blog | Hanami Dream | Cotswolds copywriter

Inspiration: festival

by Hanami Dream | 9, November, 2017 | inspiration

A real break from tradition, this festival wedding showcased an abundance of hanging greenery, dream catcher favours, festoon and ribbon drape lighting, oversized letter lighting, paper flowers, food van, chill out area and fire bowl, using different materials such as denim, macrame, paper, wood and terracotta details.

See more images in our gallery and the amazing local suppliers who came together to make this shoot possible in this blog post.

Photography by Cat Stephens Photography

The holy trinity of wedding planning – Part 3: how much

by Hanami Dream | 16, October, 2017 | blog, holy trinity of wedding planning, tips

So far in the series, I’ve introduced the three key aspects of planning a wedding that pretty much affect every other thing that is connected with your big day. These are who, where and how much (otherwise known as your guests, venue and budget). This group of three things are very much intertwined. Plus when you hold your wedding is connected too! As previously covered (in the who and where posts), nearly all the decisions you have to make about your wedding will come back to one, two or all of the elements in what I class as ‘the holy trinity of wedding planning’.

This post deals with the tricky topic of money and how to allocate and prioritise your budget.

For example, where you have your wedding will affect the cost, as a wedding abroad, a local hotel wedding or a rustic barn venue will all vary considerably in price.

Likewise, when you have your wedding will incur different price structures, especially for venues. Different times of the year vary in price and peak season (summer months in the UK) will be more expensive than winter or off peak times. Less popular days of the week are often cheaper than weekend days.

Finally, who you invite or how many guests will obviously have an impact – the more you invite, the more it will cost.

There’s often a perception that anything labelled ‘wedding’ will be more expensive. In certain areas, I don’t believe that the type of event that you’re holding should affect the costs. However, I do understand that a wedding is a really special day and so it demands a certain level of consideration, time and effort to create the special day the couple have envisaged. Couples do have a greater expectation for this life changing event (that they’ll hopefully only do once) and so this will mean more attention from suppliers which can often increase costs to cover additional involvement and interaction.

So, how much will your wedding cost?
Well, this is like asking how long is a piece of string? Because everyone has a different sized budget and it can vary based on what you choose for your day.

As with most elements of the wedding day, each component can be prioritised in order to put the focus where you want it to go. Bear in mind that within each category of your budget you have a range of price points you could choose depending on the quality (ie you could pick caviar or chips for your food! You could arrive by helicopter or have your mate’s dad drop you off in his car.)

Overall wedding budgets are on the rise. The average cost of a wedding in the UK (outside of London) is currently £27,000. The largest part of the wedding budget is spent on catering, the venue, photography, the wedding dress and entertainment – in that order.

As a guide, I tend to suggest to couples that they allocate around 35% of their overall wedding budget (£9,450 of a £27,000 budget) to cover all aspects of the reception (to include cake, décor, drink, favours, food, furniture and venue hire costs).

Other areas of the budget should include these categories:

Ceremony
Reception
Entertainment
Attire
Rings
Photography
Flowers
Stationery
Transport
Gifts
Hen/stag parties
Honeymoon (optional)

Take a look at an example of a wedding budget in percentage terms and please contact me if you’d like to see a further breakdown of costs.

Fixed costs
Pivotal to all your planning is how much money you have to play with. This will determine whether you can go to town or be a bit more creative and diy some elements yourself. How much you have to spend will definitely factor in to how many people you can invite, where you can afford and what they can eat.
There are some costs that won’t change no matter how many people are at your wedding. These are called fixed costs such as:

Ceremony fee
Decorations
Entertainment
Insurance
Photography
Rings
Venue hire costs
Wedding dress

Variable costs
There are a number of costs that will alter depending on how many people are enjoying them. As well as the number of guests, you should also consider the size of your bridal party too. These variable costs include:

Accommodation
Cake
Drinks
Favours
Food
Flowers (for attendants)
Gifts
Stationery (such as invitations, menus, orders of services, name places etc)
Suits and dresses for the bridal party
Transport

Here are my top tips for planning and managing your wedding budget:

Ascertain how much money you have available
Determine who is paying or contributing and by how much
Decide whether to include your honeymoon in the wedding budget costs
Set a budget
Stick to the budget
Have a contingency of about 10%
Determine the size of your bridal party (and who is paying for all elements of their attire etc)
Calculate number of guests attending
Prioritise the budget categories to ascertain your ‘must haves’ versus your ‘nice to haves’
Adjust the budget according to your priorities
Research costs – get at least three quotes for each item for comparison
Work out your fixed costs
Calculate the difference in variable costs depending on the number of guests attending
Confirm when and how much deposits and instalment are payable
Ask about cancellation fees and timings
Write down what you’ve paid, when you’ve paid it and what you’ve still to pay
Include tips for waiting staff etc
Remember it’s just one day and focus on what is really important – your life together!

With the who, where and how much at the fore front of your mind, you can set the date and everything else can fall in to place so you can start planning all the other finer details. Take a look at this handy wedding planning timeline to see when you need to plan for other elements of the wedding day.

Please contact me if you’d like further help and guidance with your budget allocation and a budget spreadsheet template to help with all aspects of your wedding planning.

MODELS WANTED: winter hygge styled bridal shoot

by Hanami Dream | 30, September, 2017 | news, styled shoots

Hanami Dream are looking for ‘the boy and girl next door’ type models for a winter hygge styled wedding shoot with a literary theme. The shoot will take place at a beautiful venue near Lechlade, Gloucestershire this October half term.

Female – think Tess Daly or Margot Robbie (from the Will Smith film Focus) approximately 20-30 years old, 170 cms tall or less, size 10-14
Male – think Chris Hemsworth (though not with the hair extensions in the film Thor), approximately 25-35 years old, around 175 cms tall, 40” chest, 32” waist

The shoot will be approximately 2-3 hours in the afternoon of Wednesday 25th October (weather permitting) and will provide some fantastic lifestyle shots for your portfolio (it’s also great as an engagement shoot or brilliant practice being in front of a camera before your big day).

One fitting prior to the date may be necessary. Own transport is required to GL7 3RB.

This project is supporting and showcasing local, independent wedding businesses – everyone provides their services and products for free and in return gets some wonderful lifestyle shots to use at a later date. This is a collaboration of like minded people that create great things together though don’t have the budgets to produce this kind of work if they all worked independently. See the images from Hanami Dream’s last styled bridal shoot.

If you’re available and would like to be involved in this fantastic styled bridal shoot then please email Hanami Dream on info@www.hanamidream.co.uk including

a quick intro
your stats
a contact number and
2 images of yourself (1 x face shoot, 1 x full length)

Happy 1st birthday to #UKWedLunch

by Hanami Dream | 16, August, 2017 | #UKWedLunch, news

Last week marked a whole year since my Twitter networking hour came to fruition. Having partaken in many local and wedding related networking I noticed that most hours are in the evenings and sometimes don’t include many brides or grooms to be. #UKWedLunch was born to cater for couples and wedding professionals planning a wedding in their lunch break.

A year on and #UKWedLunch is going from strength to strength; with 1,156 followers and counting; a different discussion topic every week; and lots of lively interaction between brides and grooms to be looking for recommendations and UK based wedding professionals networking in their lunch break. Lots of connections and new contacts have been formed as a result of #UKWedLunch. I’m incredibly proud of how it is developing and look forward to the next year of networking. Please spread the word so others can join us on Wednesdays 1-2pm on Twitter.

However I’m not always good at celebrating my successes. I’m often guilty of looking at the ‘hole rather than the donut’ – whilst I may have ticked plenty off my to do list, I’ll still be thinking about what I haven’t done. Earlier this year I fell in to this trap and felt a bit despondent as there wasn’t enough time to bring many of my ideas to light. It resulted in me blogging less and this made me feel more disappointed. What I had failed to do was recognise what I had managed to achieve alongside the growing demands of another baby joining our family.

It is now (following a fantastic break away in France with my family) that I look back on the year so far with fresh eyes. Now I can see and celebrate the great things I have achieved rather than dwelling on what I haven’t yet done. Before my holiday a series of exciting things happened which over whelmed me as they all came at the same time. After a bit of a step back, I now can appreciate and shout about these great achievements.

Firstly, my most recent styled bridal photo shoot (a modern Edwardian Secret Garden) was featured in Brides magazines online – a great honour especially to show case the amazing local suppliers involved.

Secondly, another shoot I organised last Autumn (a gold and Marsala Wind in the Willows) was used throughout the latest UKAWEP Wedding Academy wedding business magazine being shared globally with the wedding industry, fellow students, alumni, contributors, editors, tutors and prospects of the academy.

Thirdly, I also embarked upon on a 100 Day Goal challenge run by The Business Bakery that reached its climax last week. The essence of the strategy is to try to do a little every day to chip away at your ultimate end goal. Back in May, I challenged myself to monetise my blog which has been an ambition and business objective I’d set my sights on this year. These 100 days have enabled me to see little steps that can build to a whole. And in the last 100 days I’ve achieved this goal – not via the advertising route I’d envisaged but I’ve discovered to take opportunities wherever they arise and I’ve been really pleased to do some consultancy for a local wedding venue. The next 100 Day Goal starts again on 1st September and I look forward to seeing where this mind set takes me in the build up to the end of the year.

Additionally, some other great forthcoming opportunities have come my way include styling the Wedding Open Day at Cogges Manor Farm next month – watch this space for the images from this festival inspired shoot that will I will feature on the blog.

I continue to receive more wedding styling enquiries so I’ve now included a venue styling page on my website so couples can see the types of services I offer.

Plus more plans are afoot for another photo shoot in the autumn as I’ve been approached to style one by a local venue.

And lastly (and most importantly), I was lucky enough whilst away to celebrate my own wedding anniversary with my amazing husband. I continue to be grateful for the love and support he gives to me. We’ve done quite a lot in the 6 years that we’ve been married and I look forward to our many adventures to come too. Six years of marriage traditionally would warrant getting an iron as a gift (which could be more inappropriate for me – I can’t remember the last time I ironed anything!)

So, after a brief social media break (forced due to lack of wifi!) but a wonderful family time away en vacances, I come back refreshed and raring to go.

Inspiration: modern Edwardian Secret Garden wedding

by Hanami Dream | 15, July, 2017 | blog, inspiration, styled shoots

Based on The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett (published in 1911), this modern Edwardian styled wedding shoot is a perfect harmony of traditional and contemporary elements brought together with sheer glamour and sophistication. Planned and designed by Hanami Dream and wonderfully captured by Squib Photography.

This elegant and delicate wedding is set in the grounds of a local English Manor House in the Oxfordshire Cotswolds of the UK (also used in the filming of another 1910s drama, Downtown Abbey). The lush greenery of a walled garden is discovered behind a secret locked door and its unseen natural beauty is unearthed after being concealed for many years.

Complete with an intimate ceremony on the croquet lawn, drinks in a secluded corner of the garden, followed by a celebration in a stunning Cotswold stone barn, this wedding features modern twists on traditional wedding styles with a real sense of rejuvenation.

With clear acrylic ‘stationery’ and signage with white brush lettering (where the greenery of the garden can be seen through), a hoop bouquet, a fresh take on the time-honoured wedding dessert of a croquembouche, vintage pearl details, antique keys and a friendly robin redbreast motif. Mary and Colin would be proud to attend this stylish wedding.

The colour palette is soft and understated so nothing distracts from the abundance of sumptuous cascading foliage. White is accented with hints of pink Pale Dogwood and plenty of the Colour of the Year of Greenery. There’s a definite nod to the Pantone® Spring/Summer 2017 colours with some subtle inclusion of blues (a navy Lapis for the groom’s suit and a denim Niagara of the manor house internal doors), Hazelnut and more greenery in the form of Kale.

Cogges Manor Farm  was the ideal location for this wedding with its very essence in this era. It is nestled in the lovely market town of Witney and offers two stunning seventeenth century barns as well as a beautiful walled garden, stunning grounds and an impressive Manor House as a remarkable backdrop.

The couple got ready in the peaceful setting of the Manor House, strolled romantically through the walled garden, encouraged their families to ‘choose a seat not a side’ on vintage chairs (from Linda’s Vintage Hire) on the croquet lawn, and enjoyed the perfect blank canvas of the Barley Barn where modern, personalised details make this wedding complete.

Hanging from one of the impressive beams is a large rustic wooden cartwheel from Oakwood Events, adorned with greenery along with stylish bulb cages around Edison type filaments, plus some added alliums (from Lark Rise Flowers).

The top table is awash with greenery running down the whole of the table and spilling off the ends to the floor, courtesy of Lark Rise Flowers. Plus, the fragrance of the foliage was a delight to the senses with hosta, hedera, honeysuckle, laurel and hebe. Along with gentle inclusion of white flowers in the form of campanula, astilbe, lady’s mantle, sweet william, viburnum, rambling rose, helleborus seedheads and valeriana.

The sturdy wooden table, along with vintage chairs from Linda’s Vintage Hire, is set simply with white crockery and silver cutlery, plus clear acrylic menus sit on green moss. Alongside each setting is a clear acrylic place name (with guest names paying homage to the character names from the book) attached to vintage keys, along with favours of charming wooden robins by Muffat Prague.

Guests are directed around the farm with stylish clear acrylic signage and find their places by referring to the reclaimed window pane table plan with white brush lettering thanks to The Paper Hare, completing the stationery suite of clear acrylic invitations and clear acrylic table number tubes.

In the garden, the couple relax and enjoy a smooth glass of brandy whilst listening to the gramophone and admiring the remarkable cake by Cotswold Baking, a reintroduction of a traditional wedding dessert. This impressive croquembouche plays on the trend of wedding cake alternatives and sits on top of a plain white cake. The choux balls are decorated with edible pearl balls of varying sizes.

The bride chicly carries a hoop bouquet by Lark Rise Flowers leaving a beautiful scent of jasmine wherever she sashays. She has strong smoky eyes, pinched cheek blush and barely-there pale lipstick reminiscent of the times and beautifully recreated by Blushing Brides.

Her hair is ornamented with a delicate pearl hair vine by Designed to Sparkle and gathered up to reveal the breathtaking backless dress.

She perfectly fits the glamourous, champagne coloured bridal gown, made from Lux Charmeuse, featuring a high neckline, flutter sleeves, low back, attached silver beaded waistline and godet train by Justin Alexander, provided by Proposals of Witney. This 1910s styling is teamed with a multi-strand bracelet and necklace by Designed to Sparkle, made with navette set Swarovski crystal stones and pearls, in creamrose light shade.

The suave, slicked-back groom suited the era with a blue three-piece suit made from a British fabric 100% wool, cut in a traditional style but more modern in shape from The Cotswold Tailor.

It’s the little details that bring any event to life and this was made possible by the wonderful local suppliers who provided their time, services, venue and products for free. Together we have showcased the amazing talent that our part of the UK has to offer the wedding industry.

Take a look at the fabulous suppliers that were involved in this styled shoot – Keeping it local with suppliers for the Secret Garden shoot

And take a glimpse behind the scenes at the how the theme and designs came to life – Behind the scenes: Secret Garden shoot

And here’s the video from the shoot too – Video: Secret Garden Wedding

#keepitlocal

: after

: Photography by Squib Photography

Celebrating 3 years of Hanami Dream!

by Hanami Dream | 4, July, 2017 | news

What a day for celebration the fourth of July is: Independence Day, Alice Day and today is the 3rd birthday of Hanami Dream weddings and special occasions!

Yes, today marks three years since I published my first styled photo shoot under the umbrella of Hanami Dream. After that Alice in Wonderland shoot, came the Wizard of Oz, followed by a Wind in the Willows wedding. Now, I’m just about to promote my latest shoot, a modern Edwardian Secret Garden themed wedding. I can’t wait to share the images soon!

From my first tweet in 2014, to a steadily increasing readership (and social media following) with around 1,200 unique page views a month on average. Plus a combined social media network of over 4,000 followers and ongoing promotion and networking means this is ever growing.

It’s crazy to think how many things have evolved over the past three years; now 209 blog posts later and I’ve been a finalist in the UK Blog Awards two years running, a finalist in the West Oxfordshire Business Awards, won mood board competitions, launched #UKWedLunch, won accolades such as #QueenOf Wedding Inspiration by The Royal Connection, the #SmartSocial award from Marketme, #BrightPig’s Business of the Week and I was also picked by Jacqueline Gold CBE to be a WOW Winner.

Personally in the last 3 years, I’ve also had another 2 babies, managed our building project and continued to study with UKAWEP. I was proud to be picked as Student of the month and the course has (and continues) to open my eyes up to a whole world of weddings beyond just wedding planning.

My focus has changed this year and I’m concentrating on making the blog work commercially as well as providing inspiration to brides and grooms in the Cotswolds. This feels like a fantastic evolution, which really excites me and fits in with my current family life, plus combines my experience within the scope of the wedding industry.

I look forward to working with more local wedding professionals, services and venues #keepitlocal. And I can’t wait to produce more styled photo shoots and have more opportunities to collaborate with local suppliers.

Please get in touch if you’d like to advertise on the blog, submit your own wedding details, would like to collaborate on a shoot, write a guest post or need some marketing advice and guidance. Together we can build the local wedding industry and inspire brides and grooms for their special day.

Happy birthday to Hanami Dream – definitely time for cake now! ‬

Hanami Dream is a wonderful wedding service:
marketing consultant, blogger and venue stylist;
plus inspiration for couples to start wedded bliss!

To have and hold,
In the Oxfordshire Cotswolds?
Then you should be heading
To my blog about weddings!
www.hanamidream.co.uk

MODELS WANTED: modern Edwardian styled bridal shoot

by Hanami Dream | 27, April, 2017 | news, styled shoots

Hanami Dream are looking for ‘the boy and girl next door’ type models for a modern Edwardian styled wedding shoot with a literature theme. The shoot will take place at a beautiful venue in Witney, Oxfordshire this May half term.

Female – think Lady Mary Crawley in Downtown Abbey, approximately 20-30 years old, 170 cms tall or less, size 10-14
Male – think Harry Styles with his new short hair in the Dunkirk movie, approximately 25-35 years old, around 175 cms tall, 40” chest, 32” waist

The shoot will be approximately 2-3 hours in the afternoon of Wednesday 31st May (weather permitting) and will provide some fantastic lifestyle shots for your portfolio (it’s also great as an engagement shoot or brilliant practice being in front of a camera before your big day).

One fitting prior to the date may be necessary. Own transport is required to Witney, OX28 3LA.

If you’re available and would like to be involved in this fantastic styled bridal shoot then please email Hanami Dream

by Friday 19th May 2017
on info@www.hanamidream.co.uk
including a quick intro, your stats, a contact number and 2 images of yourself (1 x face shoot, 1 x full length)

Award season is upon us

by Hanami Dream | 2, February, 2017 | news

It seems we are in the full throes of award season at the moment. Social media, television and magazines are strewn with images of glamourous celebrities on red carpets attending glitzy award ceremonies. At this time of the year there’s the SAG Awards, BAFTAs, Golden Globes, Grammys, Emmys and not forgetting the Oscars at the end of the month, and my favourite, the Brit Awards in a few weeks time.

And the world of weddings get in on the act too by recognising successes with various awards in their own right. I’m proud to also be a part of the whole award season, with my blog being a finalist in the UK Blog Awards 2017 (UKBA17) as well as currently being shortlisted for the West Oxfordshire Business Awards 2017 (#WOBA2017).

It was a pleasure to host the WOBA judging panel last week and share more about Hanami Dream weddings and special occasions and I look forward to hopefully being able to celebrate further achievements when the results are announced later in the year.

Celebrating achievements (no matter how big or small) is important so I wanted to share some personal musings about why I blog and how much I value the recognition that awards bring to niche blogs such as mine.

Why do you write your blog?

In a nutshell, I love to blog about weddings because I love weddings! How wonderful to have all the people you care about, from different walks of your life, in the same room at the same time on your wedding day!

I get to combine this passion for weddings with my skills and experience of organising amazing styled photo shoots. In particular, I love the unique detail shots. After all, it’s all the little details that bring any event to life.

My local Cotswold wedding blog compiles, creates and collates inspiration, providing couples with wedding planning tips, tools, trends and traditions to celebrate their personal milestones.

Since 2014, this blog has evolved (and continues to) wherever new opportunities and avenues take me. The possibilities are really exciting and my blog conveniently fits around my growing family commitments and lifestyle (with three beautiful children currently under 5 I’m certainly never bored).

The beauty of blogging is that I can work anywhere, at any time and write about the things that really interest me. I’m a big fan of local wedding businesses and I support and promote them whenever I can.

What does it mean to be a finalist?

Being a finalist in the UK Blog Awards for a second year gives me a huge sense of achievement, is great recognition and a wonderful testament to the level of support shown by my readers.

I feel honoured to even be considered alongside the calibre of my fellow finalists in the Individual Event and Wedding category. Being up against great finalists has given me the chance to re-evaluate my blog again, an impetus to continue to improve it and a challenge to think about further evolution.

It is great to have another reason to shout about my business. I’m also currently shortlisted for the next round of the West Oxfordshire Business Awards #WOBA2017. Both these accolades give me the opportunity to connect with other professionals in the blogging world, wedding industry and local businesses.

This added promotion has given not only my blog extra exposure, but I’m pleased it’s also showcasing the stunning venues and highly talented wedding industry professionals from small, local and independent businesses, that my blog supports in the beautiful Oxfordshire countryside of the Cotswolds.

“Congratulations you are a UK Blog Awards 2017 Finalist”

by Hanami Dream | 2, January, 2017 | testimonials

“Congratulations you are a UK Blog Awards 2017 Finalist

We are delighted to advise that your content has reached the final stage in the UK Blog Awards process as a Wedding and Events individual finalist http://www.blogawardsuk.co.uk/ukba2017/entries/hanami-dream

Congratulations once again on reaching the final part of the UK Blog Awards process.

We hope you are as excited as we are and wish you the best of luck for the remainder of the process.”

Gemma Newton, UK Blog Awards Ltd – January 2017

www.blogawardsuk.co.uk

#UKBA17

A very happy start to the New Year

by Hanami Dream | 2, January, 2017 | news

How’s this for a great start to the New Year – I’ve made it to the finals of the UK Blog Awards again!

I’m absolutely delighted that my blog has reached the final stage in the UK Blog Awards process as a Wedding and Events individual finalist.

Thank you so much to everyone for all your votes. I really appreciate your support and it has ensured the blog has made it to the final round in the Wedding and Events category.

I’m feeling pretty chuffed as they’ve combined two categories into one this year, plus each category only has 8 blogs in the shortlist this year (versus 10 blogs each in two categories last year). So I’m really pleased to make it through with some amazing other blogs.

Congratulations to all my fellow individual finalists in the UK Blog Awards Wedding and Events category. I’m proud to be a finalist alongside you.

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