There are many reasons people use chauffeur car hire from corporate reasons to party nights. However, when anybody mentions chauffeur car hire, the first thing we tend to think of is weddings. Particularly through the summer months, not a Saturday goes by without churches being surrounded by chauffeur car hire vehicles carrying huge puff balls of silk creations to the side of their groom.

A small scale wedding can still afford some sort of chauffeur car hire service. Every bride deserves to be the centre of attention on her big day and this means turning up in style to the event itself. There are so many sizes and styles of wedding car, from traditional to modern, that there will be one to suit every budget.

If you’re looking for a real bargain basement wedding, ask around because friends and family are bound to know someone with a reasonably classic car that could take you to your wedding. No, this does not mean running your mate to church in your old Ford Escort XR3i – or your granddads Reliant Robin – it’s going to take a little more imagination than this.

For those with a slightly more impressive budget, there is a whole host of wedding cars that you could hire for this purpose. Some of the more traditional old cars can be very fitting for a country church wedding but if you were using a different venue, you might want to find something a little more appropriate. A stylish, up market BMW can be just as luxurious and make just as good an entry at the right location.

For those with a higher budget, Bentleys and Rolls Royce’s are always hot favourites when choosing a chauffeur car hire service. Wedding hire cars normally come with a standard bouquet of flowers and a ribbon to signify the brides car but these can be altered and adapted if you have specific requirements or wish to change the colours.

There are also options that cover open top cars and these can be great in the summer months, although with traditional British weather being what it is, there is no guarantee that it won’t rain on the day and an open top car never looks quite as impressive when it contains a wet bride and groom or a couple of umbrellas so you might want to consider an option where you can have the top up or down.

Some soon-to-be-weds choose the option of something very different for the transport, such as a Hummer limousine or even a tank. These are extremes but it really depends on the outlook of the couple involved and in no way detracts from the seriousness of the occasion. Weddings are a serious event but it is also important that everybody has a good time and, most importantly, a day to remember.

For those who would rather their day was remembered for the amazing wedding car, or the brides dress or even the wedding cake or ceremony as opposed to the punch up at the reception, wedding planners are now incorporating a virtual ‘bouncer’ into the plans. The ‘appointed person’ is briefed on certain members that have had to be invited but could potentially cause problems, and are instructed on how to deal with them, ie: remove them before the trouble gets out of hand, swap their drinks for non-alcoholic versions or steer them away from granny once they are intoxicated! Sign of the times, I’m guessing!

1. Instead of floral centerpieces think about candles or colored stones. Line the bottom of a vase with colored stones. Set a candle or a few stems of your favorite flower (most likely this will be the flower chosen as your theme in your bridal bouquets). One bride used her centerpiece as wedding favors. She planted a flower, in this case a daffodil, each in a pot and put them in the center of the table. It not only made a beautiful centerpiece but each guest took home a lovely plant to remember the joyous occasion.

2. Afternoon weddings, Sunday mornings, or Fridays are not premium times and therefore you can get a break on the prices. Brides and Grooms are now thinking outside the box. Garden weddings or Brunch style weddings are very sophisticated and can be very entertaining. This also allows time for the happy couple to unwind before taking off for their honeymoon or spending quality time with close friends and family after the party.

3. Take some time to educate yourself on flowers. Flowers that are out of season or a special color are more expensive. Talk with your floral designer and ask what flowers are in season in your color scheme. There is so much out there to choose from without costing much.

4. Consider making your own favors. Favors are not meant to be expensive. They are a token of gratitude for your guest. Packets of seeds attached to a note of thanks or a special poem or saying goes a long way.

5. Alcohol can be very expensive and a cash bar is out of the question. Depending on your guest, wine can be served during dinner by the wait staff while beer and soft drinks can be available at the bar. This can keep your bar expense under control.

Planning a wedding is exciting and fun as well as a lot of work. In order to stay within budget keep all receipts and make sure you know how your money is being spent. Be flexible and think outside the box. Remember skimp in some places, so that you can splurge in others and things will turn out great!

Choosing your bridesmaids can be a painless or a very painful task. It’s usually pretty painless if you have several sisters and some close friends you’ve had for a long time. It can be painful if you are part of your college’s sorority, or you are the type of person who enjoys being surrounded by many friends instead of just a few close ones. But, no matter how painless or painful choosing your bridesmaids may be, it should be painless and fun to ask them once you’ve made the decision. Here are some creative ideas to pop the question to your closest gal pals.

A great way to ask is to purchase a bridesmaid handbook such as “The Bridesmaid’s Survival Guide” by Mary Kay McDermott or “101 Uses For A Bridesmaid Dress” by Cindy Walker. You can mail it or invite them all out for lunch and give it all to them as a gift along with a thoughtful note that explains to each one why you’ve chosen them to be one of your bridesmaids. Contact your local florist or a florist that lives in your prospective bridesmaid(s) town and have a miniature bouquet sent to each one. This is great because you can contact the florist over the phone or in person, regardless of where your bridesmaid(s) live. Have the florist attach a note that says something like, “Will you be my bridesmaid? Love, Amy”. Your friends will be so excited to get the flowers that there is no way they will turn you down. If the weather is nice, you can invite all your friends out for a picnic in the park. Before your friends get there you can come up with some sort of scavenger hunt and plant things all around the park that have to do with being a bridesmaid. Maybe you could hide things like a fake bouquet of flowers, a few ugly bridesmaid’s dress you found at a thrift store, and a couple of kiddie tiaras you can find in the toy section. After you enjoy your nice picnic lunch you can send them on the hunt! Once they find all the items you can end the scavenger hunt with them finding nice notes addressed to each one of them explaining that you want them to be your bridesmaids and why. Sending your bridesmaids a gift if they live far away is a great way to ask them. A great gift idea is to have t-shirts made that say “Bridesmaid” and “Maid of Honor” with the wedding date on them and mail them to your prospective bridesmaids, along with a nice letter or card. You can have personalized stationary made at several online websites that would coordinate with your wedding or bridal shower theme.

While these are all great ideas for asking your bridesmaids to share your special day with you, it’s up to you to decide if you want to ask them together or separate. Some brides prefer to ask their maid of honor first and then their other bridesmaids second. This gives your maid of honor the opportunity to decline your invitation and still give you time to come up with a replacement without making your other bridesmaids feel like second pick if you have to ask one of them to be your maid of honor. It may also be nice to have your maid of honor’s help when you are planning on how to ask your other bridesmaids. No matter how you decide to do it, it is guaranteed to be a memorable experience for you and your bridesmaids.

Every Indian bride-to-be goes all out to look her best on her wedding day. The most typical wedding attire worn by an Indian bride is the sari. For those who aren’t in the know, a sari is a very long strip of cloth, whose length ranges from 4 to 9 meters in length. This is draped around the body in various styles depending on the religion and culture of the wedding couple. Sari draping is an art in itself and there are over a 100 ways that one can experiment with this versatile garment.

Here, we look at the different ways to drape a sari so that you can look your best at your big fat Indian wedding!

The most common and basic method to drape a sari is to have the sari draped around the waist, with one end (known as the pallu) draped over the shoulder. The upper garment is known as the choli and it usually has short sleeves and is cropped, baring one’s midriff. You can read about it in the latter half of this article. Now for the many ways a bride can choose to drape her sari.

Maharashtrian

Ever seen the ubiquitous Indian men’s dhoti? Well, Maharashtrians usually drape their saris much like a dhoti, with the centre of the sari held lengthwise and placed at the centre back, and the ends are brought forward and tied securely, after which these two ends are wraped around the legs. You will most likely see this style worn by women in Maharashtra and Karnataka in colors like red or bottle green.

North Indian

Women from North India especially Gujarat drape a sari in the usual way, just that the pallu is draped over the right shoulder instead of the left and more importantly, it is draped back-to-front rather than front-to-back.

Bengali

When draping a sari the Bengali way, one needs to leave 2 large pleats in the front. The pallu is wrapped twice around the top, which means that one needs to take the top border of the sari and place it on the left shoulder. Then, grasp the top border midway between the waist and shoulder and pull the sari out in front until there is enough length to wrap around till your mid back.

Mumtaz Drape

This is a very creative type of sari drape and a lot of women are opting for it today. For this type of drape, the sari is draped around the bride twice. This exudes a very slimming effect. However, it may be really hard to walk with this sari and you may end up feeling like a mermaid!

Tuck Drape

This too is quite a common style of draping. Basically, you drape the sari as you would a normal sari and keep the pallu from back to front like the Gujarati style of draping a sari. The only difference is that the edge of the pallu is then tucked in the front to give a wavy effect. It is perfect if there’s a nip in the air.

Tamil Pinkosu

Pinkosu means “Pleats at the back”. Now this type of sari can be seen in places like Tamil Nadu. One does not need to wear a petticoat, making this style a cool way to beat the heat. You begin draping the material one and a half times around the body, and the open spot on the left hip can be hidden with the pleat or even the pallu draped across the front and into the back of the waist. This type of sari draping is also known as the Dravidian style of draping.

Karnataka

In Karnataka, the sari is gathered at the woman’s waistline, while the pallu is held on the left shoulder. In Coorg especially, the sari is draped with pleats held at the backside, while the front section is puckered around the waistline. The remaining length of the sari is then draped around the breast which is then held on the right shoulder.

Kerala

In Kerala, a sari is usually seen in a light cream color with a delicate gold Zari border. The choli is usually in green or red. This style of a sari is different in the sense that it consists of 2 pieces of cream cloth, one of which is draped around the waistline, while the other is draped on the shoulder.

Cholis

The choli of a sari can be half sleeves, short sleeves, sleeveless or even full sleeves. Nowadays, cap sleeves and puffed sleeves are quite a trend. Or, if you want you could go in for a corset-style choli, an open back choli or even an off shoulders variety. A sari is indeed very basic attire worn by a majority of Indian woman on a daily basis. These are mostly seen in cotton due to the heat and humidity of India. It is such an eternal form of attire that it can also be worn on a night out and is customary at weddings in materials such as silk, Kanjeevaram and crepe. So go on and get as creative as you can with your wedding sari.

Your wedding planner will be able to assist you in choosing the best wedding oufits that suit your style & personality.

When it comes to planning a winter wedding, there are so many beautiful themes and choices that you suddenly have available that you didn’t in the summer. You can plan a beautiful, elegant wedding, with everything you ever wanted. But, finding a great winter wedding dress can be one of the hardest things that you’ll ever do. It doesn’t have to be impossible though, and here are six helpful tips to help you out.

1. Find a strapless or spaghetti strapped dress and a faux fur coat to wear over it. While it’s not a real winter wedding dress, it is simple and elegant and you won’t freeze during your wedding or reception. This is a look that many brides have started to go with during winter weddings.

2. For those that have long hair, simply wear it down instead of up on your wedding day. While this option won’t work for those with shorter hair, those that can should wear theirs down. You can still wear a tiara or veil, simply fix your hair in a style that will allow it to help keep your shoulders and ears warm.

3. There are some dress makers that have beautiful capes and matching muffs that you can choose to wear over your dress when you are outside. So, you can easily choose the dress of your dreams and have a beautiful winter wedding at the same time. It helps you to turn just about any dress into a winter wedding dress.

4. Change your way of thinking a bit and choose a different colored dress – such as light blue or burgundy – and then wear a white faux fur stole over it that wraps around your shoulders. This is a beautiful way to add some glamor to your winter wedding dress and still allow you the different style choices that you crave.

5. When looking for a winter wedding dress, keep in mind what time of year you are getting married in and what your options are. There are some dresses that have a sheer top or skirt that may not be the warmest option for a winter wedding dress – but there are other dresses that offer thicker material that will help to keep you warm during the ceremony. You can choose velvet, wool, heavy satin, and other materials that you couldn’t choose in the summer time but will be perfect for the winter.

6. If you find that you’re having trouble picking out a winter wedding dress, take a break from searching. Sometimes when you are trying too hard or trying to rush your decision, you might pick out a dress that you don’t like. Make sure that you keep plenty of time to choose a beautiful winter wedding dress that is perfect for you – and not settle for something less.

It’s not impossible to find the perfect winter wedding dress for your big day, it just takes a bit of searching and some imagination. You can easily make any dress fit into your winter wedding, and create a beautiful wedding day. No matter what dress or style you choose, you can easily modify it to become your dream dress for your dream winter wedding.