Wedding Fayres - good or bad?

Its the time of the year when every weekend you can go to a wedding fayre or open day. Are these really worth your time? Absolutley yes if you choose carefully. This weekend the biggest wedding show in Essex takes place at The Brentwood Centre. Its the annual Heart Fm show, now in its 25th year!
Its a big show with everything you could possibly need for your wedding and more. The suppliers that are exhibiting have had to make a substantial investment in themselves and their business to get the exposure. These are serious suppliers, I know quite a few of them personally and can vouch for their work.
Open days are also great, as often the venue will have hand picked some suppliers to come along and exhibit. These will be people they have worked with before and whose work they know. Be more wary of smaller wedding shows, it seems every events company is organising them these days and some of them aren't organised particularly well. I know as I've wasted hard earned money advertising at them.
Do your research into who's organising and the calibre of suppliers that will be there. That way you don't waste every weekend trawling around wedding fayres.
If you're free on Saturday and Sunday the 18th and 19th of February come along to the Brentwood Centre. This is one fayre you shouldn't miss. Come and say hello, I'll be in the marquee area and will be more than happy to answer any questions you might have when it comes to planning your big day.

Hedingham Castle, Essex

Today I went to meet one of my couples at their venue, Hedingham Castle. As a musician I have played in the marquee before but I never got the chance to see the famous keep, where the civil ceremony will take place. I got totally lost absorbing all of the history of the place that I completely forgot to take any pictures!! (note to self, on the wedding day take pictures) If you have always thought about marrying in a castle then this could be for you.

Taken from the website: Hedingham Castle's Norman keep, 110 feet high, was built c.1140 by Aubrey de Vere and is still owned by one of his descendants, Jason Lindsay and his wife Demetra. There are four floors to explore, including a magnificent banquting hall spanned by a remarkable 28 foot arch, one of the largest Norman arches in England. A good view of this splendid room can be obtained from the Minstrels' Gallery, built within the thickness of the 12 foot walls. Castle weddings in medieval surroundings. For those wishing to get married in a Castle, it is now possible to have a romantic candlelit Civil Ceremony in the Banqueting Hall.

Small receptions can be held in the elegant rooms of the Georgian house which is a beautiful location for Wedding Receptions and is also perfect for delightful, intimate winter weddings. For larger parties or those requiring dancing, there is a marquee on the private Tulip Lawn. Drinks can be served on the terrace which has beautiful views over the lake.

Do have a look at the website, but if you want to be a princess for the day then this is it.

www.hedinghamcastle.co.uk

The Fennes Estate

On Sunday I attended The Fennes Estate open day. On my last post I gave you a quick overview of the venue, but what is hard to picture is attached to this gorgeous house are two fabulous pavillions. One has a nighclub area, brilliant if you are having a DJ in the evening. The bar is in the same room, which is always better and this is attached to the main house and where you would also hold your civil ceremony of you choose to have one.
 The second pavillion can seat up to 360 people for your wedding breakfast, or can be used for the evening reception if you are having a live band.  If you are looking for an exclusive venue, which is your home for the day then take a look around The Fennes. They also have great deals if you are happy to get married mid week and the staff are great.

My colleague Ian and I

The larger pavillion

The smaller of the two pavillions

The walkway from the main house

The Library