2013

I’ve been meaning to share these with you for a while, but what could be more perfect than sharing them now – well, apparently it’s supposed to be the start of spring although the snow across the UK suggests otherwise.

These homemade lollipops each hold a pretty edible spring flower, such as these beautiful violas, and would make lovely wedding favours for an Easter or spring wedding.  The tiny violas or violets are just the right size to be kept whole in a lollipop, whereas the larger pansies can have an individual petal carefully removed and used instead.

You can find a recipe for the above edible flower lollipops at Sprinkle Bakes – I particularly love that you don’t need to buy special lollipop moulds, but can in fact use powdered sugar to create your mould!

One of our lovely TNWC businesses who supply edible flowers has also been making some of these lollipops – Forage For recently made these ones with primroses which I think are so lovely.

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2013

Here on The Natural Wedding Company blog I’ve recently been introducing some guest bloggers in the form of my TNWC Real Brides – it’s been lovely for me to share the blog with others, and I hope you’ve been enjoying their wedding plans so far.  Today I’m going to hand the blog over to one of my fab TNWC businesses to tell you all about something they specialise in – stunning, ethical honeymoons.

Amanda set up Tribes Travel with her husband 15 years ago after spending many years as a travel guide.  Their ethos for Tribes Travel is all about giving you the very best holiday experience possible, whilst trying to ensure that travel is sustainable.  You must check out their website for some of the wonderful holidays and trips they offer, but today Amanda is going to give you her recommendations for their top five honeymoon destinations.

Over to Amanda…

Someone in our office is getting married and we were discussing where she should go on her honeymoon.  Since selling holidays and honeymoons is what we do, we of course all had definite personal views as to what would make the perfect honeymoon.

A beach came high on the list of many of us, luxury was a must, and romantic accommodation was undeniably important.  We decided to forgo what some of our more active clients have chosen in the past for a honeymoon – Kilimanjaro!

Our top 5 honeymoon destinations eventually came down to the following list of exciting holidays and wonderful places to stay.

1. Luxury Kenya Bush and Beach

We are all wildlife and nature lovers, and this luxury combination of an exciting safari in the Masai Mara followed by an indulgent stay at an exclusive beach house on the southern coast of Kenya certainly worked for us.  Not only is the accommodation on this honeymoon absolutely superb, personal and romantic, but you’ll end up with memories to treasure of the special places and experiences you’ll enjoy on this holiday.

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2013

I am currently working on some improvements to the website and blog, which I am really excited about and hope to get ‘live’ soon.  I’m hoping one of the those improvements will be a dedicated events pages where you can find out, all in one place, the brilliant events, open days, fairs, and workshops that TNWC businesses are hosting around the country.

In the meantime, with so many coming up in the couple of months I thought I’d do a round-up so you can see if there’s any that take your fancy.

March 2013

Event in a Tent Open Weekend – Cheshire

Event in a Tent Open Weekend on Friday 22nd March 2013 from 3pm – 5pm, Saturday 23rd and Sunday 24th March 2013 from 11am – 5pm at Delamere Forest.

“If you want your event to stand out from the crowd then our tipis are just the ticket!  Our tipis are known by a couple of names, Giant hats, Katas and stratus or cirrus tents.  Whatever the name, we know you will love them!  So, if you think the tipis are perfect for your event, get comfy, and have a look around - we’re sure you will love them just as much as we do!”

For full details visit www.event-in-a-tent.co.uk.

Grow Your Own Cut Flowers – Kent

Run by Blooming Green on Saturday 23rd March 2013 from 10am – 3pm at Loddington Farm.

“Learn the tricks of growing a regular supply of organic, long-lasting cut flowers, from sowing to picking to conditioning your stems. Refreshments and delicious lunch using local produce, plus flower goodies to take away.”

Cost: £100.  To book a place visit www.bloominggreenflowers.co.uk/events/grow-your-own-cut-flowers-3.

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2013

There really are some wonderful and exciting courses and workshops popping up at the moment, I must book onto a few more as those that I have done I have loved.  TNWC business Green & Gorgeous always have a fabulous programme of courses throughout the year, but have just added to new ones especially for those getting married – and I have a special discount on them just for you!

This summer Green & Gorgeous will be running two special courses, one called ‘Grow You Own Wedding Flowers’ and the other ‘Arrange Your Own Wedding Flowers’.  Rachel from Green & Gorgeous told me that it will be a great opportunity “to enjoy the unique and deeply satisfying experience of watching your wedding flowers grow from a few seeds to armfuls of fresh, garden grown blooms.”

Having previously attending a Green & Gorgeous flower course I can definitely recommend them – I went with my mum just before my own wedding and we learnt how to arrange with cut flowers.  You can read about my experience here and see the beautiful arrangements we created.

Below is a little more detail on each of the courses, which are being run on multiple dates during April 2013, and then the special TNWC discount.

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2013

*Please note – this competition is now closed 20/03/13

Already this year we have had some great competitions on The Natural Wedding Company, and today’s prize is up there with the most gorgeous.

Finish designed Minna Hepburn has recently launched her 2013 collection of exquisite wedding dresses to her beautiful brand Minna, and to celebrate that launch one lucky TNWC bride will win the Zara veil worth over £100 – read on for full details of how to enter.

The new collection which is called “Love Letter” was inspired by an old petticoat and a love letter found at an antique market, and adds more delicious and affordable wedding dresses in Minna’s ethereal style.  All of the dresses are handmade in Minna’s London studio and range from floor sweeping gowns to mid-length dresses from between £360 and £800.

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2013

Angela who runs Petal and Twig, on of our TNWC recommended florists, sent me these photos of a winter bouquet she recently designed.  Made completely from garden flowers and foliage it is cleverly constructed on a handmade moss pad with a handle of dogwood.

The bouquet itself contains hellebores, succulents, variegated Euonymous, variegated Box, ferns, Skimmia (both pink and green berried varieties), Mahonia Japonica flower sprays, Spirea, Magnolia twigs and buds, and ivy.  I think it’s a really unusual and beautiful example of a winter wedding bouquet that celebrates the season.

Angela also created this posy of Paperwhite Narcissi (one of my favourite winter flowers) from the Channel Islands surrounded by two types of ivy.  The green ivy leaves each wrap an individual stem of narcissi to protect their delicate heads and ensure they all face ‘up’.  The bouquet is finished with a piece of antique cotton lace, a brown satin ribbon, and vintage pearls.

I am so pleased to be able to share with you these lovely examples of seasonal wedding flowers. If you like these, take a look at this pretty spring bouquet of white tulips and hyacinths or these spring arrangements in vintage teacups.

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2013

Sometimes it’s nice to take a step back from wedding planning, from all the lovely details and fun plans for this incredible celebration, and look at the deeper part of marriage.  I think an important part of that is choosing where you buy your engagement and wedding rings from – of all the many items you purchase for your wedding, your rings will have one of the biggest environmental costs.

No one likes to be bombarded or overwhelmed with terrible statistics or facts about the environmental costs of something like a wedding ring, often it just makes you feel even more powerless to make a difference, but we can’t ignore that there are some pretty bad facts when it comes to conventional mining.

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