Your Berks, Bucks and Oxon Wedding news and ideas from around the county

Overwhelmed planning a wedding? A leading wedding planner shares top tips

Matthew Shaw, a leading wedding and events planner and founder of sauveur. - a superb events and creative studio - is here to reveal his Top Tips to help you plan and feel calm, confident and importantly, excited for the big day. ASK FOR HELP: I would always advise considering if you would like to engage a planner at the beginning of the process. They are true experts in their field and will help organise, inspire, and de-stress the process for you. There are planners available for varying wedding budgets so do reach out and request more information.

Weddings Wrapped 2023 - wedding special

With Spotify Wrapped 2023 having just dropped, Encore Musicians, the UK's largest musician bookings platform has analysed 2,300 song requests by newlyweds to see the most requested songs and artists for weddings in 2023. They also surveyed 1,000 of its customers and musicians to discover the UK's favourite and least favourite songs to hear at weddings. Although Ed Sheeran's "Perfect" ranked as the most common song for first dances, it also ranked as the second least popular song to hear at weddings with one in seven ranking it as their least favourite.

Could you have to pay inheritance tax on a wedding gift?

Before the big day comes around, whether you are a guest giving a present or contributing to the cost of the honeymoon, or perhaps a relative considering helping towards the cost of the wedding itself, you ought to consider the inheritance tax implications of making such gifts. James Mabey, partner at law firm Winckworth Sherwood advises on the inheritance tax implications of wedding gifts. In the UK, if you die within seven years of making a gift, inheritance tax may be payable on the value of the gift after your death. This is because gifts are considered to be part of your estate for inheritance tax purposes.

Introducing The Salford Cottage at The Black Horse

The Salford Cottage at The Black Horse near Chipping Norton in Oxfordshire has welcomed its first guests. The new Cotswolds pub group, Lionheart Group, opened the doors of this new venue, just outside of Chipping Norton, and has undergone extensive refurbishment to reinstate this precious asset at the heart of the community. The kitchen will serve all-day lunches, pub classics and a relaxed dinner menu set around the grill and rotisserie - sourced within 20 miles where possible. The Salford Cottage, a stylish bedroom suite, will host overnight guests in this enviable village location. The opening is the first of a pipeline of new openings for Lionhearth Group over the next 12 months.

Propress launches the MINI Clothes Steamer - perfecting for wedding dresses!

Professional and long-established British fabric steamer manufacturer, Propress, has unveiled the Propress MINI Handheld Clothes Steamer. A revolutionary product that combines over 40 years of steaming expertise with cutting-edge technology, the MINI allows users to say goodbye to the days of wrestling with an ironing board and hello to the future of garment care with beautifully crease-free clothes, whether at home, in the office, or on-the-go.

The Propress Mini Handheld Clothes Steamer (£110) is available in Arctic Grey, Idol Blue or Vintage Pink from the Propress website. It heats up in under a minute offering the convenience of crease-free clothes with a simple touch of a button. Its efficiency and ease of use make it a must-have for every fashion-savvy individual, plus it is versatile enough to treat various home fabrics from curtains to bedding, and is ideal for weddings or even hoteliers.

De Vere Wokefield Estate wins Gold Green Tourism award

De Vere Wokefield Estate, a mansion house hotel near Reading, has been awarded gold accreditation in the Green Tourism Certification Programme, which recognises the commitment of tourism businesses which are actively working to become more sustainable. De Vere Wokefield Estate focuses on three key pillars to help improve sustainability, which include its day-to-day operations, the people at the heart of its community, and its valued supply chain. De Vere Wokefield Estate is proud to now use 100% renewable energy and relies on the combination of biomass, wind, hydro and solar, to power the hotel. Earlier this year De Vere Wokefield Estate also unveiled new electric vehicle charging points, available for guests to use during their stay.

Winter wedding inspiration from leading wedding planner

Matthew Shaw, founder & creative director at sauveur. shares his winter wedding inspiration for those looking to tie the knot at this time of year. Winter weddings have grown hugely in popularity. The festive season can be a truly magical time of year to host a wedding and stand out from the crowd but it does bring its own set of considerations for the planning. Whilst the key areas of your wedding planning will be the same as a wedding in any other month, there are a few different elements to consider to create an incredible winter wedding celebration.

How to kick-start your wedding planning

Samantha Gilchrist, Co-Founder and CEO of the UK's largest wedding venue collection, The Gilchrist Collection, shares her top tips on how to kick-start your wedding plans, taking away any unnecessary stress and disappointment in preparation for that special day. Set a Date - possibly the most important aspect of planning as getting this date in the diary will allow you to move forward with your plans. When choosing a date, it's worth carrying out a simple checklist to help you nail that day down such as: Think if there is a time of year you both always wanted to get married in? A season you both love or a month that is special to you is a great starting point.

5 unique winter wedding trends for 2023

From décor inspired by the season's natural beauty to creative ways to keep your guests warm, wedding supply experts Aura Print have searched TikTok to bring you the top five quirky winter wedding trends for 2023.While traditional wedding fayre often includes champagne toasts and wine, a hot chocolate bar offers a warm, decadent, and customisable alternative for the colder months. As the evening progresses and temperatures drop, guests can enjoy a sweet treat to keep them going on the dance floor. For younger guests or for those who don't drink alcohol, a hot chocolate bar also provides a great non-alcoholic option. With over 112.7 million TikTok hashtag views, the hot chocolate wedding bar trend is set to take the winter wedding season by storm!

A more sustainable, ethical, and zero-waste approach to weddings

Reports suggest that 4,910 tonnes of unrecyclable plastic was used up and left behind at British weddings last year, with this in mind, 77 Diamonds has released a planning guide to promote a more sustainable, ethical, and zero-waste approach to weddings. Individually, one wedding can produce as much as 20kg of plastic waste. What's more, the black bags used to collect the rubbish are themselves potentially harmful. They can take as many as 90 years to break down under the ground. But it's not just plastic which has an impact. Food wastage is also a common theme for most weddings.

Find County Wedding Magazines on YouTube

We're never satisfied when it comes to providing our readers with enough wedspiration, which is why we've created our very own County Wedding Magazine YouTube channel! You'll find tons of big-day ideas, from venue tours to dream dresses, then take a peek behind the scenes of styled shoots featured in our titles past and present. We're adding more content all the time, so why not hit SUBSCRIBE so you never miss a thing? Simply head to YouTube and search for 'County Wedding Magazines' now

Horwood House launches Stylish Sleepovers with Their Nibs pyjamas

'Tis the season to cosy up in your pyjamas and watch a film, with a glass of something sparkly on the sofa, and now you can do this in the luxury of a country house hotel, with your best friends and loved ones. Luxury Buckinghamshire-based Horwood House has launched an exclusive collaboration with beautiful nightwear brand, Their Nibs, to offer their new 'Stylish Sleepover' package. From now until the 31st March of 2024, guests can enjoy a truly magical night away in the countryside. Get some much-needed me-time in the UK's most comfortable pyjamas! This new permanent package includes an overnight B&B stay, a pair of PJ's to keep, a bottle of prosecco, in room bites, spa access and express treatments.

AI creates the ultimate first dance song

There are over 217,000 first dances in the UK every year (1,950,000 in the US) yet couples usually pick the same handful of songs. Have you ever wondered why tracks like Etta James' At Last and Just You And I by Tom Walker are so popular at weddings? And what makes them so timeless? Function Central, a platform for finding and hiring musicians and bands for events, have answered exactly that! By analysing the most popular first dance songs to find the top 10 that couples choose, they have used AI to create the world's ultimate first dance song based on their findings, showing couples that they can have a timeless first dance song that is unique to their wedding.

Sutton Hotel Collection offers Black Friday deals

The Sutton Hotel Collection which includes The Castle Hotel Windsor in Berkshire has announced Black Friday deals. The Sutton Hotel Collection represents three boutique hotels residing in the heart of some of England's best-loved towns and cities where guests will be welcomed warmly, served delicious food and create captivating memories that last a lifetime. This Black Friday, guests can enjoy a luxurious stay at either The Francis Hotel Bath, The Queens Hotel Cheltenham or The Castle Hotel Windsor at unmissable discounts. For those seeking a quintessentially British experience, The Castle Hotel Windsor offers a boutique gem dating back to 1528 and invites guests to relive history in its 108 uniquely appointed rooms. Positioned opposite Windsor Castle and the Windsor and Royal Borough Museum, it's a prime location for an enchanting escape.

How to make your engagement ring shine for wedding day

Between shampoo, hairspray, moisturiser and hand cream – we can all agree that our beautiful engagement rings go through a lot on a daily basis. After all, many of us wear them every day without ever taking them off! But if your big day is just around the corner, it's crucial to keep your ring looking its best for those all-important wedding photos and to ensure your nearest and dearest see it in all its glory. With this in mind, experts at family-owned jewellers and diamond merchants, Chisholm Hunter, offer their specialist advice on how to get your ring gleaming before your big day... Max Brown, Retail Director at Chisholm Hunter, shares their top tips for ensuring your engagement ring is sparkling ahead of your wedding day: "If you want your precious jewellery to look its best on the big day, we recommend taking your ring to a professional jewellers for both ultrasonic and steam cleaning and using fine emery paper followed by a full polish to remove any surface scratching.

Venues for the perfect autumnal ceremony

New research conducted by ethical jewellery brand Sacet has revealed the top country wedding venues across the UK that would make the perfect location for an autumnal ceremony. By analysing a number of factors (including guest capacity, number of reviews, professionalism, quality of service and value for money) of over 30 wedding venues that offer barn, country and forest-style weddings in the UK, the top 10 were revealed. Brinsop Court Manor House and Barn, in Hereford, has been crowned the overall winner, with top ratings across all factors (quality of service, response time, professionalism, value for money flexibility and average rating). It also had the most number of reviews and can hold between 30 to 250 guests.

Enjoy the festive season with alcohol-free samples at Westgate, Oxford

Whether you're new to the world of alcohol-free alternatives or a connoisseur of the brands you know and love, House of 0.0% is offering you the chance to try their drinks this festive season at select locations up and down the country, kicking off with Westgate, Oxford on the 18th November. The festive season is known for being a sociable time so House of 0.0% are offering new ways to enjoy the season, with the chance to sample the range and find new favourites that you can bring to any occasion. Whether it's the familiar flavours of Tanqueray, the exceptional botanicals found in Seedlip or the juniper accents of Gordon's or Captain Morgan, there's a House of 0.0% product tailored to your preferences.

Are these popular 2023 wedding song cursed?

Research from wedding entertainment providers Function Central shows couples are taking risks choosing songs for their weddings with shockingly high divorce rates. Function Central used existing data on the songs most likely to end in divorce to see whether couples were still taking risks by adding these songs to their upcoming nuptials. This data was then cross-referenced against existing wedding playlists of engaged couples to see whether couples were still choosing these songs for their weddings. The results were concerning for any superstitious couples worried about whether certain tracks were deemed bad luck for long lasting marriages.

Love & Loved Bridal and Eden Keshia announce three-week residency

Buckinghamshire-based Love and Loved Bridal and Eden Keshia are excited to announce a three-week residency from the 17th of November until the 9th of December 2023. Fashion-conscious, vintage-loving eco-brides can shop a carefully curated edit of the Heirloom Collection. Love & Loved will also have exclusive access to favourite pieces from Eden's made-to-order Stellify Collection. The collaboration between Eden Keshia and Love & Loved Bridal is a match made in heaven, each with a vision to bring contemporary wedding wear to brides seeking originality and sustainable, luxury bridal fashion. Love & Loved Bridal houses some of the best British, indie bridal labels, each with their own distinct style and are proud to support brands that operate with purpose.

5 reasons couples fail at sticking to their wedding budget

With the cost of living on everyone's minds, budget expert Isabel Smith, offers some insight into how couples can set (and stick to!) their wedding budget. The number of couples who are going overbudget on their wedding is dropping, from around 2/3 in 2018 to somewhere around 50% this year. This may be due to savvier couples setting more realistic budgets, or people simply refusing spend a penny more than planned owing to future financial uncertainty, but either way, I am all for it! I've never been an advocate for getting in debt over your big day, no matter how special you want it to be.