Your Gloucestershire and Wiltshire Wedding- August/September 2020 (Issue 22)

THE PERFECT MATCH Meet the expert: Annabelle Gallagher is the designer at Bellapeach Creative, a bespoke wedding stationery company based in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire. Can you give us some wedding stationery inspiration for our spring celebration next year? Annabelle says: Throughout the last couple of years, there has been a shift away from the more traditional stationery styles to individual themes reflecting the couple’s personality and interests, from the save-the-date cards to the invitations, table names and plans, and place names. In 2019 and throughout the early part of 2020, gin-themed weddings were the most popular ones that we created with gin bottles used as table names and mini gin bottles as favours. We expect this trend to continue into 2021, especially with the lockdown rekindling people’s love for creating their favourite cocktail or drink at home. We have also had recent requests for hobbies and interests to be incorporated into wedding stationery, such as a rugby ticket-themed wedding invitation for a rugby-loving English and Irish bride and groom that became a Six Nations-themed invite. Other requests that we have had are to include images or illustrations of the wedding venue or place where the couple got engaged in their stationery choices. Often, they like to supply their drawings so that they feel more involved which is the bonus of having bespoke stationery created because it allows clients to be as involved as they want to be. We have also received requests for sports cars, football and films to be subtly incorporated into designs. Other themes that we believe will continue to be popular throughout 2021 are floral and botanical designs where couples can have the same flowers on wedding stationery that they plan to have on their tables and in the buttonholes and bouquets. During recent years, couples have moved away from having traditional order of service stationery with the order of the day boards becoming increasingly popular. It’s a clear way to inform guests, and they are more environmentally friendly. The majority of couples ordering through us want the style that they have chosen to run through their entire wedding. If they have selected a bold and vibrant colour theme, then this will be reflected in their wedding stationery, flowers, decorations and bridesmaid dresses to ensure that every element matches. Bellapeach Creative | 07900 695 661 | http://bellapeach.co.uk | www.instagram.com/bellapeachcreative IN FULL BLOOM Meet the expert: Judy Ward is the bespoke floral designer and owner of Blooming Chic, an award- winning florist located in Chippenham, Wiltshire. We are planning a small autumn wedding and want our flowers to reflect the season, what varieties do you suggest? Judy says : Autumn is a glorious season for both flowers and foliage. It is, after all, the time of harvest when everything is golden, ripe and in abundance. I love creating floral arrangements for autumnal and late-summer weddings when there is so much to choose. The leaves begin to take on golden tones, flowers like hydrangeas change their personality for late summer by blending in darker, warmer tones to their heads – pink buds turn shades of burgundy and red while blues ones tend to look purple and green. Berries also begin to form in readiness for the winter ahead and look great in bouquets. If you’re planning an autumnal wedding, do not be afraid to choose your favourite colours for your flower arrangements. If these are summer pastels, allow the florist to add in deeper tones to complement your choices and suit the season. We often think of orange as the dominant autumnal colour due to the shades that the leaves turn before they go brown although this bold colour looks fantastic when accompanied by luxurious purple, burgundy red and deep warm yellow tones. My work here shows traditional orange and brown wedding bouquets and bridesmaids’ flower crowns plus a miniature version of the bride’s bouquet used as the groom’s buttonhole. Some of the flower varieties used that work well at this time of the year were chrysanthemum blooms, miniature spray orange babe roses, sunflowers and deep purple clematis. There’s also an entirely different selection of warm colours shown in the centrepiece flowers doubled up to decorate the ceremony room beforehand. The varieties used were pale lilac scabious, carnations, miniature garden roses, heather and wax flowers. Reusing flowers is a good idea for smaller celebrations. Bridesmaid’s posies can be displayed as table centrepieces while a floral arch can be taken down from one location and set up at another with added fairylights to create an atmosphere for the evening reception. Blooming Chic | 01249 248 317 | www.bloomingchic.co.uk www.instagram.com/Blooming_Chic_Judy 52