a bit of fanfare doesn’t have to break the bank. In fact, it is perfectly possible to tie the knot for less than a grand.

The basics

To be legally married, costs start at around £120. That covers fees for the notice of marriage (£35 for each partner) and a brief registry office service on a weekday. In Chester, for example, hiring a room in the city centre registry office that seats 50 guests costs £49, and that includes the marriage certificate (usually £3.50). The cost of this type of basic, legal service is about the same anywhere in the UK, including more expensive cities such as London.

If you want to get married in an approved venue (you cannot just do it in your local pub), you will need to pay for a registrar, which can easily run to £400 at weekends, and you will also have to fork out for the hire of a venue. If you want a religious service costs will vary again – a Church of England wedding, for example, will set you back £413.

The dress

Brides spend an average of £1,098 on their dress, according to the magazine You & Your Wedding, but there are an increasing number of cheaper options on the high street, where wedding dresses start from about £150. If you are willing to wear a secondhand frock, check out Oxfam’s online shop or one of its 11 bridal departments across the UK – grooms can have their pick of suits from just £20.

There are also specialist second-hand websites, charity shops and eBay – which is where newlywed Alex Fitton, a London-based chef, found her dress. She says: “It was a vintage dress in a shorter, informal style, and it cost £45. I bought plain shoes from Primark and made them sparkly with glue and glitter.”

Brides happy to wear “something borrowed” could use a friend’s dress or find an outfit for free on websites such as Freecycle or Freegle. Other ideas include making your own (see eHow.co.uk for ideas) or buying material and paying a local seamstress.

You don’t have to limit yourself to the wedding department of shops, either. This year there are plenty of white and ivory lace dresses in fashion, which may prove cheaper (fingers crossed, though, that one of your guests doesn’t turn up in the same dress).

The venue

Opting for a Sunday or off-peak winter wedding will help you avoid the high rates charged for summery Saturdays. “Even the very best venues have quieter times, so check when they are and negotiate costs if you take an off-peak date, or investigate local restaurants that have a private dining room you could use,” advises wedding planner Liz Taylor of the Taylor Lynn Corporation.

You can also cut costs by throwing a garden party if friends or family have a large enough space, having a picnic in the park or beside a river, or hiring a local pub with a garden. Last July, Jennifer Earle had her reception in a pub. “We played music on our iPods in the garden and borrowed garden games for free entertainment,” she says.

Local community centres are also a popular cost-saving option. Jo Dyer, who lives in Plymouth, had her reception in a village hall. “We booked it from Friday through to Sunday. This meant we had plenty of time to set it up and take the decorations down – and it cost £300,” she says.

Sites such as Halls for Hire, Hallshire.com and Hall Hire UK list everything from tiny local halls at £4 an hour to Grade II-listed castles. And don’t let the exterior put you off. Charlotte Ward, who is getting married in her old school grounds in Kent in August, has come up with a good solution. “I’ve arranged to have my wedding photos taken at a nearby museum with prettier grounds, in exchange for a donation,” she says.

Food and drink

Couples spend an average of £1,449 on wedding food and drink, according to research by VoucherCodes.co.uk. Ways to slice those costs include having your do later in the day (you then only have to feed your guests once rather than providing both lunch and evening food), buying food from a local restaurant rather than hiring caterers, and serving canapés as your starter and wedding cake as pudding.

If you can make a cake, or rope in a family member to make it, the ingredients can cost as little as £30 for 50 guests if you ditch the traditional fruit cake and whip up a sponge. This compares with an average of £660 for a professionally made cake. For example, the BBC’s Good Food website says its zingy lemon wedding cake costs less than a fiver to make – so if you slice it into eight, a £4.90 cake works out at 61p per guest.

For substantial savings, ask your guests to contribute food to your celebrations instead of buying gifts. Fitton says: “I suggested recipes and people made a portion big enough for about six people. There was plenty of food and guests took the leftovers home.”

There are also ways to save on wedding drinks. “We’ve bought Prosecco from Italy at £4.50 rather than £10 a bottle,” Ward says: “And we’re drinking out of jam jars instead of hiring glasses from the bar.”

Costs drop further if you make your own wine, cocktails, beer and cordials. Dyer served elderflower champagne for the toast. “It went down really well and cost only a few pounds,” she says.

Try this recipe from Andy Hamilton, author of Booze for Free.

Other costs

Forget the expensive gold-edged invitations and table decor – many couples send out emails and make their own decorations. “We printed our invites ourselves for about £34, but when people RSVPd we emailed the arrangements over,” Earle says. “Guests said this was handy as they had the details on their phone, and it was free.”

For photos, you can ask guests to upload their snaps to a dedicated website so you can take your pick and create an album online – or you can put disposable cameras on every table. Other ideas include asking a friend to act as photographer or paying a student from a local photography or art college.

There are social media sites such as Pinterest where you can find inspiration for creating homemade table decorations and stationery at a fraction of the cost of buying them ready-made.

Growing your own floral bouquet and buttonholes is also popular – seeds can be bought for a few pounds (or are even free at seed swaps) and you can grow posies in jam jars and then pick them fresh on the day.

Or you might prefer to go for dried flower arrangements. “We’ve bought lavender for the tables,” Ward says. “It works out at about £1.10 per table.”

What to wear to a summer wedding

There’s nothing better than a wedding. Dressing up nice and drinking in the afternoon with a roomful of people who are giddily happy. A good reception feels like it’s drenched in endorphins – almost like a birth but better, because there’s lots of champagne and no placenta. But weddings are not a pleasure that come cheap. Much is made of the cost of the average British wedding – approximately £20,000 – but that doesn’t include the small fortune that guests have grudgingly spent on gifts, travel, hotels and clothes.
Well, I can help a bit with a well-priced outfit. Most wedding invitations are vague on dress code, so use the happy event as an excuse to buy yourself a summer dress. The most on-trend frock for this year would be in white lace or broderie anglaise. If you’re feeling bullish, give one a whirl, but brides can be such selfish cows about that sort of thing. I’ve included one as the catwalk picture in case any brides-to-be need inspiration. The rest of the clothes on this page are all intentionally reasonably priced.

If you want something pretty go for a pink or a floral. Both were big trends and if you choose the right one, you can wear it for years to come. Finery London is a great place to look for unfeasibly cheap dresses. It was co-founded by fashion directors from Topshop and Asos, and the designs and prices are excellent. I like this pink dress. Ballerina was a catwalk trend that will never take off as tulle skirts look stupid unless you’re three years old. But ballerina pink is flattering with a tan, so it’s a great colour for summer.
Other on-trend styles include maxi dresses, jumpsuits and anything asymmetric. This jumpsuit is from A Day in the Life – it’s another new label and its first capsule collection is very pretty. The prints are fantastic. You should have a look.
Weddings do demand a few practical considerations. If it’s a good one, it will go on long into the night so you’ll need something warm to put on, particularly if you’re in a marquee. Don’t worry about whether a cardy will ruin your outfit – by the time you put it on, everyone should be past caring anyway. Or why not buy something like this lovely kimono coat from Marks and Spencer. Kimonos and Japanese style in general are big for summer, so this will get plenty of use throughout the coming months.
Also, make sure your handbag has a strap. You need a bag if you’re out for the day, and there’s nothing more annoying than having a clutch in one hand, a drink in the other, and no way of eating the canapés as they whizz past.
I’m sure you know your own feet and their limitations for standing in heels, so the only advice I’ll give is to look at the shoes in & Other Stories. Another shop that has excellent and unusual wares that are surprisingly well priced.
This lot should see you through the big day – have a brilliant time.

Would you wear a wedding dress made from fungus?

 
Would you wear clothing grown from a mixture of yeast, bacteria and a sugary green tea solution? How about from a combination of plant matter and microscopic mushrooms? These odd materials may sound like something out of the Jetsons’ wardrobe, but they could have an influence on how fashion is manufactured.
“I think the ability for us to grow our own clothing could have great positive potential,” says Erin Smith, artist in residence at Microsoft Research who brewed her own wedding dress. “Growing clothing from scratch could both eliminate carbon emissions caused by transportation and allow for a garment that can be grown to your precise dimensions and specifications.”
Smith produced her dress using a combination of tree mulch and mycelium – a type of naturally white fungus. The mycelium was bred in a tub of agricultural waste requiring very little added energy. Once the dress had been worn, it could be composted in the garden. She made the decision to grow her own dress because she didn’t want her wedding to be dictated by tradition and to have to wear something that would just sit in her wardrobe after the event.
“The concept behind a grown wedding dress was to take a one-time-use object and rethink its construction in order to have an appropriate material lifespan. The average cost of a wedding dress in the US is roughly $1,200 (£792) and can contain nearly 12 yards (11m) of fabric,” explains Smith, adding that making the fashion chain circular not only brings us closer to the environment but also reflects how needless our consumption habits are: “The wedding dress is a perfect example of a one-time-use, energy intensive and entirely non-sustainable model that is representative of so many of the choices that we make daily.”
Growing a garment from mycelium isn’t a novel concept. The most notable figure in the field of biomaterials is Suzanne Lee, founder of BioCouture, a design consultancy that works with brands to apply similar technology to sportswear and luxury fashion products. Lee has been experimenting with the idea of fermenting clothes for over a decade and has grown a type of vegetable leather from green tea, sugar, bacteria and yeast.

Fermented material. Photograph: BioCouture

Back in 2004, a team at the University of Western Australia showcased a jacket from living tissue – mouse and human cells to be specific. And, a couple of years ago, Bioalloy, a research project based in the labs at the same university, produced a garment from alcohol using fibrous cellulose created by introducing bacteria into red wine.
Scientists and designers are increasingly looking at ways to blur the boundaries between biology and fashion. The technology is clearly there, but what about the demand? There is an acknowledgment that biomaterials are unlikely to replace cotton and leather, and that fast fashion will keep relying on oil-based polymers like polyester.
Lee has previously argued that biomaterials such as microbial cellulose would simply be “a smart and sustainable addition to our increasingly precious natural resources”. They do have environmental advantages, particularly in terms of water. For example, the team behind Scoby Tec’s biker jacket brewed from kombucha (a fermented drink made with tea, sugar, bacteria and yeast) claims that only 60 litres of water are required for one square metre of its leather. In comparison, it takes 20,000 litres to produce a single T-shirt and pair of jeans, according to WWF.

ScobyTec’s biker jacket. Photograph: Marcel Wiessler

Despite the clear advantages, there are challenges that need addressing before bacteria-grown clothes can reach the racks. First, there’s an issue of scalability. The current processes used are arduous and time-consuming. It took Smith about a week to grow her dress. And, if you followed Lee’s DIY recipe, it would take two to four weeks to grow your material. The question for the fashion industry therefore is how it can deliver such garments on a commercial scale without cutting corners to save money. A possible scenario highlighted by Lee is one where industrial vats of sugar from streams of food waste provide the breeding ground for bacteria.
Second, there are doubts about whether people would happily wear something that has been fashioned from waste. A straw poll carried out suggests that some are uncomfortable with the idea. One respondent said it would be like putting dirty clothes back on after a bath. Others said that the thought of it made their skin crawl. Another said that we already wear silk (in his own words: “protein from a worm’s a***”), so we shouldn’t have any qualms about pulling bacteria-grown clothes off the racks.
Given the technology’s environmental benefits, including the fact that the materials can be biodegraded after use, would applying it to manufacture supposedly unnecessary high-end items be counterproductive if it could be scaled up and people could overcome their aversion? Smith suggests not, because people are always going to buy and throw away clothes regardless. Growing them is simply an eco-friendly alternative.
“It’s essential that consumers become more aware of the continued lifespan of their things once they’ve been thrown away,” she says. “Any object made from materials that will outlive its intended use is a part of our global waste problem.”
The sustainable fashion hub is funded by H&M. All content is editorially independent except for pieces labelled ‘brought to you by’. Find out more here.

UK legal notice of intention to wed rises from 15 to 28 days

Couples must give almost twice the official notice of their intention to wed from Monday as part of a crackdown on bogus marriages.
A UK-wide extension from 15 to 28 days was approved by parliament last year in order to allow more time for investigation.
Ministers have made clear they expect registrars to report suspicions to the Home Office, which has new powers to delay nuptials for a further 70 days while inquiries take place.
The changes have already prompted an 80% increase in reports of suspected sham cases – from 1,099 between July and December 2013 to more than 2,000 in the same period last year.
Immigration and security minister James Brokenshire said: “As of today, marriage can no longer be seen as a ‘fast-track option’ for those seeking to abuse marriage to cheat their way into the UK.”

From tit tape to Spanx: the ultimate guide to wedding-day underwear

1. Match your skin tone, not your dress

If you are wearing something slinky, don’t get hung up on whether bridal underwear is “beautiful” or not – it probably won’t be. Above all, it needs to be functional, in a neutral colour match to your skin tone. Even ivory on pale skin can give a strobe-light effect and show through bias-cut dresses. Often, a dress is so figure-hugging that the only thing that is going to work is an all in one Spanx from right underneath the breasts. There’s nothing pretty or sexy about this kit, but it works. You can change into something more flattering for your wedding night if need be.
2. Pretty details are not your friend
A satin bow will always show. One bride I designed for found a fine lace pair of knickers that matched her skin tone and thought they were invisible – until her groom pointed out the satin bow at the top, which showed through her dress.
3. ‘Tit tape’ has many uses
If you’re going backless, try a backless bra with sticky wings, such as the Fashions Forms Go Bare Backless Strapless Bra, Black. They do work – but test them out first. One bride found a great strapless bra with not quite enough stickiness, so she covered every last millimetre of the inside of the cups in tit tape (double-sided tape for the body) as insurance. This is not an entirely glamorous story: the bra stuck to her skin so firmly that it took two bridesmaids to remove it when she tested it out, but it worked on the day.
A bride at Jean Paul Gaultier's couture show on Wednesday. Not the desired underwear effect.
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A model at Jean Paul Gaultier’s couture show on Wednesday. Not the desired underwear effect for most non-catwalk brides. Photograph: IAN LANGSDON/EPA
4. Alterations aren’t just for your dress
If you wish your bra was just a bit lower at the back, or don’t think it is going to stay up on its own, it is easy to alter it or stitch it into your dress. One bride I designed for took a shapewear slip, attached it to a bra with stick on tabs at the side, and had the back of the bra altered and lowered. Then she attached extra long white bra straps to the top. Admittedly, getting undressed afterwards was a bit of a mission.
5. Size matters
This might be seem obvious point, but make sure you buy the right size knickers. Don’t be precious about it – going one size bigger than usual might help avoid bulging. But also be careful you don’t go too big, as I have heard of a bride who managed to lose her pants walking down the aisle. (Nb. Eagle-eyed bridesmaids are essential.)
6. Allow yourself a lot of time to select the right underwear
This means trying out underwear at your dress fittings – not rushing out to buy it afterwards – and standing near the window during fittings so you are getting natural daylight to spot any lines. You should also take pictures of yourself from different angles to ensure flash photography won’t ruin the illusion.
7. Going commando is always an option
If you want support but can’t find anything that doesn’t leave a visible line, you can always find a pair of seamless shapewear tights and chop off the feet and part of the legs. If you don’t need underwear for support then don’t bother wearing any – that’s one way to avoid the lines showing. In that case, do prepare for any weather, especially if you are not wearing a bra. Even summer evenings get chilly, and no one needs to see that much of the bride.
Shopping list: the best ‘invisible’ underwear I have found ...
Fashions Forms Go Bare Backless Strapless Bra, 'Nude' Fashions Forms Go Bare Backless Strapless Bra, ‘Nude’ Photograph: John Lewis

Seamless knickers
• Microfibre Intimissimi laser-cut french knickers are seamless and very comfortable.
• I also like Calvin Klien’s invisible hipster shorts.
Seamless knickers with support
• Maidenform Sleek Smoothers Shorty
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• Maidenform Weightless Comfort Thigh Slimmer Shorts, ‘Nude’
• Bodywrap’s Firm Seamless High Waist Thigh Slimmer, Bodywrap Lite Waist Line Thigh Slimmer, Bodywrap Firm Seamless Waist Line Briefs and the Bodywrap Lite Torsette Body are all excellent. Bodywrap can be difficult to get hold of outside the US, but try Shapewear.co.uk and eBay and Amazon.
Shapewear slips
• The best I have found for a slinky backless dress is the Bodywrap slenderiser – it can be easily altered to fit a lower-backed dress and will hold you in all day.
• Also very good: Bodywrap Seamless Firm Underwire Bodyshaper and M&S Firm Control Body is available in Natural and Fawn.
Strapless bras
• Calvin Klein Push Positive Strapless Bra
• Princess Natural padded strapless bra
• Bodysilk Strapless Padded Balcony
• Stella McCartney Smooth Strapless Bra
• Scandale Sirene Balconette Bra
• And for larger-breasted women (from C to G) the Wonderbra Ultimate Strapless Bra.
Tit tape
Hollywood Fashion Tape, £8.99 Hollywood Fashion Tape Photograph: Amazon
Not all are created equal. Some peel off your skin or stick to your clothes. These stay put where you want them to.
• Fashion Forms Tapes To Go
• Hollywood Fashion Tape
Bras for backless styles
• The M&S Ultimate Multiway Bra with low back converter may work better than a strapless bra, depending on your neckline.
• For something truly backless with sticky wings (that don’t lose stickiness after one wearing) try Fashions Forms Go Bare Backless Strapless Bra.
And if you are going bra-free
• Pretty Perfect Nipple Daisies, pack of five Pairs for Single Use from Amazon
• By Perfection, pack of two silicone nipple covers

Wedding dress ideas: seven trends from bridal fashion week 2015

Looking for a wedding dress with a twist? From rollneck jumpers to crop tops and trouser suits, here is some inspiration from the latest round of bridal catwalk shows

Olivia Palermo wore a jumper to her wedding this summer, and now you can too – perhaps this big, cosy number by Houghton

Photograph: JP Yim/Getty Images

 

Indeed, wool was everywhere at bridal fashion week, seen in full-length dress form at Theia White and as a cardigan here at Delphine Manivet

Photograph: Fernanda Calfat/Getty Images

 

Though all else was demure at Reem Acra, the upper stomach was bare …

Photograph: JP Yim/Getty Images

 

 

 

… while sides were on show at Rita Vinieris

Photograph: Rita Vinieris

 

It’s all gone a bit Bianca Jagger – or, if you prefer, very Amal Alamuddin marrying George Clooney in Stella McCartney – at Naeem Khan

Photograph: Thomas Concordia/Getty Images

 

 

Fashion’s favourite hemline, the midi, works for wedding dresses too, as seen at Monique Lhuillier

Photograph: Monique Lhuillier

 

High necklines were all over catwalks. Here it is a beatnik-style sleeveless turtleneck with a transparent skirt at Houghton

Photograph: JP Yim/Getty Images