Dorton House: Charity Rocks

30 May

If you are looking to give something back to charity as part of your wedding then how about a wedding venue ran by one? Dorton House is part of the school campus for the Royal London Society for the Blind which teaches blind and partially sighted children. The campus has many different uses but Dorton House itself, a Grade II listed Georgian Mansion House, has been completely refurbished and is licensed for corporate events, weddings and receptions.

The house has three main rooms including the Library which is the biggest and most impressive room in the Mansion House. With its gilded original marble fireplace, sweeping oak staircase and polished floor it has a lovely warm atmosphere perfect for cosy receptions on a grand scale. Wedding ceremonies can be held in an elegant side room with french doors that lead out to the terrace and gardens which make a wonderful backdrop for wedding photos. The pictures featured in this post were part of a rock the dress shoot by Nataliya at Akira Photography and show just some of the gorgeous settings at the house.


Photography Credits:
Thanks to Nataliya for sharing this shoot with us. To find out more about her photography visit Akira Photography.
 Model Hair and Makeup: Rachel, Flowers: Gaynor at Enfleur, Bride: Claire from Finest Detail Weddings, Birdcage Veil: “Anita” By Love Divine

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Fantastic Find: Charlie loves Lucy

28 May

Charlie loves Lucy is the fabulous creation of Claire Hawkes, who works out of her studio in Kent designing wedding stationery. We first saw her designs at the Bluewater Wedding Fair and thought they were totally gorgeous!

Claire has a passion for beautiful design and typography and says “we want to create exquisite stationery that’s packed with personality and without compromise”. With over six years in design Claire’s love for all things printed and has seen her business grow and now “The Tea at Elaine’s” design comes in five colour ways; Blush, Sage, Bluebell, Lemon and Mocha. I personally wouldn’t be able to choose – love them all!

Claire can either give you a completely bespoke design or you can choose from one of her fantastic ranges, some of which are shown below.

 

 

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Sunday Summary: Fairytales and Gems

27 May

This week as the sun hots up there’s been some sneaky Pimms after work action going on at Wedding Dolls HQ. There’s nothing like adding cucumber to your drink to make it feel like summer! As with lots of summer weddings we’re now on count down for our next couple to head down the aisle. They’re having an Asian Fusion wedding with hints of green and gold. Take at look at their inspiration board if you haven’t seen it already.

On the blog this week was a lovely engagement and real wedding, shot by Rebecca Douglas. Our wonderful couple, Cho and Enio, shared their gorgeous April wedding with us at Tonbridge Castle which included some really unique shots of  them on the vintage steam railway at High Rocks in Royal Tunbridge Wells.

Also on the blog was our three part special on hidden gem wedding hotels. The hotels (or restaurant with rooms!) featured were The Bell in Ticehurst, The George in Rye and The Marquis of Alkham. Each of them are really unique and offer something completely different for your wedding day, so check them out if you are still searching for that all important venue.

We rounded the week off giving our Mothers’ of the Bride a helping hand in tracking down fabulous wedding day outfits in just some of the gorgeous boutiques to be found in and around Kent.

Outfit from Any Occasion, Tunbridge Wells

Next week we’ve got a 2 part special from our English Country Garden wedding, a fab Kent wedding supplier to share and a couple of new venues to take a quick tour of.

Enjoy the sun!

x

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Five of the Best: Mother of the Bride Outfits

26 May

If there is anyone just as nervous (or possibly more!) than the bride about finding the perfect wedding attire its likely to be the Mother of the Bride. With the pressure on to look more than their best on their daughters big day The Mother of the Bride has the difficult task of  finding an outfit and then more, there’s the matching shoes, bag and head-piece to contend with too!

With such a difficult task at hand there is no need to spend hours trying to match up outfits from numerous shops as there are many fab little boutiques here in Kent dedicated to the needs of the Mother of the Bride.  Here is my pick of five of the best special occasion wear shops in Kent.

1. Le Chic Boutique ,Beckenham

2. Fashion Scene, Wrotham

3. Collection, Sandwich

4.Jacques Vert, Bluewater

5. Any Occasion, Tunbridge Wells

Happy Shopping x

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Real Wedding: Enio and Cho’s Tonbridge Castle Fairytale

25 May

Today we can share with you the gorgeous April wedding of Enio and Cho, who had their ceremony at Tonbridge Castle with the Reception and Steam Railway at The High Rock, Royal Tunbridge Wells. They started off their wedding weekend at The Brick House where the excited wedding party got ready for their big day.  Here Cho talks us through the details.

“We always wanted a small wedding with fifty or sixty people in the beautiful Kent countryside. It only took five months to do all the planning for the wedding as we wanted to get married on our anniversary date in April. As it was the wettest April ever we were so lucky that the sun came out just few hours before the wedding and stayed with us for the rest of the day.

My bridal dress was from Pronovias. My appointment with them was at 9am. My little sister picked a dress for me to try on and I fell in love with it straight away. Though I tried on two other dresses, I ended up buying that first dress. It was completely different from what I had in my mind but I loved it. By 9.25 am we were out of the shop with the dress in our hands!

My sister bought my tiara, which was by Matthew Williamson and my necklace was from Top Shop. I personalised my shoes from Dune with some diamanté. The bridesmaid dresses were from Oasis and were accessorised with belts that I made.

For the Groom we chose a dark grey silk morning suit with an ivory tie and waistcoat. The cufflinks and tie pin were bought from Victoria and Edward.

For our ceremony background music we had a piece by Beethoven. I entered to The Wedding March. Enio read a beautiful poem by Wilfred Arlan Peterson ”The Art of Good Marriage”.

For our decoration I used pearls, butterfly place cards and table stationery which were bought online. The reception and bouquet flowers were from New Covent Garden Market and arranged by my two lovely friends. The whole decor was pretty much DIY with help from 4 friends, 2 sisters and mum!  I handed a chocolate wedding favour to each of the guests instead of leaving them as part of table decor.

Into the evening we didn’t have a first dance and cake cutting but we did play loads of Grease songs – which made the dancing awesome!

Rebecca Douglas was our photographer. I loved the pictures on her website and from day one until the end of the wedding she was brilliant. Our pictures are absolutely amazing and very natural. We were very lucky to have Rebecca as our photographer. She also arranged the steam rail shots which are really different and unique.

We spent £10,000 which included our rings, the venues, our photography, make up and hair, car hire, dresses, suit and flowers.

And Cho’s tip for a perfect day? “You don’t have to follow traditions just do what you enjoy doing in your own unique way. We loved that everyone at the wedding enjoyed the day as much as we did”.

Thanks Cho and Enio for sharing their day with us and we wish you lots of love for your new life together.

All images by Rebecca Douglas

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Hidden Gem Hotels Part 3: The Marquis at Alkham

24 May

Most people who live in Kent wouldn’t make Dover their first choice for a wedding venue search but that’s all changed thanks to The Marquis at Alkham. This one-time coaching inn, set in the pretty village of Alkham, has a stylish contemporary feel but still makes the most of its historical features including exposed beams, brickwork and wooden floors.

There are lots of options for your wedding day here as next door to the hotel is a gorgeous 13th Century Church where you can take your vows or have a civil ceremony at the hotel overlooking the breathtaking Alkham Valley. The main restaurant can accommodate up to 74 guests or the marquee in the grounds can sit down up to 110. The entire hotel is also available for exclusive use.

The hotel has ten ensuite bedrooms which are a mix of luxury, superior and suites. The suites have super king size beds, monsoon showers and bathrooms with roll top bath, plus lots and lots of added extras. There are also two vineyard cottages close by (around a 20 minute walk) which offer a quiet secluded retreat.

The Marquis is probably best described as a restaurant with rooms as the food is definitely the star of the show. The 5 star restaurant was recently awarded a rising Michelin star as Head Chef Charles Lakin brings you menus that use locally caught fish and sourced produce. The wine, beer and drinks list also has a distinctly Kent feel with local vineyards represented and even a Kent inspired cocktail!

The combination of countryside views, gorgeous food and chic styling all make this a great one to put on your wedding venue shortlist.

Images courtesy of The Marquis of Alkham via Fleur Challis Photography

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Hidden Gem Hotels Part 2: The George in Rye

23 May

The George in Rye is always one of my first choices for a weekend away on the East Sussex coast. Right in the heart of Rye with its little cobble streets and lovely unique high street, The George has a modern but welcoming feel. Boutique hotel and restaurant is probably the best way to describe this place and I just love the George Tap bar with big cosy seats and warming fireplace.

A fantastic venue for any wedding day their original Georgian Ballroom seats over 100 guests and is licensed for civil ceremonies.With only one civil ceremony per day, you won’t be bumping into any other brides and the wedding team will be on hand to make sure you receive their undivided attention.

If you are going for it big style then you can hire out the whole place. Including all the bedrooms, the bar, sitting and reception rooms and the garden terrace, this means you are guaranteed your very own exclusive town house hotel for your big day.

The hotel has twenty-four individually designed bedrooms, each with its own fabrics, colour scheme and bespoke furniture. There’s a mix of styles and sizes from the Queen Rooms to the Junior Suites (some of which have a four-poster bed that you’ll be wanting for your wedding night!).

They have a number of wedding packages you can choose from as well as menu choices using seasonal ingredients sourced from local farms and trawlers of Rye Bay.

All in all, this contemporary take on an old historic coaching inn will be sure to tick the boxes on your wedding venue check list.

All images courtesy of The George in Rye

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Hidden Gem Hotels Part 1: The Bell In Ticehurst

22 May

Over the next three days we will be sharing with you some very special wedding venues that you might not find in your usual listings. They could come under the heading “boutique hotel” or “restaurant with rooms”, but whatever you prefer to call them they each have a wonderfully individual style. Today is the turn of The Bell in Ticehurst.

outside of venue

Every now and then you find a wedding venue which offers something a bit out of the ordinary and The Bell in Ticehurst ticks all the boxes. Essentially once a local pub it has undergone a massive transformation into a fabulously individual bar, restaurant and boutique hotel.

For your wedding you can choose from The Assembly Room which has one big table for 30 people or one big dance floor for 100. Then there is the stable; originally a carriage room, which has a big table which sits in the pit where the carriages would have been drawn into, it has seating for 22 people. Both rooms are free to hire. The three course wedding menu is around £35 per head, with delicious quality produce sourced locally.

We were shown round by the very lovely General Manager, Jules Clark, who filled us in on just some of the history of this fantastic building. Each of the seven individually named and designed bedrooms features a silver birch tree (Tice‘hurst’ being Saxon for ‘wood’) as well as gorgeous bedlinen and extra special attention to detail.

Make like us and go for dinner (we also stayed the night) to enjoy the Bells fantastic food and wonderful hospitality and let Jules and the team show you round.

Restaurant

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Rebecca Douglas Photography: Engagement Shoot of Enio & Cho

21 May

Happy Monday All! Today we are sharing a lovely engagement shoot by Kent based photographer, Rebecca Douglas. The shoot took place in Central London where the gorgeous Enio and Cho had their first date. Come back to the blog on Friday when we’ll share their wedding at Tonbridge Castle.

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Sunday Summary: Lots of Treats

20 May

This week we have been looking at hidden gem wedding venues which we will be sharing with you over the next week. We’ve also been working hard on our new website which will be ready to launch in June. We’re super excited about it and can’t wait to share it with everyone.

We also had a little field trip yesterday to the Pantiles Food Festival in Tunbridge Wells. It’s always a great place to find lovely, talented and food obsessed people who cater for weddings in the county.

We kicked off on Monday with news of a bridal gown sale at Froufrou Bridal Boutique which is on next month and includes discounted dresses from famous designer names (see a few of the dresses available below)

bridal gowns

We also shared with you two fantastic Kent suppliers. Florist in the Forest was up first with owner Katherine Craft, who showed us her beautiful and stunning designs. Katherine is a talented lady as she not only creates her designs but also grows her own flowers at her studio and cutting garden in Broadwater Forest. Then we met Jennie Bishop of Little Boutique Bakery where we got to see just some of her fantastic wedding cakes. Jennie told us “we are known for our elegant and unique designs and attention to detail, we only take on a limited number of commissions per week so we can ensure the utmost quality and time required to complete orders.” These are cake and flower designs you won’t want to miss out on!

Florist in the Forest

Little Boutique Bakery

Candy Anthony

The final part of our series about Planning a Vintage Wedding was all about the dress and how to find it. Whether you want a true vintage gown or are going for vintage styled one we shared our favourites from a range of designers and online boutiques.

Then to round off the week we brought you five of the best wedding pumps so you could save your feet but still look gorgeous!

That’s it from us so Happy Sunday everyone.

x

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