Manchester Showcase: The Suppliers

Two weeks ago saw the night of our Manchester Showcase at the AJ Bell Stadium, it was a fantastic night at an amazing location - if you are looking for a flexible room and excellent service then do consider the stadium as your venue!

Today we are sharing our suppliers from the night, who showcased their wares to our brides and their guests, before they settled down to watch the acts.

Upon entering the exhibition room guests were greeted with a glass of champagne and the beautiful sounds of the Phoenix Wind Quartet. A professional wind ensemble, they offer a unique choice of entertainment for your day. Their instruments range from Oboe to Flute and Clarinet and they certainly added that special touch to our event.

Photo credit Phil Wareing

Once your entered the room you couldn't miss the Ice Dream Experience - set up centre stage with their traditional tricycle and cart, they were offering premium real dairy ice cream to our guests, complete with traditional straw hats!

Photo credit Phil Wareing

Around the room our acts were set up, ready to any your questions and discuss their packages. In amongst them were various suppliers. Booth Tube once again were with us, and I saw many a bride and guest laughing inside the booth as they tried on props and received their snaps. It is definitely a fun way to keep your guests entertained on the day and they have keepsake to take home with them too!

The always popular Pier Fun Casinos had their tables set up and play money ready to give our guests a taste of the game. They offer fantastic and interactive entertainment that will your guests will be talking about long after the day.

Photo credit Phil Wareing

Our Toastmaster, Derek Timmins-Jones, was also on hand to provide you with all the information you would need to keep your day running smooth. He overran our evening seamlessly to ensure our acts were on time and announced to the audience. Derek is a specialist toastmaster for all faiths and can advise on speeches, and offer help and advice on planning all the elements required to make your event run memorably and above all smoothly.

Finally our venue dressers, Weddings Covered ensured our night looked the best it could. Not only dressing the tables, they provided the backdrop and dancefloor that many of our guests were impressed with. They have completed over 400 weddings and can offer a personal service to make your day look extra-special.

Photo credit Phil Wareing

Photo credit Phil Wareing

If you are interested in coming along to one of our evenings, the dates for the next two showcases have now been confirmed - we look forward to seeing you there!

Manchester Showcase: The Highlights

Last Friday was our much anticipated second showcase night, held at the AJ Bell stadium in Manchester. After our fantastic first showcase in Blackpool, we were excited to be on home ground and meeting local brides. The show was a sell-out so there was a full house, and our acts certainly did not let us down!

Before taking their seats for the performances, the brides and their guests entered our exhibitor room where all our suppliers were showcasing their products. There was a lot of fun being had in Booth Tube's photo booth and the ever-popular Pier Fun Casino table was constantly busy, but the hit of the night had to be the Ice Dream Experience. Set up with a vintage cart and offering delicious dairy ice cream out, guests were queueing to the door for a taste.

On entering the entertainer's room, beautifully decorated by the fantastic Weddings Covered, everyone took their seats ready for a great night, introduced by Toastmaster Derek Timmins-Jones. Our photographer Phil Wareing and videographers Hartshead Productions captured it all on film for us, but for now here are a few of our own snaps taken on the night.

Pheonix Wind Quartet played us in

The exhibitors room fills up

Guests enjoying Pier Fun Casinos

The Ice Dream Experience

Everyone seated for the acts

The live wire Just Matt

John Norcott performs next

Our guests filling the dance floor

Live Piano Experience 

We hope everyone who came had a fantastic night, we felt extremely proud of everyone who took part and are looking forward to our next Showcase at Stobart Stadium in Halton in March. Check back soon for more on our suppliers and acts from the night.

Hartshead Video Productions

It's hard to really get the feel of an event unless you are there, so the next best thing is video! Hartshead Productions were our videographers for the evening during our first Showcase at the Blackpool Hilton and the videos are back!

If you are looking for a high quality video for any occasion and a video which will surpass all expectation then definitely give Hartshead productions a try! Equipped with high quality HD cameras and the latest professional creative media technology and software, they're prepared to produce only the highest quality videos.

Many people, when planning their wedding, don't feel like having a video is an essential item. However there is nothing quite like watching it back to relive your big day - the vows you recited, the hilarious best man speech and those moments of laughter between friends and family that you couldn't be there for first hand but are moments to treasure. To get the best footage Hartshead Productions use three cameras position covertly around your event, all set to different angles to create a seamless account of your day.

To watch their videos of some of our acts, check out the videos below!

Wayne Farrow

Retro Brothers

John Norcott

Ortopilot

After editing all the footage together to create your video, they will then put it straight to Blu-Ray or DVD for you to treasure forever.

To learn more about their fantastic service why not can head to their website, or you can also find them on facebook and twitter.

Choosing Your Wedding Entertainment: The Evening Reception

Third in our wedding entertainment series is the evening reception. After the ceremony, this can be the most anticipated part of the day for many of your guests - what will the food be like? Who will be coming to the evening? What music will be played? What will the atmosphere be like?

It is also the part of the day many people will remember for years to come, if the entertainment is done right. And that's where we come in!

The beginning of the evening reception is the part of the day where your guests are full from the wedding breakfast and enjoying relaxing and mingling, so it wouldn't be ill-advised to start your night off at full pace from the get-go. Don't forget, also, that in-between your day and night celebrations there will be a turnaround period where the venue staff have to change the room around ready for the next stage in events and our evening entertainer will need time to set up. It is a good idea to clear the space in order for everything to run smoothly, but also so your day guests don't reserve their seats, meaning your evening guests may find it harder to mingle.

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This may be a perfect opportunity to try a different kind of entertainment - if the weather is good you could head outside for some lawn games and when night falls paper lanterns are a beautiful and effective way entertain your guests.

For indoor entertainment try some table fun. Pier Fun Casinos offer interactive entertainment in the form of mobile casino tables, to add something a little different to your day. They will provide your guests with personalised fun money and give them a chance to sample the ultimate thrill of the Las Vegas Casino experience!

Or perhaps a chocolate fountain is more up your street? Try Heavenly Melted Chocolate for a tasty and fun experience your guests will remember for a long time to come!

One thing you need to be conscious of is that, during the evening reception, there will be certain events you will need to make time slots for such as: cutting the cake, the first dance and the opening of the buffet - do be aware of not opening your buffet too early as your afternoon guests may have only finished eating at 4pm, meaning lots of food could go to waste.

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Once the buffet is over and done with, it is time to get the party started! An entertainer who offers the complete package is a great idea, as they can start out gentle with a bit of easy-listening such as swing, and gradually ease you and your guests into the party before you've even realised!

An act who has 15 years experience in the wedding industry is John Norcott. John provides several packages and he will delight your guests with swing classics from Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin and more recently Michael Buble. Then once the formalities are over, he will liven up the party singing songs from a variety of artists such as Bruno Mars, The Killers, Take That and the Kings Of Leon. Once his final song is finished, John will seamlessly transform into your full request DJ to keep your dance floor rocking into the early hours!

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Once the I Do's have been said, the sun has set and party is over, many couples are choosing to close the day with an impressive firework display. Ask your venue if that is something that can be offered, as it definitely ends the day with a bang! If not, sparklers are just as pretty.

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For more inspiration head over to our evening reception board, packed full of ideas to get your mind whirling. Next time we will focus on the wedding breakfast - speeches, cake cutting and fathers of the bride!

Blackpool Hilton Showcase & Phil Wareing Photography

Last month we hosted our first showcase at the Blackpool Hilton Hotel. It was a fantastic night, read all about it here. This week we are sharing Phil Wareing's fantastic photographs of the event.

Phil Wareing is based in NW England, and has over 10 years of skill and experience as a professional Photographer. He thrives on the passion of creating beautiful images within many genres. Phil not only specialises in Wedding Photography but also works in Commercial, Portraiture, Fashion, Sports and Fine Art Imagery, working with a diverse clientele in a variety of settings his work is uniquely creative.

Here are his best shots of the night, featuring our acts and suppliers.

The Reception:

Heavenly Melted Chocolate

Lotties Bridal

Pier Fun Casinos

The Evening:

Wayne Farrow

The Retro Brothers

Just Matt

The Noel Fraser Band

John Norcott

The Live Piano Experience

 To find out more from Phil Wareing check out his page on the Ntertain website.

Choosing Your Wedding Entertainment: The Drinks Reception

Second in our mini series, guiding you through the task of selecting the right entertainment for your big day, and following on from our last post, is the drinks reception.

Whether you have a religious ceremony or a civil one, there will be a section of the day where your guests will be mingling, chatting but also waiting. Normally, this will be the part where you are off and away having your photos taken, feeling like a supermodel, posing with your new husband. It is important not to forget about your guests at this point as whilst they are waiting to be called for photos, they still need entertaining.

Any music at this stage need to be low-key. Guests will want to talk between each other, catch up with family they haven't seen in a while and get to know new people they haven't met before. Also when the ushers are calling people for the photographs, they need to be heard. It doesn't do to keep a photographer waiting whilst ushers are running from person to person trying to catch their attention, and if this section goes on too long your guests will start to get restless.

A lovely touch at this point is a string quartet. They will remain in the background, but offer an elegant setting to go along with the champagne. The Cezanne Ensemble are such an act, who will not only play traditional classical music, but can offer a twist on modern songs.

For a different type of entertainment many brides are looking outside the box and choosing things guests can become involved in. A magician can work around guests as they mingle, keeping the conversation going and often providing an ice-breaker for those who don't know each other.

A photo booth is also becoming popular in the wedding industry and is often a fun element to the day, where guests can dress up and pose, keeping the photos as a memento of your day. At our recent Showcase Night, supplier Boothtube went down a storm.

There are so many other ideas now for your wedding entertainment is really is important to do your research. From caracaturists to children's entertainers. One great resource we have come across is Pinterest, and there are some incredible ideas on there - how about a kissing booth? Or maybe you'd prefer a flame thrower? 

Next time we will be talking about the all-important Wedding Breakfast - in the meantime head over to our website where tickets are now on sale for our next showcase night in January!

Blackpool Hilton - Our First Showcase

On Friday 8th November, our first showcase took place. After months of hard work, it all finally came together and we eagerly awaited the night. Despite some obstacles, the M6 being closed a major one, the night was a great success and we want to give a huge thanks to all those who attended and all the act and suppliers who supported us on the night.

The doors opened at 7pm and guests were greeted by the lovely people at Country Brides Magazine, before entering the reception room, where they were provided with a complimentary glass of champagne and mini cakes as they browsed our suppliers.

All the acts were on hand to introduce themselves and brides and grooms then made their way around the suppliers, including Pier Fun Casino, whose tables proved very popular and The Faux Wedding Cake Company who provide beautifully decorated cakes. Guests could try a dip in the Heavenly Melted Chocolate fountain, have a bit of fun in the Booth Tube photo booth and gaze in awe at the beautiful display from Lottie's Bridal. Meanwhile The Cezanne Ensemble, a professional string quartet, provided some classical entertainment and a lovely start to the evening.

After trying all those suppliers out we then moved into the entertainment suite, beautifully decorated by Weddings Covered, which included a dancefloor and backdrop lit with stars, and our toastmaster kicked the night off.

Each act showcased themselves over four songs, giving the guests a great sample of their work. This meant that the brides and grooms could see for themselves how their chosen act would perform on the night, which we feel is crucial. It really demonstrated to many that night that whilst you can source a great entertainer via their website and videos, until you see how they actually perform you really do not know if they are the act for you. This is what we provide.

The acts really gave us some great performances and had people off their seats, dancing the night away.  We had ten acts perform who showcased a wide variety of music from swing with John Norcott and Wayne Farrow to a unique Live Piano Experience to acoustic from Ortopilot to dance with Just Matt and even rock with The Noel Fraser Band. Further to this we had the extremely entertaining and adaptable voices of The Retro Brothers, whilst amongst the audience The Wedding Magicians mesmerised the guests. There really was something for everybody.

We had some fantastic feedback on the night from brides and many of our acts came away with bookings, which proves that the Showcase concept is a great one.

We are looking forward to our next Showcase night at the Salford City Stadium on January 31st 2014, and hope to see you all there!