Before the Big Day's Christmas Personal Training Gift List

{Posting by Alice Cowen, Before the Big Day's Personal Trainer & Nutritionist} Happy Christmas from your Before the Big Day P.T! Here's my favourite health and fitness Christmas gift ideas for an exercise fan, or someone who needs a little bit of encouragement for 2014 to get into shape ready for their wedding! Remember you have to feel great in your training gear to get the most out of your workout, so start the New Year in style, and get some of these great garments and accessories under your Christmas tree.

{I want these!} Clockwise from Top Left

1. Addidas Women's Essentials Studded Tank, £40 - Designed by Stella McCartney, this top, with its bright, playful studs and a cutout design has a timeless casual style.

2. Bamboo Butterfly Cardigan, £67.50 - This great jacket keeps your warm, while allowing your body to breathe. Pretty, but packed full of useful details, like a mini iPod holder, it's a fantastic all-rounder.

3. Nike Air Max 1 SP 'Liquid Gold', £129 - how cool are these trainers! Go for gold!!!

4. Davina Aerobic Exercise Hula Hoop with HSB® Heartrate Watch & Gym/Shoe Bag, £33.50 - great for home training if you haven't got much space!

5. Speed-Tight Luxstream Run Tights, £88 - Cozy run tights with deep pockets and a wide waistband to prevent muffin top.

6. Nike Fuel Band, £129 - the smart, simple and fun way to get more active - this band tracks the intensity of your workouts and enables sleep tracking with Nike+ Sessions.

7. Sweaty-Betty Skipping Rope, £10 - Skipping is great for on-the-spot cardio.

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A Welsh Countryside Wedding with a Pretty Pink Theme - The Reception

Brides planning a marquee wedding are going to L-O-V-E the inspiration they get from this big day. Instead of a shabby chic or rustic look, Pippa and Martyn chose to go for glamour, and created the most fabulous look for their marquee. They didn't spend money on favours or an expensive wedding cake, saving their pennies instead for the most incredible flower displays, designed by The Bay Tree. I love the luxurious elegance of the pink and white table arrangements, and the gorgeous glass roofed reception-area of the marquee. Other stealworthy ideas include the chalk-board labels on the wine coolers, which doubled as table names, and the pink fizz cocktails, in keeping with the colour theme. A big thank you to Lucy Wallace Photography for her stunning pictures!

We got married in Ewenny in South Wales. The church was right next to my parents' house, so it had a special place in my heart {it was also where my husband proposed to me}. Our reception was in a marquee in a field behind my parents house.

We wanted our wedding to have a strong sense of family, so a marquee close to the church and my parents house was a natural choice. The idea of having a blank canvas was really exciting, I could let my imagination run wild!

A Welsh Countryside Wedding with a Pretty Pink Theme

Is there anything more romantic than a horse-drawn carriage? The wedding transport is just one of the things that makes this big day stand out, along with the pretty-as-a-picture flowers, stunning Pronovias wedding gown, and dramatic marquee reception. Pippa and Martyn chose to make their wedding flowers their biggest wedding detail, and called in the talents of Bryan Bird, the florist at The Bay Tree in Cowbridge in Wales. The end result is a stunning array of blooms, including lily-of-the-valley, sweat peas, and roses. The bouquets are beautiful, but wait until you see the reception flowers in Part 2 of this wedding - they'll blow your mind! Other details-to-steal include the bridesmaids black Dessy dresses - as Pippa says - everyone looks good in black, and she let her girls choose their style of dress -making it much more likely they'll wear them again. I also love Martyn's bespoke three-piece suit, and soft pink tie. Huge thanks to Lucy Wallace Photography for sending through her gorgeous pictures from Pippa and Martyn's big day. Stay tuned for Part 2 - the Reception - coming soon!

We got married in Ewenny in South Wales. The church was right next to my parents' house, so it had a special place in my heart {it was also where my husband proposed to me}. Our reception was in a marquee in a field behind my parents house.

To find a wedding gown, we went to Teokath, a fabulous bridal shop in Wimbledon in London, where I tried on lots of wedding dresses. I knew I wanted it to be lace, but when I tried on the Pronovias dress I loved that the grey belt made it a little different.

Before the Big Day's Sparkling Beauty Christmas Gift List

{Posting by Julia Bowden, Before the Big Day's Beauty Editor} What's one of my favourite things about Christmas? Seeing that stocking packed full to the brim with beauty delights! So I thought I'd share my Beauty Gift List with you, and there's tonnes to get you gooey-eyed. You could even be selfless and use these as present ideas - beauty goodies are always fab stocking fillers! Or simply email your other half this list, in hope of getting everything you always wanted {subtlety gets you nowhere!}. Enjoy those products and have a very happy {and pretty} Christmas! Julia x

{I want this!} Clockwise from Top Left 

1. Melvita Nectar Bright Brightening Cream, £36 – This is a great brightening cream that you use to get a luminous complexion. It has a lovely fresh floral scent, and gives your skin a dewy glow.

2. Laura Mercier Luxe Colour Wardrobe Makeup Set, £65 – Even though I'm a make-up artist, I always struggle to create a sleek handbag set. This solves all the problems, with a compact case containing the perfect products for eyes, cheeks and face.

3. Glossy Box Subscription - I was lucky enough to get given one of these at the Wedding Blog Awards. A great way for beauty enthusiasts to keep up to date with new beauty products. You get a selection of products each month for as little as £10 per month.

4. Monu Micro Exfollient, £15.95 – A great little find I discovered in my Glossy Box at the Wedding Blog Awards - this is a great dual-action microdermabrasion cream. It's not too harsh on the skin and smells dreamy

5. Ren Clearcalm 3 Clarity Restoring Mask, £29.95 - I got to meet with Rui Branco, the Global director of Education and Training for REN last month. He’s the REN Skincare guru and such a lovely man. He gave me lots of advice about my spot prone skin, and this is high on my hit list. It reduces visible blemishes and clears the skin – a great way to kick start a clearer skin regime for the New Year.

6. Philip Kingsley Elasticizer, £28.50 – For hair so dry you don't know what to do with it. Put it on before shampooing for 10 minutes, and it's like having a new head of hair.

7. Neom Organic Treatment Candle in Rose & Neroli, £39.50 – You can't go wrong with this little treat. Great to light in the bath for pure relaxation

8. James Read BB Gradual Face Tan, £22.50 – As it’s winter even more reason to give your face a little sun kissed glow and best of all you can tie it in with your skincare regime. I met with James Last month and not only is he the nicest man on the planet but his products are brilliant. I can’t sing the praises of this tanning range enough. All it’s products smell great, go on easily without streaking and have outstanding results.

9. ProGenius Nude Treatment Oil, £58 - If like me you also have dry patches {as well as spots – lucky me!} don’t despair. To some, it may feel odd putting oil on the skin, but this ProGenius oil nourishes and protects, and sometimes stops the skin from secreting too much sebum thus counteracting the blemishes. With Omega 6, 7 & 9 – it’s a treat for winter-battered skin.

10.  MAC Nocturnals Pigments & Glitter - Black & Gold, £25.50 – Last but not least we all need a bit of Christmas sparkle in our make –up bag. These 5 stackable jars will dazzle everyone for those special occasions and will last you forever.

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A Modern, Elegant Wedding with Quirky Vintage Details - The Reception

A little late-coming {I got horribly distracted with Christmas shopping}, but it's time for the delicious second half of this gorgeous wedding. Groom Adam set his bride the challenge of incorporating his football team, Manchester United, into their wedding. Laura managed it with aplomb, creating an incredible 3D table plan, complete with real grass. The red of their shirts proved a slight problem, as it didn't quite fit in with their cream, elegant wedding colour palette, but Adam compromised with cream shirts in the main dining room! There's plenty more stealworthy ideas to snaffle from the pictures - not least the personalised stamp made by BerinMade stationers. Laura used it to brand all their wedding stationery, and to create salt dough heart ornaments. Laura's mum even borrowed it to hand-stamp biscuits, in case any of the guests got peckish on the bus to the reception venue. I'm a huge fan of Laura's antique sapphire and diamond engagement ring as well! Huge thanks to Laura for filling in all her answers to the Before the Big Day Questionnaire, and to Lissa Alexandra Photography for her fantastic pictures. I've never seen such a fantastic array of wedding portrait shots!

We celebrated our wedding on Saturday 10th August, with a ceremony at St Mary’s Church in Nun Monkton near York, followed by a reception at The Old Deanery, Ripon.

Our wedding photographer was Lissa Alexandra Photography. Shortly after our engagement, I went to a wedding fair, and I fell instantly in love with her photography style. I knew I had to have her from that moment. I think she was the first thing I booked once our date was confirmed.

A Modern, Elegant Wedding with Quirky Vintage Details

Ice-cream van? Check! Quirky character cars? Check! Fabulous vintage bus? Check! As you can tell, this gorgeous wedding has tonnes of simply fabulous details - many of them with four wheels, and a vintage personality! Laura and Adam were keen to host a classic, elegant wedding, which reflected them as a couple, without having too obvious a theme. Pinks and greens are the dominant colours, and there's definitely a vintage hint to many of the details. I've fallen for Laura's Audrey Hepburn inspired wedding outfit, and her stunning David Austin rose bouquet. Throw in the pretty-as-a-picture church, and historic venue near York, and I'm sold! Enjoy all the gorgeous pictures by Lissa Alexandra Photography - she captured every detail perfectly, and make sure you unashamedly steal Laura's wedding ideas from her answers to Before the Big Day Bride's Questionnaire! More from the reception published later today.

We celebrated our wedding on Saturday 10th August, with a ceremony at St Mary’s Church in Nun Monkton near York, followed by a reception at The Old Deanery, Ripon.

I wanted a venue which was a blank canvas and suited me. Bold green patterned carpets and massive drapes like you get in a traditional castle or stately home venue, just wouldn’t cut it. I chose The Old Deanery for its dark wooden floor boards and cream panelled walls.

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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Wedding Trends of 2014 - Carnations

Unloved by many, 2014 is going to see the come-back of the carnation. Not just a supermarket cheapie, this {admittedly very reasonable} bloom looks FABULOUS en masse. In many ways a carnation is just a miniature version of a peony, but available all year round, and in a veritable rainbow of colours. Just like baby's breath, it's a flower saviour for brides on a budget. To make carnations work for your wedding, start with one shade per bouquet or display, and remember this trend is all about quantity over quality. Buy as many as you can, and bunch them together in extravagant displays. But remember it's all or nothing. Don't start adding other blooms, or things could start looking cheap not chic. For more ideas, take a look at my Carnation Wedding Ideas Pinterest board.

{Photo Credit} Unknown

{Photo Credit} Wedding Design by Jeffrey Caballero, picture by Taryn and Shelby of Joielala Photographie. More from this wedding on 100 Layer Cake.

{Photo Credit} 1. Unknown | 2. Flowers by A Hana Design, picture by Closer to Love Photography. More from this wedding on Style Me Pretty

{Photo Credit} 1. Flowers by Brown Paper Design, picture by Docuvitae. More from this wedding on Style Me Pretty | 2. Picture by Orange Turtle Photography, more from this wedding on One Lovely Day

{Photo Credit} Flowers by A Hana Design, picture by Closer to Love Photography. More from this wedding on Style Me Pretty

{Photo Credit} 1. Picture by Mr & Mrs Photography, more from this wedding on Whimsical Wonderland Weddings | 2. Flowers by Michelle Edgemont, picture by Stacey Simpson for Levi Stolove Photography. More from this wedding on Michelle's blog

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