Showing posts with label Hen Parties. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Hen Parties. Show all posts

Tuesday 10 December 2013

Possibly the Best Hen Venue in the World

A few months ago, I was lucky enough to get invited to the launch of a rather special London venture. The Cheeky Parlour is the latest brainchild of the boss behind the uber-trendy Soho House Group. Based in Shoreditch, it offers mini-manicures {£10} and blow-dries {£15} at crazy-low prices, in a super-cool setting. As it's local to my flat, you'll find me propping up the incredible breakfast bar every Friday morning, where I nosh happily on muesli and yoghurt before getting beautified for the weekend. I honestly believe a decent blow-dry is even better than cosmetic surgery, and I always leave feeling super-glam, and that little bit cooler! If you're planning a hen weekend in London, I couldn't recommend it more. They've even got a special package aimed at groups, including my new tipple of choice, Babycham!






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Wednesday 6 November 2013

A Fantastic Wedding Favour Idea

In my view, wedding favours and wedding insurance are two of the best things we inherited from the USA. I know that traditionally, British couples didn't offer wedding favours, but they're such an easy way to make your wedding stand out from the crowd, that I always encourage my engaged friends to come up with something clever. Get creative, and your wedding will stay in your guests' memories, while others will fade into the background. We gave pashminas to all the girls who attended our wedding, and as we were eating outside, they were very welcome, and people still remember the gesture. I love the idea of filling these favour bags from Clementine Weddings. Add a couple of Paracetamol, a plaster or two, some mints, and a Berocca, and you guests will thank you the morning after the big day. Clementine Weddings has an amazing selection of muslin favour bags, so do take a look at their Etsy shop for more wedding inspiration.

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Tuesday 13 August 2013

Introducing Hen Party Superstore

Last weekend my best friend hosted her sister's hen weekend. Like all the best hens, the bride-to-be ended up dressed as a cow, wearing wild sunglasses and drinking cocktails out of a willie straw in Brighton. There's a lesson in this! It's doesn't matter how sophisticated and professional you are in your daily life, or how glamorous you're going to look on your wedding day, you need to let loose on your hen do, and embrace the cheese. It's a rite of passage, and if you miss it, you miss out. That's why I'm delighted to introduce Hen Party Superstore for all your hen weekend accessories. Browse by colour or theme, and pick up costumes, personalised t-shirts and sashes, and even gift bag fillers. And don't forget the Learner badge.....


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Tuesday 16 October 2012

Marie Antoinette Wedding & Hen Party Inspiration Shoot

This glamorous Marie Antoinette style wedding inspiration shoot is right up my street! Organised by the lovely Gemma Longworth of Buttons & Roses Events & The Button Boutique to promote their event styling business, it makes me want to host an up-market hen party for all my girlfriends. Combining pink champagne, cupcakes and a fascinator craft workshop, it's the perfect bonding opportunity. I adore the vintage china by Victoria Rose Vintage Crockery Hire, and the glamorous pearl strewn flower arrangements would work perfectly at a wedding. If you're a real fan of DIY, you could even theme your wedding around crafting. Take a look the jars filled with cotton reels - they'd look fabulous as table displays at your wedding reception. If you'd like a similar look for your wedding day or hen party, do take a look at the Buttons & Roses Events website. Gorgeous pictures by Lucy Greenhill Photography.


















Credits
Organised & Styled by Gemma Longworth: Buttons & Roses Events & The Button Boutique
Photography: Lucy Greenhill Photography
Location: Liverpool Town Hall
Fascinator Craft Workshop by The Button Boutique
Hair & Make Up: So Coco Rouge
Clothing: Raiders Vintage and The Button Boutique
Hair Accessories: The Button Boutique
Vintage Crockery, Props & Cakes: Victoria Rose Vintage Crockery Hire
Labels and Stationery: Button & Roses
Flowers: Blue Orchid
Nails: Glitz and Glam
Jewellery: Olivia Divine Jewellery
Models: Rebecca LangtreeKit WilliamsBethany CammackEsther FoxNikki Rose

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Wednesday 11 July 2012

Creative Hen Party & Bridal Shower Ideas

Who's planning your hen night or hen weekend? With two of my greatest friends getting married in the next year, the pressure is on to come up with something original. Whether it's hen weekends in Marbella, or Brighton, or just a night in London, the best way to make your hen night memorable is to give it a theme! Think about the bride's favourite hobby, or her best book, or favourite holiday destination. Or surprise her with a random theme like this 'Milk Maids' farm themed bridal shower from Ruffled wedding blog. With ice-cream, flavoured milk, delicious cheeses, vintage props, hay-bales and a rural location {find yours via Redseven}, it's a cheap and easy theme to put together. Why not organise a cooking class as an activity? You could send out personalised aprons as invitations, and prepare all your own food for a cream tea! Gorgeous pictures by Stephanie Rose Photography - for more credits scroll on down, and for more Hen Night or Bridal Shower ideas, check out my Pinterest board.






Wedding Shoot Vendors & Credits: Shoot Location: Dallas, TX / Event Stylist: Couture Events by Lottie / Wedding Photographer: Stephanie Rose Photography / Wedding Flowers: The Wooly Thistle / Wedding Stationery: Southern Fried Paper / Hair and Makeup: Queen of Crowns / Cookies: Cupcake Fabulous / Vintage Rentals: Rent My Dust / Rental Styling: Jen Rios Design

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Monday 14 May 2012

Fun Musical Themed Hen Party Idea

In a couple of weeks, I've got the hen party for one of my friends who's getting married this summer. I can't wait for a fun get-together with my girlfriends, although the maid of honour is keeping our activities a secret! All we know is that it's going to be in London, which means it could be virtually anything, although at least that means there's no chance of anything outdoorsy or cold. My worst nightmare would be some sort of camping hen weekend, where we all have to be hale and hearty. Even the addition of roasting marshmallows on an open fire wouldn't bring me round. On one of my favourite hen parties last year, when we went en masse to Chicago musical London, and all dressed up in character, which made for a hilarious evening. We all wore fishnet tights, and Twenties' style flapper dresses with long strings of pearls. Even the feather boas looked classy! You could do the same for most West End musicals, from Grease {Pink Ladies} to Matilda {Roald Dahl outfits}, or even the Wizard of Oz. Loving the idea of a bride dressed up as Dorothy in sparkly red shoes, particularly if they happened to be Louboutins like these {any excuse to buy Louboutins!}.


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Wednesday 9 May 2012

Brilliant Bridal Shower Hen Party Theme Idea

Weddings aren't the only events being planned around a theme - this summer on-trend bridesmaids are planning themed hen parties as well. It's the best way to build excitement around the night, and to make sure you're really sending off your bride in style. Whether you're planning hen party spa breaks or a simple night out on the town, there's a theme out there for you. US wedding blog Green Wedding Shoes caught onto the craze early, and if you check out their site, there's tonnes of ideas. My favourite is this Girl Scout theme, which would work perfectly for a weekend in the countryside - although personally I'm an indoor luxury spa breaks type of girl! I'm loving the Be Prepared moto, the cute lunchbox bridal kit, and the pink, green and gold colour palette - what's more, if you head over to Green Wedding Shoes, there are tonnes of ideas for how to DIY this look! Gorgeous pictures by Katie Neal Photography.





Vendors: Event design + coordination: Beau & Arrow Events // photography: Katie Neal Photo // venue: Olivenhain Meeting House // florals: Blush Botanicals // paper goods: Posh Paperie // cake + cupcakes: Hey! There Cupcake // hair & make up: 10.11 Make up // rentals: Moss Vintage Rentals // cookies: VG Donuts & Bakery // lollipops: Custom Candy Creations // chiavari chairs: Allie’s Party Rentals // linens: Wildflower Linens

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Thursday 26 April 2012

Amazing Hen Night Ideas

While the old-fashioned hen-night, complete with feather boas and Learner plates will always have a place in my heart, nowadays brides are leaning towards more sophisticated affairs. Whether it's a weekend at a spa, wine-tasting, or Chelsea Flower Show tickets, you'll want to build the anticipation. One way to make it feel like a real party, is to centre your hen-night around a colour scheme. Check out this gorgeous glitter, pink champagne theme created by Rebecca and Laura of Floridian Weddings and pictured by Kat Braman Photography. Isn't it gorgeous! Tonnes of the details are easily DIY-able, and it would make for a real sense of occasion. The shoot first appeared on brilliant US wedding blog 100 Layer Cake, so do take a look at more pictures here.








{Vendors} Photography: Kat Braman Photography / Stylist: Rebecca & Laura of Floridian Weddings / Floral Design: Floridian Weddings / Invitation Designer: Make Merry Events / Linens/Chairs: Atlas Party Rental  / Cakes: The Sugar Monkey / Canvas: Make Merry Events / Backdrop: Floridian Weddings / Cocktails: Cupcake Vineyards 

 ♥ Want to see more hen night ideas? ♥ Or how about wedding theme ideas? ♥
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Monday 16 April 2012

Win! 10 Pink Lady Jackets For Your Hen Night


What's your favourite movie of all time? When it comes to romance, there's nothing like an-oldie-but-goodie, and my guilty pleasure is Grease, every time. There's something special about the moment when Sandy becomes one of the Pink Ladies, and John Travolta swoons at her stiletto-clad feet. That's why I'm super-thrilled to announce a fabulous competition to win 10...yes 10 Pink Lady Jackets from All Fancy Dress, for your hen night or hen weekend. That's enough for you and all your besties. Forward this link to your maid of honour now!

All you need to do is Like Before the Big Day on Facebook, and leave a comment, telling me the colour of Sandy's shoes in the Grease clip below. Make sure you leave your email address as well. I'll announce the winner at midday on Monday 23rd April.



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Monday 6 February 2012

Fabulous Crafting Hen-Night Ideas

When it comes to hen nights, the old-fashioned idea of one big night out on the town wearing L plates and a feather boa has come to an end. Now it's all about up-market hen weekends away in the countryside, with tonnes of fun activities, and an opportunity to really bond with your girlfriends. One of the big wedding trends for 2012 is crafting - whether it's DIYing your wedding details, printing your wedding invitations at home, or making your own wedding dress {only for the truly talented!}. When it comes to hen-nights, this translates to learning a new skill, and my favourite is baking! There's a serious ulterior motive to this, because the best thing about getting your girlfriends to learn how to bake, is that they can then each make you a wedding cake, saving money on the big day. Some brides even have a competition on their wedding day, with a prize for the bridesmaid who baked the best! So in preparation for your hen weekend, keep an eye out for your favourite cake recipes and cupcake recipes, and get your girls baking.



{Picture Credit} Incredible wedding cakes by Magpie's Cakes

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Thursday 26 January 2012

Relaxing Hen-Weekend Ideas

What's your favourite treat to yourself? I'm a huge fan of massages - they're ridiculously luxurious, and they're the only thing that calm me down when I'm super-stressed. My wonderful husband gave me a massage just before my wedding day, and it completely changed my perspective from freaked, to cucumber-cool. A spa day would make for a brilliant hen party. According to their budget, your bridesmaids could choose whether they wanted manicures or pedicures or a facial, and to keep costs down even further, you could try to find a deal on Groupon UK. Invitations to the hen party could include bath hats or toe-separators, and everyone could get a bottle of nail varnish as a leaving present.


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Thursday 3 November 2011

My Relaxing Hen-Night Recommendation

Feather boas and learner plates - urgh! I hate them on hen nights, even as an ironic joke. Much better are classy spa breaks, or cocktails and dinner at a smart restaurant. If you're making preparations for your hen night, then make sure you drop some pretty heavy hints about what you want to your Maid of Honour. The last thing you want to do is find yourself spraying whipped cream onto a stripper, if your idea of hen-heaven is relaxing massage. My maids of honour got my hen night just right - two lovely ladies came to the flat to give us manicures, and then we headed out for dinner at a local restaurant. Why not recreate a spa in your own home, or look for spa day deals, and then you can use the pictures below for invitation inspiration from One Charming Party. I'm loving the idea of hen's receiving an eye-mask and a bath-hat as a hint of what's to come.


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Thursday 16 June 2011

Introducing Last Night of Freedom Stag Weekends & Hen Nights

Have you had your hen night yet? Have you dropped heavy hints about what you want to do? My maids of honour know that I'm a bit of a control freak, so they asked me what I wanted them to organise. My only insistance was no strippers! My maids said they found the planning quite stressful, and that's where a company like Last Night of Freedom can step in and take over. They put together the best hotels, activities and night-life options in over fifty of the best stag and hen party destinations in the world, and they sell all the accessories that you need to go with it. So if you're looking for decorations and forfeit games, plus personalised cardboard cutouts, and slightly creepy {but very funny} morph suits - you know where to go!

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Thursday 25 November 2010

Bollywood Hens Night

Hen nights can become slightly samey, so if you're looking for something different to the normal veil and learner-badge affair, I'd recommend Bollywood Hens. Tapping into the huge trend that is Bollywood right now, they organise parties for hens from all walks of life. You can choose between a Bollywood dance class with an experienced choreographer, a cooking class with celebrity chef Manju Malhi, a full Bollywood make-over and catering from Dakasha, or enjoy all of the above!

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