The wedding cake is an important element at any reception. It serves as a centrepiece on the big day, and is often one of the most spoken-about things (along with the bride’s gown and the décor!) at the wedding. As hard to believe as it may be, though, some people don’t enjoy cake. We’ve found some alternative options for those who aren’t a fan of this soft, baked dessert, or for any couple who wants to try something different.
1. Croquembouche Wedding Cake
Croquembouche is a French dessert made up of choux pastry puffs. It usually forms a cone-like shape and is strewn with strings of caramel. There are many variations, including chocolate, sugar-coated, or fruit-topped.
2. Pancake/Crêpe Wedding Cake
Sounds odd, right? But for all the pancake and crêpe lovers out there, you can finally fulfill your fantasy and have a cake, made up of layers and layers of the thin flat cakes. They are stacked to form a ‘typical’ wedding cake shape. They can create a one-tiered ‘cake’ which at first glance looks like a normal cake. This is called Mille cake. The crêpes can however also be spread out and be made up of various sizes to have a multi-tiered wedding cake.
3. Doughnuts galore
Who doesn’t love a good doughnut? If you answered yes, you may want to look into a doughnut wedding cake. They come in all shapes and sizes. There are oversized one-tiered ones, doughnut-hole cakes and multi-tiered cake stands filled with normal doughnuts.
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4. Macaroon Wedding Cake
Layers of macaroons are stacked to give the illusion of a tiered cake. You can choose to have one colour, or many! The options are endless.
5. Cheese cake
Not cheesecake. This wedding cake is comprised of various cheeses – yes, you read that correctly. It’s a savoury-lover’s dream!
6. Pies, pies and more pies
You can go sweet or savory with this one. Have them on different layers to create pie-tastic centerpiece.
7. Actual (little) cakes
You can have a wedding cake made up of cute cupcakes or, alternatively, have mini individual cakes for everyone! A dessert cup stand is a great idea too.
8. Cookie cake
Stack some cookies to create a wedding tower or have a giant cookie be your ‘cake’.
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Along with the excitement of a wedding comes all the events and parties that lead up to the big day. One of the most popular pre-wedding celebrations is…
The wedding is over. Now you can finally relax, right?
Nope! There is still one thing left to do – send out thank you cards. This may seem like a daunting task, but it has to be done. The general rule for sending out thank you cards after a wedding is that you have 3 months to do so, but try to do it as soon as possible.
Some tips for making this process as easy as possible:
- When opening gifts, keep a list of every gift received and who it was from. This will help you when you are actually writing the cards as you won’t have to rack your brain trying to remember who gave what.
- Keep a pen and your wedding stationery next to your bed so that you can write a few cards each night when you get into bed. This is better than writing them all at once as you want the cards to be as appreciative and sincere as possible which can be hard to maintain after you’ve already written 50 cards. It also takes the pressure off finding time to sit down and write them all.
A few things to include in the card: specify the gift that was received so that the card is personalised, write something personal about the giver, and comment on the joy that the gift will bring you.
The best tip I can give when writing a thank you card is: NEVER start with thank you. Start with any other sentence. If you start with thank you, you won’t know what to say next.
A great thank you card doesn’t have to be perfect, it just has to be done.
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Whether you are paying for the wedding yourselves or your parents are contributing, you will need to calculate how much money you have to spend. Once you have…
Although wedding favours are not compulsory, they are a great sentiment. It is recommended to give something that is either edible, reusable, or an item that is fun and functional to use at the wedding; this will reduce the risk of ‘wasted’ favours.
1. Anything that is edible (or drinkable)
Something yummy to eat or drink is a great favour as it will generally always be eaten.
2. Tea towels
You can have a romantic quote printed on the tea towel to personalise it slightly, but still make sure it is usable in every day life. Plus, you can never have too many tea towels, especially when it reminds you of a special day that you were a part of.
3. Personalised blankets
This is a great favour for a winter wedding. It can be used by guests at the wedding who can’t handle the cold and it’s always nice to have an extra blanket in the house, especially if it also warms your heart by reminding you of fond memories.
4. Sunscreen
The perfect favour for a summer wedding and easy to take home. Sunscreen can be cute, personalised and will definitely not go unused.
5. Flip flops
Recommended for a beach wedding, but also works for a summer wedding. Those in heels will thank you and the memories of your big day are sure to accompany those special to you on many adventures in future.
6. Luggage tags
A perfect favour for a destination wedding, your guest are sure to appreciate and cherish these gifts for years to come and they conveniently double up nicely as escort cards too.
7. Scented candles
Maybe it’s just us, but candles always seem to be forgotten as they are not a necessity but they are great to have in the home as they provide a nice atmosphere. The colour and scent of the candles can be matched to the wedding theme and are sure to used by your guests long after the big day.
8. Shawls
It is hard to find warm outerwear that goes with your formal dress – a shawl is the answer. This may be less suited to your male guests but you can always prepare a separate option for the gentlemen attending your special day.
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Let’s be honest, we all know a few. Wedding superstitions have been around for centuries. The question is, do you believe in them? Not seeing your loved one…
Diversity unites us. We are no longer confined to people from our own creed, culture or nationality. Perhaps once upon a time, it was frowned upon to marry across cultures, and couples would have to convert or choose one culture or the other. But in this day and age, it’s not unusual for people from different backgrounds to tie the knot.
Anjuli Nanda and her husband Charlie Diamond are the picture-perfect example of two cultures merging. They had two weddings: a traditional Indian wedding, and a traditional British one, both which took place over one weekend.
Two separate weddings obviously means two different dresses! On the Friday wedding, which was a traditional Indian ceremony, the beautiful bride wore a striking red lehenga, a type of full-length skirt that is embroidered and pleated, designed by Nepalese-American fashion designer, Prabal Gurung. Anjuli chose the lehenga not only because it is traditional wedding attire, but to pay tribute to her late mother.
The colour red is highly symbolic in Indian weddings, representing life, love, passion, prosperity and fertility. The bold colour also compliments various complexions, and the bride is always guaranteed to stand out. Anjuli’s lehenga was filled with detail and meaning. The skirt consisted of eight panels, each with patterns that represented meaningful moments in the couple’s relationship.
Anjuli was also bedecked with jewellery for the wedding. Her wrists were stacked with red bangles, along with a few of her mother’s gold ones, and her necklaces and one set of earrings were designed by Anita Dongre. The glowing bride also donned a pair of Marlo Laz earrings designed by her friend and bridesmaid, Jesse Lazowski.
The big day consisted of various traditional Indian wedding customs, including the Baraat – the groom’s procession to the ceremony on horseback. Arriving on a decorated horse, the groom is then welcomed by the bride’s family and garlands are exchanged. Anjuli and Charlie’s ceremony was also conducted by a Hindu priest and performed under a traditional mandap. After the ceremony, the couple and guests indulged in cocktails along with an Indian buffet.
For the British wedding on the Saturday the next day, the bride wore a white Westwood Couture gown from Vivienne Westwood with a perfectly-fitted corset. In keeping with English tradition, Anjuli had Something old, new, borrowed and blue – her great-grandmother’s gold wedding band (“something old”), Marlo Laz tanzanite and diamond ring (“something new”), her mother-in-law’s earrings, bracelets, and trinity ring (“something borrowed”), and her mother’s sapphire and diamond pinky ring (“something blue”).
This time, the ceremony was conducted by the dashing groom’s friend, and Charlie’s sister and Anjuli’s maid of honour each did a reading. The happy couple wrote their own vows. After the ceremony, everyone enjoyed famously British pastimes such as badminton and croquet set up on the lawn, followed by the wedding reception.
So what’s better than one wedding? Two, of course! For Anjuli Nanda and Charlie Diamond, this was a dream come true.
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