Placemats

I made these placemats for the children but we weren't able to get crayons and Mark left them in the hotel anyway so they never got used. In the end though they weren't needed, Monty kept the children occupied and I don't think any of them were bored or would have needed it. I thought I'd share anyway.

This is another thing I'd like to have a go at making for other people, so if you would like one in your wedding theme, get in touch!

Options for placemats

Let me know your themes or anything you want included and:

Wordsearch

     Word list or Theme for words

Hidden Message Wordsearch

     As above plus message

Mazes

     Rectangle
     Cut-Outs
     Circle/Oval
     Wheel
     Escape

Drawing Space

     Theme or Shape for drawing space

Colouring In

     Theme or picture for colouring in



Dot to Dot

     Theme or picture

Naughts and Crosses boards

Squares board

Treasure Hunt (list of items for children to find or, if you're supplying disposable cameras, for them to photograph)

Obviously I only have so much space so there's a limit to how much I can fit in.



Wedding Map

I thought as the wedding is over and I don't need to worry about revealing too many details on here, I'd start to show you more detail of our stationery.

This is our wedding map. I drew it myself - according to Mark I can't draw, he refuses to tell me how good the map is... - drawing the various elements on A4 paper, scanned them all in and then used Photoshop to get them right. I'm quite pleased with how they came out, very proud of my jousters! The only things I didn't draw are the train and carriage. I've included our crests on the flags outside the castle and a Tardis because the Lord Leycester Hospital was used as a Doctor Who location and we're both fans.

I enjoyed making the map so much I'm thinking of doing it for others, if you'd like one get in touch. I'm going to do them cheap (just to cover any costs) to start with to get some experience.

The wonderful people who made this happen!

I can't not tell you all the wonderful people who were involved in making this such an amazing day. I don't think I can really fault any of them, it was a truly magical day so I want to say thank you to every single one and to the staff at the different venues who I can't list individually.
Base of Operations
Warwick Arms Hotel

Recording the Day
Aliye Mullen photography
Midway Media videography

Bridal Preparations

Utopia Nails slotted me in quickly when my nails were in desperate need of being done.
Makeup by Jodie did the makeup
Naomi did my hair but I've not got website for her, but I can pass numbers on if necessary.
From Me to You Florist

Clothes and Some Table Decorations
The Costume Company

"Transport"
Listening Horsemanship (their clothes and the horse's dress were also from The Costume Company)

Ceremony
Lord Leycester Hospital
HawksRUs provided the owls
St Justin for the quaich
Eden Candles provided the unity candles and rushed them through when there was a mix up with paying.
PetalPot for the confetti

Reception
Warwick Castle everything that we had was included, The Costume Company supplied some decorations but the castle did most of it.
The Fool Monty
Bagshot the Magician
Ben the Cake Man (bet you can't guess what he did!) Ben's not doing birthday cakes this year due to his heavy wedding demand this year so doing Dad's cake was a real favour for us.
Chocolicious Chocolate Fountains
Then there was the band and Noel AKA Lord Talbot AKA Warwick Bowman.
If I've missed anyone please send me a message so I can add them in.

The evening reception

The Yorkist in the camp!

We then went down to the Undercroft, I had a quick look in the room whilst no one was in there and was blown away! The room looked amazing, I hadn’t imagined what they would do to it and it was far better than the normal evening banquets. As I left the room I saw that our coordinator had made us some lovely table plans up on Warwick Castle background paper (like the signs you see around the castle) and by the time the guests arrived the staff had a copy each and were helping people to their seats like they’d read it a million times, someone else presented us with the guest book and pens that the hotel had brought to the turnstiles for us. I checked out the toilets – including the gents, much to my nephew’s horror! Obviously I knew where the men were though so it was safe, my nephew was funny because he was so excited to see the basket and asked me if I’d seen it! I sat down for a little bit whilst we waited for the guests to come out of the exhibition. We greeted everyone in, then the MC “Lord Talbot” was announced in and he announced us in with a fanfare and asked us for permission for the guests to sit down, we discussed it for a second before agreeing!

It was nice for the first time that day to be able to sit down and not worry about anything. My youngest was getting a little stressed as she’d been away from me now for the best part of 24 hours (I forgot to say earlier, I found out her grandparents had taken her to their room, when I asked where she was I was told they’d taken her to bed so I left them) so hadn’t had a feed in that time. I’d given her quick cuddles through the day but not been able to do much as I was needed in pictures so quickly afterwards each time. I asked the staff if they could find her something (we had less people than we’d paid for so plenty of food) and then took her for a feed. My dress wasn’t accessible easily accessible, so I had to undo my zip and feed her over the top (my tog was disappointed she missed it, she likes shots like that) she was a lot more settled after that.

It was a brilliant night; everyone had a lot of fun.

We cut the cake with a sword

then had a handfasting.

One of my stepsons was employed as a magician’s assistant and paid £1 for it!

We had a fire show, which I didn’t expect and I always love Monty’s fire shows! During the periods when we weren’t eating Monty took the kids into the corridor and made them balloons which went down really well.

We had some brilliant musicians who were disappointed at the end when we told them that the group consisted of people who were into LARP etc. As we were getting close to the end of the night Lord Talbot asked us to choose three couples to join us in our first dance. Having spent the day with these people there were some very obvious choices! I’m sure we were slightly set up because the instructions were slightly confusing and the caller played a wind instrument so couldn’t call! But it was a laugh!

I had planned for us to get a taxi back so we could beat the guests but the taxi arrived half an hour after people had left and when we got back the hotel was empty apart from people staying over and my brother’s family. So we had the chocolate fountain to ourselves! Mark was a little worried about the cost, although hadn't said so but I knew him well enough, so I called him over and said “I’d like to introduce you to the Warwick Arms deposit” he looked blankly at me so I said “this is the £300 deposit on the Warwick Arms I’ve been reminding Mum about” and I could see the relief on his face as he laughed at another set up! 

I'm going to bed!

As it's getting late I'm going to leave the rest of the report until later. In the meantime, if you want to have a look at more pictures or the sample video, follow the links below.

http://photobucket.com/BullowsMedievalWedding - if you have any pictures you'd like to upload, let me know and I'll pass on the password.

http://www.midway-media.com/samples.html

The ride to the castle, the trebuchet and the drinks reception!

The guys stopped the traffic and our procession moved off. The ushers did a fantastic job of getting us through the traffic and everyone who stopped was really good about it. We stopped at Town Gate to direct the guests through. Mark decided he would go through to show them where to go so we waited, then our coordinator came out and said we needed to hurry up if we were going to do what we’d planned as they needed to go. I told the rest of the guests (as we’d kept family aside) to go through and went around with ushers.

We rode down to the top of River Bank and the horse was finding it hard so I got down and pointed them up to a field that is usually unused because it’s through trees. I ran down to the bridge and someone was calling for the best man, I said the ushers too but was told “no they just want the best man” so I asked our coordinator and she said “yeah, who are they” and went to get them.

I went up to Mark and said “what’s going on are we early?” and he said “stop pretending! I know you arranged this and I LOVE it!” I went to the bridge with them and asked to go, my togs/ vog followed me and we were told only 8 people could be on the island so I did a quick count and said “that’s those four, me and the photographers and videographers?” so they said yes! The togs/ vog were over the moon! All four of them were really pleased to be going in. They only did two one minute stints each but I know Mark is still aching from it. The best man got off with trebuchet sickness, he was grey and his lips blue, we were a little worried about him but it passed quickly. When the trebuchet master gave the all clear the bridge was reopened and our guests filed over for some pictures. We didn’t have chance to get many though as we were called to the conservatory for our drinks reception.

 

I had a message from one of the waiters that our coordinator said do we have a copy of the table plan because they hadn’t been sent one! I asked if I could use a computer and I could get it from wedding path, she asked if I minded giving her my login details so I was taken out the back so I could tell her my password. I got that sorted then turned to Mark and said “You did send the guestbook and pens, didn’t you?” Nope! So I called the hotel, asked for the manager and handed him over to Mark who explained where they were and said if they sent someone to the back entrance we’d send someone over but he said he’d bring it to turnstiles.

We had speeches but I’d forgotten to print mine, forgot it all and made a mess, then Mark pulling faces just away from me put me off, he came over to be a little more supportive but I'd lost my whole train so I finished off quickly.

After the groom’s speech I’d recovered enough for the next surprises.  I asked the three men to put their hands in the air, look at them and tell me what already looked like it belonged to them. Lots of blank faces! Eventually someone pointed out to one that their family crest was on their wrist so they all got the point and I said “that’s because they are! Our thank you to you all is that you get to keep your vanbraces.” Then I told our MC we needed fire “Fire? Ah Monty has fire!” whilst he ran out the room I explained that it was Dad’s 60^th just over a week ago and they’d not had chance to do as much as they had wanted because of how close the wedding is so we had a little surprise for him and could people please respond in the customary way. At that point our MC came running back in brandishing a lighter shouting “fire!” so they quickly lit the sparkler and brought it out so everyone sang “Happy Birthday” we asked if they could bring the cake down to the reception so that he could cut it with the sword.

It was then time to move to the reception. I was just talking to our MC and a few of them blokes there, one of the waiters suggested getting a chair down for me as I was obviously struggling by this point. Next thing I know I’m going backwards, I put my hands out to steady myself and two of them grabbed my hands and put a hand on my back whilst someone threw a chair quickly behind me. After a few moments the MC helped me back up and offered me his arm, we walked slowly behind the others and one of the ushers came over and gave me his arm on the other side. As we were walking over one of the horse people came over and said that the horse had calmed down now and was waiting in the courtyard for us. I had some pictures with me on the horse and Mark next to me. The togs had gone through the exhibition with the guests and one of the vogs, the other vog was using her new toy to take pictures of us. I went to get down as the horse sidestepped and had to dismount to the ground, which was the first time I’d done it.

At the Lord Leycester Hospital

I got to the front and the best man was holding the box as though it had just been chucked at him, so I took it and gave it back to my nephew and got him to stand in front of us.

Stood at the front with my dad and suddenly had to grab Mark’s arm because I could feel the pain building in my legs and back, he could tell from my death grip it was more than just holding him so looked at me and mouthed “are you ok?”

We sang the first song – Be Thou My Vision – which sounded amazing with just a guitar and an Irish lead singer, really got that Celtic feel I wanted. Then my Grandad read from Ephesians whilst I got my sister to quickly look up Declaration of Principles on Mum’s phone, she said she wouldn’t read it so Mum did and did a really good job. We then sang the second song Amazing Grace (My Chains Are Gone) and when everyone sat down our minister said “That’s a modern version of an old song, by the writer Chris Tomlin. Sixsteprecords, Chris’s record company have sent their best wishes and said that Chris is currently on tour or he would have sent a personal message” Mark just nodded like he’d had a message from his Mum or something, I don’t think it quite sunk in until later!

The wedding itself was done really well, it didn’t draw attention to it not being a legal service but at the same time didn’t make out it was one. He even announced us as husband and wife. I think afterwards no one could say we weren’t married, even the people who before hand said “so you won’t actually be married after the wedding?” in fact we had lots of comments about we didn’t need to rush it.

When he asked for the rings my nephew held the box back so the minister put his hand out for it. As he stood up he said “turn around” we did just as the owl flew down the aisle and landed on FIL’s hand. Mark said “I would have wanted to catch!” so I said “it wouldn’t have been a surprise then!”

We took communion from the Quaich, which surprised me because I didn’t know what was going to happen with it. Apparently FIL begged it from the hotel (which I’d told Mark to do!!! He didn’t and FIL had a brainwave to do it lol) had to show Mark how to use it because I’d tried to show him before and he wouldn’t.

The minister gave a message and spoke about “leaving and cleaving” and the passage on the husband being the head but he only did that bit quickly and took his time explaining the next bit where the husband is supposed to love his wife like Christ loves the Church, that he’d do anything for her to the point of laying his life down and that if a husband does this then a being the head is easy because naturally the wife will trust him in everything (personally I think this is God’s ideal and like all things God knows we’re human and it doesn’t always happen like this, He just gives us the ideal to work on) it was all really nice.

We had no signing tree because Mark had forgotten to draw it (despite having the paper ready) and no exit music, the man we had asked to sing whilst we signed refused to sing as we thought we could exit to that… so we left in silence.

We went into the courtyard for photos, this was the first time I’d seen how many people were dressed up. We had five people in fancy dress, one person made her own and for her children, only a handful hadn't. Everyone looked amazing, individually and as a whole group.

We had some pictures with the owls, Mark called me over to him and the two handlers, he was just putting a glove on and they wanted me to pose with him for photos. After he told me to give the owl back and I moved my hand away slightly, stroking his neck and looked sad and was told I couldn’t keep him :(

Then we heard the horse was back so it was back so we went around to where the horse was. I got someone to give out the dancing ribbons. I asked if it was ok for photos with the owl and they said it was as long as the horse couldn’t see him. So I mounted and the owl was passed to me. After a few pictures I gave the owl back and the ushers asked if we were ready to go. It took a little while to get the people behind the horse because everyone wanted to take pictures but as a rescue horse we needed to control his surroundings.