Let’s Stir Things Up

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Personalised Drink Stirrers

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The wedding cake has been cut, speeches have been toasted, bubbles are flowing, the music is playing, you’ve carefully positioned some plasters (US read: Band Aids) on your feet and you’re hitting the dancefloor. 

You’ve belted out “Wannabe” with your mates (HAS to be done!) and returned to your table to hydrate – using ‘hydrate’ in the loosest form possible here, before the inevitable Grease medley starts…we are NOT missing that, it’s legit’ my favourite part of any wedding reception.  The cake is a very close second!  But … you return to your table to find another 20 half-empty glasses have appeared in your absence with no obvious owners and you now have zero clue which drink is yours!  We’ve all been there.

Our solution, personalised drink stirrers! Leave them on your guests’ place settings and they can transfer them from drink to drink throughout the night.  Your guests will love extra little touches like this – they won’t be stuck in line at the bar waiting to order a replacement drink missing out on “Summer Lovin’” for a start!  

Really simple & cost effective to make, all you will need is….

You will need:

• Uni Posca Gold Chisel Pen, 8mm

• Rubber Stamp Set with ink (similar alternative to the one used in the video)

• Coloured Card

• Bamboo Paddle Skewers, 15cm

• Ruler

• Pencil

• Scissors

• Glue (aka Pritt Stick)

Happy Crafting Brides & Grooms-to-be!

Got any questions or video requests? Leave them in the comments & we’ll do our best to help. Tell us how you got on & tag us in your photos over on Instagram: @bridesociety_uk, we’d love to see what you chose to do with yours!

Looking for more content like this? Check out this playlist.

—Bride Society

Flying the Flag

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DIY Best Day Ever Banner Flag

If you’re nifty with a sewing machine, this week’s DIY idea could be perfect for you. We’ve created a wall hanging banner that, depending on the size you make, could easily be used for wedding decor, your wedding chair backs or even a giant welcome sign. And they look great just hanging in your home as well!

If you’re less confident with a sewing machine, this DIY can easily be adapted by using a no-sew alternative to hem the edges.

For our banner we used:

  • Unbleached calico
  • A paper template – our finished banner measured 18cm x 23cm (at the point) and we used a hem allowance of 1.5cm for all sides and 5cm at the top to create the channel.
  • Fabric scissors
  • Sewing Machine
  • Fabric Pen
  • Wooden dowel
  • Screw eyes

There are so many ways to create the words on your banner, and of course, personalise it to say whatever you want! Maybe your names, a favourite song lyric, or just something meaningful to you both.

If you have something like a Cricut machine you could create the text using that, if not, you could use iron on fabric transfer paper, a stencil, a fabric pen (like we did), fabric paint and a brush or even just a Sharpie! N.B. If you go down the Sharpie route, test it on a piece of your fabric first as the ink may bleed.

The possibilities are endless!

We’d love to see if you give this DIY a go, tag us on Instagram so we can have a nosey.

–Bride Society

Love Letters and Edible Roses

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Simple Valentines Cupcake Ideas

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If you’re looking for ways to treat your other half this Valentine’s Day, our Valentine themed cupcake ideas are sure to be a big hit. We’re showing you how to create three simple design ideas.

Flowers may be a classic, but with our piped rose design you could create your own ‘bouquet’ of roses. These just have the advantage of being edible!

Or if your don’t really celebrate February 14th, these designs would also work well as an alternative wedding cake idea or edible wedding favours! Just alter the colours to match your own colour scheme.

Have some fun, personalise the decorations and we’d love to see your results. Tag us on Instagram if you give these a go.

You will need…

  • Cupcakes – either homemade or shop bought (undecorated)
  • Buttercream – uncoloured and shades of pink and purple (We used Colour Mill Red to colour the buttercream as well as Sugarflair Grape Violet)
  • Fondant – coloured green (We used Colour Mill Green to colour the fondant)
  • Piping bags and nozzles: We used a 2D(or 1M) for all three cupcakes. For the multicoloured cupcake we also used PME 44 small nozzle, a small open star nozzle and a PME 57R.
  • Small leaf plunger cutter
  • Chocolate of your choice to create the cupcake toppers for cupcake 1.
  • Sprinkles – All sprinkles used were from https://www.bakingtimeclub.com​

–Bride Society

You’re the Bomb!

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How to Make Hot Chocolate Bombs

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Hot chocolate bombs have ‘exploded’ in popularity in the last few months so we’ve taken the traditional ‘bomb’ and made it perfect for a valentines treat or even a winter wedding favour idea. 

If you’re not sure what we’re talking about, hot chocolate bombs are chocolate hearts filled with hot chocolate powder and marshmallows. When added to warm milk, the chocolate melts away and the marshmallows ‘explode’ to the top of your mug.

You will need:

  • Heart mould – we used this one
  • Chocolate of your choice to line the heart moulds – we’ve used both dark chocolate and also white chocolate coloured with Colour Mill food colouring to create the pink chocolate.
  • White chocolate for decoration – melted and used in a piping bag
  • Sprinkles for decoration
  • Hot chocolate powder
  • Mini Marshmallows

Instructions for use:

  • Heat some milk and pour into your favourite mug
  • Place the heart hot chocolate bomb into the warm milk
  • Stir and enjoy!

If you’d like to see one of our hot chocolate bombs in action, check out our Reel below!

—Bride Society

And Just Like That…

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DIY Neon Sign

Neon signs might be retro, but they are retro cool!  Neon came back in a big way in recent years and even found its way into weddings (no longer confined to raves & festivals!), giving them a cool, edgy vibe.  Yes, I appreciate me using the word ‘cool’, now three times, in one paragraph, makes me very un-cool (four! Fail). 

Prop your personalised sign up against your sweetheart table or rest it on an easel besides your cake table…as night falls it will add a unique effect to your photos and keep your décor look fresh throughout the day (handing out glow sticks = optional!).  Then when the day is over, hang it in your home as the perfect reminder of your Big Day, and as a handy lamp!

You will need:

  • Electroluminescent wire (EL wire), 9ft (always go bigger than you think you’ll need!), red
  • Loctite Super Glue, Power Flex
  • Electric drill
  • Wood drill bit, size 4
  • White water-based paint. We’re using Dulux wall paint, brilliant white matte
  • Sheet of chipboard / MDF, 44×21 inches
  • Pliers
  • Pencil
  • Eraser
  • Scissors
  • Masking tape
  • Large paint brush

…and don’t forget the batteries!

If you’re painting the lettering by hand with us (alternatively you could use vinyl):

If you’re hanging the sign:

Happy Crafting guys!

Got any questions or video requests? Leave them in the comments & we’ll do our best to help. Tell us how you got on & tag us in your photos over on Instagram: @bridesociety_uk, we’d love to see what you chose to do with yours!

Looking for more content like this? Check out this playlist.

—Bride Society

Hostess With The Mostest

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DIY Personalised Coasters | 2 ways

This week’s craft couldn’t be more perfect (yes, tooting my own horn, but hear me out…)!  Firstly, we’re knocking out 2 birds (sorry!) as this covers off both your name cards/place settings AND your wedding favours.  I know what you’re thinking, we’ve already hit the jackpot, what else could there be? …Well… this is a craft that will be there for you through champagne wedding toasts to a cosy cuppa in front of Netflix.  Yes, all this from a simple, yet on point, craft project…Personalised Coasters!

What’s more, even if you’re reading this and not planning a wedding…erm, hello dinner party ‘hostess with the mostest’, #hostgoals!

The spoils continue this week as we’re bringing you TWO mini tutorials on how to make your coasters!  First up, the ‘handmade’ method and secondly, for those of you who have taken the leap in to the crafting world that is Cricut, we have the ‘Cricut’ method.

What you’ll need (no affiliate links)…

For BOTH methods you’ll need:

• Acrylic Discs, Clear, 10cm

• Gel Dots, 8mm

• Pebeo Mixtion Gilding Paste Tube, 37ml

• Gedeo Gold Gilding Leaves

• Humbrol Evoco Brush

• Scissors

• Masking Tape

For the ‘Handmade’ method:

• Uni Posca Gold Chisel Pen, 8mm

….and a printer, unless your handwriting is already on point then feel free to fly solo!

For the ‘Cricut’ method:

• Cricut Maker

• Cricut Premium Vinyl (White, Permanent Glossy)

• Cricut Transfer Tape

• Cricut Basic Tool Set

• Cricut Fine Point Blade (usually included with the Cricut Maker machine)

• Cricut StandardGrip Mat

YouTube: Personalized Coaster Tutorial

Happy Crafting guys!

Got any questions or video requests? Leave them in the comments & we’ll do our best to help. Tell us how you got on & tag us in your photos over on Instagram: @bridesociety_uk, we’d love to see what you chose to do with yours!

Looking for more content like this? Check out this playlist.

—Bride Society

To Top It All Off

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Cricut Cake Topper Tutorial | How to design, cut and assemble your own cake topper.

It may well be one of the most challenging Januarys on record, I’m calling it!  But no matter what is going on out there, we are still here for you, crafting away, bringing you plenty of tutorials, inspiration and advice to help you prep for your big day…no matter when that might be (we have everything crossed for you that it ends up being on the date you’ve planned and in the way you hope it to be!!). 

If like us, you’ve decided the only way through a long, cold and dark lockdown is to get your craft on, then, hello!

This week we’re whipping out the trusty Cricut machine to show you step by step how to make your own personalised cake topper for your wedding (or, let’s get real, any celebration will do…the cat’s birthday? Sure! Surviving a full week of e-learning? Knock yourself out!).  A great project you can tick off your list well in advance of the big day seeing as they aren’t perishable and take up next to no space to store.  If you were lucky enough to find a Cricut under your Christmas tree a couple of weeks ago (I know, only a close second to finding an engagement ring!) and are still getting to grips with it, this is the perfect, low stress, place to start.

Here’s our list of supplies:

• Cricut Maker (other Cricut machines can be used to make this project too!)

• Cricut Shimmer Paper Sampler (or card of choice)

• Cricut Basic Tool Set

• Cricut Fine Point Blade (usually included with the Cricut Maker machine)

• Cricut StrongGrip Mat

• Lollypop sticks (10cm)

• Hobbycraft Mini Glue Gun

….and cake(s) of choice!

If you’re in the United States, you can get your Cricut Shimmer Paper here and for Canada here.

Happy Cricuting….and cake eating!!

Looking for more content like this? Check out this YouTube playlist. If you’ve got any questions, leave us a comment and we’ll try to help. Don’t forget to tag us in your photos over on Instagram, we’d love to see how yours came out.

NB. This video is not made in association with Cricut or Hobbycraft. There are no affiliate links listed here. If you choose to use other materials or equipment to make this project, please refer to the cricut website as instructions will vary slightly.

—Bride Society

A New Chapter

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How to Start Wedding Planning during a Pandemic

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Happy New Year!

The festive season often brings with it a lot of proposals, so if that’s you and you’ve found your way here to begin your wedding planning process, first, CONGRATULATIONS! and second, you’ve come to the right place!

It goes without saying that this year is slightly different than previous when it comes to wedding planning certainty, however, be excited! There’s hope and optimism for the year ahead, so we’re giving you our tips and advice for getting started with your wedding planning during a pandemic.

Things are different, there’s no denying that, but with that comes an opportunity to be creative and think differently about things. Your wedding planning story is going to be different from anyone else’s outside of 2020/2021 so you might as well try and make it a good one.

And if this is all new to you, we have three years of wedding planning content, from tips and advice to DIY ideas and honeymoon inspiration here and over on our Youtube channel. If you have any specific video requests please feel free to let us know by commenting below or over on our Instagram page.

-Bride Society

Here’s to Hope

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Our 2020 Christmas Wishes

Well, that was an ‘interesting’ year. We know it’s been a challenging, heart-breaking and difficult year for most in one way or another, including you guys who have been trying to plan / replan your weddings on top of it all.

Bride Society’s year has been a little different too. The two of us haven’t been able to meet up to film in person since March and so we’ve had to adapt how we bring you our weekly YouTube content. We’re sad we’ve not been able to see each other or bring you some of the content we’d hoped to this year.  But with the power of Zoom we have at least been virtually side by side on occasion, and in between times there has been a definite boost in the amount of wedding DIY tutorials available for you on our channel…we hope they’ve kept you occupied!

There have also been some positives in amongst it all over here at BSoc HQ…we’ve virtually met some new people in the industry and managed a few collaborations. We even hit some pretty significant milestones in the world of YouTube and Instagram along the way that were a big achievement for us. Thank you so much for your support…we genuinely appreciate every like, every view, every follower, every subsciber and every watch minute.

We hope you all have a lovely Christmas no matter what form it might be taking this year and we’re excited to be back with you on January 1st 2021 to start afresh.

If you’ve got some down-time over the festive period and want to get ahead on your wedding planning, don’t forget we’ve got an extensive range of videos you can check out, including our wedding trend predictions for 2021.  Or, if you’re looking to get crafty for Christmas, we’ve got lots of festive DIYs too that are perfect for your home, not just weddings!

Our 2020 Christmas Wishes

Here’s to a more hopeful New Year, sending you all lots of love and best wishes,

Bride Society x

Deck the Halls

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DIY Air Dry Clay Christmas Tree Decorations | Wedding Favours | Place Settings | Gift Tags

Our air dry clay decorations are perfect for so many occasions!
Wondering what to do for wedding favours for your winter wedding? Your guests will definitely take these home to put on their tree.
Want to up-level your gift tag game this Christmas, these are sure to impress.
Hosting the in-laws for the first time and want to add some place settings to your Christmas table? Bingo. Place setting and table gift all in one.

They’re so simple to make, you just need a bit of time as the clay will take a couple of days to dry out properly depending on how thick you roll it.

For our tutorial we used some old cookie cutters to create the star and heart shapes, but use whatever shape and size you want, or go freehand with a knife! Don’t forget to add a hole in the shape BEFORE you allow the clay to dry out. This means you/your guests will be able to hang the decoration up on their tree without any problems.

Once your shapes have completely dried, you can get on with decorating them! We used stamps to write the names and a message. If you’re using them as your wedding favours you could add the guests name on one side and your names/initials and the date on the other so they’ll always remember your special day when looking at their tree! To really add some Christmas sparkle, we also used some gold leaf. We used leafing size to attach the gold leaf to the clay shapes.
But get creative! Customise your decorations however you want, with paint, gold leaf, glitter – anything goes!

Air Dry Clay
Mini Alphabet Stamps

We’d love to see what you come up with if you give these a go! Don’t forget to tag us on Instagram

-Bride Society

A Winter Glow

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Winter Tealight Holders

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I’m holding my hand up and admitting that on the 1st of December I was there, putting up my Christmas decorations, with Christmas music playing in the background, a Starbucks gingerbread latte in hand and rounded off the day by renting a Christmas movie.  Yes, I’m that person…my husband just about tolerates it – mostly by spending the day in another room with his music drowning out mine and a promise that I’ll confine the Christmas ornaments that ‘creep him out’ to my office.  It’s a finely tuned arrangement that works for us, haha!

The arrival of December, the Christmas decorations, the drop in temperature and those dark evenings, can all only mean one thing…. winter is here!  Ok, so it might not technically be true for a few more weeks yet (crazy!) but for me, once all those things happen, winter has arrived.  Surely I’m not alone on this?

This week we’re bringing you our inspiration for wintery tealight holders that will create the perfect winter wonderland look for your seasonal wedding or bring a little cosiness to your home during those dark evenings…and, let’s face it, afternoons!  To me, winter has all the cosy vibes of autumn but with an added glitz and shimmer and so we’ve brought all the feels to our three candle holder designs:

DIY Winter Tealight Holders Tutorial

Having a go?  Share your glowing winter vibes with us by tagging us in your photos over on Instagram, we’d love to see!

Any questions or requests?  Drop us a comment below and we’ll do our best!

—Bride Society

Take a trip down Candy Cane Lane

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How to Make Candy Cane Gingerbread Biscuits

We’re really starting to get into the festive spirit and what better way than with a festive DIY – and an edible one at that!

We’re up-levelling your gingerbread biscuits by creating candy cane hugging gingerbread people! These are perfect as wedding favours if you’re planning a winter/Christmas wedding or as place settings for either your wedding table or Christmas table! Simply tie a tag around the candy cane to add the name or message.

You will need:

  • Candy canes
  • Royal icing and piping bags
  • Gingerbread person cutter
  • Rolling pin
  • Baking paper

For approximately 12 biscuits:

  • 300g self raising flour
  • pinch salt
  • 3 tsp ground ginger
  • 100g caster sugar
  • 50g margarine
  • 3 tbsp golden syrup
  • 4tbsp milk

We’re using rolled up baking paper to create the space that will be filled by the candy canes. You will need to roll up the baking paper to at least the thickness of your candy cane, preferably slightly thicker.

Keep it simple with your decoration or go wild with colour and sprinkles to really personalise your gingerbread people.

We’d love to see if you give these a go. Tag us on Instagram if you do!

-Bride Society

Just Call Me Buddy

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Fiancé(e) Christmas Gift Guide | 2020

5 weeks. 35 days. 840 hours. 50,400 minutes. Christmas is coming! Is it just me or do some of those numbers make Christmas seem like it’s just around the corner, and others like it’s still an age away?!  I’ll let you pick which number makes you the happiest!  I’m personally somewhere in the middle as my current mental state is something like, ‘somewhat unprepared but in need of something to look forward to’!

If you’ve just found yourself picking the number that makes it feel the furthest away because you’re currently panicking about a lack of gift inspiration for your other half, then fear no longer…we’ve got your back!

We know that this year Christmas prep. is looking a little different.  The shop doors are physically closed, making it harder to browse for ideas, combined with a desire to shop small, support local and to buy online where possible to avoid crowds once we are allowed out again.  Plus, with the need to purchase slightly sooner with online gifting to allow for delivery times, we thought we’d better bring you this gift guide ASAP!  Whilst we’re offering general inspiration, we’re also showing you lots of examples in today’s video…the majority of which are from independent sellers and can be purchased online.  Just call me ‘Buddy’ (too soon for a Christmas film reference?)!

Whilst we’ve focussed in on gifts for fiancé(e)s, this gift guide still has you covered if you’re buying for a couple, girlfriend/boyfriend, wife/husband, or life partner etc.  Whether you’re looking for stocking fillers or an extra special blowout treat (cos let’s face it, it’s been a heck of a year!), we’ve got inspiration for every budget. 

Like the look of a specific gift featured in this video?  All the featured gifts, and more, can be found on our Pinterest Board that accompanies this video here.

Want to leave a hint for your other half?  No judgement here!  Feel free to comment below or on YouTube which gifts you like the look of the most!  Share the video, or simply ‘accidentally’ leave it open on your computer!

Happy Shopping!

NB. Please note, there are no affiliate links associated with this video and has been made entirely independently of any of the companies featured. We are not able to accept any responsibility for the quality or reliability of any of the sellers mentioned in this video, images shown as examples only.

—Bride Society

OK 2020 We’re Done

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Wedding Trends for 2021

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Goodbye 2020! We didn’t quite manage to predict we’d be facing a worldwide pandemic when we filmed last year’s wedding trends video and we’re definitely regretting predicting that 2020 would be a bumper year for couples tying the knot!

However, we’re looking forward and we’re optimistic that weddings will be going ahead in 2021!

Obviously Covid is still having a massive impact across the world and even when things are back on track, we’re sure weddings will still be impacted in one way or another, either by necessity or choice.

So for our 2021 wedding trends video, we’ve thought about how weddings may be changed by events of 2020, as well as the usual trend predictions for flowers, outfits, decor and cake!

Check out the video below to see what we think will be some of the biggest trends in the wedding world in the coming year.

Cakes featured:

-Bride Society

Knowledge is Powder!

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Wedding Day Makeup Q&A with Pro Makeup Artist, Naomi from Beyond The Literal.

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Did anyone ever teach you how to apply makeup? Like, properly? Not just hand you a mascara and say, “you put this on your eyelashes”!  Me neither. Simultaneous equations – yes, makeup – no!  I’ve occasionally walked past the makeup counters in beauty stores and considered sitting in their chairs, only to keep on walking when I see the reps faces which seem to be showcasing their entire product line simultaneously, combined with a fear of feeling obligated to purchase an infinite amount of products I’m not sure I want, need or like afterwards.  Just me?

If you’re anything like me, you’ve maybe picked a few tricks up here and there over the years, alongside some tentative experimentation but overall you’re not exactly sure you’re doing it right, in the right order or in the ideal way for your face…and don’t even get me started on what the heck all those different brushes are for! 

Enter Naomi from Beyond The Literal…

This week’s video features our very special guest, Naomi, who is an experienced professional makeup artist based in the USA.  She not only has her own YouTube channel (find it here!) full of tips, tricks and advice but, in the age of social distancing, she also offers virtual makeup lessons (for more info. click here)!  The perfect solution – experimentation in your own home, advice tailored to you as an individual, helping you achieve the look YOU want and no guilt trip to buy certain products before you leave!  If you’re thinking of doing your own wedding day makeup, this could be the confidence boost you need.

We recently reached out to you over on Instagram to find out what questions you have about wedding day makeup…we put those questions to the Pro in this week’s video, so check out the video link below to meet Naomi and be empowered by her words of wisdom:

—Bride Society