Top Ten Tips For An Unforgettable Hen Party From The Adonis Cabaret

Who better to get the Top Ten Tips from than a self-confessed hen expert who organises hen parties for 35,000 hens a year and who really knows his hens from his ducks....

1. Who to Invite

Now this can be a nightmare before you even start! Usually left to the maid of honour - is she expected to invite ancient Auntie Ethel? Or the old school friend that no one but the bride can stand?

If you think people will clash, split the day into different sections - the tranquil safe spa day (ideal for the mother in laws and party prudes) and the wild party in the evening that you know the bride will love! Or if there is an extreme divide, consider having two hen dos - there is nothing worse than having one or two people that don't join in the fun, or worse, ruin it for everyone else.

2. Save The Date

Choose a day or weekend at least a week before the wedding and do not under any circumstances hold the hen night the night before the wedding. Plan well in advance so that you can maximise the numbers who are able to attend. This is the bride's big night so make sure all her best friends can be there.

3. Budget

Cash is kind and money can be a real deal breaker for some. Make sure you set a realistic budget for your intended guests whilst retaining the feel of making a special effort for the bride. It can be a difficult balance and may well effect the 'who to invite' list above and the 'location' below. But don't settle for the "I'll pay you later" - this only leads to resentment when you find out that that friend just splashed out on new shoes!

4. Location

Do your research! We have seen all varieties of hen dos, from a night a someone's house or at the local pub, to international city breaks in Europe and beyond. Marbella is a top destination this season and there are some amazing deals out there at the moment. A hen night is often an excuse for some quality girl bonding tie and therefore location can be key. But wherever you decide, make sure you check out the best places to go (and the places to avoid!) before setting off. It may sound silly, but if you choose to go abroad then check that everyone has a valid passport - you don't want any tears at the airport!

5. Collaboration

I know this could lead to a minefield of arguments but try to involve the other guests. Don't be so vague as to ask "right girls, what are we doing?" because this will result in a barrage of conflicting ideas, but let them know your plans and see if they can add anything to it. Remember, there will always be someone who doesn't agree, but you can never please everyone. Go with what you feel the bride will want.

6. Plan Your Activities

Most brides want their hen dos to involve a good party and probably a little bit of naught drinking. The most popular evening activities are comedy clubs, drag cabaret, strip shows and then - most likely - onto a nightclub. Adonis Cabaret, for example, puts all of those brilliant activities together in one venue, to make it easy for you and give you just the right mix for everyone. But also consider day time activities, a girly spa day, beauty treatments or afternoon tea to make the bride feel really special.

7. That said, don't go overboard

It always seems that there's not enough to fill the day but once you are all together catching up and gossiping, time soon flies. (We have experience of this first hand - get a group of girls together and you can't get a word in edgeways!). Be flexible with your plans. If the group seem to be happy, don't rush off to the next activity just for the sake of it.

8. Communication

This seems really nerdy, but how many rows do you think are caused when groups are drunk and lost in a strange city? It is not long until everyone will really start to panic. Make sure everyone knows when and where to meet on the day. Perhaps send an itinerary out beforehand and exchange mobile numbers. Once you are all there, establish a meeting point just in case anybody gets separated fro the group & mobile batteries die during the evening.

9. Pace yourself

This is especially important if you are out for the whole day or weekend. You don't want the bride (or anyone else) to be legless by lunch time and not be able to enjoy the evening shenanigans. So make sure you factor in some down time for eating and hydrating with soft drinks or water.

10. Finally, relax, enjoy the day and have fun!!

You can get full details of Adonis Cabaret on their website, you can also follow them on Facebook

Little Bundles Bunting

There are virtually endless different themes and colour schemes for your wedding these days, but it's not always easy to find exactly what you want within your chosen theme/scheme. As a stationer I am happy to and enjoy creating special stationery to your theme or colour scheme and find it hard to understand when businesses won't help or say that they can't help - there's usually a way around most 'problems'! I enjoy a challenge and usually the process of trying to find a way of solving a problem gives you a deeper knowledge of your area of expertise, the best, easiest and most cost effective way of doing something. Even if you don't use all the techniques you research straight away, the chances are you will need the information at some point in the future.

Today we welcome another 'can dooer', Emma Scott from Little Bundles Bunting.......

 

How did Little Bundles Begin?

I’d been looking everywhere for personalised bunting for my daughter’s birthday, back in 2004; all I could find was generic bunting in basic colours from companies who only wanted to sell me what they stocked, no-one was prepared to source fabric and create me a unique design. It was my, then 4 year old, daughter who announced to everyone that her “mummy” was going to make her bunting! I have always had a creative flair, so thought why not!

Do you just make bespoke bunting?

The majority of our business is made to order bunting, but we have just started to offer bunting lengths for hire. This has come after a very successful run of Union Jack bunting for the Royal Wedding. We still want to produce exclusive bunting, so anything to hire will be made as limited editions. Our bunting has been used at all sorts of parties, events and weddings – and weather permitting, can be used outside.

What makes you different from other bunting companies?

The most important thing for us is that our clients get exactly what they want. A lot of the time they come to me with a great idea, but can’t visualise it. It’s my job to then design something, get the fabrics and colours together and either send samples or email a photo of the design, layout and colour scheme.

We want to make every client feel that they are unique, not just another number. We spend a lot of our time discussing what the client wants, then of course time making the bunting. If we don’t have a specific fabric in stock, we will then go out and source it. It is us providing a completely bespoke service to our clients.

Where do you retail your bunting?

Our clients are all over the UK, and through online shops have sold to the USA, we can post our items anywhere! The majority of orders come directly to me, but we have sold via online shops such as ETSY and Ebay.

  

You can visit Emma's website, find her on Facebook  and follow her on Twitter. With vintage styled weddings here to stay bunting is ideal for decorating your venue or garden so why not make yours one of a kind?

Wine Glass Charms

It can sometimes be difficult to find gifts for people that are a little out of the ordinary.  Mrs LG is often being asked for ideas ......

Its always lovely to be invited to guest blog & I hope we can show you a few different options for your bridal wedding gifts.

Firstly, I guess we better start with what we do best! Wine Glass Charms...not everyone knows what they are or what to do with them so quite simply they are charms for wine glasses. If you've ever been to dinner party where the host was using them, you'll remember straight away! They're brilliant for providing a talking point, not to mention having the added benefits of identifying everyone's glass. You can do this by colour, design or dropper....endless possibilities. I'm very lucky to have a lovely spacious kitchen/diner so when we have guests over, we eat & entertain in the same room. My wine glass charms are all black & crystal clear as my decor is black, white & silver. I have each charm slightly differently designed so each guests glass has its own identity and my decor is complemented whether we're standing around nattering or seated at the table. Mr WGC & I use them even if its just us having a cheeky glass on a Friday evening.....they just add a touch of twinkly sparkle to the glass and lets face it, there's always room for something that makes you smile!

Solitaire

Enchanted

When choosing wine glass charms for your bride & groom, you can pick a colour to complement their home decor or you can go with a design thats differently coloured and suits their style. Either way, you know you're giving a gift that's unique, personally chosen & an everyday reminder to the couple of their magical day.

We also have a range of gifts for the bridal party, all individually made using Crystallized Swarovski Elements.

For the bride, we have beautiful 'Something Blue' heart charms. They arrive with an organza ribbon in ivory or blue, whichever you prefer, & have so many uses. We have brides who have wrapped them around the stem of their bouquet, had them woven into their hair & even had the ribbon replaced with a chain to wear as a necklace....we can do this for you of course & even provide matching earrings!. Another option is to remove the ribbon & stitch the charm to the brides garter....all you need is imagination!

Something Blue

Something Blue on a bouquet

   

The heart charms are also available in other colours so a bride may wish to choose different keepsake charms for her female bridal guests.....something unique for bridesmaids....they're beautiful hung where the light will catch the facets & send twinkles all round the room.

We also stock a range of bookmarks which make beautiful gifts for everyone. We always have Swarovski Hearts & Flowers & have limited edition ranges of various other Swarovski Charms. They all come gift boxed & we can add a personal card if you wish. There's also a collection of very reasonably priced mobile charms & bookmarks with different Tibetan silver droppers set below Swarovski crystals in the colour of choice.

Page Marker Bookmarks

About Sunshine & Daisies

We love wine glass charms…we love making them, we love selling them, we love seeing our clients pictures & comments about how much they love them…quite simply…that’s what we do! We only use Swarovski crystals because we believe they are the best for sparkle & pzazz & that’s exactly what you deserve. All our collections are available in ‘off the peg’ designs from the website & we ship superfast!

Bedazzled

Come & have a look at the Wine Glass Charms website 

We love chatting via email to hello@wineglasscharms.co.uk, on the phone at 0845 45 900 28

Why not follow us on Twitter?

Come and 'Like' us on Facebook!

So do get in touch if you have anything specific you would like to discuss or to just let us know what you think!

Thanks very much Miki, I know Mrs LG will wholeheartedly agree with you regarding using only Swarovski crystals for the best sparkle!