Capesthorne Administrator, Jenn is a keen blogger and offers a few insights into planning a wedding. We’ve broken the article into batches of 2. Keep an eye out for the next instalment!

I have been married for 2 years now but find myself referring back to our wedding (more specifically the planning of it) all the time. I hadn’t a clue what I was doing, despite being a stereotypical girl who dreamt about my wedding from day one. I was overwhelmed by the feeling of responsibility and the number of people I felt I had to please. People constantly told me that it was all about me and my Husband, but for me it really didn’t seem that simple. If you are a Bride or Groom to-be and any of this resonates with you, keep reading!

I have the privilege of being part-time Administrator at Capesthorne Hall, therefore speak with and meet a number of couples who are getting married. One of my favourite things about being a married woman is being able to offer advice to others going through their planning stages. Therefore I’d like to offer my humble Top Ten pieces of advice that I regularly give out to those planning their weddings:
1. Make a list of your priorities, both individually and together.
This is actually the best practical piece of advice I could give anyone planning a wedding. Unfortunately my husband and I only did this half way through our planning period! But it made life so much easier afterwards. It’s important to listen to one another and accept your differences of character and opinion (remember, that’s probably one of the reasons you’re marrying them!).

For my husband, food was at the top of his list and I’m so glad it was otherwise our guests could’ve ended up eating McDonalds and not going away saying “that was the best food I’ve ever had at a wedding.” More on the importance of Food later. My priority was the Music, which was kind of a given being a Musician myself! Again, more to follow on that… But once we were clear on each other’s bottom line, everything became so much simpler. We were also able to delegate tasks to other people more easily, being more aware of what we needed to control and what we could relinquish control of.
2. Don’t be limited by what you see in the first instance. It’s amazing what can be done with creativity.
A lot of venues we looked at seemed already ‘dressed’ to us and therefore had a pre-determined ‘theme’ or feel about them, which put us off. We were looking for a blank canvas over which I could have creative freedom. Looking back, I did create an awful lot of work for myself! But working at Capesthorne has actually made me see the endless possibility in an already dressed venue. Capesthorne has an historic elegance about it. Many couples fall in love with its decadent beauty, its idyllic romantic setting and dare-I-say, its glamour. Some people might be put off by these things, believing it’s not their style or taste (I was one of them!), however I have seen how a venue’s whole ambience can be transformed by small touches. The colour of the table linen, the choice of flowers, the wedding favours scattered across tables. And actually many weddings become all the more unique when people think outside of the box and add their own personality to an already dressed venue. If you are struggling to find your ‘Perfect Venue’, I would encourage you to be confident in your overall vision and not be limited by places just as they are.

Useful links:

https://creativeclemps.wordpress.com/2015/06/16/the-great-clempner-wedding/

Tips 3 and 4 to be published shortly………