Chewton Glen

We have just returned from a beautiful wedding at Chewton Glen on the Dorset coast. The venue has been refurbished since we last worked there and now offers a contemporary function room which can seat up to 140 for a wedding breakfast.

The ceremony took place in the Conservatory, simply decorated with ruscus and pealight trails to the roof beams and with a floral arch as the centrepiece. An ivory aisle carpet provided warmth. This room was turned around in the evening to provide a chill-out area, with furniture provided by the Raj Tent Club and soft uplighting supplemented with candles. Brass lanterns and votives decorated the tables.

As the ceilings are not particularly high our 68cm silver candelabra were ideal for the tables in the Lake Suite. With 5 candelabra per table of 30 guests, separated by mirrored tanks of summer flowers and vintage votives, a stunning dining experience by candlelight was created. Chair covers completed the look and transformed this room into a luxurious summer wedding venue.

The gardens were subtly lit and complemented with our "paper bag" lanterns, providing a soft glow to mark out the walkways between the function areas.

Dancing in the evening took place in the Garden Room, where we provided simple uplighters to add colour and to illuminate the band, and a gobo to provide a contrast and interest to the dance area.

It was a pleasure to work again with suppliers who are so well known to us through our wedding co-ordination work, including Keith Appleby (photographer), Linda Fripp (cakes), Pains Fireworks and the Raj Tent Club (Indian/Moroccan style furniture).

Decorating Barns

Last weekend we returned to Kingston Country Courtyard in Dorset, one of the many barn venues in the UK which offer great flexibility for a party or wedding reception. These venues really lend themselves to dressing and the beams provide a framework for lighting and draping to be installed neatly and safely.

Pealights are a firm favourite for barns and these can be wrapped around beams or provided in the form of our twisted willow arrangements around the perimeter.

Drapes can be used to segregate a barn into different areas or to frame windows and doors. We have also dressed barns by draping all of the walls to soften the overall effect and provide a lighter finish against which to inject colour through lighting. For themed events, drapes can be used to inject an element of drama and one such example of this was a recent Moulin Rouge themed event for which we installed red velvet theatre curtains and a fringed pelmet along one of the ceiling beams.

High ceilings are ideal for tall table centres and candelabra work particularly well in barns, providing a classic or rustic look depending on the style of the event. With our battery operated candles, candelabra can be used in any location even if there are restrictions on naked flames.

Other items often suggested for barn venues include chair covers and co-ordinated linen, topiary trees, storm lanterns, votives and for outside: gas flambeaux, hanging lanterns and paraffin flares. For examples of decorating barns, further information and images are available on our website by clicking here.

Kings College Cambridge

Last weekend we were back at Kings College, a regular haunt. These institutions offer fabulous venue spaces with grounds, spectactular rooms and good food. However, they all suffer from the same problem - that of resembling a canteen! This is easy to overcome with the use of chair covers to turn the venue from a educational establishment into a wedding or party venue. Supplemented with bows in your colour scheme, other decorative items we have provided here include table and floor standing candelabra, votives, storm lanterns on the tables and on the galleries, charger plates, gas flambeaux and muslin drapes to cover noticeboards.

Decorating Churches

We are regularly asked to decorate Churches for weddings, concerts, recitals and special services.

Our iron candelabra complement most interiors and are available with regular or battery operated candles, the latter for those venues that do not allow naked flames.

Lighting is key for Churches as ambient light is often subdued and this can make a vast difference to the look and feel of the area.

Popular requests are uplighters to highlight columns, arches and other architectural features, storm lanterns to decorate sills and smaller candle holders (all of course available in battery form as well as with real candles) to dress ledges.

For more elaborate events, draping can also be used to hide storage areas, provide a focal point or simply to dress the space.

New Recommended Florist

This weekend we had the pleasure of working with Victoria Arrowsmith who operates in the North Norfolk area. Victoria obviously takes great pride and enjoyment in her work and the attention to detail demonstrated was superb - something we don't always experience with other suppliers. Victoria can be contacted at the following email address: victoria@arrowsmiths.biz and we look forward to working with her again soon.