Monday 23 February 2015

Napkin folding - Hints and Tips

Hey everyone....
It's amazing what you find on Pinterest.....
even when you're not looking.

A little share for you,



Friday 13 February 2015

Money Request Cards

-Asking for money can be a difficult one, but as so many people live together before getting married these days, guest can really struggle on what to buy.


Here's a few suggestions:

General cash request poems

1) 
We made a commitment, some time ago,
Together through life, we were destined to go.
To save you looking, shopping and buying,
Here is an idea, we hope you’ll like trying!
Come to our wedding, to wish us both well,
And please make a donation to our wishing well.
*****
2) 
Our life together has already begun
And we almost have everything under the sun
So we both thought we would make a suggestion
To save you from all the searching and guessing
Instead of spending lots and lots
Just put some money with your card
And place it into our postbox
Large amounts are not anticipated
Any amount would be appreciated
Now that we have saved you all the fuss
We can’t wait for you to celebrate with us!
*****
3)
Now we are to be Mr & Mrs
We don’t need a wedding list of dishes
We have two kettles, two toasters, two microwaves
And we have dreams for which we have to save.
If you would like to give us a gift
cheque or vouchers would give us a lift
We like to think of it as our ‘Wishing Well’
Which will be filled with your love, we can tell!
*****
4)
We’ve lived together for quite a while,
With all our pots and pans,
And as we don’t need homely gifts,
We have another plan!
We know it’s not traditional,
But it’s easier that’s for sure,
To have no wedding list at all,
Your attendance means much more!
For those of you who do insist,
We have a savings pot,
A small gift to add to this,
Would really mean a lot!
*****
5)
We’ve been together for a few years now;
We have pots and pans and linen and towels;
We have glasses and toasters, really quite a few;
So instead of more gifts, we suggest this to you;
If it doesn’t offend and it won’t send you running;
What we would really appreciate is quite simply money;
We know choosing gifts can be such a pain;
And this way there is no chance of bringing the same!
*****
6)
We don’t want to offend but we have it all,
All household goods and so much more.
To save you shopping, sit back and rest,
A gift of currency is our request.
Don’t go overboard or rob any banks,
Any little thing will make us smile with thanks.
We supply the wishing well,
No wrapping, an envelope who can tell.
Now that we have saved you all the fuss,
We’d love it if you would come and celebrate with us!
*****
7)
We haven’t got a gift list for all of you to see,
because as you all know we never can agree!
But if you’d like to help us start our married life,
cash or high street vouchers, would save a lot of strife!
*****
8)
More than just kisses so far we’ve shared,
Our home has been made with love and care,
Most things we need we’ve already got,
And in our home we can’t fit a lot!
A wishing well we thought would be great,
(But only if you wish to participate),
A gift of money is placed in the well,
Then make a wish …. but shhh don’t tell!
Once we’ve replaced the old with the new,
We can look back and say it was thanks to you!
And in return for your kindness, we’re sure,
That one day soon you will get what you wished for.
*****
9)
So what do you get
For the bride and groom
Whose house needs things
In every room?
When shopping for a present 
Please don’t be rash
As there is always the option
To just give cash!
We hope you don’t find
Our request to be funny
But we really would appreciate
A gift of money
*****

Honeymoon gift request poems

10)
We know it’s traditional to write a list
But in this case there is a slight twist
Our home is complete with the usual stuff
And the things that we have are good enough
Our dream is to honeymoon in a foreign land
And walk along the beach hand in hand
We hope you don’t think of us as being rude
And that our request is not misconstrued
But a contribution to our honeymoon pot
Would be appreciated such a lot
But the most important thing to say
Is that you are there to celebrate our day!
*****
11)
We are sending out this invitation
In hope you will join a celebration
But if a gift is your intention
May we take this opportunity to mention
We have already got a kettle and toaster
crockery, dinner mats and matching coasters
So rather than something we’ve already got
We would appreciate money for our honeymoon pot
But most importantly we request
That you come to our wedding as our guest.
*****
12)
You’re invited to our wedding, when we both say ‘I Do’
And as you know we’ve been ‘I do’-ing for at least a year or two!
We’ve been together many years, and have a lovely home,
There’s not that many items we don’t already own.
So if your thoughts were on a gift, your presence will suffice;
But if you really feel the need, donations to a honeymoon would be really nice!
The choice is really up to you and we’d just like to say;
That most of all, we hope you come, enjoy yourselves, and have a lovely day!
*****
13)
We do not have a gifting list
Our house is set with nothing missed
We’d like to go on honeymoon
A place for us as bride and groom
We’re asking for a cash donation
To send us to our dream location
No matter how you feel about asking for gifts, gift-giving is very much a part of every wedding, and guests are grateful to receive instructions on what you wish for the most.

Monday 9 February 2015

Love & Marriage Poems,Quotations and Readings - Perfect for Weddings or Valantines Day

As a Calligrapher... I have a passion for quotation collecting... feast your eyes on this little lot. Suitable for both Weddings and Valentines Day. You are sure to find something suitable here:

Wedding Quotes

On this day I will marry my friend,
the one I laugh with,
live for,
dream with,
love.
There is no more lovely, friendly and charming relationship, communion or company than a good marriage.
Martin Luther
The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched. They must be felt with the heart.
Helen Keller
On this day of joy, we thank you for joining us in the celebration of our love and the beginning of our new life together.
We come to love not by finding a perfect person,
but by learning to see an imperfect person perfectly.
Sam Keen
My true love hath my heart,
and I have his
Philip Sydney, English Poet
There is only one happiness in life,
to love and be loved.
George Sands
Whatever our souls are made up,
his and mine are the same
Emily Bronte
All you need is love.
John Lennon

Biblical

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
1 Corinthians 13: 4-7 
My beloved spoke, and said to me, Arise, my darling, my beautiful one, come with me. See! The winter is past; the rains are over and gone. Flowers appear on the earth; the season of singing has come, the cooing of doves is heard in our land. The fig tree forms its early fruit; the blossoming vines spread their fragrance. Arise, come, my darling; my beautiful one, come with me.
“Song of Solomon” 2:10-13, 
For I have found the one whom my soul loves.
“Song of Solomon”
Two are better than one because they have a good return or if either for their labor. Fr of them falls, the one will lift up his companion. But woe to the one who falls when there is not another to lift him up. Furthermore, if two lie down together they keep warm, but how can one be warm alone? And if one can overpower him who is alone, two can resist him. A cord of three strands is not quickly torn apart.
Ecclesiastes 4:9-12

Poetry & Classic

On Love
an excerpt by Kahlil Gibran
Love gives naught but itself and takes naught but from itself.
Love possesses not nor would it be possessed;
For love is sufficient unto love.
Love’s Philosophy
P.B. Shelley
The Fountains mingle with the Rivers
And the Rivers with the Oceans,
The winds of Heaven mix forever
With a sweet emotion;
Nothing in the world is single;
All things by a law divine
In one spirit meet and mingle.
Why not I with thine?
See the mountains kiss high Heaven
And the waves clasp one another;
No sister-flower would be forgiven
If it disdained its brother,
And the sunlight clasps the earth
And the moonbeams kiss the sea:
What is all this sweet work worth
If thou kiss not me?
Love
Emily Dickinson
Love is anterior of life,
Posterior to death,
Initial of creation and
The exponent of breath.
From Shakespeare’s Hamlet
Doubt thou the stars are fire;
Doubt that the sun doth move;
Doubt truth to be a liar;
But never doubt I love.
To Be One With Each Other
George Eliot
What greater thing is there for two human souls
than to feel that they are joined together to strengthen
each other in all labor, to minister to each other in all sorrow,
to share with each other in all gladness,
to be one with each other in the
silent unspoken memories.

Irish Wedding Blessings

May Joy and Peace surround you both, contentment latch your door, and happiness be with you now and God Bless you evermore.
May the road rise to meet you.
May the wind be always at your back.
May the sun shine warm upon your face;
The rain fall soft upon your fields.
And until we meet again,
May God hold you in the palm of his hand.
Dance as if no one were watching
Sing as if no one were listening
And Live every day
As if it were your last.
May you both be blessed
With the strength of heaven,
The light of the sun and the
Radiance of the moon,
The splendour of fire,
The speed of lightning,

The depth of the sea,
The swiftness of wind,
The stability of earth,
And the firmness of rock.

Irish Toast

Wishing you always walls for the wind,
A roof for the rain,
Tea beside the fire,
And the love and laughter of those you hold dear.

Apache Wedding Prayer

Now you will feel no rain,
for each of you will be shelter for the other.
Now you will feel no cold,
for each of you will be warmth to the other.
Now there will be no loneliness,
for each of you will be companion to the other.
Now you are two persons,
but there is only one life before you.
May beauty surround you both in the journey ahead
and through all the years.
May happiness be your companion,
and your days together be good and long upon the earth.

Treat yourselves and each other with respect,
and remind yourselves often of what brought you together.
Give the highest priority to the tenderness,
gentleness and kindness that your connection deserves.
When frustration, difficulty and fear
assail your relationship—​as they threaten all relationships
at one time or another—​
remember to focus on what is right between you,
not only the part which seems wrong.
In this way, you can ride out the storms
when clouds hide the face of the sun in your lives
—​remembering that even if you lose sight of it
for a moment, the sun is still there.
And if each of you takes responsibility
for the quality of your life together,
it will be marked by abundance and delight.

Non-traditional Readings

"Sonnet from the Portuguese"
by Elizabeth Barrett Browning
How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.
I love thee to the depth and breadth and height
My soul can reach, when feeling out of sight
For the ends of Being and ideal Grace.
I love thee to the level of everyday’s
Most quiet need, by sun and candlelight.
I love thee freely, as men strive for Right;
I love thee purely, as they turn from Praise.
I love thee with the passion put to use
In my old griefs, and with my childhood’s faith.
I love thee with a love I seemed to lose
With my lost saints,—​I love thee with the breath,
Smiles, tears, of all my life!—​and, if God choose,
I shall but love thee better after death.
“Wedding Prayer” 
by Robert Lewis Stevenson
Lord, behold our family here assembled.
We thank you for this place in which we dwell,
for the love that unites us,
for the peace accorded us this day,
for the hope with which we expect the morrow,
for the health, the work, the food,
and the bright skies that make our lives delightful;
for our friends in all parts of the earth.
Amen

I want to grow old with you
from The Wedding Singer
I wanna make you smile whenever you’re sad
Carry you around when your arthritis is bad
All I wanna do is grow old with you.
I’ll get your medicine when your tummy aches
build you a fire if the furnace breaks
Oh it could be so nice, growin’ old with you.
I’ll miss you, kiss you, give you my coat when you are cold.
Need you, feed you, I’ll even let you hold the remote control.
So let me do the dishes in the kitchen sink
Put you to bed when you’ve had too much to drink.
Oh I could be the man to grow old with you.
I wanna grow old with you.
I carry your heart with me
by E.E. Cummings
i carry your heart with me (i carry it in
my heart) i am never without it (anywhere
i go you go, my dear; and whatever is done
by only me is your doing, my darling)
i fear
no fate (for you are my fate, my sweet) i want
no world (for beautiful you are my world, my true)
and it's you are whatever a moon has always meant
and whatever a sun will always sing is you

here is the deepest secret nobody knows
(here is the root of the root and the bud of the bud
and the sky of the sky of a tree called life; which grows
higher than the soul can hope or mind can hide)
and this is the wonder that's keeping the stars apart
i carry your heart (i carry it in my hear)

Saturday 7 February 2015

Charlotte & Sam - Dark Blue & Silver personalised wedding invitations, Wedding Post box Wishing tree tags and Favour Tags

Charlotte & Sam have chosen a Dark Blue & Silver themed wedding. 

They decided on our 'Tumbling Hearts' design and asked that the day invitations were made a little more extravagant and opted for the Gate=fold Style, while choosing the more simple flat invitations for the Evening Guests. 

They are making their own wedding favours so I made some tags in the same colour scheme to match .

The wedding post box will hold their cards inside, again using the hearts and navy blue colour scheme.


Instead of a Guest Book they are using my Wishing Tree and I've made the tags to go with them. 


It's been difficult to source boxes for these tags to be stored in after the wedding is over, however a company just happened to have some of just the right size.

The top of the box is personalised and slips off to reveal a little poem to encourage the guests to fill in a tag and hang it on the tree.

Are you on Pinterest?
If you are.... see more of our Wedding Invitations, Post boxes and tags here 

Is Blue your colour theme?
See our Blue Themed Inspired Weddings here

Wednesday 4 February 2015

Anthony & Robina - Personalised Golden Wedding Anniversary Invitation

I was surprised when Anthony & Robina visited the studio. They wanted some Golden Wedding Invitations. It really hadn't occur ed to me that you couldn't actually BUY them in town and 2 of the largest shops had sent them to me. 


whether the invitations is for a Wedding Invitation, Birthday or Retirement, the process is the same. So whatever the client wants an invitation for, we can deliver it.

Anthony & Robina chose a gold foiled butterfly design on ivory card. The top card was the invitation and the second card was the menu choice and RSVP card.

The 2 cards were tied together with a 3mm gold coloured ribbon.

So whether you need a card for your Wedding, Ruby Wedding Anniversary, Silver Wedding Anniversary, Golden Wedding Anniversary, Birthday or any other social engagement or party.... We can do it!  Your ideas are our inspiration!

Tuesday 3 February 2015

BRIDES BEWARE - WEDDING SCAMS!

Yesterday this article 

Beware the online discount wedding dresses: Angry brides share knock-off nightmares after buying gowns that looked stunning online but are HIDEOUS in real life

came us on my 
Facebook news feed and it reminded me of a post I wrote some time ago. So, for those who didn't read it, I'm re posting ... forewarned is forearmed as they say. 

It saddens me that Brides (and Grooms) get ripped off... especially on one of the most important days of their lives. Every now and again I have to post a reference to one of the worst cases of scamming I have ever come across... which I blogged about here. Kayleigh's was one of the first cases of scamming I had ever heard about.... but hers wasn't the last! I could fill my posts up with at least 1 a month and they are only the ones I hear about personally! 

But... no matter how many warnings are posted on the Internet... still the scams pour in!


The Wedding Wire put out THIS POST about Chinese Knockoff - My actual DH Gate Trash the Dress Dress vs. what's advertised 


Morilee have had to put up a HUGE list of fake websites offering to supply their dresses at a greatly reduced price! And I have to admit I was totally shocked by the crazy amount of fake websites... here....

And the problem doesn't end with Wedding Dresses.... even stationery can be a scam! I had a Bride come to me, who had not only been scammed with her dress... but her wedding stationery bought from 'Light In The Box'  I wrote about Kayleighs horrendous experience HERE

Ollievision Photography have been having their own problems with a scammer that used their Photographs to promote his business. Their article 

Steve Jackson Photography – A statement from Ollievision regarding Steve Jackson’s unauthorised use of images taken from my portfolio tells the full horrific story. 


And believe it or not... these are only the tip of the ice-berg! 

Thanks to Social Media, we are now starting to see Facebook pages emerge warning Brides of what they can expect if they order from the Internet from unscrupulous companies.

There are hundreds (I'm not kidding either!)
of people who have been caught out
and left out of pocket.
Their only crime is to try and save a few quid at a very expensive time!

CHECK THESE OUT!

Brides Beware!



My advise to Brides on the whole is 

DON'T BUY OFF THE INTERNET!

Or.... if you do... protect yourself as much as possible
and be prepared to throw away your hard earned cash 
and have to buy the item again somewhere else. 

I personally, can't believe how many young Brides (and some older ones too) will trust what they are seeing on Facebook and eBay and in fact, the Internet in general as being totally genuine. 


FACEBOOK pages can be closed down and deleted at the click of a button!

EBAY - Many eBay sites nowadays state that the seller is from the UK... NOT TRUE!  I myself bought a really large sheepskin rug from a company in London. It took 8 weeks to get here, it was unwashed, came from Morocco and was only large enough to cover my Springer Spaniel! (See even I get scammed!).

WEBSITES - No matter how professional and dapper the website looks... DO NOT TRUST what you see! Just because the URL states .co.uk or .com means nothing!

Truthfully... the safest way not to get scammed
IS TO BUY LOCAL! And buy from a company that has some history and feedback. Not just a company that has just started up, no matter how well intentioned they are... many companies fail within the first 2 years of trading! And if the company is local, make sure they have a valid business address on their website! And a land line telephone number... not some mobile number that can be switched off in a heartbeat!

BEFORE ordering ANYTHING off the internet 
(and I mean ANYTHING!)

Check out the website 
 by going to SCAM ADVISOR .COM
and entering the websites URL! 

Above all remember:
If it sounds TOO GOOD to be true,
it generally is!

And you'll be hard pushed to get your money back! 

If you have been scammed... get in touch with your local
Trading Standards Office


Have you ever been scammed?

Leave a comment and warn others!




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