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Blog: hen party

Charlie

Directory Showcase: Posh & Swanky Cupcakes, Andy Rapkins Photography and Alternative Ceremony

Charlie

This week as we delve into The Natural Wedding Company directory I have some more lovely businesses to showcase – just some of the fantastic suppliers you can find to help you plan a more natural wedding. If you like what you see and want to search for more, click on the links below or take a look around the directory which can be found at the top right of the webpage in the lovely luggage tag.

If you want a girlie hen party why not try something different and have a Posh & Swanky Cupcake Party? You don’t even have to go out, they’ll come to your home and provide a fun evening of cupcake decorating – plus you get to take home your cupcakes at the end of it and devour them all to yourself. Visit the directory for more details and a full list of alternative hen and stag party activities.

Andy Rapkins is a wedding photographer based in Dorset – he combines the unobtrusive, documentary style with a considered fine-art approach to produce timeless images that are richly packed with emotion and humour. As well as being a top-notch photographer he also works closely with environmentally sensitive UK suppliers. Visit the directory for a full list of green wedding photographers.

Charlie

A beautiful antique lace inspired collection of wedding accessories from Silver Sixpence in Her Shoe

Charlie

What better way to start off the week than with a beautiful collection of wedding accessories from one of our newest additions to the directory – Silver Sixpence in Her Shoe. Nicola designs and makes a range of garters, veils and headpieces, and shoe clips, this latest collection inspired by a box of antique handmade laces.

As well as handmaking vintage-inspired wedding accessories, Nicola also offers bespoke hen parties to craft your own vintage style headpieces – prices start from £30 per head and can be in your home or venue of your choice. Scroll to the bottom for a few snaps of what you can get up to at a Silver Sixpence in Her Shoe style hen party.

I selected my favourite designs from the 2012 collection to share with you – so take a moment to de-stress by immersing yourself in all this prettiness. If you’re a bride-to-be make sure you take a look at the Silver Sixpence in Her Shoe website for more accessories, and Nicola’s recently set up an Etsy shop to make it even easier to get your hands on one of these beautiful items – can’t you just imagine passing these on to the next generation for them to become heirloom pieces in the future…

The Pearl Garter

Charlie

Directory Showcase: Love a Locavore, Tribes Travel and World Inspired Tents

Charlie

Welcome to this week’s Directory Showcase – sharing a selection of the fabulous businesses that you can find on The Natural Wedding Company directory. If you like what you see and want to search for more, click on the links below or take a look around the directory which can be found at the top right of the webpage in the lovely luggage tag.

The lovely Alice of Love a Locavore can cook you a delicious, seasonal and locally sourced wedding feast, even sourcing some ingredients from her kitchen garden in Gloucestershire. Alice caters for weddings of up to 80 people and can also cook you a wonderful celebratory meal for hen and stag parties. Visit the directory for a full list of eco-friendly, ethical and seasonal wedding caterers.

Tribes Travel is the original Fair Trade travel company, offering a wide selection of luxury honeymoons in Africa, South America, India and Jordan. They can even help to organise wedding ceremonies and vow renewals in a number of the countries they work with. Tribes Travel also offer a honeymoon gift voucher scheme. Visit the directory for a full list of ethical and green honeymoon spots.

Charlie

Foxy and burlesque masquerade mask making hen parties

Charlie

This was love at first – the moment I spotted these masks from A Alicia Handmade I was smitten and head-over-heels in love. Aren’t they just gorgeous?

As one of the wonderful businesses listed on the directory, Anna not only makes beautiful wedding accessories, but she also runs hen party craft workshops – the foxy masquerade and burlesque masquerade mask making parties are her latest additions. What’s even better is she is offering The Natural Wedding Company readers an exclusive offer – so keep reading for details.

Charlie

An evening of cupcake decorating – perfect for an alternative hen party

Charlie

If you follow regularly you may remember me mentioning that I was booked onto a cupcake decorating class in nearby Didsbury with And The Dish Ran Away With The Spoon. The photos from the evening have been just been published on Facebook so thought I’d share a few (that’s me and my friend Jen showing off our cakes).

This was a totally fun evening and I would highly recommend doing this as a hen party alternative to wearing mini skirts, “L” plates and getting pissed. Although I’m sure you could still wear the mini skirt and “L” plates if you like. Here’s those all important details on some of the fab businesses who can organise cupcake decorating hen parties.

That’s me concentrating very hard as I pipe my first cupcake – I put my piping skills to good use on the weekend siliconing the gap around our front windows! And below are some of the pretty sugar butterflies we all made, drying out ready to go on our cupcakes.

Charlie

Go on girls, get cupcake decorating for your hen party

Charlie

Yesterday evening I had a wonderful time learning how to decorate cupcakes with And The Dish Ran Away With The Spoon. Whether you are wanting to plan a more alternative and meaningful hen party, or you’re planning on making your own wedding cake from cupcakes, you should consider having a cupcake decorating party.

Our evening looked a bit like this – just at night – I hope to share a photo of my cupcakes when they’re available…

Image: Jonny Draper

There are some wonderful businesses out there offering these services, and tailored specifically for hen parties and weddings. They can be found all over the country, but some in particular are a bit special, I think, because they are passionate and committed to using high quality ingredients – fair trade, free range, organic, seasonal, local.

So today I’m paying homage to them. Girls, its time to roll up your sleeves, pop on your apron, and learn a great new skill – and have a good giggle with your girl friends while you’re at it.

Charlie

“English Romance” cupcake decorating class inspired by vintage jewellery

Charlie

Posh & Swanky Cupcakes is one of the new businesses to be listed on The Natural Wedding Company directory, running couture cupcake classes in Leeds. Andrea, the talent behind Posh & Swanky Cupcakes contacted me to tell me all about her latest cupcake class called ‘English Romance’.

Andrea told me that this class is inspired by “dreamy old England, afternoon tea, and shabby chic” and at the end of this class your cakes will deserve to be saved on your best vintage china.

In this class you’ll make moist green tea cupcakes (which sound incredible!) that are then covered in fluffy buttercream, fondant, and are then piped using Royal Icing. Andrea says that the colours for this collection are “pale, sophisticated and romantic” and that the cupcakes are “sumptuously adorned with fondant and sugar paste jewels, roses and pearls.”

Charlie

Crafty hen party workshops making pom pom necklaces, flower fascinators, garlands and favours

Charlie

Who could have dreamt up such a wonderful idea? Why, the lovely Anna of A Alicia Accessories – the talented designer-maker behind gorgeous eco-ethical textile jewellery like this…

In addition to her pretty jewellery and wedding ranges, Anna is now offering fun hen party workshops where you and your bridesmaid can create your own fabulous accessories, all with a focus on eco-ethical and vintage materials.

You could make these funky pom pom necklaces perfect for a night out or even as part of your bridesmaid ensemble…

Charlie

A belated look at my winter woodland hen party invite

Charlie

I have only just been seen the secret invite that was sent out to my friends for my winter woodland hen party – isn’t it lovely!

Charlie

A hen party with a green and gorgeous twist – a flower arranging workshop

Charlie

Green and Gorgeous recently ran a hen party workshop for a bride who has ordered buckets of flowers to arrange herself for her April wedding. The bride and her bridesmaids spent a fun and relaxed day creating spring posies, flowers in a tea cup and a corsage.

Spring flowers included anemones, tulips, muscari and scented narcissi – aren’t they gorgeous in those vintage tea cups! Check out Green and Gorgeous for their ‘Bouquets and Buckets’ service if you’re a bride on a budget. I’m booked onto one of their flower arranging courses in April with my mom and can’t wait!

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