Jade, turquoise, mint, greeny blue - whatever this colour is - I like it a lot

I don't know what it is about this colour that gets me. It's subtle but makes an impact. It's feminine but not too girly. I am totally smitten.



swoon.....



No wonder she's laughing, her shoes are AMAZING.





This colour goes super well with a ruffly pastel pink cake...











Has this colour always been around? I feel like I've only been aware of it in the past year or so if that doesn't sound insane? Surely it existed before 2009. And what is it's proper name? A colour this splendid should have a proper name.

Marquee Weddings

As you may know from reading this blog or because you know me in 'real life', I am not married. I do have a rather lovely boyfriend, but I have not yet personally done what I professionally arrange! That sounds kind of weird but you get what I mean.

However as you can imagine I do think about weddings rather a lot. When I'm working with a client I obviously create what they want but they are definitely times when I think about what I'd want if I got married.

Part of me thinks I'd elope to Vegas or somewhere and then come back and announce my 'marriedness', but another part of me thinks I wouldn't be able to resist a big fat shindig.

I thought it might be helpful to do a series of posts on how I would go about things if I was getting married. Of course you might not have the same taste as me but you may well find some useful tips or things you haven't considered yourself.

Although I should note, my main objective in doing this post is to totally indulge myself so please forgive me.

So here goes.

If I were getting married I would want...

A marquee wedding

Hard to imagine on a cold and miserable day like today, but for a summer wedding I think there's nothing better.

When I'm not flitting between various different ideas there is one type of wedding that I always imagined having. I envisaged a big white marquee (but with all the sides open so it's really just a canopy) in my mum's garden, in the house I grew up in. I have to say I didn't do much dreaming of being a princess and walking down the aisle when I was little, but I did grow up always assuming I'd get married in my garden. It's pretty perfect for a wedding really, the main garden would hold the marquee and the bottom garden (which used to be an orchard) and can be got to through a winding old path is obscured by huge trees and would be perfect for camping and partying later on.

But alas my mum is selling the house so this is unlikely to happen. I think I'd still like the same kind of wedding but obviously at a different location.

I like marquees because they're so versatile and flexible. Whilst there are hundreds of awesome venues that suit each couples' needs, I know I'd want to combine bits of all of them. Okay so with a marquee you don't get stunning architecture or historical rooms but you do get flexibility. You can have vintage tents, classic white, Arabian themed, not to mention the fact they're like blank canvases. No worries about dodgy colour schemes and old carpet with a marquee.

Not only that but in theory you can put them anywhere. You can party as long as you like (no kicking out at 11pm) and you can put the whole wedding together yourself. No caterer or photographer you wouldn't choose but have to as the venue recommends.

I should note here, there are many venues that are very accommodating, flexible and beautiful (this is just one girl's desires).

But the main reason I'd want a marquee wedding is because it's unique. No other couple will have had the same wedding with the same style in the same place. I know I'd want my wedding to be totally 'us' and creating a wedding from scratch is how I'd feel that.

Weddings are all about personal preference. What makes one person feel special isn't necessarily so for another. I've been to, and worked with couples having amazing weddings in various different venues. But for me it's creating something site specific and of the moment. Picture a farmer's field - normally filled with cows - but for one day the site of a celebration of love, food, music, dancing - before returning 24 hours later to it's natural state.

That, to me, is pure romance.

*I just want to reiterate to anyone feeling offended, I am not saying marquee weddings are the superior choice, in fact they're a whole lot of work (which I'll tackle in another post), but it's what I would personally want to do. For now anyway, I'll prob change my mind again soon.*

Pink & Purple

Pink and purple is currently my favourite colour combo. I love the unapologetic bright, bold, sexiness of these two together. Pale pink, bright purple vs hot pink and lilac I like 'em all...



I adore these short, pastel dresses. At the risk of upstaging the bride I'd love to see some daring bridesmaids in these bad boys.



Are these purple hydrangeas I spy?



Fresh flowers on the head instead of in the hands. Has anyone seen a bride do this?



Could this boutonniere be any more gorgeous/divine/cute/insert any other overused adjective?



So technically this isn't a groom, it's the rather delish Devendra Banhart, nonetheless I'm quite a fan of the pink bow tie and black braces.



For sheer glam factor, this pale lilac gown...



Or this pink perfection perhaps...



This one is an actual real bride...



Yes, I'll have all of these please...



Some of you clever chicks will have noticed this ring is not pink and purple, rather blue and purple but it's too damn wondrous not to include.



Pale pastel pinkies and over the knee socks...



or the rather more glam satin babies...



Not sure how I could bring myself to cut this...



Combined with other bright hues for a yummy dessert table...



In the style of good old Chandler from Friends, ' Could this tree be any more amazing?'



Do you love pink & purple as much as me? What are your colour obsessions at the moment?

Launching new blog post: Style crush on...

Zooey Deschanel

I said recently I was going to launch some new monthly (prob more frequent) features. Well one of these is the Style Crush.

When you plan a wedding (your own of course, or other peoples like I do) you think a lot about style. Your collective style will underpin the whole wedding. From what food you want to serve to how you want the tables laid out - pretty much every decision is made based on your own opinion of what you like and don't - your style essentially.

So before you pick a colour scheme, or for that matter before you even make decisions such as what type of reception venue you want, I think it's worth considering what your personal style is. Most of us don't fall neatly into a category - we straddle many styles depending on our mood among other things. And there's nothing wrong with that, in fact I love being a bit of a style chameleon. But when it comes to your wedding planning, having a clear sense of your overarching style will help you whittle through all the pretty things you want at your wedding to really know what's you. What will help your day be a true reflection of you.

And so that leads us nicely into this post and subsequent ones. I'm going to feature girls probably, (although I can think of some men I'm going to feature) that I admire the 'style' of. Many images used will be from magazine shoots but you can still get a sense of the 'essence' of them.

Some of these style crushes will be fairly obvious choices I guess but some might surprise you. Style to me isn't just about clothes or fashion it's everything about a person and the way they decide to live their life.

So first up is Zooey Deschanel. She could be Katy Perry's cooler twin sister, that aside, this girl oozes natural style and charm.

I think she channels vintage chic with hints of a bygone era and is effortlessly chic without seeming contrived.










With her band mate M. Ward, I am lusting over this dress.





Who are your style crushes?

The Monthly Mixtape

Coming from music backgrounds (the other, more silent half of Savoir still works as a booker for a music PR agency) we really don't talk enough about music on this blog.

There's so much I could say about music and why I love it in general let alone at weddings, so I'm not even going to start.

Instead I'm starting a new, probably monthly feature, of 'alternative' wedding music, called The Monthly Mixtape. We're going to compile a selection each month of music we ♥ and would be part of our wedding mixtape.

Some old tunes, some new, some you'll have heard, some you might not.

Music to walk down the aisle to, to dance your first dance to, or maybe just have on your playlist .

So here's 10 random lurrrvve songs for you to get all soppy and romantic to.

1. The Maccabees - Toothpaste Kisses - just a damn beautiful song - probably my favourite both lyrically and musically here. Check out the quite random vid below...




The Temper Trap - Sweet Disposition - ditto the loveliness
The Beach Boys - I Was Made to Love her - high tempo and fun
Radiohead - All I Need - okay so it's a bit sombre but it's an intensely romantic song
The Rolling Stones - That's How Strong My Love Is - maybe as good as the original
Green Day - Last Night On Earth - unashamedly romantic
The Killers - My List - starts off pretty sentimental - then throws in some Killers energy and good ole riffs.
Alaska in Winter - Lovely Lovely Love - because of the title but it's a pretty epic tune
She & Him - I Was Made For You - because who wouldn't want to be a bit like Zooey Deschanel and the song is sweet without being saccharine
Friendly Fires - Kiss of Life - 'A thousand butterflies from your lips to mine'


What are your thoughts? What would be on your absolute must have music list?

Let yourself be idle

I'm a busy person. I'm happiest when I have things to do, people to see. I don't get overwhelmed with lots to do I tend to thrive on it. And I'm pretty good at relaxing. I know when I've had enough of the world and need a hot water bottle, my bed and a good book.

You'll have to bear with me whilst I formulate what I'm trying to say here - this isn't a post about how great I am :)

Running my own wedding planning business means there's never an off day. Clients get in touch anytime, emails don't stick to 9-5 hours and aside from all that my mind rarely switches off from what I've got to do/ should do/ need to do/ want to do. What's more, my business is still under 18 months old technically, so there's always something new to learn. And with twitter, facebook, and a blog to keep updated there is always something to focus on.

But how good is it being busy all the time? For my career and my sanity?! If I'm always working when am I thinking things through let alone having time for a life. We all put meetings and deadlines in our diaries. But we don't tend to schedule in time to think about things for meetings and deadlines. Yes we prepare for them but do we think about them.

For those of you a little confused here, I'll try to clarify what I mean.

My sister is a philosopher (well, a philosophy student at least). And she spends a lot of time in bed. It makes her come across a touch lazy and we have had many fights about this in the past when I've got annoyed at the lack of bread/milk in the flat. Whenever we discuss it she claims that in order to be able to write her essays and not lose the train of thought, she has to have time to think. And idly think at that. To daydream, explore her mind and not try to do anything. She says that by not trying to get on with things her thoughts develop organically and she comes up with some of her best work.

Right so how does this apply to life as a wedding planner? My job doesn't quite allow the luxury of time in the same way. Can you imagine if I said to a bride I was in bed allowing my thoughts about her wedding to develop organically? Clearly this wouldn't be good for my business.

When I have a migraine, which I get about once a month, I am forced to spend a few hours in bed, often in the middle of the day. Of course I've had them out and about and when I have to work or can't get to bed I survive. But if I'm at home, working on nothing immediately pressing, I can slide into cool bedsheets, a flannel on my head and let my thoughts drift. And it's at these times I have the most decisive, clear thoughts about my business and often life in general. Okay so the codeine might help this daydreaming state but I think it's more about letting myself off the hook.

In a long winded way I am trying to say to all of you wedding professionals, brides and well, people in general that it is okay to stop once in a while. Stop thinking about everything you should do and do nothing. Dream, think, wish, whatever. Just don't put pressure on yourself and enjoy being idle. It won't hurt your professional and personal life, if anything it will help it as you'll slow down and naturally see what you're happy/unhappy with and what you want to do.

So take a leaf out of my sis' book, schedule some bed time in the middle of the day, close your eyes and let your mind wander...

A prop to rival moustaches...

Not possible I hear you cry. Well, I don't know, I'm quite a fan of these big pink lips. Perfect for a good old photobooth session methinks.... and a Friday evening.



You can get these here (no UK delivery I'm afraid peeps).