It takes a lot to decorate

Brides and grooms, you know that decor is one aspect of your wedding that add the touches of beauty, class, spiciness and wonder to your wedding reception and wedding hall. The reaction that you crave from your guests are “wow, it so beautiful!” or “I never thought this place can look like this”.  Décor does not only involve placing accent pieces on a table or changing curtains in the room to match the colour and theme of your wedding party. Wedding décor involves something more complex, its interior decorating; where you transform a space using the combination of creativity, technical skills and functionality to achieve a desired effect.

There are many such wedding decoration businesses within Trinidad and Tobago that design you venue to reach this desired effect. The interior decoration of a wedding space needs a commitment from the bride, the groom, the wedding planner and the interior designer for deliverability of the desired effect. As such, the bride and groom will communicate their vision and the designer would understand what can and needs be done, what will be difficult to achieve, what can be added to enhance the aesthetics and how capitalize on them to prepare for you wedding day.

The design stage is one that requires a lot of work and preparation. The fact of the matter is, this is not a simple process, the details of, colours and matching hues must be worked out. From this, you would graduate to textures and how they would work together. When using the linens or lighting considerations must be put in place for photographic effects and illumination and the current fads and fashions.

After these considerations are put in place, then you can add cutlery, flowers, seating, the wedding procession, the space to create the maximum effect for the visual aspect and props for wall, floor and ceiling decorations.

From all these details it is understood that Interior design is an all-encompassing function that you put in place for your wedding. It would involve the invitations, table numbers, and ribbons for chairs, type of chairs for the bride and groom, chairs for guests, the tables for the bridal party and the tables for guests. To the minutest detail, interior décor for a wedding sets the mood for your soiree. It is true that the aesthetic/ visual aspect that you create for your wedding is a reflection of the personal style of the bride and the groom.

The best advice that I have ever gotten for wedding décor was to ask yourself to describe what you want in three succinct adjectives. Some may be “Fun, flirty, breezy”, “dark, dramatic, and modern” or it may be “traditional, modest, and classic”. With these three words it may be enough to give yourself and your decorator the inspiration to start filtering ideas into your planning process.

The decoration in a wedding is not simple like flipping a switch but is achieved with hard work and endurance. The fortitude that you put in place, if channelled to the right avenue, would transfer every wedding from drab to stunning, from good to better and from basic to extra.  

'DIY' Wedding Centerpieces

Many a brides that I have spoken with have expressed to me that the décor for their wedding have been done through the method of ‘DIY’. Do it yourself! Not only do they play a part in decorations, they also design their dresses or modify their veils to suit themselves.

We know, for your wedding, that you may hire a professional interior decorator and you express to them your vision and they work towards creating and emulating the visual masterpiece you had in your mind to reality. This décor reality is part and parcel with the theme of your wedding, if you are having a theme based wedding.

But, with decorations, you can have you input, you may work alongside your decorator or you may lead your family and friends to work towards this goal and in every wedding there are little accent pieces you can fashion to enhance the characteristic within the atmosphere. These are DIY projects I was talking about earlier.

One great 'DIY' centerpiece is the “Glittered Tea Light Holder”. Stunningly you can achieve it in three simple steps and a minimum of four supplies.

The things you will need are:

•     Tea light holders (glass or plastic)
•          Coloured glitter dust
•       Spray on adhesive/ bonding glue
•       Tea light candles (real or LED)

Step 1: Cleanse and dry your tea light holders. Make sure they are free of dust, dirt spots or water.

Step 2: Apply adhesive/ bond glue around the rim and 1 or two inches below the rim of the holder. If you are using bond glue ensure that you distribute it evenly for fast drying and to eliminate excess gunk.

Step 3: Lightly dust dip or roll the adhesive end of the holder while it is still wet.

When dry, place tea lights in the glass holders light them up and Voila! Glittered Tea Light Holders.

N.B The glitter can be swapped for or you can also add feathers, flower petals, kite paper, ribbons or anything you want to enhance the look of your Tea Light Decorations.

These tea light holders could be used for daylight or night time weddings. And not only are they cost effective they are gorgeous, artsy and add to the romantic vibe.

So remember not everything about your wedding has to be complicated and stressful. You can make this into a fun project and enjoy the days leading up to your wedding by getting involved in something to take your mind away from the wedding jitters i.e. if you are having any.

Night Weddings! The Preparation

Night weddings add a different character that is out of the norm when you want a different experience from the morning or afternoon weddings. It holds the mysticism and romanticism of getting married under the stars, cute flirty cocktail dresses and debonair tuxedos, ties and laid back suits that adds an element of magic to the aesthetics of the occasion.

If managed right, your night wedding can be one for the books and a thoroughly enjoyable experience.

 Some helpful tips to remember are:

1: Schedule a site visit to your venue for roughly the same time of night that you are expecting to conduct your wedding. This will give you an estimate of where things should be in terms of lighting and  illumination, guest seating, parking, signage and also a feel of the situation of night time bugs to be managed on the night of your event.

2: Confirm the weather conditions and what they may be like for the time of your event. This encompasses wind, chilliness etc. Here, you can make adjustment to ensure that you and your guests are warned and they dress suitably and comfortably. Weather conditions will also affect props, decorations and outdoor furnishing. Knowing beforehand what would need to be steadfastly secured would eliminate any last minute oversights to ensure for adequate preparations and accounting. 

3: You should expect the unexpected. Night time is usually a time when accidents happen, with low lighting, or candle light there may be disasters that may occur. There it is best to have first aid kits available or standby emergency guys who can make vehicular runs if such an event happens.

4: Capitalize on the lighting. Dark nights are a perfect opportunity to hold a fireworks display that would create the right bang to begin your first day together. But be mindful of the fact that most venues do not allow for fireworks so it is good to know this and another helpful tip is professional fireworks are spectacular to behold and fully insured to help mitigate risks. Sparklers are a nice touch for the walk up the aisle. Flower girls and bridesmaid can hold this instead of throwing flower petals, the petals works better in the day but don’t have the same effect in the dark and the magical moment may be lost against the darkness in the background.

5: Appreciate friend and family. These people are the ones you depend most upon to help get you to your wedding day so it is always good to mention them in your thanks you speech and in the event that you are having speeches for your wedding it is best that you communicate this to your maid of honour or the best man so they would have time to prepare and not be an embarrassment to you on the day.

6: Confer with photographer for the effect that would be used for shooting on the night, the venue manager for space limits, emergency exits and other venue rules and the pastor for the use of camera flashes as they may hamper his vision in the administering of his duties.  

The Night Experience

Night weddings always fill me with awe.

My first fascination with night weddings started at the young age of seven when I witnessed the closing end of a wedding ceremony being conducted at my local church. In all my years I had only known the concept of weddings taking place when the sun was shining, and entering dressed in my finest. But in the dark spying through my church windows saw a lady and a gentleman at the altar repeating their vows and entering into the sacrament of holy matrimony. “To have and to hold, in sickness and in health, till death do us part.” I heard those words on that occasion on the outside of my church building, and it was there that I fell in love with weddings entirely.

Like I said before, it’s the nights that hold me. And I had the opportunity of experiencing it once again four years ago.

This time it was my dear friend at the altar, and, just like my first night wedding I remembered this one distinctly. The previous Sunday she whispered to me “Jem, I’m getting married Tuesday night, dress nicely!”

It is with shame that I would admit that I forgot this whispered conversation, I forgot to dress nicely. I was not dressed for the occasion. Instead of a pretty cocktail dress, I wore a basic navy blue shirt and a jeans skirt. Shame!

But let’s forget about me. The church was decorated in white roses and the aisle was littered with the white petals of the same flowers. The bride’s daughter was her sole bridesmaid (she beamed for the entire ceremony) her baby son was dressed in the cutest tuxedo suit ever, the groom wore a tuxedo that matched his son and the bride wore a lace princess cut white satin dress. The wedding party looked stunning.

Then, while repeating the same vows I heard at the age of seven, they stared into each other’s eyes and promised to love and cherish each other, all the while standing under a rose decorated arbor with that was accentuated with gold tinted palm leaves and white and green lace ribbons.

This ceremony was a small one, only about fifty persons in attendance and the reception was held immediately after in the church’s adjoining annex. There was also decorated with the white roses, palm leaves and ribbons. I must talk about the food. It was divine! A simple Christmas rice, Barbeque chicken and potato salad. The bride’s aunt was the cook, she gave me the best meal I have ever eaten at any wedding ceremony.

Needless to say, the bride and groom stole themselves away after the short meal to have their official wedding pictures taken at the Queens Park Savannah, and I was left sighing that, not only was it the shortest wedding I had ever experienced ( 1 hour 35 mins), it was my second night wedding, the best food and the tranquil and laid atmosphere added with the spectacular décor made this wedding one that remains prominent in my memory and I think it will be there for a long time to come. 

Afternoons - Pros and Cons Part 2

Cons (It's Not all it's made out to be)

When you hear the word ‘wedding’, reactions vary from person to person. Single women go starry eyed over the romanticism; married women mostly welcome you to the club or harrumph at the fact that you are going to get yourself in trouble. Most men’s reactions are loosely based on the statements “Another one bites the dust” or” Lost my drinking partner there”.

What I’m getting at is the simple fact that weddings are not all fun and rainbows and sunshine. But in the planning of this event there will be obstacles that you have to overcome that may make it uncomfortable for you.

These cons are things you just have to bear with on the day, even though they may be a hassle. If they are not in place, they will break your wedding making your ‘special’ day a day that is remembered as a horror and the brunt of ribald jokes for years to come.

Therefore for your afternoon wedding, let’s just list out the things that may not work in your favour.

Photo Credit: nsadhaphotography.wordpress.com

•          Too early to party

People don’t usually get on a dance floor to party away when the sun is bright. Dancing of any form during the afternoon will be naturally reserved and not many of the guests will feel comfortable to let their inhibitions loose. Therefore, if you want to dance and have a really good time at it, afternoon weddings may not be perfectly suited for you. 

Photo Credit: www.davidmedinaphotography.com

•          Hair and Make-up Stress

If you are going to have an afternoon wedding, set your mind to the fact that you and your bridesmaids will have an early morning getting to all your appointments.

 Our previous post show that afternoon weddings usually start for the earliest at 11 AM. Therefore, you and your bridesmaids will have to be up at the crack of dawn to coif yourselves into perfection to reach your wedding on time, looking splendid.

It is advisable that you set appointments with hairdressers and make-up artists about six weeks in advance with weekly reminders to your bridesmaids of the importance of keeping these appointments.

Photo Credit: khonj.org

•         Infrastructure

Yes, you are having an afternoon wedding, but DJs, venues, photographers and videographers may have to be booked for the entire day.

To be fair, the venue may need to be booked for two days to accommodate decorating, construction of dance floors and reception place setting. These are costs you will have to factor into your budget that does not include price skimming.

Photo Credit: bellethemagazine.com

•         Heat

It’s the afternoon.... it will be Hot and Humid. Yes, it will be bright. Yes, the sun will be shining. But along with this beautiful aesthetic you will encounter sweat. You may feel uncomfortable wearing this beautiful gown, with your perfect hair and perfect face. You will not be the only person feeling it. You may have to endure or you can select a venue that is air-conditioned or breezy so counteract the effects of the day.

Next Post: Evening Weddings

Afternoons - Pros and Cons Part 1

Pros (It's all good!)

Bearing in mind that “A wedding is what you want it to be”, couples decide on the things they want or don’t want. As a bride, you have the final decision to have no children at your wedding, the colour scheme and the theme for the day. As a groom, you would decide on the drinks and entertainment. Essentially you choose the vibe, you choose the ambiance, you choose whether your wedding day will be an all-out party or an intimate affair to be enjoyed by those you hold near and dear to you.

Afternoon weddings are just that: whatever you want it to be. But keep in mind that in the planning of each event there are factors that you must consider that can make or break it. So, let’s do this in a Pros and Cons List, i.e. what’s good about it and what can be potentially bad. Before we can begin our official list let us first establish the fact that afternoon weddings usually start between the hours of 11 am - 2 pm and ends approximately 5 pm – 8 pm.

Let the lists begin! (we all love when things goes our way)

Photo Credit : www.yokhabelizeresort.com

•      Affordable Budget

Firstly, afternoon weddings allow for a more flexible budget. Truthfully, weddings held at this time allow the bride and groom to prepare a light meal for their guests. If you give or take a couple hours between the starting hours, the majority of guest would have already have had their substantial meals of the day. Therefore, they fed themselves and for the end time of the ceremony it is not expected that you feed them dinner; the sit down and eat portion of the event has already been past. 

Therefore, a light meal would be the order of the day.  You save money in this aspect of your wedding. Also, heavy drinking does not usually start this early in the day, so, already you saved a lot by not having alcoholic drinks at your event.

Photo Credit : www.theweddingofmydreams.co.uk

•            Not an all-night affair

Your wedding ends early by party standards. By not having an all-night affair you ensure that the day ends with a bit of relaxation for you. By not having an all-night affair, for most brides and grooms, if it’s not for relaxation, it is for reaching the airport on time to catch their flight for their honeymoon, or simply to get home in time to catch a few well needed snoozes after the early morning or hectic day that they had.

Side-note: most brides say “Even though the day was stressful and tiring, I will do it again just for the excitement.”

Photo Credit: www.rusticfolkweddings.com

•          Guests could get back home at a timely hour

It is your wedding day, so you dictate the timing, therefore, for an afternoon wedding, you know you want to have an early start and an early finish time. The early finish time could be a consideration for guests who may have to travel a lengthy distance to get to your venue, or may have plans to start the following day early for work, or church or much needed family time as the case may be.

Families usually respond favourably to these type of weddings, as it is less hassle for them and they get to make your wedding an outing for their family. Not only will they be attending a wedding but in some cases, it may be a family reunion. Which is cause for celebration.

Next Post:  Afternoons - Pros and Cons Part 2

Getting the Timing Right..... Mornings.

 What’s good about the Morning

Trinidad and Tobago's twin island beaches are spectacular, morning noon and night! So, how about having a morning beach wedding?

Many would be shocked, some appalled or simply stunned. Yes, a beach wedding can be done and carried out quite brilliantly.

Here are some of the pros to having your wedding at the beach in the morning.

Photo credit - Trinidadweddingscom.blogspot.com

1: Lighting…The caviar to beach weddings. The great thing about morning light it is that it’s there, free of charge, every day, 365 days of the year. Photographers call it the ‘golden’ light. Let’s pause here for a minute and take a moment to elaborate on just what this light is.

Golden Light - simply put, it makes everything look good and adds an additional quality of happiness to pictures. It is often described as soft and warm and adds a quality to pictures that cannot be replicated by filters or textures that help enhance images.

So back to lighting, this naturally golden light allows brides and grooms to directly face the sun and not have squinted eyes or grimaced faces that spoil the effect of beautiful photography.

Happiness is mirrored in brides and grooms whose features are softened by the delicate lighting that reflects itself in lovely photographed memories that will give the couple, their guests and future families awe-inspiring recollections many years down the road.

photo credit - http://ruiyichem.com

2: Brunch instead of dinner. Morning weddings are becoming increasingly more popular. Disbarring from the fact that there will be an early start to the wedding party’s morning, brunch is an excellent way of cutting exorbitant dinner fees and ensuring caterers availability for your event. Venue costs are free; I mean seriously…it’s at the beach!

An added benefit of brunch is also the added intimacy of the gathering. At this time of morning the formality that is usually common-place with dinner is absent: allowing the occasion to become a relaxed affair. Here interaction between the wedding party, family and friends are encouraged, and, the bride and groom can be assured that conversation, old acquaintances and cocktails are enjoyed to sum up the happy affair.

Photo credit - www.bridemusings.com

3: The Intimate after Party. Obviously, a morning wedding would not last the entire day; it may end in the early afternoon. Therefore, even before the wedding has officially begun, the fun element is already there in the scenic, dramatic atmosphere of the beach and it remains for the entire day.  So at the end of the ceremony and brunch and dancing and frolicking, the bride and groom are left with the healthy option of saying adieu to their guests, knowing that they can lounge about and enjoy the beach for as long as they want.

Most importantly, this leaves the bride and groom essential time alone, where they can admire their rings, talk about their beautiful ceremony and relax and laze around for the rest of the day.

Now, they can simply appreciate each other’s company, all the while knowing that their dream of happiness and togetherness has officially begun.

Next post - Pros and Cons of Afternoon Weddings 

Welcome! A world where fantasy meets reality

        Outdoor Wedding - Beach/ Water Backdrop

Photo credit - Tobago Weddings; Trinidad and Tobago.

Beach weddings give the unique atmosphere of romance, gorgeous scenery and a relaxed ambience for a couples wedding day.

Trinidad and Tobago hosts a number of stunning locations such as Salybia beach, Maracas Bay, Las Cuevas, Pigeon Point and Pirates Bay. These beaches provide the element of drama to the seaside experience for the bridal party.

Choices of lush green palm trees, to rocky coastlines and foaming rushing waves provide the spirit of chill, laid back, easy going Caribbean days that offer the wedding party a different environment to the standard cathedral setting. 

 While you will be expecting to get beautiful photos on your day, the timing and date logistics must be carefully planned and thought out before the big day is set.

Placing a date for a wedding is usually incumbent on many factors, such as the availability of the destination, of guests, of outfits arriving and being complete on time and the basic scheduling of all the pomp and fare and is associated with weddings.

A beach wedding though, adds a special set of dynamics that associated with the timing and date planning logistics.

Brides and grooms usually expect sunny skies on their wedding day, as such, brides schedule their weddings within the June, July, August months. These months are usually known as the wedding season. Rightly so it is called  because they months are the months of least precipitation within our Beautiful twin islands.

The wedding day itself must be chosen with careful consideration, so, all you brides out there, it’s advisable that you check our weather guides, comb through the many sites dedicated towards predicting the weather, watch local weather news or even contact the Ministry of Tourism, the Regional Corporation or the village council for their projections on what the weather is usually like at your particular beach venue. It is best to leave no stone unturned and check every nook cranny and crevice when it comes to ensuring that this day is perfect for you and your guests.

Never forget that our twin Islands are Tropical islands, so while June, July and August are the most popular months for weddings, our beaches are beautiful 365 days of the year and no matter the month you choose, your wedding could still be scenic and spectacular. 

Sunny skies. Gentle breezes. Tranquil, soothing, lapping waves. 

What more can you ask for in a beach wedding day.

So all you brides and grooms out there, get to searching! And remember, it is fun to plan, just be confident that your decision is the best and no other beach venue is more perfect for you.

Next post – What Time Should My Wedding Start??